OT - Athletic Recruiting/Scholarships?

[SEA333]

Every sport works differently. You need to speak to people who had kids played college football. And your son's coaches. I would think they should be your best resource.

Yes...agreed.

With 60 boys on the team each year with probably only about maybe 10? 20? actually wanting/being good enough to possibly go on to college ball, and DS being a Freshman, talks with the Varsity coach is coming. The Freshman and Sophomore coaches are aware of his intent to play at the collegiate level. Right now, I am using ALL my resources - this board being one of them!

Thanks.

 

[SEA333]

One of my son's ran D1 track. He was not recruited as an athlete but in fact when to Clemson University his freshman year on an academic full ride. However coming from Colorado where the social climate is very different he didn't do well in the south and so the summer between his freshman and sophomore years he came home, talked to the Coach at CU and transferred back as a walk-on. Scholarship money came later. There are a few realities you need to be prepared for-the first being that the only sports boys get college full rides for at a D1 school are football and basketball-because of title IX there are way more rides for girls. They need to select a school that has a program they want to study and that they want to working after college-only 1 percent of high school players play in college and less than 1 percent of college players end up in the pros. On of the most important things is that they MUST have an SAT or ACT score at at acceptable level on file with the NCAA clearinghouse by the end of their junior year. One of my sons high school 4x400 teammates was really talented on the track but struggled in the class room-he could not be offered scholarships at the end of his high school career due to ACTs-so he ran two years at a jr college in California hopeing to get them up-still didn't make it-but he now has a very nice career as a music promoter so things work out. College sports take a lot of dedication and commitment. My son was running 80 to 100 miles a week in the off season and he was a middle distance runner not a cross country runner. It was tough keeping up with school work-he now has a Phd in Physics. those are all things the kids need to be prepared for.

Thanks.

I am aware of the fact that there are other scholarships out there other than football and basketball for boys even if not full-ride - although we are not interested in them as DS decided on his own at about 10 years old to quit soccer (an extremely difficult choice for him), stop focusing on basketball as much (although he continued to play for a few more years at a rec level), and never really liked playing baseball a whole lot the 3-4 seasons he joined, so he really has passionately focused on football since about 6th grade. One thing that we have quickly learned is that eve at the high school level, football season does not end - as soon as the regular season was over, the teams immediately started weigh-training and open gyms for conditioning. DS is expected to be there, and he wants to be anyway, so it's no big deal to him - just different than club/youth where when the season is over, it is over.

Since he is an honors student and tests well, we shall see what his academics do for him - he has his first practice ACT test this weekend - and we have pretty high standards that we expect for his grades (pretty much all A's, but will take a B or two during football season, and the token B in Language Arts class that he hates). We have always told him, well before this college football thing ever started to become a possibility, that his responsibility as a student is to do the best he can with the gifts that he has been given. He is gifted in Math and Analytical Reasoning according to his historic testing results. He is also part of the "Best Buddies" program at his school where he is matched up with a Special Needs student as a mentor, and has a Special Needs friend on the schools' B Football team that he watches out for and makes sure to include in the social aspects of High School. We also have him help out in the community by serving at soup kitchens as a family and he has volunteered twice a week at the library in the summer all through Middle School. He can't anymore due to football all summer now, but it is documented officially that he has done it. He has also had a lawn-mowing job last summer and takes the garbage out for a disabled neighbor every week. She pays him $5.00/week LOL and has always told him that she will write him a college/job/character recommendation letter when the time comes.

We have always tried to keep the kids well-rounded because Dh and I watched my mother and step-father put everything they had into my (much younger)brother's hockey career - they never saved for college for him because they were "sure' he would get a scholarship, and of course, little brother seriously injured his shoulder at 18 years old one level below semi-pro and was told that he could never play full contact again. He had absolutely no plan for anything else in his life other than playing hockey and it's been a rocky 7 years for him since, college-wise. We know all too well how one play or wrong move can end dreams.

