Wow, it’s been a crazy summer! I assume most of the prep school kids are back at school - we are and we are really grateful for that.
Our one hiccup is the restriction on club sports. I am wondering how many other families, with kids who hoped to play in college, are dealing with this sadness. There have been A LOT of tears here over this issue. The kids I know who are laboring under these rules, mine included, are under so much pressure from school on the one hand and their club coaches or college dreams (or both) on the other. I am really sad for my kid. She needs a spring season, frankly she needed a fall season but can’t get it.
Does anyone think rules will shift in the spring (this seems like a foolish notion to pin our hopes to)?? Anyone who was late to the recruiting party and can give advice to players that might only have a junior spring or senior fall to get it done in?
We are right there with you in the sadness. My DD is a serious athlete that had to give up club this fall and attending a very selective tournament that definitely would have put her on coaches radar. She decided that she chose to go to BS for the education, so that had to come first. It was not a decision made without lots of tears. I guess it depends on sport, but we went back to tournament film companies and purchased some footage. She then emailed coaches and explained that she had to bubble up at boarding school and attached highlights. Since youtube is unlisted she knows some coaches are viewing film, and believes if she truly is good enough then the coaches will find her. Deep down though, I think if recruiting doesn’t happen as hoped,
she’ll always wonder the impact of her decision and the what ifs.
We are there too. My older daughter decided late in highschool to give up the idea of playing. She was the excellent D3 type but wanted a big D1 school. (thank god - it made college so much easier!)
My son still holds out hope but we were late with the filming train and there have been some other bumps along the road of which sport to go with, yada yada. In the end, we are left with nothing. If he wants to play, he will have to go virtual this spring and he says he will fail school if he does that. The other kids who have done so seem fine with it, I cannot figure out why it is soooooo hard for him. I guess I hope something will change, but I know it won’t. I wish we had pushed to play more this summer but coaches didn’t want to risk it and that seemed smart. Now it seems like the worst mistake we’ve made because that could have been the highlight reel and we’d be all set.
@one1ofeach Is your school at all considering organizing and taping scrimmages for the varsity teams? Possibly against other localish in state schools? Our school claims to be planning on it, as a way to provide some tape for the players as well as to continue training. Far from ideal but I suppose better than nothing? Of course it all depends on how the covid situation evolves both at school and in local community. But the plan exists, and I assume it would have to be way more robust for the spring should the current ban on outside play continue.
@417WHB Right now no. There is nothing like this planned. Apparently we have a winter season scheduled but, honestly, I just do not see a real season happening. I suppose if it doesn’t I can suggest the idea of scrimmages to the winter coach - not sure they would let us even scrimmage other schools is season is cancelled. Winter coach would try at least. Fall coach will not do anything - school is 100% locked down.
Thank you for the suggestion!
I think part of the issue is that it has been such a long stretch of not knowing and not being able to plan a best way forward. We didn’t play this summer because we assumed (our team) that it was totally unsafe and all the kids playing out of state would get covid. No one got covid (in our sport and our area)!!! So in hindsight we should have played. Now we are locked down and if I knew spring would happen I would stop stressing but right now we know nothing and that = huge stress.
We are with you all! It was down to wire, but kiddo decided to return to BS. Missed out on tournaments, clinics, showcases, prospect camps. I know the club team has practices and know day students attending. Also day students going to showcases. Some schools are offering virtual clinics. Also some BS’s are video taping scrimmages. DH just got the email for boys lax events. There are some big tournaments planned for boys lax in November, right after school lets out. It is concerning that hundreds of kids will show up and play in MD/NY. For these tournaments. Thought NY had tough restrictions? How will that work?
From what I have seen because it is an outdoor sport it’s an easier sell to the powers that be. Also, what we saw here in the summer was that every kid and (sometimes) every parent had a temp check and a mask until playing. Kids had to mask on the bench. Town soccer is happening and kids just stay masked the whole time, no corner kicks, no throw ins.
Also, right now some crazy rules going into effect about numbers on the field and how you can play. I have NO idea how refs will enforce some of the things that are rumored to be covid rules.