The Coaches Committee of Miami Coral Reef Senior High School offers some tips for high school baseball players and their parents on recruitment to NCAA or NJCAA college baseball program.
High school baseball players who want to play at the next level should acquire an understanding of how college recruiting operates. Both players and college coaches are bound by rules that govern college athletic recruiting. A player should familiarize himself with the rules, target several colleges that he has a realistic chance of attending, and bring himself to the attention of the college coaches. The best formats for a player to promote himself are, initially, correspondence to the coach, followed by attendance at the college summer camp or showcase, and travel baseball. A successful high school baseball player can hope to be recruited and sign a letter of intent with a college. Players who want to play college ball should not limit themselves to Division I schools. Many excellent programs exist at Division II or III colleges and junior colleges.
As a general rule, the player seeking to be recruited should concentrate on the colleges he's interested in and work to bring himself to the attention of the colleges' baseball coaches. Contacts with the coaches are regulated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). No contacts may be initiated by the college recruiter before ninth grade. A college recruit can mail one letter to a player after his freshman year. Otherwise, prior to senior year, contacts with college coaches must be initiated by the player. During senior year, there are limits on how and when a coach can contact a player. But coaches can always talk to players on campus, for example at a college baseball camp. The player or the player's high school coach can always contact the college coach. The rules can be found here. Other information from the NCAA for athletes is found here
While it's important for the player to focus on specific colleges, the player often benefits from expressing interest in more then one college. The player who promotes himself to multiple colleges gives himself a backup and also increases his leverage when discussing scholarships.
The NCAA requires a player who wants to participate in NCAA Division I or II athletics to register at the NCAA's Clearinghouse after the player's junior year. The Clearinghouse collects core grade point information and SAT and ACT scores and serves as a central source to ensure players' academic eligibility.
The most important time for college recruiting is the summer after a player's junior year. College recruiting coaches have time at this point to see and evaluate players. Three good ways to be seen by coaches are to attend the baseball camp at the college, to attend "showcases," and to play summer travel ball. The role of the high school baseball coach is also critical.
College baseball camps are an excellent and relatively inexpensive way to attract a college's attention. A Division I college summer camp is often viewed by scouts of junior colleges and other local universities, as well as by the college coaches.
Showcases vary in quality. Showcases that Coral Reef parents have found useful are Perfect Game, Play Head First, and Nike 5-Tool. Some showcases are by invitation only, but invitations may be requested. Some showcases will hold a qualifier for the actual showcase, and only a few players will qualify. A parent has to consider the cost in this situation. The parent should inquire with other parents or players who have attended the showcase whether scouts will be present.
Recently, companies have offered marketing services for college-bound athlete. One service that has been approved for Miami-Dade County schools is Florida Student Athlete Profile Services, Inc..
Coaches at showcases look for particular skills. For a pitcher they look for good velocity, control, movement, and ability to throw a pitch other than a fastball. For a non-pitcher, they look for arm strength, speed in the 60-yard dash, and hitting. Hitting is judged by power; fast hands; ability to hit to different fields, including pulling an inside pitch and taking an outside pitch to the opposite field; knowledge of the strike zone; ability to hit a curve ball; and ability to out-think the pitcher and adjust.
Summer travel ball also provides recruiting coaches with opportunities to evaluate player. Travel teams should attend quality tournaments where scouts are present.
Initial contacts with the college coach are better made by the player's high school coach than by the player or his parents. The player should compile a baseball resume containing information on his high school and travel ball performance, or hire a profile service to do this. The resume or profile may be placed on the high school or travel ball website. The player's high school coach or the player can send the profile, accompanied by a cover letter, to the college coach. The player can also compile a short video demonstrating his hitting, fielding, running, and throwing skills, which can be sent to the college coach upon request.
While the high school coach can be an excellent recruiting advantage, the coach also has to prepare, teach, and grade classes, coach the team, keep office hours, deal with the parents and the booster club, and maintain a life outside baseball! So a player must be pro-active and not rely exclusively on his coach for recruiting.
Coral Reef Senior High is lucky to have a highly experienced and respected baseball coach, Dave Bisceglia, who has helped find college scholarships for his players at far above the average rate, see Alumni & Signings at the booster club website. But Coral Reef, one of Miami-Dade County's newest school, with its Mega-Magnet program, is not yet as well known as older high schools. Coach Biz expects that as the Coral Reef program establishes itself by producing more college level talent, the tendency will be for more colleges to contact him about players.
Recruitment occurs when the player signs a national letter of intent. Signing a letter of intent obligates the player to attend the college for one year in exchange for one year's scholarship, and stops recruiting efforts by other colleges. Information on letters of intent is found here.
The college has two windows to sign recruited players. The first window—the early signing period—is after the player's junior summer. This year it is November 8-15, 2006. This is a brief window, but very important. Many Division I colleges will fly the player to the college at their expense to give him a tour of the campus. An offer and request to sign a latter of intent usually follows. (A parent should accompany the player on the visit, at the parent's expense.) There is another, longer window—the late signing period—in the spring of the senior year. This year it is April 11 to August 1, 2007.
Some slots in college baseball programs are also typically filled in the later signing period. A college never really knows how many slots they have to fill because some college players will sign a pro contract their junior or senior season, and some high school players will sign a pro contract instead of attending college. The regular college application process will be flexible in the case of late-signed players.
Some colleges send out many letters to potential recruits and players who have indicated an interest in the program. A better signal of a program's interest in the player is a telephone call or visit from one of the college coaches.
Colleges also sign "recruited walk-ons" who are not offered scholarship money but work out with the scholarship recruits their freshman year and are part of the team. A recruited walk-on can be very valuable to a college program because he frees scholarship funds for other athletes. There are also non-recruited or "plain walk-ons." Few plain walk-ons make the team.
