BOTC - US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NORTHEAST LACROSSE BOTC MAIN FORUM (LI, CT, WC) Boys 2017 Fall 2014/Summer 2015

The only sports where money is not re-shuffled every year is football and basketball. In every other sport there are not full scholarships for everyone. When coach promises your 15 year old and you something, it is always subject to change later. Today he may see the kid as a four year starter, as a HS senior that evaluation can change. What leverage do you as a parent have then? Dial up other progams that are full looking for a new deal? If some walk on showed up and made All-ACC you think coach is stuck because he told some other kid as a 15 year old he was 65%? Dream on. You whack the kid who sits down and take care of the players who are producing on the field.

A lacrosse Dad's leverage to "listen for better offers" for his committed 2017 -- besides being sleazy -- runs out when the spots are gone. I respect Starsia a lot. You get a spot now, you get a money indication now and he is transparent that the money is finalized later when they are seniors in HS. Sure beats lying to kids saying it is a four year deal. It is a four year deal if yiu don't suck, then it is a one year. I also question your intrinsic trust of what coaches tell you...the same coaches who are recruiting their rival's commits while having a full 2017 class already. Golly, if Petro picks off somebody else's #1, is it free or is he going to pull some from a kid committed to him already who he rates less now? If any of this hits a nerve, get real pal or get sad later.

A Turtle?

I am a 2012 graduate of an ACC school where I played for 2 years and decided to drop lacrosse to focus on grades. I was playing middie, but mostly as wing on face-offs and some SSDM and not two ways like I expected when being recruited. I don't have any regrets to have gone and played some and finished my degree. After both my first and my second year I had the year end player meeting with coach and was asked to take less money the next year. It didn't get to a point where I threatened to leave because I liked my choice of college, but would have it I faught it. I thought my coaches handled that professionally and were private about it. Nobody else knew your deal or new deal unless you talked about it. The coaches never would do that and treat this like a business. My advice is like Mr. Miller's. Love your school and not your deal and you will be a lot better off than hoping everything promised to you in high school works out. I had a team mate win the Tewaaraton and NO he did not get more than 50% until his last year when he went to 75%, and I only know that because we were roomies and he trusted us to know. It is not all good if you show up and don't do a lot on a 40% to 70% initial deal. It happened to me and be humble, it can happen to your son too. The good news is he won't be kicked out of a good school and can get a degree thanks to lacrosse helping. Be a little humble lax Dad.

Great post and excellent perspective from someone who's lived it.
One question: Are you saying it is or isn't a business?

IMHO, the coach feeds his family, pays his mortgage and saves for his kids college education off the salary he receives from Lacrosse. I believe if you keep this in mind, you'll know the kinds of decisions these guys will make. It is crystal clear in my mind that they will do what is best for the team (business) at the expense of, or to the detriment of mine or anyone else's kid, every single time. Might seem cold, but how can you think of it any other way?

A Turtle?

So then, what exactly is the commitment for if according to you the agreement can change on a whim?
What you are describing is the exception, not the rule

Its not the exception it is the rule. What happens to any commit if the coach is let go before the kid starts? The new coach has his own agenda and your kid may not be one of them. Read about David Sills the USC early commit for football., he committed in 8th grade. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sills_(American_football)

Currently Penn state football scholarships offered by Bill Obrien may not be honored by the new head coach from Vandy. Its a business, treat it as such.

http://www.slate.com/articles/sport...nked_after_one_year_for_any_reason_.html

According to a report in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, some schools opposed multiyear scholarships because they could “[reduce] the flexibility of a new coach to get rid of players who didn't fit his style.”

So ALL these links/reports about the disasters of early committing, is this the venting process you people have because your kids aren't on the radar of being a D1 commit?? Any of us that our kids are already committed aren't posting this stuff.

When your son is REALLY being recruited by a school you are WELL AWARE of the risk. You are also aware that the same risk a H.S freshman has with early committing is the exact same risk a H.S. Jr. has!!! Coaches being fired or coaches quitting or your sons grades start to flop etc. Its actually TOUGHER if you lose a spot at a JR or SR as opposed to a freshman, because those spots when your older are already filled.

