<p>Just returned from a big soccer tourney and was surprised to hear a few things. While there heard of four young women who had changed their minds about honoring their NLI's. All would have left for preseason in 2 to 3 weeks and just announced their decisions this week. One reconsidered her desire to play DI and attend the college. With less than two weeks to be at school she will change schools and play DII. She would have roomed with my D2. Two DI recruits will attend their school of choice but not play the sport. The fourth doesn't know what she will do. I found it very interesting that these young women waited until almost the last minute to notify parents and coaches of their decisions. Wonder how often this happens????</p>
<p>I assume the two D1 recruits who will still attend the same schools, were admitted without receiving an athletic boost? Is there no penalty, eg. can’t those schools rescind their offers of admission?</p>
<p>I’ve seen it happen in baseball - but not often… perhaps one kid in 30 or 40. Definitely not the norm.</p>
<p>This is “reneging,” not “rethinking” and depending on each player’s circumstances, suggests a lack of values (no such thing as commitment) and/or a breakdown at the last minute under pressure applied by adults to go a route the player really didn’t want to go.</p>
<p>I know indirectly of a player recruited to play a sport for an Ivy, who had no real intention of playing, used it to get in, then announced he wasn’t playing and got his Ivy degree.</p>
<p>^^ Wow. That’s not unethical at all. Probably was full pay. I wouldn’t risk it if I was on FA.</p>
<p>Apparently this is a fairly common occurrence at Ivies and highly selective DIII LACs. Unless the school was cheating on FA to start with, won’t effect FA; at most of these schools, we’re not dealing with merit money.</p>
<p>I can’t comment on how common it is for recruits to “change their mind” about competing in college. However, I know all college coaches recruiting my daughter asked her high school coach if she was “serious” about completing in college. I’m not sure how a HS coach would answer that question if he suspected a kid was just using the athletic hook for admission. I guess HS coach credibility with college recruiters is somewhat on the line: if they produce kids who don’t follow through with commitment, that could harm future recruits from their high school. I would hope HS coaches would strongly discourage athletes who are lukewarm about college athletics from going through the recruiting process. It’s flat dishonest, IMO.</p>
<p>None of these young women needed the athletic boost. All are top students and none of the schools were “super” selective. We are most surprised at the one who would have been with our D2. She is going to a lower ranked, in state school with a poor reputation. Everyone who knows the family is shocked. I think she was surprised at the intensity of the summer workouts, housing problems and being told what she could and could not do from one of the coaches. Most also were receiving both merit and athletic aid. None would have received FA.</p>
<p>The realities of D1 sports can be shocking - the coaches OWN you.</p>
<p>^ Very, very true. And let’s not forget that each full ride scholarship is a one year scholarship/commitment from the school; it does not have to be renewed.</p>
<p>Oh so very true… and there doesn’t have to be a reason for cutting the scholarship… one local kid just got his cut from 45% to 0 - despite leading his team in hitting. The rationale - they wanted the funding for incoming freshman and “As a rising junior you can’t transfer anyway.” </p>
<p>He is transferring and sitting out a year.</p>
<p>I find it pretty surprising that these girls are backing out so late in the game. I wonder if it’s got something to do with the accelerated timeline for soccer recruiting these days. Girls start making college commitments early in junior year (or even before!), and I see a lot of players frantically chasing the scholarships - perhaps before they have time to really learn about what the commitment entails, and what they want in a college experience. Maybe they’re not getting sound guidance from the adults in their lives.</p>
<p>As for the kids who use the tip to get into an Ivy or a top LAC, and then quit, that seems like an entirely different story - more unethical than misguided, I think. If a student from my kids’ high school did that, the college counseling office would come unglued! They would not like their relationships with these elite schools tarnished.</p>
<p>This seems to happen every year in softball. Just yesterday DD told us a kid she has played club ball with for many years emailed the coach of her DIII school to say she would not be playing softball and would not attend the school. Last year same thing, except the kid enrolled and refused to start preseason.
