I can tell you from first hand experience that HS softball matters in the recruiting process. I won't go into details here but it absolutely matters, at least it did in DD's case.
My daughter is dreading high school ball approaching
- Thread starter GoRight
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I can tell you from first hand experience that HS softball matters in the recruiting process. I won't go into details here but it absolutely matters, at least it did in DD's case.
radness
Possibilities & Opportunities!
- Dec 13, 2019
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How so?
Think cannonball question may be does logistics/area matter?
There are h.s. softball programs in so cal that are terrible. Other sports at same h.s. much better.
Doing say track could gain some of same team social experience without the misery part on sb team.
Huge difference for some between h.s. & travel ball.
Think this is another
No one size fits all thing.
You can't generalize. Every area and HS program is very different. Just like every travel program or rec team or... If it is actually truly awful, don't do it, but if you are lucky enough to have a situation you can live with, there is no real reason not to. I personally believe too many people pre-judge or get so focused on recruiting that they lose sight of what HS can be if it is good. And a lot of people don't like the loss of control and choice you get in travel on what team you are on. While often HS is political in who plays, I have often seen players exposed without the air coverage of their parents making sure they are in the best situation for them to play.
DD's HS experience has been mixed in many ways. The coach(s) have some real positives and some REAL negatives. There is a LOT of wasted time in practices and their game coaching is beyond awful. However, we are lucky to have a bunch of talent and there are enough other strong HS teams in the area that it is extremely competitive. We have had rivalry games with 200-300 people watching that have been the most intense games my DD has played with rosters of 20+ girls between teams who will play in college (and also 23-0 blowouts that were the worst). Had some great 7 inning games battles you just won't get in travel where because you are playing only one game, you can give it everything for that one game. We have won districts and regionals, but have not made it to the finals.
I know what I do like about my DD's HS experience - and I understand that this is just her experience and totally unrelated to anyone else. HS for DD's team is all about what you have developed in the past being put into a full season and winning something that will be remembered long term. And for the 'showcase'/recruiting teams and players where the 'winning' goal is getting recruited or gets reset every weekend for that weekend's plastic trophy, that is an important part of HS or at least has been for DD. There is plenty of time for players to get recruited in summer and fall in the showcases. Recruiting doesn't need to be a year-round effort.
That said, I know many of the college coaches interested in DD watched streams or videos of DD's high school games even if they couldn't get there in person. I know at the big HS tournament and the state tournament many college coaches turned up (or watched streams).
DD's HS experience has been mixed in many ways. The coach(s) have some real positives and some REAL negatives. There is a LOT of wasted time in practices and their game coaching is beyond awful. However, we are lucky to have a bunch of talent and there are enough other strong HS teams in the area that it is extremely competitive. We have had rivalry games with 200-300 people watching that have been the most intense games my DD has played with rosters of 20+ girls between teams who will play in college (and also 23-0 blowouts that were the worst). Had some great 7 inning games battles you just won't get in travel where because you are playing only one game, you can give it everything for that one game. We have won districts and regionals, but have not made it to the finals.
I know what I do like about my DD's HS experience - and I understand that this is just her experience and totally unrelated to anyone else. HS for DD's team is all about what you have developed in the past being put into a full season and winning something that will be remembered long term. And for the 'showcase'/recruiting teams and players where the 'winning' goal is getting recruited or gets reset every weekend for that weekend's plastic trophy, that is an important part of HS or at least has been for DD. There is plenty of time for players to get recruited in summer and fall in the showcases. Recruiting doesn't need to be a year-round effort.
That said, I know many of the college coaches interested in DD watched streams or videos of DD's high school games even if they couldn't get there in person. I know at the big HS tournament and the state tournament many college coaches turned up (or watched streams).
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- Aug 21, 2008
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Once again someone is saying "IN THE FALL" this changes everything. Fall is one of main times for college showcase tournaments: D9 in Orlando, Music City in Nashville, Surf City's in Las Vegas, San Diego, Los Angeles, etc. etc. etc. THE FALL CHANGES EVERYTHING. Recruiting is allowed in the fall. And it ends in mid November, just after the "pre-Thanksgiving" tournaments. Then is what the NCAA calls "Dead time".
In the spring, the colleges are playing their own seasons. When they aren't recovering from weekend travel/games, or prepping for midweek games, they are practicing. 99% of colleges practice in the afternoons to avoid class conflicts for the athletes schooling. This is when MOST high school games are played making it next to impossible for college coaches to recruit at a high school game with their own stuff going on. And yes, colleges play almost every weekend too so that rules out a Saturday game you may have. If you have college coaches attending your Spring HS games, consider yourself very lucky, that they are just visiting a relative, are possibly breaking rules, or some other odd act that got them to your park, especially if they are not a college in your home state/city. Patty Gasso, for example, is not going spend her recruiting budget to go see a HS game in Idaho when she can likely see that same kid and 100 other potentials at a TB tournament in Colorado a few months later vs. better competition.
I know this will send So Cal schools into a tizzy but, MOST schools may have 1 division 1 player on the roster. It doesn't make economical sense to travel somewhere to see one kid vs. high school teams that she is far superior against. I concede there are exceptions to this. In September 2019, I went to a HS tournament in Omaha to see a pitcher who was sought after by most. In the crowd at this tournament was me, Patty Gasso, North Carolina's coach, Minnesota's coach, Washington's pitching coach, and others. (She signed at Oklahoma). But again this was a fall tournament, and this pitcher is going to be a difference maker so all teams were pulling all stops to be seen watching her. This was the exception that proves the rule.
Bill
I need to start an "Old Softball Coach Almanac"
February-April: "my HS coach is terrible" posts.
May-December: "my TB team is a wreck" posts.
....
February-April: "my HS coach is terrible" posts.
May-December: "my TB team is a wreck" posts.
....
So why don't all states play in the fall then? You would think that those who are able to weather-wise might consider it.
- Aug 21, 2008
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Great question. But it's not just softball, Baseball is involved to. And if you involve Baseball in the fall, then they lose a HUGE majority of kids who play football. There's no right time that doesn't conflict with something else. Spring is the worst for softball/baseball due to weather in most places and if they'd just switch softball and volleyball, it'd probably make some sense.
Bill
Bill
Just to clarify, she’s not dreading HS softball for the reason that she’s afraid of not being recruited, she’s dreading it because she has not played since October and she’s itching to play. Also she wants to get in game shape for when TB picks up in late May. She’s dreading it because if she’s regulated to the bench she’s going to pretty much not get any quality work or practice in. That’s what happened last year. The bench players were basically ignored. Most of them don’t care anyway. It’s more social hour and they spend time on their phones or talking to the boys that came to watch. At this school, I feel like there is a loose group of girls that join the sports teams to to say they did it. They really don’t care if they play or not. I think they go into it knowing they aren’t going to play. Sometimes they will get an AB against the worst team. Heck at this point my daughter wouldn’t care if she got in the game if she got some decent reps at practice. I know HS in these parts don’t matter for recruitment. She’s already being recruited by 6-7 D3 and two D1 showed interest. Being more on the quiet side she feels like she would be more comfortable at a D3, and hopefully she has the grades to get some serious money. We have an official visit at one school next week which is her top choice. Her second choice school, that was the coach that told her he’s not interested in her high school schedule. I’m sure because they are in season, and given the conference they are in he probably really doesn’t care. I get that. So she’s weighing her options. Another thing I was thinking about, is having her ask the coach if she can work out with the starters to get some work. I don’t remember if she asked that last year.
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@GoRight are you near a state that plays HS ball in the fall? Seems like there are more TN girls each year passing on spring HS and playing spring travel in north GA.
