How our DDs ended up on college teams
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- May 27, 2013
- 2,384
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I’m always glad to help in any way possible. Anyone can feel free to PM me as well if they have questions about the process - specifically for high academic schools which is a whole different animal.
DD is a 2022 so her recruiting journey started before the Sept 1 rule change, as such she started attending a few camps at schools of possible interest in 7th and 8th grade. At that age I think it is unreasonable to expect a kid that young to know what they want to major in or for parents to know what level of play will eventually be appropriate but we did know that education was most important so the one common denominator for all the schools on her list was high level academics. Around the same time she began emailing coaches with schedules and updates. As soon as the rule change went into effect the conversations were 1 sided as her emails could not be answered. This was probably the hardest part for my DD. All of the work she was putting in to contact these coaches and there was no real way to know if they had any interest. Freshman year she played up on a 16u national team and started to have a number of the coaches she was contacting come to watch her play. Throughout the process she continued to attend camps from a wide variety of schools in the ACC, Big East, Ivy, Patriot, and NESCAC conferences. This was very helpful because her Sept 1 was right in the middle of the Covid dead period so she had already been to camps at all of the schools that contacted her on Sept 1 and could make an informed choice amongst those schools. Many fellow 2022 were not as lucky and had to make decisions about schools they had never seen. In mid September she committed to a school from the Ivy league that had shown the most interest in her throughout the process. She had attended multiple camps at the school. As a bonus one of her travel teammates since 10 years old
committed to the same school.
committed to the same school.
- Nov 29, 2009
- 2,975
- 83
DD's recruiting story is really pretty short. This was the very early 2000's, so no Youtube or common social media communication avenues. She played in a very high-level travel program. They did IDT and some of the other well known recruiting tournaments that were popular at that time.
She started emailing coaches and sending video tapes to schools she had an interest in. Many of the coaches wrote back saying they had their pitching spots filled for her class year. So she was still searching for an opportunity.
Some background.... The DD's HS team had mostly high level travel players on it. One of her HS teammates played in the D1 WCWS. Another was a D2 National Champ. The conference her HS played in, all but one school had teams made up of mostly travel players. Three other girls in the conference played in the D1 WCWS and one was a tournament MVP. My DD played with all of these girls during the summer on her travel team. College coaches would come and watch the top teams in the HS conference play on a regular basis. It was like watching a high-level travel game.
It was during HS post season. DD was pitching and handing their conference top rival a season-ending shutout loss. Her eventual college coach was there watching another player who had contacted her, not for my DD. DD had never contacted the coach. The following week the DD sent out another round of emails and tapes. The coach who was at the game was on the list. The coach contacted the DD with an offer immediately. DD accepted the offer.
My DD's case is prime example of you never know who is watching.
She started emailing coaches and sending video tapes to schools she had an interest in. Many of the coaches wrote back saying they had their pitching spots filled for her class year. So she was still searching for an opportunity.
Some background.... The DD's HS team had mostly high level travel players on it. One of her HS teammates played in the D1 WCWS. Another was a D2 National Champ. The conference her HS played in, all but one school had teams made up of mostly travel players. Three other girls in the conference played in the D1 WCWS and one was a tournament MVP. My DD played with all of these girls during the summer on her travel team. College coaches would come and watch the top teams in the HS conference play on a regular basis. It was like watching a high-level travel game.
It was during HS post season. DD was pitching and handing their conference top rival a season-ending shutout loss. Her eventual college coach was there watching another player who had contacted her, not for my DD. DD had never contacted the coach. The following week the DD sent out another round of emails and tapes. The coach who was at the game was on the list. The coach contacted the DD with an offer immediately. DD accepted the offer.
My DD's case is prime example of you never know who is watching.
- Sep 9, 2019
- 131
- 43
Exactly the point in my post. After schools didn't even reach out until end of junior year but were following all along
- May 20, 2015
- 1,114
- 113
DD had always been a D3/high academic kid - from the time we started looking at college (late) this was the goal
we came to the "big" travel program scene late (2nd year 16u) - previously we played for a local org, we just traveled around NE mostly beating bigger orgs lol
losing sophomore year to COVID hurt - we were late to the game for sure.....