Although the guys may experience this to some extent, it appears to be more prevalent among the girls. Some of it is lack of dedication to their sport, but a lot of it is burnout. Also, can’t discount the lure of getting out from under the parental thumb.</p>
<p>FauxNom - </p>
<p>I completeley agree with what you said about girl’s soccer being accelerated. Recruiting is done primarily in junior year, before many of the girls truly have an idea of the realities of a DI sport. That being said, I know a few girls from my club team (I play up) who were recruited senior year, but that was usually after years of contact. I can’t speak for any other sport, but girls soccer recruiting feels so frantic half the time that I can understand why a player wouldn’t really think about the full consequences of that decision. </p>
<p>Personally, I know it came as a bit of a shock to the system when I suddenly looked around a college campus and thought about what it would be like to have a normal experience without playing soccer. It sounds dumb, but I never really thought about what I’d be missing, and it isn’t a great feeling. A friend of mine, who was also a recruited athlete, said that she often wondered why she couldn’t just apply to colleges and consider them like a normal person.</p>
<p>I know that was rambly, but hopefully addressed the OP in some way or another?</p>
<p>My D was recruited for DI soccer programs most heavily summer after her sophomore year. Spent a lot of energy and unofficial visits fall of junior year. Lots of pressure to make verbal committment. By the end of junior year of HS she decided she did not want to play soccer at the collegiate level at all (this after 10 years of highly competitive soccer, traveling all over the country to Showcase tournaments with her team, going through the recruiting process for a year, etc.). She decided she wanted a normal college experience and did not want the coaches to “own her”. She’s now at small LA college and hasn’t touched a soccer ball in a year. She seems content with her decision and keeps in touch with her former Club teammates who are all playing at the collegiate level. At least she made her decision before making any committments, or accepting any scholarships. We wonder if she will ever look back and have any regrets?</p>
<p>^^It’s good that you didn’t pressure your D into playing. After spending all that money over the years many parents would…</p>
<p>As a person involved with rowing recruiting, I can offer some insight into the HS coach question.
If you have a kid bail or turn out to be less of an athlete than previously thought that came from your HS/Club program, the coaches are less likely to recruit from your squad the next year or believe your hype.</p>
<p>We had 2 boys go to Northeastern last year (no ■■■■■■■■ please!) who were amazing for their freshman program. As a result (added with our increased presence on the national rowing scene) we have a boy going to Princeton, one to Columbia, and two to Northeastern. </p>
<p>Our 2010 class (my class) has a ton of prospects and we’re excited because with the success of those before us, college coaches have started to notice our small, relatively new program. </p>
<p>Although I am not trying to be recruited, I am happy for my friends who have now been given the opportunity to pursue their interests at a college of their choice. </p>
<p>WORD TO THE WISE: Don’t back out on commitments unless you are ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY sure that it is the wrong decision for you. You’re not only affecting yourself, but the athletes below you.</p>
<p>IMO, the soccer recruiting process for girls starts way too early. Many girls who commit in their junior year really don’t know what they want yet out of their college experience. They back out at the last minute because they realize either that they are burnt out or that they made a poor decision. My daughter will be a high school senior this year and has a club teammate who already worries whether she made a bad commitment decision. She has told a couple of her teammates but not her parents or her future college coach. I can’t justify backing out at the late date described by the OP, and this problem will likely always exist to some degree, but I certainly think that a process where girls who haven’t even turned 16 yet are expected to make a binding collegiate decision only makes things worse.</p>
<p>Baseball recruiting seems to be very different from womens soccer.I find this discussion very interesting and very different from our recruiting experiences. Son and friends were recruited for baseball. Of the 15 or so we personally know not one changed his mind. They all enjoyed playing this year and are all returning to their D1 colleges. Maybe the difference is that most of the boys don’t commit until their junior or senior year. They know ahead of time the commitment required in college and are just thrilled to get the chance to play at the next level.</p>
<p>How exactly do they “recruit heavily” the summer after sophomore year? They can’t legally contact an athlete until after September 1st of the junior year for soccer. My son has received illegal contact from one school, but most of coaches have replied to his emails telling him that they saw him play and are interested and will contact him after September 1.</p>