Getting Looks From D2's and D3's

Why continue to play ?

Assuming that I'm not an idiot - which is open to debate - I believe I'm the dad of the pitcher you mentioned above. Actually the 3-run homer came in the bottom of the 7th, 2 outs, 2 hits, 10 K's, and a routine grounder to best infielder ever to play at your school was booted, allowing the star player to hit the 3 run homer !!! (also the first pitch the closer threw was clocked at 89 mph as it hit 12 feet up on the backstop fence - for ball 1)

But back to your thread - both pitchers had a chance to play for DII programs - but both refused, and opted to go to the same DI school (my son tried to walk on while the closer was an invited walk on). Both were eventually cut, and my son now admits he made a big mistake not going to the smaller DII school. I have a co-worker friend whose son now plays on that opponent team, played in this year's State Games, but IMO is also only a DII caliber player, but also is only in looking at DI, much to his dad's dismay (he is getting DII interest, but he just ignores them).

So I'm wondering if you could expand more on your decision to look away from DI to DII and DIII possibilities. I told my son "my" reasons why he would regret not continuing to play baseball in college at a DII level - still only a few people can play at that level, still playing a game you love to play, an honor to play for your school even if it's a smaller school, etc. He now admits I was right - but maybe you can help with other reasons or "kid" logic which parents don't have ?

 

DII baseball is baseball

My son was not getting looks or contacts from any D1 schools despite what other parents or teams thought of his skills. He was all set to be a college boy way far away from home (Mama was not very pleased with the distance and Dad always like the DII possibilities) when he was finally contacted by a DII school. Coaches were sent a highlight video after his high school coach said this school was looking at him during the middle of his senior year. When the coach offered him a scholarship and a baseball home, the smile on my son's face will be remembered forever. He is now in his second season and has no regrets. He loves the school, the coaches and the baseball environment. He just wanted to continue playing baseball, a game that he has truely loved since he picked up his first baseball to play with his older brother as a 5-6 year old.

FYI -- baseball at the DII level is just as competitive as any I have seen on the college level.

 

xpectus' post reminds me so much of a very good family friend who recently went through this very same process, in much the same way he did. He received plenty of looks via showcase and was typically approached by several dz. mid D1 coaches. Ultimately his downfall to those programs were his somewhat average grades. But, he was recommended to a D3 school through one of the D1 coaches. Surely, he was disappointed initially and a bit hesitant to accept the fact that he wouldn't make D1. But listening to him now, I don't think he would want it any other way. He's proud of decision and proud of his place on the team-likely to supplant the senior mid fielder-and proud to be a part of an amazing situation. Not to mention the growing support from a recently retired relief pitcher that is coming home to his alma matter. Good Luck to you xpectus and all those that have the ability to make the move into college ball.

 

For me, the decision wasn't necessarily hard. I wanted to play D1, don't get me wrong, but my older brother had already gone through the recruiting process. My skill-set was similar enough to his that I knew D1 was unlikely. It especially helped me make my decision considering that after playing showcase ball during my sophomore and junior years, as well as legion ball since my freshman year, I had only once received interest from a coach, which was from a community college that I had no interest in attending.

D2 and D3 don't get nearly the credit they deserve. There's a lot of great competition at both of those levels, a lot of kids just don't realize it. Heck, did you know the Division 2 World Series was held in Cary, NC this past year? I would assume they were held at the USA NTC, but I'm not even sure.

D1 is just so heavily built up in a lot of players minds as make or break. It is significantly more glorified than D2 and D3, for obvious reasons. And on top of that, a lot of players, um, actually the majority of high school players do not have a full understanding of how good they have to be and how hard they have to work to reach D1.

To me, D3 ball meant I would get to keep doing something I loved for another 4 years. Personally, my life has always been so enveloped by baseball that I cannot fathom life without it.

Some kids have different reasons for continuing to play baseball. One of my teammates said that he only wanted to play D1. If he couldn't, then he would just go to school as a student. When I asked what he had against D2 and D3, he said that the only point of playing in college that he saw was to hopefully play professionally, which he considered his best chance of doing so was D1.

Although it may deter some players from pursuing playing baseball in college, one of the nice things in North Carolina are the public universities. I know at least a couple players who elected to attend public schools as students rather than playing baseball for a D2 with lesser academics. Financially, it may also be more beneficial for the student at a public school, rather than playing D2 or D3 ball, as D2's and D3's are usually private. (UNC-P is D2 and public, great option for alot of people financially, although I hear their team has mostly DI level ball-players)

I already covered my reasons for choosing D3 over D1, so I guess the next reason is academics. Academically, the only public schools that I was interested in were NCSU, UNC-CH, and Clemson (theres a scholarship for NC students to get in-state tuition that I qualify for). I think it should be quite obvious that I am incapable of playing at any of these schools.

I wanted to go to a really good school; something better than UNC-CH or NCSU. With my academics and baseball, I knew I could get there. That's something that I think alot of people might not know. A recommendation from a coach at a D3 program holds weight in admissions. Different D3's have different policies, some admissions basically have a separate stack for athletes, others its just a strong recommendation.

Personally, I think that JUCO is a great option for guys trying to play DI. You get two years to bust your ass on the field and hopefully you can play for a top notch program after that. If not, then as long as you have kept your grades up, you can transfer into almost any NC school. The rule I have heard, and do not quote me on this, as I heard it from a friend, is that "a B average in any NC JUCO will get you into almost any public school in NC." Basically its two years to bust ass on the field and in the classroom, and if baseball doesn't work, your in the same situation as you would be if you had just gone to the public school from the start. Seems like a good deal to me.

