how do 9th & 10th graders verbal?

[CLM265]

Hard to believe that this could happen in softball. Soccer's Gatorade Player of the Year 12/13 with no college offers. Things worked out find in the end. Go Huskies! Something to be said about being on a top notch Travel team when it matters.

Cristian Roldan ‘something special’ for UW men’s soccer | Huskies | The Seattle Times

 

[GOINGDEEP]

Also travel to see your kid play is not cheap or can take a lot of time if you drive to save money. If the school is 40 minutes away well then!

I agree here. My 2 nephews went away for college ball, D2 ( about 4 hours away ) and D1 ( 17 hours away ). My brother spends a lot of time and A LOT of money watching the two. My DD chose the local college, it sure is nice and convenient to watch her play. The facility is about 5 miles from where I work............you can't beat that with a stick!!

 

[RICK]

My DDs school is 3 1/2 hrs away so going to watch will be tough. But I will do my best to watch s much as possible.

 

[Thirdn1]

I've been looking at these online verbal lists also and see verbals earlier and earlier. The more you look the more you wonder what is the truth with the verbal process. Are these girls really getting offers and are they substantial? It wouldn't seem to make sense for the college coach's to go on a limb this early. Looking at these sites if you are a sophomore and have interest in a top 50 program you have no shot. We all know people in softball are not forthcoming or completely truthful when it comes to scholarships and stats. I'm not taking shots at the parents. Everyone has a short window to enter a new world and find the best fit for their daughter athletically, academically, and financially.

 

[JAD]

I've been looking at these online verbal lists also and see verbals earlier and earlier. The more you look the more you wonder what is the truth with the verbal process. Are these girls really getting offers and are they substantial? It wouldn't seem to make sense for the college coach's to go on a limb this early. Looking at these sites if you are a sophomore and have interest in a top 50 program you have no shot. We all know people in softball are not forthcoming or completely truthful when it comes to scholarships and stats. I'm not taking shots at the parents. Everyone has a short window to enter a new world and find the best fit for their daughter athletically, academically, and financially.

In a perfect world, colleges would wait until the end of the players junior year to extend an offer, but girls mature earlier than boys, and there are only 12 scholarships to a D1 school. Therefore, there is "pressure" on the player/parents to commit early to avoid being "left out" when the game of "musical chairs" called recruiting is over. Since recruiting budgets for softball are small in comparison to the money generating sports (football and basketball), once a girl commits, other schools back off because they do not have the time or money to chase girls they do not have a good chance of signing.

 

[TheRogue]

Every college coach I've heard speak laments about how early the recruiting and verballing process starts.

And every one of them does it.

The NCAA will have to step in eventually. I don't know what that would look like, but it almost has to happen eventually. It was bad enough when it was just a stud pitcher that got verballed as a frosh....now there's position players at frosh or even 8th grade!! Insanity; how many girls have a clue what they want to do with their life at that age? And how many very good softball players as a first year 14U with tons of talent aren't even playing anymore by the time first year 16 rolls around?

It's really tough for the girls that mentally mature a bit later and realize that they have really no shot at playing at a lot of the places they really want to.

That being said....there's SO much money being made in our sport right now because of college recruiting, I don't see how it will change.

 

[Bouldersdad]

Every college coach I've heard speak laments about how early the recruiting and verballing process starts.

And every one of them does it.

Reading this made me think of a conversation we had with a coach on a visit when dd was in the recruiting stage. He commented on how he believed that early verballing cheapened the game and he diddnt care for it, then proceeded to pull out a folder and slide it across the table to us if youll verbal right now this is what we will pay.

On the car ride home thinking of the conversation it hit me how 2 entirely different views of a subject could be had that quickly and how the coaches feelings on the subject could be made by a yes or no answer.

After that conversation I really started to listen between the lines so to speak on what college coaches would say.


Tim

 

[Greenmonsters]

Every college coach I've heard speak laments about how early the recruiting and verballing process starts.

And every one of them does it.

