opinions wanted

[greg99]

I?m looking for some advice/opinions please.

My DD is a 16yo sophomore, 2018 grad of course. She is getting a lot of attention from college coaches. She does have a list of about 10-15 schools she would love to attend and play softball at. On the list,(most Mid-Major D1, pretty good academic schools), five or so, have her in their Top 5 for the 2018 recruiting class but are holding back making offers to she finishes her sophomore year and get 2 complete HS years of transcripts, or so they say.


Now, she has an offer from college that isn?t in her top 15 and they need an answer in a few weeks. It is a good college but again not in her top 15. My DD hates to tell them no, because it?s not a no, I'll never come to this college; it?s a not right now, I?m waiting till my top 5 get back with me.


So, what do you think DD should do? How should she handle this offer?

Can we use this offer to pressure the other schools that have shown interest in her in the hopes they will make an offer?





Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Static_97_North]

First off in my opinion it should be about the school and not softball. Does it matter if she gets a scholarship and the team goes undefeated or defeated? It should not matter if she really likes the school. The scholarship is going to vary anyway. It may stay the same, go down or go up from year to year. That depends on her progress from year to year. I think that kids and parents hung up on Division 1 and Division 1 only are crazy and not being realistic. This is not every case but in most cases. I know we looked at a lot of schools and I thought as a parent I knew exactly which one they were going to choose but they still had one more to go look at and that last school was the one, not the one I thought. She will know which one is right for her just by the feeling she gets when she is there. I know many of girls that have said that and mine were no different. Hope this helps you and the daughter out.

 

[Louuuuu]

If truly "five, or so, have her in their Top 5", then wait. As Static said, make the school the priority, not the softball team. Don't jump on the first half-decent offer, there's still time. Besides, a lot can happen in 2 years where the coach or the committed recruit gets second thoughts.

As for "How to handle": "Thank you for the offer coach. I have a number of options I must consider. I will let you know of my decision soon." If your daughter gets pressured into making a decision NOW, then there's something fishy going on, and you probably don't want to be playing there anyhow. Move on.

 

[coachjwb]

I would keep them warm ... tell them she's very interested, but that she is not ready to make a college decision yet. If they choose to walk away, and they might because they may want to make that offer to another player, then so be it ... it was meant to be. If they really want her, then they will probably understand and hold the spot for her. I assume she has visited the college?

 

[Long Baller]

What is it about this school that keeps it out of her "Top 15"?

 

[SOFTBALLS14]

Here is my .02 ....
When it comes to college's making offers, tell them she is interested but are still looking at all of her options. Have her call the coach and tell them that she is still looking. Be open and honest!! They might be just trying to finish up there spots or are just trying to find out something else.
Is she a pitcher, utility, catcher. All are different types of commitments and on different time frames for all colleges!
Its NOT a game of cat and mouse its a commitment for four years!
REMEMBER.... If she was to have a career ending injury (heaven forbid!! ) would she still stay there and finish her degree. Does she want family to be able to come see her play .....Playing in KY, Indy, Mich. and playing in Alabama, Fla., Ga., are two different deals for family's to see their DD play! 2+hrs drive compared to 8-12+hrs to see a game. Or just watch her on SEC network..... All part of the decision she will have to make.
Visit as many campuses as possible and attend as many camps as possible.
Talk to all the other coaches and be up front and honest and she will find the right fit!!
Once she has found the right fit she will have the AH-HA moment (I promise you she will) and she plus you as parents will know!!
WE did and we are excited for DD. That she made the decision and will be happy and playing at a college and with coaching staff we all trust.
We can't wait for it to begin next Fall 2016!!
And yes it was the D-1 trail we where on.
GOOD LUCK !!

 

[Pacerdad57]

it was my understanding that a D1 (or D2) school can't offer to a sophomore?? am i missing something?

 

[poden-smoden]

it was my understanding that a D1 (or D2) school can't offer to a sophomore?? am i missing something?

They can offer to a sixth grader!

