College Recruiting. Is Softball doing it wrong?

[Westwind]

I always knew that men’s sports commit later than women’s.

I saw today that Iowa State basketball just committed its first 2020. He is a 6’5” point guard from Georgia that had offers from Georgia Tech and Mississippi State. It says in the article that the Iowa State Coach has recruited numerous point guards that went on to play in the NBA so this guy is apparently a top prospect.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say Iowa State softball hasn’t been looking at 20’s for quite some time.

Are we doing it wrong?

Do the men endure what has become a 3-4 year test of endurance and financial stress?

Even with the new recruiting rules we are all falling all over ourselves to get our dd’s committed on September 1, junior year. If you are a ‘20 and haven’t yet been committed, good luck. We willingly participate in a rat race that requires us not only to take younger kids to Colorado, Huntington Beach and Atlanta at minimum every summer, but now if you don’t play 4 MAJOR exposure tournaments IN THE FALL you feel like you can’t compete. The fall is starting to look like a summer season. And we all know that the d1’s cant come on Friday and you probably won’t see them on Sunday. One game on Saturday? Thank you Mr. Tournament Director. Can I pay for an extra game and maybe play it on Saturday?

So the only way this can be done is to pay $3,000 dues or play for a org that hosts its own “exposure tournaments” to feed this beast. The orgs then agree to attend each other’s tournaments in order to make it happen. So we add another weekend of travel here and there. It snowballs. You gotta still play triple crown so you get in the power pools at the good fields in Colorado. So there are more weekends of travel and $900 tournament fees. You gotta qualify for Huntington Beach.

Are we the parents enabling this craziness? What is driving it? The college coaches sure don’t seem to care. They expect you to be there. They expect you to be at their $200 camps mid week between the weekends you are in Chattanooga one week and Kansa City the next (making those up but you get the idea). They expect you to be hitting every day, strength training, getting 4.0 grades and oh “we love multi sport athletes”. Sure thing coach! Easy Peasy!

Even after the commitment process, official or unofficial, you can’t let up. The college coaches expect you to be playing top competition.

The tournament directors don’t care. “Sorry the NCAA created a calendar that means they can’t recruit in fall anywhere but warm climates. Maybe you could get a credit card, build up points and fly. Good luck with that. That will be $900, please. Make sure you are staying in our hotels.”

The travel orgs don’t care. “Oh you can’t afford this? Don’t want to make your entire life about softball? NBD, it’s your future you are throwing away. “

I’m sure that the men’s side is far from easy but it seems like we as parents have bought into some stuff that puts everyone but the players in the drivers seat. Are we the suckers in this deal?

 

[_MIA_]

Kid's in basketball are playing in AAU tournaments all over the country when they are in the 6th grade. Girl down the street is in 7th grade and has already received a few letters from D1 schools. Not sure it is that much different in basketball, for boys or girls, than it is in softball.

 

[Tatonka]

I always knew that men’s sports commit later than women’s.

I saw today that Iowa State basketball just committed its first 2020. He is a 6’5” point guard from Georgia that had offers from Georgia Tech and Mississippi State. It says in the article that the Iowa State Coach has recruited numerous point guards that went on to play in the NBA so this guy is apparently a top prospect.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say Iowa State softball hasn’t been looking at 20’s for quite some time.

Are we doing it wrong?

Do the men endure what has become a 3-4 year test of endurance and financial stress?

Even with the new recruiting rules we are all falling all over ourselves to get our dd’s committed on September 1, junior year. If you are a ‘20 and haven’t yet been committed, good luck. We willingly participate in a rat race that requires us not only to take younger kids to Colorado, Huntington Beach and Atlanta at minimum every summer, but now if you don’t play 4 MAJOR exposure tournaments IN THE FALL you feel like you can’t compete. The fall is starting to look like a summer season. And we all know that the d1’s cant come on Friday and you probably won’t see them on Sunday. One game on Saturday? Thank you Mr. Tournament Director. Can I pay for an extra game and maybe play it on Saturday?

