Why the sudden run of commitments and commitment announcements?

[BRsoftballDad]

Why the sudden run of commitments being announced on social media? I would figure that the months after Sept 1st would be the busiest but it seems like the end of the summer might be. Is it because recruits are done with summer schedules and have made visits and such? My DD is a 2025 so I was just curious if her journey will be similar.

 

[Top_Notch]

My DD just announced. She's a 2023. Her 16U summer schedule was finished and by now she pretty much knew what schools were interested and what schools weren't. Those that were interested were awaiting a response (i.e. she had a deadline to respond) so they could wrap up the 2023 class and move on to the 2024s.

You daughters journey will be determined by how good she is and the exposure and relationships she has prior to Sept 1 of her junior year. It would be nice to get calls 9/1 and be set, but for a lot of folks it doesn't play out that way. No reason to panic, however.

 

[Vertigo]

I’ve noticed recently with baseball, as well (DS is a 2023). A lot are D3’s and some are probably the D1’s who were waiting to see who was coming back for another year before committing some kids. End of summer, beginning of fall is when you’ll see schools complete their rosters for recruited athletes for the HS senior class.

 

[BRsoftballDad]

My DD just announced. She's a 2023. Her 16U summer schedule was finished and by now she pretty much knew what schools were interested and what schools weren't. Those that were interested were awaiting a response (i.e. she had a deadline to respond) so they could wrap up the 2023 class and move on to the 2024s.

You daughters journey will be determined by how good she is and the exposure and relationships she has prior to Sept 1 of her junior year. It would be nice to get calls 9/1 and be set, but for a lot of folks it doesn't play out that way. No reason to panic, however.

What did that deadline look like, if I may ask? Did most of those schools reach out back in September and were willing to wait until the following summer? I'm just curious because I want to be prepared for that day. Granted, I have over a year still. Also, how did your DD decline offers from schools she was not interested in?

 

[Orange Socks]

Keep in mind, the Sept 1st date means D1 coaches can reach out. This is just the beginning part of the dance. Very few actually get offers on that date. If anything, they are saying we like you and want you to know that we like you. Let's set up a visit. Send me your fall schedule. etc. DD's former TB teammate got an Ivy offer on that date, but the communication started years prior before the rule change.

 

[Top_Notch]

What did that deadline look like, if I may ask? Did most of those schools reach out back in September and were willing to wait until the following summer? I'm just curious because I want to be prepared for that day. Granted, I have over a year still. Also, how did your DD decline offers from schools she was not interested in?

No calls came DD's way Sept 1. Discussions started early summer and by July there was an offer. Coach was transparent and said they had other choices so they wanted a response by August. This was plenty of time for us to decide. DD had one or two more tournaments and camps, then a couple weeks to decide. (Mind you, that coach was also still out looking at players and having camps too, so while DD was looking they were looking.)

Schools that DD had direct communications with were phoned by my daughter and she told what she had decided. Schools without direct contact she did not notify. There was one exception for one school that she was in discussions with but had gone quiet. Either they found someone else and didn't contact us or were very disorganized.

 

[cncsoftball]

DD is a 2023 pitcher who originally focused on high-academic D1 schools, mostly in the northeast. She received a handful of emails and one call on September 1st. The schools had already watched her play, but the conversations were exactly as Orange Socks said, "...we like you and want you to know that we like you. Let's set up a visit. Send me your fall schedule."

DD plays volleyball also, so she really only played two fall softball tournaments, went to a couple of fall camps at two of those schools, and then went on two unofficial visits in the winter. She didn't feel like either of the schools she visited was the best fit for her, so she broadened her scope and began emailing several new schools in the winter. Never really got much communication back except send us your summer schedule.

In the meantime, one of DD's other original schools asked her to come for a visit in the spring. Due to HS ball, she never made it there until June. Received an offer, but again, DD hesitated to commit and told the school she didn't want to make a decision until the end of July.

DD played two tournaments in June and had several JUCO-D2 schools wanting her to visit after watching her pitch. She went to a few more camps in July and pitched well at the right times in her last couple of tournaments. Three more D1 schools invited her to visit, all of which acted like they were going to offer. She kept communication open with all three and planned to visit two of them, but...

The twist to DD's story is that in the end, she committed to a mid-major D1 school that she had never previously contacted. The coach just happened to be watching her last tournament which was the second weekend in July. Coach saw DD pitch the first game of the tourney, asked our "recruiting" coach about her, and then came to the rest of the games that weekend. After the tournament, DD spent a couple of hours talking to the coach and knew she wanted to visit. The following week, DD visited campus, met the other coaches, and right away felt like it was the "one". Two days later, she verbally committed to graduate early and join the team in January!

p.s. Her scholarship was offered whether she decided to graduate early or not.

 

[TwoPitcherFam]

Just saw this thread and as we are halfway through September was expecting to see a bit more action. Have seen some big P5 announcements (like Oklahoma) but not a lot. I would think many are doing visits and in next couple weeks commitments pick up?