FACT: if your son had the chance to early commit to a great school with a legit D1 lacrosse program, you would embrace it also.

Actually, no, I am a former college coach (who left college coaching because I wanted to raise a family and I didn't feel the lifestyle of a coach would work for my family). My sons are younger, but I will not have them commit early because I just am not comfortable with that. If a program really wants them, they will wait. If not, it wasn't the right fit. I just don't think this early committing is good for either end, players or coaches. Unfortunately, programs started it, and other progrms felt pressured to jump on the bandwagon. When you are late in your junior year (for a spring sport) it is time to make a serious desision about a college and a program, not sooner. Let's pretend you are a goalie and you really want to play, but the program you are interested in (and they are also interested in you) has a starting goalie who is a freshmen, would you want to go there? Probably not, but if there starting goalie is a junior, then yes, it would be a good fit. I realize a goalie is a special position, but you get the idea. I don't know how you decide what team you want to be part of, then the team (if you are being recruited as a 9th grader) won't even be there when you arrive on campus. Now, let's talk picking a school as a 14 year old, how is that possible? You barely know what you want as a 17 year old, but these are big decisions to make and I just think you are too young to have any clue what you really want as an 18 year old. Heck, the kid may decide they don't even want to make that commitment to play a sport! So, my kids will wait to decide and the coaches that respect that decision, will have a chance of getting them, those that don't, well, it wasn't meant to be.

Oh please!! You're telling me that if a Duke or Harvard or notre Dame call and want your son, you're gonna say NO!! Have you lost your mind??

Actually, no, I am a former college coach (who left college coaching because I wanted to raise a family and I didn't feel the lifestyle of a coach would work for my family). My sons are younger, but I will not have them commit early because I just am not comfortable with that. If a program really wants them, they will wait. If not, it wasn't the right fit. I just don't think this early committing is good for either end, players or coaches. Unfortunately, programs started it, and other progrms felt pressured to jump on the bandwagon. When you are late in your junior year (for a spring sport) it is time to make a serious desision about a college and a program, not sooner. Let's pretend you are a goalie and you really want to play, but the program you are interested in (and they are also interested in you) has a starting goalie who is a freshmen, would you want to go there? Probably not, but if there starting goalie is a junior, then yes, it would be a good fit. I realize a goalie is a special position, but you get the idea. I don't know how you decide what team you want to be part of, then the team (if you are being recruited as a 9th grader) won't even be there when you arrive on campus. Now, let's talk picking a school as a 14 year old, how is that possible? You barely know what you want as a 17 year old, but these are big decisions to make and I just think you are too young to have any clue what you really want as an 18 year old. Heck, the kid may decide they don't even want to make that commitment to play a sport! So, my kids will wait to decide and the coaches that respect that decision, will have a chance of getting them, those that don't, well, it wasn't meant to be.

Oh please!! You're telling me that if a Duke or Harvard or notre Dame call and want your son, you're gonna say NO!! Have you lost your mind??

I wouldn't put ND in there with Duke and Harvard

Get off your high horse. Your one of those "if it isn't an Ivy or Duke, it sucks". Give it a rest.

Valid point, just look at the college rankings in US News/WR Harvard is tied with Princeton for #1 while Duke comes in at 7. ND much further down at 18, but still much better than Maryland and Syracuse tied at 62, not even in top 50. Other big lax destinations UNC at 30, Michigan 28, Penn State 37, Virginia 23, Hopkins 12. All good schools, but Harvard clearly is tops!

I am absolutely serious, if any school calls as a freshman we will visit, but my kids will not commit ANYWHERE until the end of their junior year (at the earliest). Because then I will be comfortable with the decision and I will feel like they will be going somewhere that will be a good fit. Before that it is too risky. And trust me, if your kid is good enough, they will wait. Because, if they are not, an early commitment would be a REALLY bad idea. This, but the class will be filled crap is nothing but a scare tactic, they will make room for a kid that they want (even if that mean bumping little Johnny that "committed" when he was 12!
Been there, done that, trust me!

