At a crossroad

[CrazyNani]

The "journey"??? Oh, please. That is so trite. Is it even a 10 year old's, or a 14yr old's journey for that matter? Or is it the parent's journey, or the coach's or the organization's? If it's true that a small handful of these girls really have any chance of playing in college, okay, travel girls specifically, why must the other 95% need to be traipsing all over the country or even within their own state? If it's true that communication must be happening continuously with college coaches, why must these other 95% be traveling to showcases, especially the 14u who are not nearly on the coach's radars? That's the point I'm trying to make. Perhaps the really elite girls can form regional teams and they can go to Colorado, or Tulsa, or Huntington Beach. Let the rest go to skills camps and private lessons and stay closer to home until they are ready or even able to undertake the "journey" and their families aren't expending the time and money on a pipe dream before then. Now, you will say, it's the family's choice and that is fine. But leading them on with promises of college coaches being at showcases is disingenuous at best. You know they are there to see the kid that has already been in direct contact and has proven, elite skills. The rest of the girls just fill out the team and provide the vehicle for these elite girls to play. If I am wrong about this, just tell me. But show me one team at a showcase, where every girl ended up playing in college, at any level. I mean, it isn't too far fetched to have paid fifty thousand dollars or more, supporting the structure of a 10 year travel ball career. That would pay for a lot of college, so how is a family coming out ahead when their daughter maybe ends up with at best, a partial scholarship and ends up on the bench anyway? I just don't get it. I know too, some will say they need to play the best competition in order to prove themselves. Who is the best competition and how many teams get to play them?

 

[_MIA_]

To be clear, I have no disdain for any form of softball.

The "journey"??? Oh, please. That is so trite. Is it even a 10 year old's, or a 14yr old's journey for that matter? Or is it the parent's journey, or the coach's or the organization's? If it's true that a small handful of these girls really have any chance of playing in college, okay, travel girls specifically, why must the other 95% need to be traipsing all over the country or even within their own state? If it's true that communication must be happening continuously with college coaches, why must these other 95% be traveling to showcases, especially the 14u who are not nearly on the coach's radars? That's the point I'm trying to make. Perhaps the really elite girls can form regional teams and they can go to Colorado, or Tulsa, or Huntington Beach. Let the rest go to skills camps and private lessons and stay closer to home until they are ready or even able to undertake the "journey" and their families aren't expending the time and money on a pipe dream before then. Now, you will say, it's the family's choice and that is fine. But leading them on with promises of college coaches being at showcases is disingenuous at best. You know they are there to see the kid that has already been in direct contact and has proven, elite skills. The rest of the girls just fill out the team and provide the vehicle for these elite girls to play. If I am wrong about this, just tell me. But show me one team at a showcase, where every girl ended up playing in college, at any level. I mean, it isn't too far fetched to have paid fifty thousand dollars or more, supporting the structure of a 10 year travel ball career. That would pay for a lot of college, so how is a family coming out ahead when their daughter maybe ends up with at best, a partial scholarship and ends up on the bench anyway? I just don't get it. I know too, some will say they need to play the best competition in order to prove themselves. Who is the best competition and how many teams get to play them?

 

[CrazyNani]

Oh, you're right. I did say that, didn't I? I think you might agree with some of what I said though, since I'm just questioning the motivations of the organizations, parents, coaches. Make it make sense then. I just happen to think the purity and enjoyment of the game is compromised by the motivations of those who aren't actually playing.

 

[_MIA_]

Oh, you're right. I did say that, didn't I? I think you might agree with some of what I said though, since I'm just questioning the motivations of the organizations, parents, coaches. Make it make sense then. I just happen to think the purity and enjoyment of the game is compromised by the motivations of those who aren't actually playing.

Nothing is perfect. There are bad parents, bad coaches and bad organizations. That said one of the nice things about TB is that you are free
to go find a better situation which better suits your child.. There are plenty of teams/orgs around here in OK which don't travel outside of the State at any age. One thing that many don't understand is that parents need to educate themselves if they want to make
smart decisions when it comes to their child and youth sports in the 21st century..Saying "I didn't know" is a poor excuse when there is
so much information out there (about everything..)

 

[JayW]

The "journey"??? Oh, please. That is so trite. Is it even a 10 year old's, or a 14yr old's journey for that matter? Or is it the parent's journey, or the coach's or the organization's? If it's true that a small handful of these girls really have any chance of playing in college, okay, travel girls specifically, why must the other 95% need to be traipsing all over the country or even within their own state? If it's true that communication must be happening continuously with college coaches, why must these other 95% be traveling to showcases, especially the 14u who are not nearly on the coach's radars? That's the point I'm trying to make. Perhaps the really elite girls can form regional teams and they can go to Colorado, or Tulsa, or Huntington Beach. Let the rest go to skills camps and private lessons and stay closer to home until they are ready or even able to undertake the "journey" and their families aren't expending the time and money on a pipe dream before then. Now, you will say, it's the family's choice and that is fine. But leading them on with promises of college coaches being at showcases is disingenuous at best. You know they are there to see the kid that has already been in direct contact and has proven, elite skills. The rest of the girls just fill out the team and provide the vehicle for these elite girls to play. If I am wrong about this, just tell me. But show me one team at a showcase, where every girl ended up playing in college, at any level. I mean, it isn't too far fetched to have paid fifty thousand dollars or more, supporting the structure of a 10 year travel ball career. That would pay for a lot of college, so how is a family coming out ahead when their daughter maybe ends up with at best, a partial scholarship and ends up on the bench anyway? I just don't get it. I know too, some will say they need to play the best competition in order to prove themselves. Who is the best competition and how many teams get to play them?