So the only way this can be done is to pay $3,000 dues or play for a org that hosts its own “exposure tournaments” to feed this beast. The orgs then agree to attend each other’s tournaments in order to make it happen. So we add another weekend of travel here and there. It snowballs. You gotta still play triple crown so you get the good fields in Colorado. So there are more weekends of travel and $900 tournament fees. You gotta qualify for Huntington Beach.

Are we the parents enabling this craziness? What is driving it? The college coaches sure don’t seem to care. They expect you to be there. They expect you to be at their $200 camps mid week between the weekends you are in Chattanooga one week and Kansa City the next (making those up but you get the idea). They expect you to be hitting every day, strength training, getting 4.0 grades and oh “we love multi sport athletes”. Sure thing coach! Easy Peasy!

Even after the commitment process, official or unofficial, you can’t let up. The college coaches expect you to be playing top competition.

The tournament directors don’t care. “Sorry the NCAA created a calendar that means they can’t recruit in fall anywhere but warm climates. Maybe you could get a credit card, build up points and fly. Good luck with that. That will be $900, please. Make sure you are staying in our hotels.”

The travel orgs don’t care. “Oh you can’t afford this? Don’t want to make your entire life about softball? NBD, it’s your future you are throwing away. “

I’m sure that the men’s side isn’t is far from easy but it seems like we as parents have bought into some stuff that puts everyone but the players in the drivers seat. Are we the suckers in this deal?

Nothing extra to add except maybe a bit about having the good fortune to live in or be able to afford to fly your kid out to practice and play with a team in one of the "hotbed" states for softball. Well written piece Westwind... the recruiting stuff is out of control and out of touch with most people's version of reality IMHO.

 

[Westwind]

Kid's in basketball are playing in AAU tournaments all over the country when they are in the 6th grade. Girl down the street is in 7th grade and has already received a few letters from D1 schools. Not sure it is that much different in basketball, for boys or girls, than it is in softball.

It probably isn’t much different.

Yet if you are an uncommitted top softball recruit that is a senior, you probably aren’t a top softball recruit, right?

Or, if a top softball recruit held out until senior year, would she run the possibility of missing out on getting a good choice of schools?

Even if this isn’t true, who has the guts to play that game?

What is the difference, how did we get here?

 

[_MIA_]

It probably isn’t much different.

Yet if you are an uncommitted top softball recruit that is a senior, you probably aren’t a top softball recruit, right?

If a top softball recruit held out until senior year, would she run the possibility of missing out on getting a good choice of schools?

Even if this isn’t true, who has the guts to play that game?

What is the difference, how did we get here?

On the flip side, knowing where you will be playing in your senior year might make it a little more enjoyable, no?

 

[marriard]

I always knew that men’s sports commit later than women’s.

I saw today that Iowa State basketball just committed its first 2020. He is a 6’5” point guard from Georgia that had offers from Georgia Tech and Mississippi State. It says in the article that the Iowa State Coach has recruited numerous point guards that went on to play in the NBA so this guy is apparently a top prospect.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say Iowa State softball hasn’t been looking at 20’s for quite some time.

Are we doing it wrong?

Do the men endure what has become a 3-4 year test of endurance and financial stress?

Even with the new recruiting rules we are all falling all over ourselves to get our dd’s committed on September 1, junior year. If you are a ‘20 and haven’t yet been committed, good luck. We willingly participate in a rat race that requires us not only to take younger kids to Colorado, Huntington Beach and Atlanta at minimum every summer, but now if you don’t play 4 MAJOR exposure tournaments IN THE FALL you feel like you can’t compete.

Are we the parents enabling this craziness? What is driving it?

Although you can't directly compare men's basketball and football recruiting to any other college sport. Player commit/de-commit/change their minds/reclassify/etc/etc all the time and often publicly. Also we are talking all or nothing scholarships - there are no % deals. That is a big deal - you either have a full ride or nothing - no in between.

