College Scouts

[softball_chic_12]

good idea sluggers. I have not yet fully decided on a real career. I have considered options though. And I am working my butt off to become one of the top 10 softball players in the USA. This year is my busiest year. I play on 5 teams this year. 14 & under, 18 & under, high school, travel ball, and fall ball. and in the winter i go to a once a week clinic. this is my freshman year and I was the starting varsity catcher, same for my 18 & under team. I am the starting pitcher on my 14 & under team, and travel. and i use fall ball to learn and perfect other positions and skills. At the clinic i pitch, catch, bat, and do a little fielding. This year the coach from a local college, a prestigious college, talked with my coach. I had gotten hurt in the game and culd barely walk. The college coach is a good friend with my high school coach (who is also my 18 & under coach). the college coach said he was very impressed with me and already knew a lot about me. He was also surprised at my age. I'm taking this as a good sign and that i'm on the right track. am i right to do this? It's not stopping me from working just as hard though. In fact I've been working harder.

 

[sluggers]

You are young, and it is OK to be considering alternatives.

I'm assuming your mature enough I can talk to you like an adult. I'm not going to sugar coat stuff for you.

1) You need to be an excellent softball player at your position in college. You cannot be an excellent pitcher and an excellent catcher. There aren't enough hours in the day to become great at both positions.
2) If you pitch in college, you will almost certainly not play another position. If you pitch, you likely will not bat.
3) One critical factor is your foot speed. If you are slow, you won't be a middle infielder or outfielder.
4) It doesn't matter how many teams you play on. What matters is the level of competition. To be honest, good in Pennsylvania and good in Southern California are two different things. You won't know how good (or bad) you are until you play the SoCal teams.

 

[mudbug]

For a lot of the big name schools, look at the rosters if they cite the TB programs where the west coast players came from. You will notice trends. For instance, UF has a lot of OC Batbuster and Gold Coast Hurricanes girls, two top 18Gold teams. I know certain players on some 14U SoCal teams have already been contacted by several top softball schools, including AZ.

The gist of it is this. Your travel team needs to be a great one, nationally known, with a reputation to attract the big name schools. The coaches need to know that you already can play with the best, against the best. They need 4-5 girls per year, and only have 3 scholarships to give per yr. They go after the best in the country, and often that means the most visible best. Anything else is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Fair? maybe not. Life never is.

 

[Coach JV]

It is not all about playing at the most prestigious D1 college. As Ray pointed out,
once you graduate college, softball as a player is over. Decide what you want as a major, look into
these schools. There is plenty of $$ available for student athletes at D2 and D3 schools. Some of
these schools offer a better education than your prestigious D1 schools. Be diligent, ask for help
from coaches, counselors etc. Most important, keep your grades up!
Go online and research 'Rising Stars' these are college showcase events that you can participate as an
individual or as a team. There are hundreds of college recruiters at these tournaments, they are well run
and will help you attain your goals.

 

[Softball_2]

You're a 2013 PSA, which is the class that Arizona -- and many other Top Division I programs -- are recruiting at this point. Amy is likely correct in that Arizona has probably promised all their scholarship money through the classes of 2011 and 2012. While most PAC 10 coaches aren't around the East Coast too much recruiting, several SEC schools send out an assistant or their head coach to the Team New Jersey tournaments out in Edison, NJ. At this point, though, the summer tournament has already passed and the fall tournament is likely booked up, so you'd have to find a team that would let you come play for them.

There is always a place to play, if playing is your goal. NCAA Divisions I-III, NAIA, and junior colleges.

If playing for Coach Candrea is your goal, best of luck to you. If you do make it as far as the University of Arizona, hopefully he doesn't retire before you get there. Perhaps you should write out a list of what quailities he possesses that you find most desirable. I assure you that there are college coaches out there with equal (or more) coaching abilities and passion for the game. You can't really go too wrong have Coach Candrea as your teacher; but if that doesn't happen, there are many, many other coaches out there who can continue helping you become a better player.

 

[softball_chic_12]

thanks for the advice everyone. Unfortunetly my travel team is new and does not have a big name. A coach from a big name team did show interest in me. But the issue there is, money. And sluggers, i am well aware of the fact that good around here is not even close to good over there. This is why i am on so many teams and go to so many clinics to try to at least have the chance to compete with the westcoast girls. And that's why I want to travel to the west coast to see where i am now with my ability compared to theirs. But I don't even have the option of travelling. so does anyone have any ideas?

 

[jacketsfan]

sb chic -

Set goals, but have backup plans. It is very hard to get seen by just the right person at the right time, not to mention whether they actually need your position or not. I can tell from going through this process right now with my DD, it is very easy to be focused on only one school and very hard to be equally in love with many. However, the wider you can cast your net, the better off you will be in the end.

As for exposure, many schools have a list of exposure tourneys they attend embedded in their online questionnaires. Have your travel bell coach email an assistant coach to see where they go, if you can't find it otherwise. At your age, they can't respond directly to you yet, but they will likely respond to your coach.

In your part of the world, there are lots of great schools. Your team should be able to get some tourneys where coaches from those schools will be. You will need to have contacted them ahead of time, though, for them to make an effort to come see you play.

Embrace the opportunities. You only go through this once. Try to enjoy it, and make the best of it.

We are in in the south, and my DD wants to go to school in PA! You live in a beautiful part of the country - I wouldn't be so quick to try to leave it.

 

[softball_chic_12]

haha it is nice here, but i've been all over PA. I've lived here my whole life. I would like something different. A change.

 

[airjacobs]

Many colleges have included on their main list the list or exposure trips for a college scout like you. You just have to persevere in looking and searching for it. I am pretty sure you can find the best one so soon.

 

[jacketsfan]

All I can tell you is, invest a little time into more than 1 program. Besides being good, it takes luck, sales, and intangibles to be recreuited by a top tier D1. If you have all of your efforts invested in 1 school, you may be very disappointed. For instance, if you are an outfielder, and your school of choice needs a pitcher, a catcher, a 3B, and a SS in your recruiting year, you are most likely out of luck. You really need to cast a wide net in your search, and then let things play out.