It’s especially egregious when you consider there is no real professional softball. If your DD reaches the pinnacle as a P5 All American, the upside is graduate asst softball coach.

 

[_MIA_]

It’s especially egregious when you consider there is no real professional softball. If your DD reaches the pinnacle as a P5 All American, the upside is graduate asst softball coach.

If you look at it from a poor monetary perspective, very few will come out ahead by playing TB even if they receive a full ride (which we know rarely happens). That said there is more to life than money..The main question is how many kids will say they regret playing TB after it is all said and done (including those kids making peanuts as a Grad Assistant) because as @Jeannie is alluding to it is supposed to be about the kids right?

 

[YOCOACH]

That would pay for a lot of college, so how is a family coming out ahead when their daughter maybe ends up with at best, a partial scholarship and ends up on the bench ayway? I just don't get it. I know too, some will say they need to play the best competition in order to prove themselves. Who is the best competition and how many teams get to play them?

It has widely been acknowledged on this forum, as well as many others, I assume, since it's been more than often mentioned on my state's website of which I'm a SuperMod. And yes, it truly is a journey whether you think it may sound trite or not and it is both the player's and the family's. One needs the support of the family in order to achieve a child's dreams no matter what they are. As for the team that has all of their players recruited, you have to look no further than the Team USA Junior Olympics team, They are a true TB team that travels the world to compete; not just the continental U.S. They also spend much more than 50K a year, not over an entire TB career. Now you may say that they are the elite of the elite, but I would venture to say that many of the truly elite teams have a recruitment rate of 80% plus. Heck, my recruitment rate on my regional teams reach almost 50% and that's with maybe 30%+ of my players that have their only goal of playing on the HS varsity team. Instead of trying to knock down the TB world, come up with other solutions to get colleges to re-fund their college programs to the level the were back in the 70's and 80's; to the point where they had dozens of scouts to travel the country, watch the HS programs while colleges were in season simultaneously and searching for talent. Until you can get the entire country's college presidents on board with this, which will never happen because it would add 100's of thousands of dollars to their athletic budget, thus increasing tuition which they can't afford to do with the societal and government pressure to keep it down or even make it lower (and don't forget college professors also need to eat and put food on their tables for their families), I would suggest you start a small movement to make waves in your neck of the neighborhood to try and achieve your end goals. Who knows, it may even catch on.

As for the best teams, that is purely subjective. I've taken teams in the past to play Nationals and have done well. How many can compete at that level comes down to who is willing to try, who thinks they have a good enough team and who is willing to spend the money to get there and compete. I would agree that chasing across the country in hopes of a P5 Major D1 scholarsip is folly for many. That said, a more realistic coach such as myself can get them recruited, if that's what the players want, at a more local level. As for partial AS's, whether you realize it or not, it's not about the money for most players, it's about continuing to play the game of softball, which they love, as long as they can and playing in college continues that journey; no matter how "trite," that may sound. Thus, the smart coach tries to help thier players find the right fit. That means finding them a college they can not only afford to stay in if th AS is rescinded for whatever reason, but a school they would want to stay at and graduate from in their chosen career path even if it is.

 

[JayW]

It has widely been acknowledged on this forum, as well as many others, I assume, since it's been more than often mentioned on my state's website of which I'm a SuperMod. And yes, it truly is a journey whether you think it may sound trite or not and it is both the player's and the family's. One needs the support of the family in order to achieve a child's dreams no matter what they are. As for the team that has all of their players recruited, you have to look no further than the Team USA Junior Olympics team, They are a true TB team that travels the world to compete; not just the continental U.S. They also spend muc0h more than 50K a year. Now you may say that they are the elite of the elite, but I would Venture to say that many of the elite teams have a recruitment rate of 80% plus. Heck, my recruitment rate on my regional teams reach almost 50% and that's with maybe 30%+ with players that their only goal is playing on the HS varsity team. Instead of trying to knock down the TB world, come up with other solutions to get colleges to re-fund their college programs to the level the were back in the 70's and 80's: to the point where they had dozens of scouts to travel the country, watch the HS programs while colleges were in season simultaneously and searching for talent. Until you can get the entire country's college presiedents on board with this, which will never happen because it would add 100's of thousands of dollars to their athletic budget, thus increasing tuition which they can't afford to do with the societal and government pressure to keep it down or lower it, I would suggest you start a small movement to make waves in your neck of the neihborhood to try and achieve your end goals. Who knows, it may even catch on.

I think the point is what is the upside? A 1/4 scholarship at Saginaw State?

 

[radness]

Where do you put good players who haven't figured out their direction yet? Who makes the determination about what team a player is on?

My response~The players ability decides.
'For the individual player' they can compete up to their ability level.
As is in your example

The player's ability, according to whom? A former teammate of my DD was told by her TB team coaches (very experienced in the recruiting game) that she shouldn't pursue D1 colleges because she wasn't good enough to play at that level. She remained relentless in pursuing her goal, got multiple D1 offers, and is currently committed to play for a a D1 program.

Ultimately Ability is the deciding factor of level of play. ( regardless of gpa)

I guess if there was a perfect FP world teams would be more divided. A teams or gold teams theat everybody on that team is looking D1/P5 and then teams D2, Then teams with smart kids looking D3 and then NCIA headed teams and then Juco headed teams. I have watched some local NCIA games and the talent is good but far from great.

There are accelerated smart kids that play at D1 colleges also.

 

[YOCOACH]

I think the point is what is the upside? A 1/4 scholarship at Saginaw State?

Edited so read further