So for softball.... in the end most parents and families play it wrong. There are plenty - if not most - of D1's still looking for the right fit for their 2020's and will be looking right up to next August plus they will have at least a spot or two available for JUCO transfer. Junior commits just don't help next year when you have a huge gap in your lineup and your job is on the line. If you want to see college coaches go nuts - have a look for the ones looking at 2020 seniors this fall and next summer. While some schools will say they are 'done' with 2020's that is often not true. Or "We will be done, so here is an offer take it before I give it to someone else" is also a pressure tactic (because if one coach is willing to make you an offer there is absolutely plenty of others who will happily also do so).

But in the end, it is the parents are enabling it - because 'dream' of D1 or college scholarship or just being proud their cupcake achieved over someone on elses kid or panic their kid is going to miss out or... the lists go on. It is self-interest for the most part for their family which is 100% understandable.

And also because it they are not educated on the whole process since the majority of the families are going through it for the first time. Sites like this should be swarming with parents looking for info on recruiting but they are not - they are taking the advice of someone local who maybe does or maybe doesn't have the knowledge or is not necessarily 100% for your kid.

Parents are a disorganized group - so they are doing what they perceive is best for their kid. Coaches have rearranged the rules to benefit themselves for the most part versus the kids (beause they are an organized group so they can try to redirect money in their own direction or try to reel in their extreme members until they find a new loop hole). TD's are running their tourneys as they see fit and hold a lot of the keys as far as parents can see and so on...

 

[marriard]

It probably isn’t much different.

Yet if you are an uncommitted top softball recruit that is a senior, you probably aren’t a top softball recruit, right?

Or, if a top softball recruit held out until senior year, would she run the possibility of missing out on getting a good choice of schools?

Even if this isn’t true, who has the guts to play that game?

What is the difference, how did we get here?

So think Meaghan King or Barnhill. Both choose their school in the summer of their senior season. That effected a lot of very, very good players at both schools. If you are truly THAT good, no - there will be plenty of schools for you. Or Ivy league which can't officially commit you until you pass admissions in December of your senior year. And so on... A lot of recruits never get to their committed school for a huge variety of reasons - and many don't make it past fall training. I have already seen 1 kid return to Florida this year and school has only been open a month.

How many transfers were there this season? There were a lot - that is money these programs had to bring in players that can go to either freshman OR transfers - the NCAA doesn't differentiate between incoming players in terms of offers.

Sure - a coach may move on to another player if you wait too long for a different offer or you seem like you are waiting for an offer from another school you like more (who likes to be second choice) and maybe at that particular school you may have missed that opportunity - but if a P5 school is offering you a scholarship, then so will other similar level schools. Same at every other level.

 

[_MIA_]

But in the end, it is the parents are enabling it - because 'dream' of D1 or college scholarship or just being proud their cupcake achieved over someone on elses kid or panic their kid is going to miss out or... the lists go on. It is self-interest for the most part for their family which is 100% understandable.

This with the slight modification that in a lot of cases it is " is self-interest for the most part for the parents"
My wife follows a bunch of softball parents on FB and see what their posting patterns are. They only post when their kid wins a tournament, they only post selected swings from their hitting lessons but never anything from a game, etc., etc. They want to be congratulated for how wonderful their little Suzy is..

 

[Greatdaytobeawildcat]

So think Meaghan King or Barnhill. Both choose their school in the summer of their senior season. That effected a lot of very, very good players at both schools. If you are truly THAT good, no - there will be plenty of schools for you. Or Ivy league which can't officially commit you until you pass admissions in December of your senior year.

Not sure this is true (or maybe the qualifying word “officially” is what makes it true)...my nephew (a 2020, 6’3” lefty pitcher) committed to an ivy at end of August.

 

[The Man In Blue]

To Westwind’s OP ...


Yes.