Over Recruiting in College

[Orange Socks]

Here's what I am seeing, which I am not a big fan of. Player commits Jr year and is super pumped. Then starts seeing more and more kids getting recruited to their school. Holy Moly 4 other pitchers in my class!! Oh crap! 13 Freshman! What! Over recruiting a freshman class along with bringing in transfers. The problem is 13 freshman all expect to have a chance to play. At one particular program the coach will red shirt players that "aren't ready" (who then quit), and be really demanding to the point that 6-8 freshman are talking about quitting this program. The players hate the coach and say that the coach is not the same person that recruited them, which I have heard is common not just in softball. I say to the parents...Do you due diligence and make sure to talk to parents/players from the program and look at yearly turnover. Why are they leaving? Find those players, and reach out to them or their old travel ball coaches to see what their experience was like. It really is sad and tough to watch it happen to players that you know.

Coach perspective: Coach's job is on the line, and is expected to win. Players are going to transfer, quit or not work out for whatever reason. If you bring a big class along with transfers, you create internal competition that forces the players to step up and fight. If you quit, ok I have 8 other players that are stepping up, trusting the process, and grinding it out because they really want it....bad! Coach doesn't want a lukewarm player that doesn't really have to play softball.

Some players go nuts when they get to college, and discover softball is not that important anymore. I know many players who weren't able to make it through the fall. They quit because it was too physically demanding, skill set not improving, got kicked off (now preggo), etc. I have also noticed that many players who "signed/committed" to a school doesn't even make it on the roster leaving me wondering where did that kid end up? I thought she was a stud!

This is the ugly side of the softball world that no one likes to talk about or fail to acknowledge that it happens. Would love to hear other stories from you guys. I really think it's important to share this with the parents that are starting and/or in the process of finding the right fit.

 

[GoRight]

Interesting.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FP26]

It definitely happens and is something I warned my players about when we were in the "showcase/recruiting" cycle. It will obviously vary from program to program, but the coach is trying to put the best possible team on the field. This year she may feel that your DD can be a huge help to the program next year. But between now and then, another recruit commits, or a transfer comes in, and your DD is knocked down the depth chart. In some cases a player ahead of your DD gets injured or no longer enjoys the game, and your DD moves up the depth chart.

In general, college sports have a way of churning through players. That's why many softball programs are heavy in freshmen and sophomores and have fewer juniors and seniors. Some of this is due to recruiting practices... Some due to loss of interest... Some due to intensity of major... There is a lot that goes into it. But the more players and parents understand how different college athletics are, the more prepared they will be when the time comes.

I thought we were prepared when DD started college, but we have still been surprised by a few things.

 

[Rick M]

At one particular program the coach will red shirt players that "aren't ready" (who then quit), and be really demanding to the point that 6-8 freshman are talking about quitting this program.

I understand where the coaches are coming from, you make good points about creating internal competition and teams needing to have a large enough roster to cover the fall-aways. My question is about the scholarship commitments: if a player is red-shirted as a freshman is the school obligated to keep their scholarship offer? Can a coach unilaterally revoke a scholarship if they feel that a player isn't keeping up their end of the bargain?

I guess the bottom line is, can the player control their own destiny here? If the coach turns into a total monster and you get zero playing time, can the player just suffer through and meet their commitments and be assured that their scholarship is secure?

 

[diamond14]

Seems to me if a coach is over-recruiting an incoming class, assuming the coach has been there for 3-4 years, the problem is the coach. They have either failed to instruct their players to become better and be more competitive within their peer conference/opponent group, they badly misjudged their recruits' ability & passion. Or they have done something within the program to alienate their existing players.
I understand out of a group of 5 player at least one is not going to pan out eg injury, change of focus, academic requirements etc. But if a coach is doubling or more their next class to fill holes/stomp out complaceny etc, might be time for self evaluation.

 

[Strike2]

I guess the bottom line is, can the player control their own destiny here? If the coach turns into a total monster and you get zero playing time, can the player just suffer through and meet their commitments and be assured that their scholarship is secure?

As I understand it, a signed scholarship agreement is a contract that can't be revoked only because someone else on the team is better at that spot. However, a coach can make life difficult for someone they don't want around. Further, scholarships can have varying guaranteed periods from one to four years. If it's "renewable" after a certain time frame, then there's no guarantee after that. A one-year athletic scholarship that's "renewable" at the whim of a coach is a tenuous thing to bet one's education on.

 

[djcarter1966]

Unfortunately this is a two way street....look at any college roster and you see probably a core of probably 3-4 seniors (not all start and some transferred). There is no way you can end up with 5 seniors and you recruit 5 freshman and don't take in transfers. It would be interesting to see what percentage of players that get on the team as a freshman graduate as a player from that same school...my guess that number is really low.

 

[spleen1015]

I found this:

The Facts About “Guaranteed” Multi-year NCAA DI Scholarships

NCAA Compliance Expert Rick Allen provides important facts about the new NCAA Division I rule which has the effect of “protecting” Division I student-athletes from having their athletic scholarship cancelled or not renewed for any athletic performance reason.

informedathlete.com

So, with P5 schools, a scholarship is essentially a 4 year contract. Non-P5 schools can choose to follow that rule if they want to.

I think a lot of this depends on the school and the coach. I'm sure there are coaches/schools out there who treat scholarships as a 4 year agreement even though they don't have to be. I'm sure there are some who don't want the reputation of continually taking scholarships from kids.

Also, folks look at these practices by coaches as bad but they don't look at it from their side of things. If they know on average they will lose 3-4 players every year, then they need to recruit to cover for that.

I will say this. As a parent, get to know the coaches and programs your DD is interested in. Don't send your DD blindly into a situation this important. Gather as much information as you can. If a college coach isn't willing to get to know me as well as my DD, then it is not a place I want my DD to go.

 

[MNDad]

Unfortunately this is a two way street....look at any college roster and you see probably a core of probably 3-4 seniors (not all start and some transferred). There is no way you can end up with 5 seniors and you recruit 5 freshman and don't take in transfers. It would be interesting to see what percentage of players that get on the team as a freshman graduate as a player from that same school...my guess that number is really low.

DD’s P5 school had 6 girls sign NLI’s together and all 6, plus two transfers graduated together after four years.

I think you’re right though. She has many friends and old teammates that went through transfers and in other cases decided to just quit playing softball.

 

[Orange Socks]

If a college coach isn't willing to get to know me as well as my DD, then it is not a place I want my DD to go.

This is pretty naive. A college coach doesn't want to get to know the parents unless you are a distraction. Then they just won't recruit your DD. You may never one conversation with the college coach the entire 4 years.