Juco

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Mar 9, 2015
321
18
What are the pros and cons of going to a JUCO? Player on our team had a JUCO coach talk to her at a winter individual showcase and were asking for additional information.
 
Dec 2, 2013
3,410
113
Texas
Lot's of "just depends" situations to go through. There are some really solid Juco's around the country. Each one is different and of course the parents should conduct their due diligence. After 2 years, then what? What schools do these schools typically feed into? Are these schools that your player could ultimately play for? DD's former teammate is at riseball's DD's former Juco(purty dang good), which he can speak of. DD has a current team member who has signed to Cam Newton's old Juco that has a very good softball reputation for sending players to the next level. And she led our team in hitting in the fall. She got to the recruiting circuit a little late but could play at the D1 level. If she is not D1 level player then options will be many. If you look at a college roster you will see many CC/Juco transfers.

It could be a way to get 2 years of free or almost free education but it is not for everyone.
 

Cannonball

Ex "Expert"
Feb 25, 2009
4,854
113
Buyer beware! Do your homework! There are outstanding programs out there that will get your dd prepared both academically and athletically to go to the next level. Many are easy to recognize since they are always ranked and their reputation precedes them. Some players also benefit from the ability to mature some before they jump into that next level though, truth be told, there are some JUCO Programs that will knock your socks off and for them, the player had better arrive mature. Some players are not academically gifted and so, this route helps them have a different pathway to that full education.

Now the downside. There are some programs out there that are poorly funded and poorly run. Some JUCOs are an absolute joke. Of course you can say this about some 4 year school but then again, your dd would be in programs at 4 year schools that would get them that education. Some JUCO programs just don't do the work to get their players to that next level. My dd often played with a stud catcher when she guest played for a team. That player could have played pretty much anywhere and had the best throwing arm for a catcher I have seen. Academically, she couldn't cut it, didn't score well on her college entrance exam and so went to a JUCO to save her parents some money and get that ride later to a 4 year school. After one year of JUCO, she was done. She was mentally devastated at the way the team was run. She said HS was serious ball when compared to their college practices and she played at a poorly run HS program. She felt that she was falling behind with those she played summer ball with and finally gave up. She said that partying was the top priority and could not find anyone with her desire to get better on her team. It was sad to see her give up.

Of course, your mileage might vary but do your homework!
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
JUCO is a great route to have a LARGE portion of your DD's college education paid for via softball, assuming she performs at the JUCO level and moves on to bigger and better things her junior and senior season.
 

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