Unnoticed utility players

Thanks for the advice!

I just want to commend the many posters on this website for the helpful information regarding the college recruitment process. My son is currently a senior and I find that the whole process is sometimes overwhelming. There have been many times I have found this information to be useful and I try to pass it on to other parents who are going through the same process.

Gonzo, I appreciate the advice regarding position players. My son is also a position player and my question is this, "If position players don't sign until the end of their senior year, how do they know which schools they should apply to?" Don't they need to apply to these schools in the fall as well as apply for financial aid? When is it too late to apply? Should they apply to all the schools they may be interested in? Right now we are considering anywhere from 10-15 schools, but who's to say that we may become interested later in a school that's not on our list right now.

Thanks again!

 

In a post some time ago from one of the other well informed posters, it was mentioned that your STUDENT-ballplayer should look into schools where they were happy as students. Any sport future is shaky at best, with the possibility of a career ending injury. So the best advice is to apply to the schools you care about, then pursue baseball. Advice once given to me, from a DII baseball coach indicated that if you have already applied and been accepted to a school, you were giving a sign to the coach that you were commited to his program. The downside to this is the $25-50 per application you send in. Now is time for a reality check. Is your son good enough to play DI? What do the scouts say? Check your ego (and your son's) at the door and be honest. That question might eliminate some of the schools already. What does he want to study? Some more gone from the list. Now get serious and talk to people. Find out about the baseball program at the schools left on the list. Communicate with the coaching staff.

Good luck. My son signed to play at Pfeiffer after he graduated as a two way player. I know several others who did also. So hang in there.

 

I AGREE GONZO. LOOK INTO THE SCHOOLS WHERE YOU WOULD GO AND ELIMINATE THE SPORTS FROM THE EQUATION. NOW IF YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH AND SCHOOLS ARE INTERESTED IN YOUR SON, AND HIM IN THEM, AT A LATER DATE, THEY WILL SEND HIS APPLICATION THROUGH QUICKLY. DON'T WORRY ABOUT THAT. MAKE SURE HE HAS DONE THE CLEARINGHOUSE.

 

Thanks Gonzo and Catamount, both of your posts were helpful. I will try to elaborate on our situation. We are currently registered on the Clearinghouse. Realistically, my son is a D-2 or D-3 player and we are also considering JUCO. We have even been told by at least one college scout and at least one D-I coach that these should be the schools we pursue. We have no problem with that because we have already looked at some awesome D-2/JUCO schools and are impressed with the talent and quality of their baseball programs. Could my son play at a D-I school? Maybe given the ideal situation and the perfect fit, but most unlikely.

Here is our dilemma, there are at least 3 D-I schools that we are interested in as far their academic programs and campus location, but realize there isn't much chance of playing for their baseball team. One of these schools did mentioned the possibility of trying to walk on the baseball team but recommended against it because he knew my son wanted and needed a chance to go somewhere he could play. Should we still apply to these schools in case something doesn't work out for my son and he doesn't get an offer to play D-2 or D-3?

Thanks again.

 

Easy for me to say since I don't have to foot the application fees or complete the applications, but my response would be, "Absolutely. Go ahead and apply at the D-I's...so that you create options for your son."

By the way, here's a good, current message board thread from the High School Baseball Web about the subject of keeping options open in recruiting:

HSBaseballWeb Message Board Thread on Options

 

I would second this. I did not see an application fee over $50 the entire time my son was looking at college, so for $150 max, you are protecting your son's future. I know that may or may not seem like much money, but it might play out well for him. Also, I have not seen many walk on players at DI schools (I know there are some, but the majority are recruited players).