DS14 has dreamed of not only playing football for University of Michigan (my alma-mater), but attending as a student. He knows that playing there is a long-shot at best, and he is willing to be flexible, and he knows that he will do well, academically, at any college, so the most important thing to him at this point is finding a good college to play football at. Even if he has to stay at home and commute as a walk-on at a nearby university or DII or DIII school, he has already said that he would rather play at a lesser school than not make it at a big one. DS is one of those serious kids who acts like a 30 year old in a 14 year old body LOL. He knows what he wants and is realistic about the odds. We have always told him to go for his dreams and give everything he does 100%, and wherever it gets him is where he was destined to land. He "gets" it.

 

[CF'er]

The way Michigan is playing this year he may just have a shot.

 

[Anastasi]

If your son really has dreams for a D1 scholarship, playing in a smaller school is going to be a detriment to his dreams. Unless he is so top notch that he is making national news, it is extremely difficult to get D1 recruiters to look at the smaller schools. The philosophy is that no matter how good they are on a smaller team, there is always the question of how they would play against the "big boys."

If he had started Varsity as a freshman, maybe. But starting JV (or sophomore team) as a freshman in a smaller school, this may sound harsh, is pretty routine. Our 4A JV team was undefeated this season and has a ton of freshman on it. None of them would be considered good enough to get an athletic scholarship. The two truly outstanding freshman are playing varsity.

When our team won state a few years back, not a single player, although state champs and regional champs for at least a decade, was even considered by a D1 school. A few went on to play for the smaller schools though on partial scholarships. In fact, even though our school is consistently ranked #1 in their division, I can count on one hand the number of students that went on to play D1 over the past decade. With 60 players on the team each year for over a decade. One hand. #1 ranked school in their division every year.

As a long time football parent, it is common knowledge, at least in our area, that if your child has dreams and hopes of playing for one of the big ones, you need to do all you can to enhance his chances and that means positioning yourself to have him attend one of the big name ball schools in the state.

If your son does have this much potential, you might want to consider getting him to a big school with a top notch team. Being on his small team and his coaches holding him back from Varsity as a freshman is going to hurt him.

In our area, there are about 5 or 6 schools where the D1 schools focus on recruiting. These are the powerhouse schools with former NFL players or college coaches as coaches. Parents serious about their children competing for a D1 scholarship try not have their children play on smaller school teams. Can it happen? Yes. But again, your child is going to have to be making the weekly news sportscast on TV with outstanding plays if they are playing for a smaller school.

Edited to add: This is all from a point of view of high school football from our little part of the world. Since my boys have not played football in all parts of the US, things could work much differently in other parts. So, it is best to really talk to people who have gone on to play college ball in your area what you need to do.

 

[Anastasi]

Oh, and by the way, what you are already doing is exactly what you should be doing. Go to the camps and network, network, network. Definitely use the internet resources.

Think of this like getting a CEO position. There are very few available and it is usually who you know that opens that door. It is about as cutthroat as that too.

As others have said, for D1, it is all about the job with academics a second.

 

[SEA333]

If your son really has dreams for a D1 scholarship, playing in a smaller school is going to be a detriment to his dreams. Unless he is so top notch that he is making national news, it is extremely difficult to get D1 recruiters to look at the smaller schools. The philosophy is that no matter how good they are on a smaller team, there is always the question of how they would play against the "big boys."

If he had started Varsity as a freshman, maybe. But starting JV (or sophomore team) as a freshman in a smaller school, this may sound harsh, is pretty routine. Our 4A JV team was undefeated this season and has a ton of freshman on it. None of them would be considered good enough to get an athletic scholarship. The two truly outstanding freshman are playing varsity.

When our team won state a few years back, not a single player, although state champs and regional champs for at least a decade, was even considered by a D1 school. A few went on to play for the smaller schools though on partial scholarships. In fact, even though our school is consistently ranked #1 in their division, I can count on one hand the number of students that went on to play D1 over the past decade. With 60 players on the team each year for over a decade. One hand. #1 ranked school in their division every year.

