Softball College Rosters... Things to think about

This one came to me this weekend when a college coach said "Man you'd think it would be quick and easy, we only have to pick up 3-5 girls but it's not" and that was when I was like whoa! I was talking to her about last week's blog and how I likened recruiting and September 1 to a proposal and would you want your daughter to get engaged on day 1. She went on to say how much she liked the analogy because a lot of the time they have their mind made up on a certain player only to actually sit down and talk with them to realize it is not a great fit. She said that because of the rules it's almost impossible to talk with the girls prior to September 1 so that date is literally much more like a "first date" then it is anything else if we are using my analogy.

Yes you read that right, the dream school your daughter may have in mind may only have 3 spots available for her class. Yes do the math, your daughter may not even play a position that they need. Let that sink in..... All the hours and time spent on lets say catching or pitching or some other highly sought after position only to find out that they have already filled that spot.

The reason I bring this up is to let the young parents know that yes college sports can be in their future but do not attach all your handwork and aspirations to your alma mater. Even if your kid is a stud and I am sure she is if you're reading my blog. Only stud parents have exclusive access to this free content. Even still your kid might just play a position that they don't need.

Roster sizes for major schools I looked into seem to range from 21-23. I would have assumed they all have the exact same amount of players but I was wrong. I also assumed they would have the exact same amount of people from each class. Let's say 5 freshmen, 5 sophomores and so on but I was also wrong. A school I looked at had 6 seniors leading me to believe they are looking for 6 incoming Freshman and some had 3 Seniors.

With the current landscape of college athletics as well as transfer portals and ever changing recruiting rules I think the real goal for each of us is to find an organization that understands all of this. The organization should have a history with the programs that you like and the experience to understand where your daughter stacks up in all of this. Alot of us probably think our kid is a little better then they are or not as good as they are. I think that is just the nature of the beast. So find someone who has been around a while and can tell you where your kid lines up in all of it.

Prior to their teenage years I would stress the importance of having fun and playing with their friends . This is where the love for the game and passion will come from. I know some people will argue that 10, 11 or 12 can be crucial and I will just say that I disagree. Two things can be equally true and for each kid things can be different. If you are curious what organization you should consider I would say look at the teams in your area and go watch them play. Watch how the coaches interact with the players. Watch on Sunday and see how the kids on the bench cheer or don't cheer on their teammates who are playing.

Understand that the game of softball is a team sport. There is only 1 ball but there are 9 players on the field and 1 batter in the box. Understand that your child can not always be the player on the dirt or the one with the bat in their hand so they will still love what they are doing when they are not. Find the right fit for your expectations as a parent. You may have to decide from being on the "best" team or being on the "best team" for your child.