 

[poden-smoden]

My opinion is a little different than most. Since she is so young there is likely to be more offers to come. If all offers are equal then of course choose based off of the academic stuff, if you like the school, coaches, location, etc...blah blah.

But........if there is one that is considerably more money than the rest....choose the money. A four year degree is getting to be almost useless as far as obtaining a good paying job and starting your adult life in debt is surely no fun. Most of our DD's are and will be happy/have fun no matter where they are, so I say go to the money. You wanted an opinion and that is mine. I am positive that others feel the same way and have actually made the decision based on money but would be reluctant to ever say such! Either way, good luck in your decision!

 

[cobb_of_fury]

They can offer to a sixth grader!

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12381552/lebron-james-does-not-colleges-attempts-recruit-10-year-old-son-lebron-james-jr

 

[yossarian]

A four year degree is getting to be almost useless as far as obtaining a good paying job and starting your adult life in debt is surely no fun.

I don't think I'm disagreeing or agreeing with you. But to add to what you said, I would think it really depends on what your DD is studying/trying to be after college. If she's just doing the type of general studies, the type of major that's designed to not get in the way of athletics, then yeah, it could be next to worthless from a career standpoint. But hopefully her major is something more directly applied to a specific career like nursing, teaching, architecture, engineering, etc.

I don't know how that factors into the money decision. Maybe it's about the money but also about her getting the right fit at a college that has a good program for whatever she wants to be.

 

[Pacerdad57]

my bad. it was my understanding in talking to the DD's travel coach and pitching coaches (along with a couple of college coaches) that they cannot contact the kid until official start of the junior year.
i realize talking to parents is different, just made a wrong assumption about when they could actually start talking their school and monies up to the student.

 

[Louuuuu]

a specific career like nursing...

Ask the coach how they feel about your daughter missing half of her senior season for Clinicals? I've heard of a number of coaches who try to talk the player out of being a nursing major for this reason.

 

[BouldersDad]

Ask the coach how they feel about your daughter missing half of her senior season for Clinicals? I've heard of a number of coaches who try to talk the player out of being a nursing major for this reason.

Spot on happened to us

 

[yossarian]

Ask the coach how they feel about your daughter missing half of her senior season for Clinicals? I've heard of a number of coaches who try to talk the player out of being a nursing major for this reason.

Yeah, I figured someone would mention that. It happened to a friend's daughter. She was offered a D1 spot and she walked away from it for this exact reason.

 

[greg99]

Thanks everyone for all the input, it is appreciated. Pretty helpful too.

 

[Pacerdad57]

Yeah, I figured someone would mention that. It happened to a friend's daughter. She was offered a D1 spot and she walked away from it for this exact reason.

same deal with my DD's pitching coach's daughter.

 

[tankerlab]

my bad. it was my understanding in talking to the DD's travel coach and pitching coaches (along with a couple of college coaches) that they cannot contact the kid until official start of the junior year.
i realize talking to parents is different, just made a wrong assumption about when they could actually start talking their school and monies up to the student.

Lots of things to consider here...
Has she visited school or schools? More than once? Has the college coached talked to her travel coach? They should talk to travel coach or other coaches and not parents.
They may be waiting on ACT scores as that score depends on how much academic money she gets and every college is different on ACT scores...
Then after they know the max academic money she can get,then they know amount to offer for athletic.
Being a 99 Soph. is better than. 99 Jr.
You have a little more time... Also most kids get looked at in 16 U.
You have at least this summer to get more looks and re-looks.
Most important thing to consider is does this or any school she decides to accept an offer from the school for her? She and you will know!
Is the coach right?

 

[FastBat]

2018 recruiting class but are holding back making offers to she finishes her sophomore year and get 2 complete HS years of transcripts, or so they say.

Thanks for sharing, being college and the goal there is education, I have wondered about grades.

 

[FastBat]

A four year degree is getting to be almost useless as far as obtaining a good paying job and starting your adult life in debt is surely no fun.

I beg to differ! Being a female with a bachelor's degree is extremely important and opens many doors. Playing a sport in college is a big plus with leadership skills, time management, etc.

I agree starting your adult life, debt free, is a wonderful thing.