ended up with an NCSA website, as we were new to the process....in the end, we did pay for the lower end package, and it was worth it......moving forward with DD2, I think we can get by with twitter/youtube and a base/free NCSA
she reached out to a bunch of schools that fit her academic needs around NE where she felt she had a chance to play.....some were a reach, some were in her wheelhouse......she had come conversation/camp invites/etc.......about mid spring of junior year, she decided to narrow her search to just in ME......which knocked her down to a handful of schools......many of which were high academic schools
somehow in august, just as we were talking with a couple maine schools a little more earnestly, DD decided she wanted to look out of state....again......i panicked, as we were getting late in the game even for the schools she would be looking at.......a teammate of hers since 10u, both travel and HS, had already committed to another D3 program in MA, and they were done with 2022's
two days later the coach from the school she ended up at reached out......over the next 6 weeks we ended up visiting her school twice, met with the team, etc......she came to see DD play twice and invited her to a camp......academic interview, lots of emails and phone calls and texts......DD loved the school, loved the area, loved the academics.......then fell in love with the team and the coach and the opportunity
for us it was all about the academic fit, and then trying to find one with an opportunity to play.......if she had found a school she liked that fit her needs, she would have walked on/played club/not played vs. finding a place that wanted her to play - she had plenty of places in maine that wanted her to play that were not an academic fit, and it was weird to tell a coach "thanks for the interest, but I plan on going to law school, and your school won't help get me there", but that's what she did.....
in the end she found the perfect fit, and I to this date have no idea how it fell into our laps
we came to the "big" travel program scene late (2nd year 16u) - previously we played for a local org, we just traveled around NE mostly beating bigger orgs lol
losing sophomore year to COVID hurt - we were late to the game for sure.....
ended up with an NCSA website, as we were new to the process....in the end, we did pay for the lower end package, and it was worth it......moving forward with DD2, I think we can get by with twitter/youtube and a base/free NCSA
she reached out to a bunch of schools that fit her academic needs around NE where she felt she had a chance to play.....some were a reach, some were in her wheelhouse......she had come conversation/camp invites/etc.......about mid spring of junior year, she decided to narrow her search to just in ME......which knocked her down to a handful of schools......many of which were high academic schools
somehow in august, just as we were talking with a couple maine schools a little more earnestly, DD decided she wanted to look out of state....again......i panicked, as we were getting late in the game even for the schools she would be looking at.......a teammate of hers since 10u, both travel and HS, had already committed to another D3 program in MA, and they were done with 2022's
two days later the coach from the school she ended up at reached out......over the next 6 weeks we ended up visiting her school twice, met with the team, etc......she came to see DD play twice and invited her to a camp......academic interview, lots of emails and phone calls and texts......DD loved the school, loved the area, loved the academics.......then fell in love with the team and the coach and the opportunity
for us it was all about the academic fit, and then trying to find one with an opportunity to play.......if she had found a school she liked that fit her needs, she would have walked on/played club/not played vs. finding a place that wanted her to play - she had plenty of places in maine that wanted her to play that were not an academic fit, and it was weird to tell a coach "thanks for the interest, but I plan on going to law school, and your school won't help get me there", but that's what she did.....
in the end she found the perfect fit, and I to this date have no idea how it fell into our laps
Lots of similarities in a number of the stories above with my daughter's story. End of the day, a successful recruiting experience is a combination of hard work (I don't mean softball work, I mean recruiting work...writing letters, attending camps, college visits, etc.), honest and realistic self-assessment (softball skill level and academic ability), and a bit of luck (for example, does your target school have a need that you can fill).
My daughter graduated HS in 2017, and her "Serious" recruiting started Sophomore year. Started with identifying the kind of school she wanted (size, location, academic level/rep, majors offered, etc.) and an honest assessment of her softball level and how much of her college life she wanted it to control. After making a number of non-softball informal visits to many schools, she quickly settled on smaller high-academic liberal arts DIII schools. From there, it was writing to coaches, attending camps at those schools, attending showcases and larger camps (Headfirst Honor Roll and Pennsbury are two that she did multiple times) where she knew these coaches would be. As her list continued to get narrowed down, she did overnight visits and "official" visits at 5 schools. One quickly jumped to the top of the list...fit all of her needs both academically and athletically.
Fast-forward...she graduated from that school this past May, enjoyed 4 successful years in the classroom and on the field (well, 3 1/4...f'ing covid), earned a number of academic and athletic honors during that time, and is happily employed in her chosen field.
My daughter graduated HS in 2017, and her "Serious" recruiting started Sophomore year. Started with identifying the kind of school she wanted (size, location, academic level/rep, majors offered, etc.) and an honest assessment of her softball level and how much of her college life she wanted it to control. After making a number of non-softball informal visits to many schools, she quickly settled on smaller high-academic liberal arts DIII schools. From there, it was writing to coaches, attending camps at those schools, attending showcases and larger camps (Headfirst Honor Roll and Pennsbury are two that she did multiple times) where she knew these coaches would be. As her list continued to get narrowed down, she did overnight visits and "official" visits at 5 schools. One quickly jumped to the top of the list...fit all of her needs both academically and athletically.