So true. Verbal commits are no binding legally. You as well as the school have the ability to change your mind.

I am absolutely serious, if any school calls as a freshman we will visit, but my kids will not commit ANYWHERE until the end of their junior year (at the earliest). Because then I will be comfortable with the decision and I will feel like they will be going somewhere that will be a good fit. Before that it is too risky. And trust me, if your kid is good enough, they will wait. Because, if they are not, an early commitment would be a REALLY bad idea. This, but the class will be filled crap is nothing but a scare tactic, they will make room for a kid that they want (even if that mean bumping little Johnny that "committed" when he was 12!
Been there, done that, trust me!

I hope it works out well. I have three sons, what I thought when they were toddlers and what I think now are very, very different.

I can imagine the family atmosphere if the coach at Harvard makes an offer at 15 and Daddy insists junior passes until he is a junior. I'm sure Johnny will continue to be so talented as a junior he will have his pick of the rest, but if his heart was set on Harvard…there could be some bitterness later on if he ends up at his #10 choice because other very talented kids were willing to jump the gun.

On one hand I completely agree that recruiting so early is completely insane. On the other hand, nothing is guaranteed in this world, and at some point kids need to make their own decisions. I would never push my kid to commit to a school even if I thought it was the opportunity of a lifetime, but I would not prevent them from doing so either. Would I like to turn back the clock and have this all occur late Junior or early senior year, absolutely! I'd also love it if popular music wasn't so graphic, but I am not going to be successful limiting my kid' iPods to music by Pat Boone.

I have prepared my son with the possibilities, that he could be dropped, he could get better offers, or that he could go and never step his foot on the field. He understands that all those scenarios are beyond his control, he is focused on academic opportunity and his future not lacrosse.

Wow, has he been accepted? If so, that is awesome! To get into Harvard as a 9th grader is pretty impressive!

And the first 2018 comits to Hopkins!

You commit to the application process, not accepted.......yet

Post it and everyone believes it. Just an example of how silly this all is. Don't really know how old that kid is but how many of you are looking?? #obsessed

Ty Xanders has become a comedy within a bad joke. "Can't talk about 2018 commits, but we have one. Can't make it public, but I can make comments that imply who the kid is." This kid is 13 years old. It didn't wind up on Twitter without the club / prep school coach crazies putting it out there. Sounds like Petro for once may have tried to save some dignity to at least wait until this kid took his first pee in the high school locker room, but no. My kid committed to an Ivy two months ago. I give my son a lot of credit. When IL's little Twitter [lacrosse] asked around about him, his HS and club coaches both respected our privacy. Nobody knew then, nobody will know for 2 more years. Why make a public spectacle of your kid at the age of 13, 14, 15, 16?

Ty Xanders has become a comedy within a bad joke. "Can't talk about 2018 commits, but we have one. Can't make it public, but I can make comments that imply who the kid is." This kid is 13 years old. It didn't wind up on Twitter without the club / prep school coach crazies putting it out there. Sounds like Petro for once may have tried to save some dignity to at least wait until this kid took his first pee in the high school locker room, but no. My kid committed to an Ivy two months ago. I give my son a lot of credit. When IL's little Twitter [lacrosse] asked around about him, his HS and club coaches both respected our privacy. Nobody knew then, nobody will know for 2 more years. Why make a public spectacle of your kid at the age of 13, 14, 15, 16?

I agree about not making a public spectacle. However, I think you're a little envious of the attention. If your 2018 committed to an Ivy two months ago, God Bless. Why all the anger? Let it go... Sounds like you're upset that you're son didn't get the press, you didn't want him to get in the first place??? Odd.

Look it up. The 2018 kid IL was touting last week is already 16. REALLY? Yes. Most "Natural" 2018's are still 14. Of course this young MAN is from MD/DC area.