Finally...it has to be said (A TBR Classic)

I could not have expressed my feeling any better EBDEAN. Plus we have met some great families and made lifelong friends as well.

 

Wow,,,,,,, how many times has this topic been thrown back and forth over the last few years???

Guess its good for legion ball if folks still have to ask this question, because to hear some tell it, showcase is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I'm personally involved in legion ball, but I understand and respect player's wishes to do either. I've always believed that a player can do both (showcase and legion),,,, and of course players should do showcase fully in areas of NC where legion isn't available. But if you have a good legion team to play on in the summer,,, those are memories you will never be able to go back and get, if you pass on it. Showcase around your legion season,,, not during playoffs . To me, its win win if you can do both.

Anytime I read where someone goes so far to criticize one or the other,,, in my opinion you are just trying to justify what "you" did personally. Nobody is wrong here, because to each is their "individual" decision, and everyone's situation (where they live, finances, etc) is different.

 

why bother playing in hs? if legion competition is no good then hs must be even worse, so why not play showcase year round. after all you have to do what's best for you

 

There is no doubt that the showcase teams get their players in front of scouts that playing legion ball would not. That is great for the kids and parents who can afford it and have the time to travel to the showcase events. But, for the players that can neither afford the time or money, showcase ball actually hurts their chances of being seen by scouts. Their only option is to play legion ball to get any exposure. What would happen if there were no showcase teams? I would bet that every one of the players that currently play showcase would be playing legion ball. If that were the case, then the scouts would be at the legion games. The players that can afford showcase ball would still be seen and so would the non showcase players. The coaches and recruiters would see ALL players and not just the select few showcase players.

 

The way I see this is that it is about your abilities and the opportunities that are out there. To each kid it is different, because of ability, etc...

It all depends on who you play for and what they realistically have to offer, (the tournaments, etc...) Who is at these events? Events with poor scour/colllege attendance are not worth the cost of playing. If you are paying to be seen and nobody sees you, then what have you gained. Based on my experience,, however I see more scouts/college coaches at showcase events than Legion games, but you have to know which ones to get access to. For some players showcase ball is needed, but not everybody should go that route. I realoze what olefty has said and he makes good pointsbut I have had players go both routes and they tell me they see more coaches and scouts at showcase events. So there's a chance if they play well that they may be seen, whereas if there's nobopdy there to see them then obviously they will not get noticed. Quality showcase events gove the opportunity for kids to excel in front of scouts and coaches, the rest is up to the players.

BTW... there are some showcase teams that charge low fees to make it affordable for the kids and also to help out kids that cant afford to pay. If you are need that type of help, I may be able to help financially scrapped quality players find a plce to play.

Some food for thought.

 

yep

DDD, I also had the same thoughts. The storyline of course centered on only about 5-6 kids from the team so there may have been others on the team that went on to college football (if so maybe they were not good "actors"). I don't know.
I got hooked on that show. It just seemed like the intensity of that HS football program was far above what NC HS's have???? I don't know really as an outsider to the sport of HS football. The coach 's salary is $94,000; that is published on their website. Apparently during the season they actually have 2 practices a day, one is early a.m. before school!! Did you see the indoor facility (with artificial turfgrass) that they were using on rainy days? They say that they regularly get transfers to that program from players wanting a higher level of coaching / recruiting attention.
thanks for the reply on this baseball forum. I have noticed that regulars on the TBR football forum don't comment much on "issues" like in baseball & softball.
Thanks.

 

sure

I'm sure that many are tired of my analysis, but I still stand by it. Things have changed in youth sports drastically. There is scholarship money out there like never before & more college sports programs, small & large.

I think this debate still has to do with the dying loyalty of the local areas and communities. When us older? guys were growing up , the only teams were the local / county rec leagues, HS ball , legion .......all geographic boundary-driven organizations. Travel ball / showcase , etc has just changed the landscape..........

 

I don't think enough can be made of the difference in Legion ball in different areas. It is downright awful in the Fayetteville area. My son played legion after his soph year but when the opportunity came to play on a top showcase team, it was a no brainer. And the experience was priceless, even though it cost us very little.

 

Guys...as TJ said we have kicked this topic around many times. I Coach Legion and have always supported both Legion and Showcase. My son always played Legion in the summer and Showcase in the fall and things turned out very well for him.

We play Legion in a pretty competitive area but I have to say the number of College and Pro Scouts at our games are pretty limited. I think that Legion was an excellent venue to get my son more time on the mound, more time in the field and more time at the plate so when he did play Showcase in front of the Scouts in the fall he was at the top of his game.

I also believe the Showcase tournaments you choose to participate in makes a big difference as to who is there to see you...i.e. WWB in Jupiter, FL...this type tournament can push a player with local recgonition to being a nationally recgonized player....IMO