@sushiritto: Your assumptions are incorrect.
@kalons: I agree.
@Publisher Like what assumptions are wrong?
The father understands. In this case, the “specialist” is vulnerable.
Specialists suffer fewer concussions than football players in other positions: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4628259/
And my #2 has already hit his head too many times to count so I’m the wrong person to ask.
@Publisher I stated the “specialist” is far less likely to get a concussion. And you state, they’re “vulnerable.” I agree, specialists are “vulnerable,” both statements can be (and are) equally true. Specialists are less likely to get concussions than linebackers, quarterbacks, running backs, corner backs, safeties, etc.
I do not know how to respond other than to write that I think that the father understands. There is significant risk to the player at a higher level.
@sushiritto: Okay.
Also, it’s not like they play two-hand touch in Ivy football. Concussions also happen there. Yes, players are bigger and faster in P5, but it’s a full-contact sport at the Ivy level as well.
@Ohiodad51 has a S playing football at an Ivy - he might have thoughts to share.
Skipped ahead so missed some things. Sometimes a kicker is better off on a team that does not score many touchdowns so he has more field goal opportunities, especially at a distance. If he is a punter, he might be better off on a team that gets fewer first downs. So Ivy sounds much better than Florida most years. I think kickers and punters are fairly expendable. At a big school, a couple of missed field goal attempts or shanked punts and the number 2 guy comes in and never looks back. At Ivy, there is probably a bigger gap between first and second string skill positions.
As for missing out - every choice excludes some options. For a student of his caliber to turn down a top academic school seems like the missed opportunity. And Florida is not that good in football! The fans are restless. As a parent, wait until he misses a game winning field goal or muffs a crucial punt against Alabama - then wonder about missed opportunities!
I can see how it would be hard for an 18 year old male to weigh the options. At that age, I would have gone to Florida without any regrets. But later I would probably regret the missed opportunity for academics.
@Eeyore123 While I don’t know anyone who has played at UF, I do know many people who hold Ivy degrees and I think few people over 30 would trade the former for the latter. Hey, very cool experience playing a sport at that level, like the Olympics, the fame, the teamwork, great. But education is always more important than sports. It lasts longer. Plus, CS degree from UF. Well I do know a little about that. Never seen someone at the big companies with that. How many UF grads are there are Google? Few I’d guess. How many Ivies, MIT and big names at major companies. Many. Again, it’s not an either or unless you make it. Kid can chose UF and have the great sports experience or can chose the IVY and have the stellar education. No need to insult. I just would never chose UF over an Ivy not even if you gave me big cash. If you were talking similar educational experiences IVY versus Top 30 schools then fine chose based on preference. Again I just don’t agree with you. Never will.
Have a good friend whose son played a sport for two years at a major school. He chose the best academic school when the offers came in ( and there were many). He was ranked #2 in the nation. Blew his arm out and that was the end. But he stayed in school got a great job and moved on. That would be the person to ask. I know his parents were glad there were other options.
The player is not a kicker.
@GnocchiB, I appreciate the shout out. @moscott and I have corresponded quite a bit as his son has progressed down this path, and knows what I think. Personally, I would pick the Ivy if faced with the choice, but I think @moscott is absolutely right to gather as much information to feed his son. The son is the one that needs to make the call, based on the best information he can get.
One point, but I think some here are missing the significance of the fact that @moscott junior is a specialist. One, a lot of big schools try to use PWO slots on specialists, because it saves one of the 85 counters for another position. So the fact that the son will not be a scholly guy in and of itself doesn’t really say much about his chance of getting on the field at a place like UF. Second, I don’t believe it is correct that a specialist coming from the Ivy necessarily has less of a chance of making a career in the pros then a specialist from the SEC. Specialists are just different. They are judged entirely on how efficiently they complete a discrete task, a judgment that is independent from the level of competition faced. So playing in a lesser athletic conference doesn’t hurt a long snapper the way it does a quarterback, for instance.
@Ohiodad51: Nice post. OP"s son will be a very successful individual due to his brainpower & academic talents. If football gets him to Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia or Northwestern, then great. But his brainpower & intellectual capabilities are worth more than a potential career in the NFL.
This kid has it all. Looks, brilliance, work ethic & kindness. Please encourage him to pursue his gifts.
Above, the OP mentioned receiving Benacquisto and bright futures. I’m pretty sure it is one or the other, not both. If he takes a football scholarship at UF, I think he’d get either the stipend or bright futures, not both as the BF would take him up to close to the COA with a full scholarship.
This is a few years old, but…
Thanks to all who have taken the time to read through all this and post their opinion. It is very appreciated and I truly value hearing differing ideas. As his dad I would guide him towards the Ivy but ultimately this will be his decision. I will certainly have him read this thread and I’m sure he will gain some great advice on both sides. As I stated there is no wrong decision and ultimately he needs to go where he will be happiest.
Remember Andrew Luck!
A family member played basketball for an Ivy . And he was a CS major. His parents (both Ivy educated) , supported his efforts to play for bigger powerhouse schools, some he looked at were elite academically, but not all. He had a shot as he played on an elite youth Nike Team. A couple of the guys he played with are currently in the NBA… It didn’t pan out in terms of offers that were more appealing than his Ivy offers, but I was surprised that they were leaving much of the decision of what schools to consider up to him. That is what the OP seems to be doing. Lots of 17 or 18 year old boys who have a reasonable shot at a big school experience could be conflicted.
University of Florida is the state flagship. Opportunities in CS from there should be
good. Placement might be a good thing to ask the department there about. CS and engineering don’t seem to be, in general, as prestige driven . The OP’s son sounds like he will be fine wherever he lands. This seems to be a harder choice than some here may think. Good luck with the decision!
I do think that the Ivy sounds like the smarter choice, but only because the playing time issue is a question mark at FL.
That said, I slightly disagree with the many posters who are making it sound like it is crazy to attend UF-Honors instead of an Ivy. A co-authored study by a Princeton professor and a researcher at the Mellon Foundation looked at earning differences between those who attend Ivies and those who do not. At first, yes, there appeared to be a gap, but when the study controlled for a new factor (what happens when a student who is accepted at an Ivy decides to go elsewhere, such as a state flagship?), the study found that there was no discernible difference in earnings over the course of one’s lifetime.
And we know this, using common sense. It is not the name of the school that makes things happen; it is the person. My advice to the OP’s son is to follow his heart and his brain. Yes, those two things are at odds right now, which is why the choice is so difficult. Ultimately, though, he’ll sort things out. The NFL is littered with the bones of very successful NCAA FBS athletes who didn’t make it at the professional level, including Heisman winners. Being a successful pro athlete is a rare thing indeed, to state the obvious. Yet there are amazing stories (Kurt Warner from FCS U of Northern Iowa, Tony Romo from FCS Eastern Illinois U), so maybe the OP’s son’s best option is the Ivy because of its academics and the ability to receive substantial playing time.
I apologize since I’m sure that a lot of my points have been covered, but eight pages is quite a bit to get through. There are people who pass up Ivies (often for financial reasons; they receive a full-ride at a flagship instead of paying a hefty EFC at the Ivy), and they do just as well in life.