When to begin to be concerned about college showcases

[Eric F]

So, which has more value? Camps or Showcases?

I would say, it depends. If you're trying to cast a wide net, showcases or combine camps with multiple coaches are going to be effective, but players and TB coaches need to be pro-active in getting communication started. If you're targeting a specific school, get to their camp on campus, and be pro-active ahead of time with emails and video. It's okay to be relentless with reaching out to the same coach(es) repeatedly.

I took my DD to a camp at Oregon when she was in 8th grade, just for the experience...and because we were big Ducks fans. During a classroom session, Shannon Rhodes was talking about how she emailed the Oregon coaches every day. In her words..."stalkers get scholarships."

 

[jsoftballcoach]

In my opinion showcases in general are not all that important. Camps are what gets you recruited.

I disagree with this. Dream school camps sure, but where else can you get in front of multiple schools at the same time?

Combined with a good recruiting liaison/coach and in the right pools, that’s a recipe for success.


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[Vertigo]

Both camps and the right showcases are important. Camps are important because it shows the coach you are interested in their school by making the trip. They also get to talk to the player during the camp and observe skills and make suggestions to see if the player is coachable.

Showcases are important because they get to see those skills in action against (hopefully) good competition. They unveil a lot about a player’s character: How they react to an error, how they react if they give up a HR or they strikeout. Also shows coaches their game IQ.

Both are important, IMHO.

 

[uncdrew]

How does a girl make it on the Harvard softball team?

 

[Orange Socks]

How does a girl make it on the Harvard softball team?

Harvard came to watch one of our players at Boulder and Houston. Jenny Allard and two different asst coaches put eyes on her. She ended up at UPenn. We had players both at Harvard and UPenn.

 

[PapaBear]

In my opinion showcases in general are not all that important. Camps are what gets you recruited.

If you're camping at the right camp. If you're going to a cattle call then good luck. 5-10 schools, 200 campers. Camps need to be viewed as a benchmark, if you're playing on a B level team probably not idea to camp at Power 5 school.

 

[PapaBear]

How does a girl make it on the Harvard softball team?

Grades, typically IVY league schools won't talk serious with prospects until their SR year to make sure they have the grades to get in first. From time to time you'll see a kid post that they have started the process of application to Harvard, Cornell, Brown etc. their JR year. Both Cornell and Yale followed mine last year but she chose to not go that route once she started eliminating schools. Harvard will do prospects camps in regions so you don't always have to camp on campus. I know they go to CA (LA area) and have been in CO during Fireworks/IDT in the past.

 

[Orange Socks]

Grades, typically IVY league schools won't talk serious with prospects until their SR year to make sure they have the grades to get in first. From time to time you'll see a kid post that they have started the process of application to Harvard, Cornell, Brown etc. their JR year. Both Cornell and Yale followed mine last year but she chose to not go that route once she started eliminating schools. Harvard will do prospects camps in regions so you don't always have to camp on campus. I know they go to CA (LA area) and have been in CO during Fireworks/IDT in the past.

The girl I mentioned earlier committed right after Sept 1 of her Jr year. Of course she was a pitcher and her scores weren't all that spectacular. The other girl scored something like a 34 ACT and committed her Jr. year-played 3rd. Another girl that I know also committed her Jr year-pitcher as well. All UPenn players.

 

[Lobster Birch]

I took my DD to a camp at Oregon when she was in 8th grade, just for the experience...and because we were big Ducks fans. During a classroom session, Shannon Rhodes was talking about how she emailed the Oregon coaches every day. In her words..."stalkers get scholarships."

Duck fans? And here I was under the impression you were good people.

 

[Strike2]

So, which has more value? Camps or Showcases?

If you are targeting a school that is a realistic fit, communicating with that coach and going to their camp can, IMO, be a great investment in time and money. If the coaches already have some idea who you are, and you do well, you're going to part of their post-camp conversation.

I recently had the opportunity to watch a D1 camp up close. I was somewhat surprised by the reluctance of many participants to engage with coaches, even in a small group setting. Further, while there was plenty of hustle generally, there were opportunities to stand out that many individual players missed. Not going all out for a fly ball, booting that grounder, or watching good pitches go by during the scrimmage when EVERYONE is watching wastes a golden opportunity.

I can see how that stand-out player who coaches may already know about despite no prior communication gets approached at a showcase, but that's the exception. Coaches don't just wander about a showcase haystack looking for needles; they don't have time for that. Beyond the playing experience, paying money for a showcase without giving coaches a reason to track down a player is a something of a waste.

IMO, the larger "cattle-call" camps are the least effective. Those that I've seen appeared little more than money-grabs. Unless you're busting out car windows in the parking lot with your dingers, it's really hard to stand out there.