A player's grades and SAT scores are very important for admission and scholarship purposes. Players should have taken the SAT and have their scores available by the summer after their junior year. Remember that a player can take the SAT more than once and can combine his best scores on some sections. GPA and SAT scores figure directly into any offer made by the college to the player. The more academic scholarship money is available, the less baseball scholarship money and funds from parents or student loans is needed to allow the player to pay tuition, room and board, and fees. In this regard, the player should apply for a Florida "Bright Futures" scholarship. The total package presented by the college to a student will consist of the baseball scholarship, the academic scholarship, and parents' funds or student loans. Baseball scholarships are very limited, so high GPA and SAT scores are very desirable to the college coach since they reduce the amount of baseball scholarship funds committed to a player. Of course, a player also needs to qualify for admission into his chosen college, but admission standards can be flexible for a valued recruit.
The NCAA classifies its member colleges as Division I, II, or III based on the size and diversity of their sports programs. Division I schools have 11.7 baseball scholarships to offer. The small number of scholarships means that a baseball scholarship is a big commitment for a school. Coaches look not just for baseball talent, but also for stable, intelligent students with good attitudes. Division II schools offer 9 scholarships. Division III, Ivy League, and Patriot League schools offer none. Many Division II and III colleges have competitive baseball programs and some are among the most academically prestigious in the country. There are 285 Division I baseball schools, listed here, 330 Division II schools, listed here, and 359 Division III schools, listed here .
Some Division I colleges are both top-rated baseball schools and excellent academic schools. See "Top Academic Baseball Colleges" at our web site.
Many junior colleges have baseball programs. Especially in Florida, junior college programs can be as competitive as four-year college programs. Good players who will not meet higher education standards for four-year colleges out of high school should consider opting for junior college instead. Some players, who feel relatively confident that they will be ready for a pro career after only two years, prefer a more modest educational commitment such as a junior college. Florida junior colleges attract players from all over the country who would like to experience the fine weather, conducive to training year round. The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) governs athletics in junior colleges. NJCAA Division I and II schools offer athletic scholarships.
The news magazine U.S. News and World Report ranks schools in a variety of categories, and has placed some of its ranking online. General information on the rankings is found here. You can find the best undergraduate colleges ranked here, and the best values among national undergraduates colleges ranked here. U.S. News' reviews of all four-year colleges in the United States may be found here.
Another valuable resource for players and their parents is the NCAA's "Guide for the College-Bound Student Athlete." You may obtain a free copy by calling (800) 638-3731. It is also available on the Internet here.
Professional teams draft prospects out of high school as well as college. The trend, though, is for the pros to pursue less-risky college graduates rather than immature high schoolers. Very few high school baseball players go directly to the pros. The player with a college education has a big advantage after his baseball career is over.
College baseball recruiters attend local high school baseball games and are aware of top players. After the college baseball season is over, recruiters will travel throughout the country to find recruits, focusing on showcases and tournaments. In terms of numbers of high school baseball players, the rank among states is roughly (1) California, (2) Texas, and (3) Florida. College and pro scouts share information on players. A scout who doesn't think a player is right for his program may still be a valuable source of information to other scouts and college coaches on the player. State universities will often focus on players in their home state, due to the obligation for state schools to educate in-state students, and also because tuition is lower and scholarships more abundant for in-state players.
It is a fact of life that there are certain levels of talent, and certain levels of expectation on the part of college coaches that are relevant factors in deciding which college, or junior colleges to pursue. That can be a difficult fact for high school parents and players to accept.
Accordingly, players and their families need to be flexible in choosing a college. A player should try to have a realistic sense of the nature of the challenge and his abilities to meet the challenge. For example, many players who understand that they may not go to a school and shine right away are better equipped to work their way on to a team over time. That sort of challenge should be encouraged, especially for players who most colleges would deem marginal. There are opportunities for the marginal player who is set on improving. This is why so many Miami high school players are sought after. Most colleges know the level of competition, and, depending on the reputation of the program, have certain predilections about whether the player is ready for the challenge of college baseball. Also, it is prudent to follow the ranking of teams, especially in Division II. There are many who are perennial powers in the Division II rankings, which would suggest that their talent base is consistently superior. If these schools are not actively recruiting a player, the likelihood is that the opportunity to walk on is severely diminished. Other Division II schools are looking to improve their talent base and may be very interested in players from Miami. Again, some serious research will be helpful.
Certainly, financial considerations and geography play important roles as well. Therefore, extensive study on baseball programs in and out of state would be wise. Players should look at the general makeup of the current rosters and the tendency to see what type of player the college coach seems to be leaning toward. Most college coaches will have a heightened interest in a player who has already applied and been accepted to the college, and a player who is willing to pay for tuition and costs. Depending on the time table of the decision, a player should go to the college camp if it is offered, either during the summer of his junior year, or as early as possible in the senior year. There is no better way to get a coach to evaluate a player than to have personal contact.
It's important for a player who wants to be recruited to stay focused and take the process seriously. Even very talented baseball players who act immaturely can jeopardize their college and possibly pro careers. For one local story, click here.
Scholarship players and recruited walk-ons are generally treated the same at Division I schools. They start practice when school begins and practice five days a week. There are NCAA rules governing the numbers of hours a week they can work with coaches. NCAA Division I schools are allowed three paid coaches and one unpaid coach. The breakdown is typically a hitting coach, a pitching coach, an infield coach, an outfield coach, a catching coach, and a recruiting coach. Of course, some coaches wear more than one hat.
A typical college baseball program may have around 30 players, with an even division of pitchers and non-pitchers, or perhaps even a few more pitchers. Some schools have a philosophy that a program can never have enough pitchers because pitchers are often injured.