And for the record, I no longer know if I will be playing baseball in college. Sadly my school qualifies as one where the coach's recommendation only holds so much weight. I received my admissions decision last Thursday and was informed that I was deferred, meaning I will have to wait until April 1st to find out if I got in. I had known that this was a possibility from the start.

According to the coach, I was deferred because of my GPA, so I will be busting my ass the rest of the school year to get it higher. For that reason, my free time will be to a minimum so I doubt I will be posting on here often anymore.

Also, if anyone wants to know some good academic D3's with solid baseball programs, feel free to PM me. I did a lot of research on the subject, so I can pass on the info relatively easily.

Edit: I made like three edits after posting this, so an extra paragraph may have "popped" up if you read this before the edit.

 

Not everything is in black & white

xpectus6, I think this thread is great on many fronts, extremely well articulated and precise with much intelligent thought. I believe the process you've outlined will serve others well if heeded. As I read this entire thread, it appears to be geared for players who WANT to play at all costs. I firmly believe that academics should come first, than ball. If both line up reasonable well, bingo! If they don't, herein begins the problem. I know many, many players that have crossed this dilemma, play perhaps D2 or D3 at a lesser know academic school (not quite D1 material) or go out and attend a school such as UNC-CH, NCSU or others that have a strong academic curriculum/offering. Given all variables, some will chose playing at all costs, but not all. In fact, many more will opt to pursue academics at one of these great institutions. I personally think this shows maturity. One should never sacrifice academics in the name of playing collegiate ball, especially if the grades dictate their destiny. This is always a difficult decision and the student/athlete should be comfortable with this decision. After all, what will serve these young men more in the game of life... (Higher education or passion chasing a dream)? Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the game but one most also be realistic.

Again, thanks for the great thread and I wish you all the luck both with academics and playing at the next level.

 

Just another side to all of the DI, DII, DIII talk! JUCO! My son decided to go to a DI JUCO NJCAA School (in case you weren't aware, JUCO has the same classifications as the NCAA) after being recruited by a DIII school (where he was accepted) as well as a DI school! Why JUCO? Real simple, he wanted to continue to play baseball (he pitches) while he can. Let's face it, most will never have the opportunity to even play college baseball yet MLB, so play while you can if that is what you can and want to do! Grades were not the issue as most people think that students that go to JUCO schools are not very bright. You are so wrong if you think that! He just finished his first semester and his GPA was 3.0+! The both line is, he still wants to compete on the field. If he had gone to the DI school, he surely would have been redshirted the first year and then hopefully he would get a jersey his sophmore year and play minimal innings. At the DIII (no athletic schlorship money at DIII, just academic money) he would have had more of a chance to play, but as a freshman, his innings would be limited! At the school he is now attending, he has already competed in the Fall League and is looking forward to more opportunities in the spring! From what I have seen (IMO) the competition at the JUCO level is par or better with any DII school and some DI's I have seen. While all this is going on, he is keeping his grades at a high level and working on getting his core classes out of the way his first two years of school. Even with the schlorship money, its a whole lot cheaper than any DI school would be. FYI One thing I did ask while he was on his recruitment visit, "if my son graduates in two years and has the the credits he needs to become a junior, would being in the same system as the DI school, would this be a advantage over incoming students"? The answer was Yes! So the decision was simple for him (he made the decision not me) he wanted to continue to play and we'll cross the recruitment bridge (play ball or not) again in two years! JUCO is not for everybody, but everyone should look into it before saying "No thanks"! Just my opinion!

 

So I'm pretty sure that by forum rules, "bumping" my own thread is frowned upon. But considering the time of year it is, I feel this may serve as a bit helpful. This probably could have served more use within the last couple weeks as well, but I have not really been following TBR since I got to college.

But around now is usually about the time where kids finally have to make the decision of playing non-D1 ball or not playing anymore, so hopefully it can serve some assistance.

And also, please know that it is never too late to contact coaches. After being deferred by the school I committed to, I contacted other schools and applied to them as well. So I applied to 6 schools, 4 of which I had contacted the coach and been recruited to some extent. 1 school I continually tried to contact but received no response, and the final school I initially did not contact as I was not very interested and only applied because it was free. So I got rejected/waitlisted by 3 of the schools I talked to, and had to decide between the other 3.

I continued to fail to get in touch with one of the coaches, so I crossed that school off (there were also other factors that had decreased my desire to attend that school). So I contacted the other school I thought I had no interest in and visited over my spring break. I was too late to be a "recruit," but the coach told me I could try out. I liked what I saw and came here, and I just made the team last Thursday. That whole saying, "Everything happens for a reason," actually seems to be making some sense now.

 

Great news.....At least tell us where you ended up going to college. Excellent story for some up and coming players.

 

xpectus is as humble as they come.

Not sure if he wants me to brag on him or not but he's at Case Western University (unless something has changed). He's as level headed as they come and made sure he kept academics a priority despite his ability to pitch on the collegiate level. I know use him as an example to other kids in his shoes. Lots of ballplayers these days choose school over school and baseball to attend classes at a large university, even if it means hanging up the cleats. There's nothing wrong with that, but there are options out there for young men to get a great education and also continue playing baseball. You can't play forever.