Reading this made me think of a conversation we had with a coach on a visit when dd was in the recruiting stage. He commented on how he believed that early verballing cheapened the game and he diddnt care for it, then proceeded to pull out a folder and slide it across the table to us if youll verbal right now this is what we will pay.

On the car ride home thinking of the conversation it hit me how 2 entirely different views of a subject could be had that quickly and how the coaches feelings on the subject could be made by a yes or no answer.

After that conversation I really started to listen between the lines so to speak on what college coaches would say.


Tim

Buyer beware. And re persepctive - "minor" surgery is surgery performed on someone else.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

Reading this made me think of a conversation we had with a coach on a visit when dd was in the recruiting stage. He commented on how he believed that early verballing cheapened the game and he diddnt care for it, then proceeded to pull out a folder and slide it across the table to us if youll verbal right now this is what we will pay.
Did you know in advance what he was going to offer? If not, did he seriously pressure you into committing right then in order to get that offer? What grade was your DD at the time?

On the car ride home thinking of the conversation it hit me how 2 entirely different views of a subject could be had that quickly and how the coaches feelings on the subject could be made by a yes or no answer.
It's simply where idealism meets reality. Ideally they wouldn't do it, but reality pushes them into doing it to get the players they want.

After that conversation I really started to listen between the lines so to speak on what college coaches would say.

I don't have much sympathy for the coaches because if they really feel that way, they should figure out some acceptable rule changes to stop it. The MLB players told their union reps in 2002 to agree to PED testing because most players wanted a level playing field, but felt compelled to take PED's in order to compete with the others taking them. College coaches could similarly stop early verbals if they so desired.

 

[noInTeam]

Sorry for being so...late into this discussion. I started from the beginning and read each post. To be honest, I questioned the early recruiting as well. I personally question the parents motives for pushing / allowing their DD to commit at such a young age. My DD was one of those 8th graders being recruited and as parents, we were up front with each coach we spoke to as far as a time frame in which our DD would consider committing. Without even stepping foot onto a high school campus, without even throwing her first high school pitch, without completing one high school course, she was in NO position to accept and %% of an offer. What 13-14 year old knows what they want to study? What 13-14 year old knows where they want to attend college (aside from a school that they see on TV). Yes...it is flattering to know that XYZ College coach thinks your DD has what it takes (athletically) to play at the next level. But do they have the #1 component to get to XYZ College? Academics!!! As a parent, I want to know that my DD can get into her "dream school" and not become a statistic. As a parent of a female athlete, her education is #1 priority because once college is done, the reality and options of going "pro" are slim in comparison to the options males have. Is that fair? No. But it is a reality.
In the conversations with college coaches, each one expressed their displeasure of the early recruiting process. But they also stated that if they don't, they'll miss out on a top recruit because other schools are doing it. I had read an article on the statistics of females athletes (particularly softball players) and I believe the drop out rate by the age of 14 was between 65-75%. It was attributed to the demand of the sport, starting high school, academics and yes....boys and dating. That's a staggering percentage. So who can tell me their 14 year old DD is and was prepared to make such an important life changing decision? I know mine was not. The pressure to accept an offer only increased as she got older. I will say, she knew when she was ready and was able to articulate why she was ready, what is was about XYZ College that she felt was the right fit for her and that she had the academics to get into said college.
Without discussing financial particulars, each school and staff has their own "formula" for how they'll distribute athletic monies. Early it was stated that very few receive 100% athletic offers and to some degree that is correct. What we've experienced is that coaches will set aside that 100% athletic offer for a game changing pitcher or power hitter. Pitchers are a necessity and warrant the higher % if they are a top recruit. I do agree with a previous post in that you've got to do your research and be prepared when going into the recruiting process. Have your list of questions prepared for your visit. You may feel as though you're overwhelming with staff with questions, but it's YOUR job as a parent to know all of the facts before you accept anything. If you can get them to put it into writing (in person or email) you can see exactly how it is all broken down.
Thanks for all of the informative posts. Good luck!