Schools that contact your DD September 1st Junior year?

[JustBob]

WOW!! Thanks for all the feedback. Some really intersting stories. Think we will all try to relax and enjoy the ride even though that is easier said than done. My DD really did enjoy all the September 1st letters which makes them all good. Thanks Again....

[balou]

All of the letters mean something, you just do not know exactly what. My DD had some coaches that were extremely honest as to their interest level and some that played lots of head games, and some in between. Your DD should know when the school is a "fit". My DD made seven unofficial visits from the west coast to the east coast. She verballed on her last visit because it was THE "fit". Make a list of what is important and compare how the list stacks up for each school and when the offers come try to make it a logical decision not an emotional one. It is a very stressful time, but be patient and truly enjoy the experience. Also, have no regrets, never look back, just be thrilled your DD is going to go get a great education and play her sport. Life is full of could've, would have, should have, but that is for losers, make your choice and run with it. Be blunt with the coaches also, have them tell you where you are on their list, not just at that position but in the recruiting class. If you really are their #1, they will act like it and ask very quickly for you to make a visit. If they keep saying they need to watch you more, your DD is probably not their #1 or 2, but likely 3 or 4 and they are waiting to see what their top 2 decide. Go where they WANT your DD. Good luck all, it will work out.

[Blind Squirrel]

My son was only recruited by a couple of D1s and a couple of schools (D3?) I had never heard of. When he finally made a choice the coach told him he had given his scholarship money to someone else. He ended up never getting a dime.

One coach made a very specific offer to my other kid and my response was that we wanted to check out 3 other schools before deciding, which was the truth. The coach responded by saying she understood but if, while she was waiting for our answer, she found another kid she really wanted, that my kid's scholarship might be given to the other kid. Be ready to be put in that situation. I wasn't. It was going to take us a month to get to the other schools and decide and I was very concerned that she would lose the offer from a school that she had just seen and loved. Coaches have been around this block more than a few times.

OTOH, one of the other 3 coaches asked us to make them our last visit so that we would be in a position to give them an answer very shortly thereafter if not on the spot. They said my kid was their #1 choice for the scholarship they had allocated for a position player and they wanted to have the ability to pursue their #2 choice as early as possible. Seemed sensible but we never made it there.

Understand, your kid doesn't have to be God to be a school's #1 or close enough to the top of their list. There is a good fit for a whole lot of kids. UCLA and Arizona only have a few slots but that doesn't make other D1 or D3 or whatever schools any less worthwhile from a purely softball perspective. And BTW, plenty of coaches politely told us they had no interest in my daughter. The closest person I can recall being recruited by nearly everyone was Lew Alcindor with reportedly a little over 100 offers.

Squirrelus Q. Dumas

[catcherdad]

If you fill out the recruiting forms before the fall of your junior year, you will get many September 1 letters or emails. This season, there were a few coaches emailing shortly after midnight to some target players. You can tell the personalized ones, informing you about your right to call them, from the general ones. We had some camp letters that looked pretty personalized but then again they want players to sign up.

In my personal opinion, few coaches are completely honest even to the TB coach. We had many, "you are in our top tier" comments that did not end up with further contact even after seeing some strong ball play. Is that bad or unexpected? No, they are juggling many factors -- in state vs out of state, players grades, player versatility, recruiting from strong programs and states year after year, etc.

One of our friends signed ACC d1 and our TB coach was told by a top school that had never responded to player emails and letters, you were one of our top recruits! So you never know who is interested.

We were very fortunate that our coach was honest from the first phone call about interest and what she would look for. That call happened in January of the junior year and with pretty constant communications during the high school season. The coach attended the first gold tournament possible and saw a strong performance as our team qualified.

[Sam]

I wonder how many kids who sign with schools ever get told "You WERE NOT one of our top recruits. We had to settle for what we got after all the better schools signed their players."

[jonriv]

I wonder how many kids who sign with schools ever get told "You WERE NOT one of our top recruits. We had to settle for what we got after all the better schools signed their players."

Does it really matter? Players should cast their net wide as long as possible and keep their options open. You might be somewhere sown on their recruit list, but as others on the list commit elsewhere, your stock goes up.

[anonlooker]

I wonder how many kids who sign with schools ever get told "You WERE NOT one of our top recruits. We had to settle for what we got after all the better schools signed their players."

I wonder how many players respond "You WERE NOT my top choice of schools. I settled because the better schools ran out of money, and since you are paying for my education, here I am. Now where do we get tickets to the football game?"

[Gone in 2.6]

I wonder how many kids who sign with schools ever get told "You WERE NOT one of our top recruits. We had to settle for what we got after all the better schools signed their players."

Does it really matter? Players should cast their net wide as long as possible and keep their options open. You might be somewhere sown on their recruit list, but as others on the list commit elsewhere, your stock goes up.

Nope it doesn't. Most of us do not have dd's who were #1 on a bunch of wish lists (I mean, how many Kelani Ricketts and Dallas Escobedos are there?). What matters is doing your due diligence so you can make a somewhat informed decision about a "good fit". That's what we tried to do.