Overlap of level of play in NCAA divisions

[_MIA_]

My (admittedly a bit biased/jaded) view is go to the best academic school you can get into and afford. If you can play ball there great, otherwise unless you have a chance to make a living off of said sports playing college sports is overrated in the larger scheme of things.

 

[radness]

My view is go to the best academic school you can get into and afford. If you can play ball there great, otherwise unless you have a chance to make a living off of said sports playing college sports is overrated in the larger scheme of things.

unless of course the only reason you went to college was to play softball.

Generally I agree with what you said. With that, notice that for some reason a percentage of people don't reflect on the debt portion of their decision before making it .
Maybe it's parents that are affording that for their kids. Or the kid not recognizing what it's going to take and how long to pay it off.

 

[Orange Socks]

Finally!!!, they released the schedule for Madeira Beach. I will be checking the Massey ratings for all of DD's opponents even though I find them to be very flawed for mid majors.

Once the season gets to the half way point, the ratings start level off and start making sense. Your team could go 14-2 the first half but only play mediocre teams. Strength of Schedule helps with this. Lots of variables that change the rankings from one week to the next. It's all we have, but it's so awesome. Me and my buddy have weekly conversations about it since our DD's play in the same conference. ASC. IMO: one of the more competitive conferences.

 

[Vertigo]

unless of course the only reason you went to college was to play softball.

Generally I agree with what you said. With that, notice that for some reason a percentage of people don't reflect on the debt portion of their decision before making it .
Maybe it's parents that are affording that for their kids. Or the kid not recognizing what it's going to take and how long to pay it off.

As there is the “D1 or bust” crowd in softball, there is also the “prestigious college or bust” crowd, as well, no matter if the tuition is affordable or not to attend. Many high academic schools do not offer merit money.

 

[_MIA_]

unless of course the only reason you went to college was to play softball.

Generally I agree with what you said. With that, notice that for some reason a percentage of people don't reflect on the debt portion of their decision before making it .
Maybe it's parents that are affording that for their kids. Or the kid not recognizing what it's going to take and how long to pay it off.

Yeah, we walked around Smith and Amherst college when we were up in MA this past week just to give Marcela a feel for what a small college campus is about. My wallet kept falling out of my pocket for some reason..

 

[radness]

Yeah, we walked around Smith and Amherst college when we were up in MA this past week just to give Marcela a feel for what a small college campus is about. My wallet kept falling out of my pocket for some reason..

Did she share what she thought about the visit?

 

[_MIA_]

Did she share what she thought about the visit?

No but my 4 YO tripped and fell on his face at Amherst so I think he crossed that off his list..

 

[Orange Socks]

My (admittedly a bit biased/jaded) view is go to the best academic school you can get into and afford. If you can play ball there great, otherwise unless you have a chance to make a living off of said sports playing college sports is overrated in the larger scheme of things.

This is the right answer.

Once we started getting our bearings straight our criteria went like this.

• Highest academic school that had a softball program(Rice, SMU, TCU were out)
• Well regarded business program in Texas
• Make an impact on the field immediately
• Driving distance-Can we watch games in person and somewhat easy to come home if needed?
• Affordability
• Good chance of playing 4 years
• If she stopped playing, would she stay?
• For me-lack of a party/bar area--She can party, but she would have to work at it. Some schools you spill out of the classroom into the bars across the street.

Early on DD was looking at Boston U, Bucknell, Lehigh, Ivies, Little Ivies_Tufts, Hamilton, Williams, WashU, U Chicago, etc. A couple of things happened in the process that changed the course. Her ACT scores were at the lower acceptable levels for some of these school and others no problem. When looking at some of costs for the D1's, with a 50% scholly it would still not fit our budget. Also, when looking at taking weekend visits, the costs would be so expensive even with free flights. I didn't want her to go to the D1 mid majors in Texas where she would fit in skill wise, but the academics didn't match up. Cost would have been fine as well.

After speaking with some parents that were smarter than me and their kids were 3 years ahead, they knocked some sense into me and we added her current school to her list. Also, I bought 3 girls lunch so they could share their 1st year of college experience with DD to give her an idea what to expect. UPenn, UT-Dallas and Amherst. 3 very different and unique experiences academics, socially, softball, distance from home, costs, etc. 3 months later DD got her offer and now is one semester away from graduation.

Due your due diligence, talk to parents that are ahead of you in the journey, talk to the kids after their first year. Don't bother with the kids that haven't even got to campus yet. They have no idea what's in their future.

 

[_MIA_]

This is the right answer.

Once we started getting our bearings straight our criteria went like this.

• Highest academic school that had a softball program(Rice, SMU, TCU were out)
• Well regarded business program in Texas
• Make an impact on the field immediately
• Driving distance-Can we watch games in person and somewhat easy to come home if needed?
• Affordability
• Good chance of playing 4 years
• If she stopped playing, would she stay?
• For me-lack of a party/bar area--She can party, but she would have to work at it. Some schools you spill out of the classroom into the bars across the street.

Good list although the going to games component probably won’t be a concern for me..

 

[joe720]

One of the things i've noticed is a tiny percentage of players go to their "dream" school. A lot of the girls in my daughters org had much higher opinions of themselves than skill required to play there.

My DD went a different way. Softball was 4th on the list of priorities of where she finally decided to go.