Fast-forward...she graduated from that school this past May, enjoyed 4 successful years in the classroom and on the field (well, 3 1/4...f'ing covid), earned a number of academic and athletic honors during that time, and is happily employed in her chosen field.
Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
- 4,881
- 113
I put BB’s recruiting story on this site as it happened. Many posters back in the day followed her entire recruitment journey. A couple of things before I start rambling. First, my DD was always bigger for her age group. Secondly, she was/is extremely driven and to the point that it was scary if she lost. Thank goodness that wasn’t often. Finally, BB always had great coaches. We were truly blessed to have her play for such great coaches and people all the way from 8U to and through college.
DD was playing on a local 12U team when she was asked to play up and switch teams. She had played for a great local team up to this point. This new TB team beat some of the top programs in the St. Louis area. She was asked to go to her first “showcase” at a college up north. When she signed in, the recruiting coach who was running the tournament said that there had to be a mistake. This was for players 14 and older. BB was 12. They let her stay and play. She did well and got noticed by a lot of coaches.
We started to do the summer camp scene at a couple of local D1 colleges. That “went well” but left us really confused. The coaches constantly praised BB. However, that praise never resulted in recruiting interest. BB started playing in showcases etc. all over the country including 7 different states. She played in Indy, Nashville, St. Louis, Chattanooga, Kansas City, Topeka, …
BB’s journey was somewhat different than some other stories. As we headed down to Murfreesboro, Tennessee the summer between BB’s freshman and sophomore years, we stopped by a D1 on an unofficial visit. The head coach got out a uniform and had her put it on. He took a picture of her in the uniform. Long story short, that picture was used to show other coaches that BB had verballed to his school. She had not.
That coach came to a tournament where BB hit a bunch of bombs. She threw in the circle and won the championship game with him in the stands. After the tournament, this coach expressed to BB’s TB coach that he actually wanted BB and two other players. The following Monday, I was supposed to call to finalize the amount of his offer. I was shocked when he had lowered his offer from 60% to 40%. He said that he did so to get the other players as well. I made it clear that I felt we had been misled. We jumped back into the cesspool that is the recruitment process. In the meantime, BB had attended a couple of different types of camps. At one, a B1G coach showed a lot of interest but BB was now considered an outfielder. That mattered since she had great technique but not great speed. Having jumped back into the recruitment process, we stopped at a D1 on the way down to The Summit to play in yet another showcase tournament. BB was a junior now and time was running out. The coach asked why we were wasting her time. She said that she heard that BB was locked up. I told her that wasn’t true. This coach said that this is the story being circulated. My friend Gerry Glasco jumped in and made phone calls for BB. Suddenly, she was getting a lot of DI interest again.
As NLI day approached, BB didn’t really know where she was going to go play. BB got a call from Coach Levin who was taking the head coaching job at UMSL. He knew what the offer was from the D1 college he worked at as an assistant coach in charge of recruiting. He told BB that he would make an offer she could not refuse. NLI day was crazy. It started with a call from BB’s TB coach asking if he could give our phone number to the Assistant Coach from the B1G school I referenced earlier. They made multiple calls and offers. They were very classy. BB received a few other calls as well. BB went DII to play for Coach Levin at UMSL. It was a great decision. She played with players who are still her friends, had a great career, and was able to play for Coach Levin. I am eternally grateful for that. I am a huge proponent of DII softball.
While this post is too long, I do want to mention some other things. I was always BB’s hitting coach. However, so many posters on this site and BBF offered advice along the way. Some of these guys like Mudvnine are still very close friends. Mud and I didn’t see eye to eye all of the time, and this is important, if you are always listening to people who agree with you, you just might miss those critical points of emphasis that can really help your DD. Bluedog, Ssarge, MarkH, LClifton, FFS, … were always there with advice. BB started lifting at an early age. We started with PVC pipe so that she could first work on the technique. I didn’t let her handle true weight until I was certain her technique was down pat. That seemed to matter to a lot of coaches. We never babied her. She was told to take care of herself on that field. The one thing we constantly had to tell BB was that softball was what she did and not who she was. You have to make sure your DD knows that. I asked BB what advice she would give. It was a thought constantly repeated here. Pick the education you will receive first. Coaches change and players lose scholarships. Good luck on your journey.
Edited to add:
I forgot to mention all of the official and unofficial visits. Take as many unofficial visits as you can. On the official visits, you will know right away where you really stand. If you are a high recruit, the HC will be there. If not, assistant coaches show up. Listen to the players who meet with your DD. Read between the lines. Listen to your DD's gut feelings. At one DII, we were taken on a tour while BB went on a tour with the players. It didn't take 5 minutes to know that we were wasting our time. When coaches guarantee you playing time etc. That is a red flag. This was the only school that did so and, yes, they were desperate.
DD was playing on a local 12U team when she was asked to play up and switch teams. She had played for a great local team up to this point. This new TB team beat some of the top programs in the St. Louis area. She was asked to go to her first “showcase” at a college up north. When she signed in, the recruiting coach who was running the tournament said that there had to be a mistake. This was for players 14 and older. BB was 12. They let her stay and play. She did well and got noticed by a lot of coaches.
We started to do the summer camp scene at a couple of local D1 colleges. That “went well” but left us really confused. The coaches constantly praised BB. However, that praise never resulted in recruiting interest. BB started playing in showcases etc. all over the country including 7 different states. She played in Indy, Nashville, St. Louis, Chattanooga, Kansas City, Topeka, …
BB’s journey was somewhat different than some other stories. As we headed down to Murfreesboro, Tennessee the summer between BB’s freshman and sophomore years, we stopped by a D1 on an unofficial visit. The head coach got out a uniform and had her put it on. He took a picture of her in the uniform. Long story short, that picture was used to show other coaches that BB had verballed to his school. She had not.
That coach came to a tournament where BB hit a bunch of bombs. She threw in the circle and won the championship game with him in the stands. After the tournament, this coach expressed to BB’s TB coach that he actually wanted BB and two other players. The following Monday, I was supposed to call to finalize the amount of his offer. I was shocked when he had lowered his offer from 60% to 40%. He said that he did so to get the other players as well. I made it clear that I felt we had been misled. We jumped back into the cesspool that is the recruitment process. In the meantime, BB had attended a couple of different types of camps. At one, a B1G coach showed a lot of interest but BB was now considered an outfielder. That mattered since she had great technique but not great speed. Having jumped back into the recruitment process, we stopped at a D1 on the way down to The Summit to play in yet another showcase tournament. BB was a junior now and time was running out. The coach asked why we were wasting her time. She said that she heard that BB was locked up. I told her that wasn’t true. This coach said that this is the story being circulated. My friend Gerry Glasco jumped in and made phone calls for BB. Suddenly, she was getting a lot of DI interest again.
As NLI day approached, BB didn’t really know where she was going to go play. BB got a call from Coach Levin who was taking the head coaching job at UMSL. He knew what the offer was from the D1 college he worked at as an assistant coach in charge of recruiting. He told BB that he would make an offer she could not refuse. NLI day was crazy. It started with a call from BB’s TB coach asking if he could give our phone number to the Assistant Coach from the B1G school I referenced earlier. They made multiple calls and offers. They were very classy. BB received a few other calls as well. BB went DII to play for Coach Levin at UMSL. It was a great decision. She played with players who are still her friends, had a great career, and was able to play for Coach Levin. I am eternally grateful for that. I am a huge proponent of DII softball.
While this post is too long, I do want to mention some other things. I was always BB’s hitting coach. However, so many posters on this site and BBF offered advice along the way. Some of these guys like Mudvnine are still very close friends. Mud and I didn’t see eye to eye all of the time, and this is important, if you are always listening to people who agree with you, you just might miss those critical points of emphasis that can really help your DD. Bluedog, Ssarge, MarkH, LClifton, FFS, … were always there with advice. BB started lifting at an early age. We started with PVC pipe so that she could first work on the technique. I didn’t let her handle true weight until I was certain her technique was down pat. That seemed to matter to a lot of coaches. We never babied her. She was told to take care of herself on that field. The one thing we constantly had to tell BB was that softball was what she did and not who she was. You have to make sure your DD knows that. I asked BB what advice she would give. It was a thought constantly repeated here. Pick the education you will receive first. Coaches change and players lose scholarships. Good luck on your journey.
Edited to add:
I forgot to mention all of the official and unofficial visits. Take as many unofficial visits as you can. On the official visits, you will know right away where you really stand. If you are a high recruit, the HC will be there. If not, assistant coaches show up. Listen to the players who meet with your DD. Read between the lines. Listen to your DD's gut feelings. At one DII, we were taken on a tour while BB went on a tour with the players. It didn't take 5 minutes to know that we were wasting our time. When coaches guarantee you playing time etc. That is a red flag. This was the only school that did so and, yes, they were desperate.
Last edited:
Mark Hanson was our team's recruiter for a period and he helped my DD with her swing. It took me a minute, but I figured out who he was on here. The Hanson's principle. Really awesome guy and his daughter was the HC at Dartmouth and Stanford.
Cannonball
Ex "Expert"
- Feb 25, 2009
- 4,881
- 113
Mark and I are still good friends.