As a long time football parent, it is common knowledge, at least in our area, that if your child has dreams and hopes of playing for one of the big ones, you need to do all you can to enhance his chances and that means positioning yourself to have him attend one of the big name ball schools in the state.

If your son does have this much potential, you might want to consider getting him to a big school with a top notch team. Being on his small team and his coaches holding him back from Varsity as a freshman is going to hurt him.

In our area, there are about 5 or 6 schools where the D1 schools focus on recruiting. These are the powerhouse schools with former NFL players or college coaches as coaches. Parents serious about their children competing for a D1 scholarship try not have their children play on smaller school teams. Can it happen? Yes. But again, your child is going to have to be making the weekly news sportscast on TV with outstanding plays if they are playing for a smaller school.

Edited to add: This is all from a point of view of high school football from our little part of the world. Since my boys have not played football in all parts of the US, things could work much differently in other parts. So, it is best to really talk to people who have gone on to play college ball in your area what you need to do.

Thanks, although I disagree with some of what you are saying. Our high school is in a smaller district in the huge metropolitan area of the city of Chicago, and us and the surrounding schools that may or may not be larger, are routinely sending players to college with full-ride scholarships, whether it is DI or DII - a Senior OL from our school just accepted a full ride to Central Michigan University this past spring, which I believe is DII. And two boys from the club/feeder league that my son was raised in went to the NFL in recent years, and many more of them have gone on to college to play. We know this because we have "Alumni Weekend" every year and see them. The majority of our coaches have played DI college ball as well. I don't think it is so much the school that the kid goes to, especially in football, but the talent and the commitment of the kid, coaches, and parents to help make it happen has much more to do with the exposure the child gets playing for a better school. it makes it harder, yes, but still possible. And even playing in a smaller school, we are lucky enough to live in an area where there are "top-notch" teams that are highly state-ranked that our school plays against. One of them ranked #6 in the state this year, and although DS's team lost, DS had a personal best game of his life so far with 3 sacks, 8 tackles for losses, a blocked punt, and numerous pancake blocks against a player much bigger than him. 3 of the kids on the opposing team were former teammates of DS in our club/youth league. So as far as playing against the "Big Boys" in his age group, DS did just fine.

And, as a general rule, no Freshman lineman plays on Varsity in our school, nor should they in ANY school if it can be helped. Have you been in the loop about player safety lately??!! I guess that if there is a player in a skilled position that is absolutely amazing and the Varsity team needs someone in that position, they will pull a Freshman up, but as a lineman, that rarely happens even if a Freshman *is* amazing. Boys who just turned 14 simply do not yet have the physical body and muscle mass to compete with 18 year olds. At 14, even big football players have *just* hit puberty. My son has always been a head taller and 20 lbs or more heavier than the majority of kids his age, but that still doesn't make him physically ready to play the OL or DL with 18 year olds at 14. I have no doubt that he CAN, but no respectable coach is going to take a 14 year old kid and put him in the line of fire with a 280 lb 6'3" 18 year old if they don't have to. So, I am fine with my son playing on the Sophomore team as a Freshman with kids 1-2 years older (since he has always played "up" due to his size and ability AND he is the youngest kid on his team, just having turned 14 a couple months ago) this year, and we will see what next year brings. Like I said in my first post, we are not looking for a reality check - both DH and I were very involved at a coaching and director level in our feeder/club league with DS14 and continue to be with DD10 and DS8. We understand the slim chances and what it will take for this possibility to become a reality. And I have stated many times that DS understands this even more and just wants to continue to play past high school - wherever it may take him, whether that is a DI, DII, or other.

What I am looking for is advice on how to start the exposure process for recruiting purposes. Thank you to everyone who has given advice on that - you have given me so many resources to look at. I appreciate it!

 

[SEA333]

The way Michigan is playing this year he may just have a shot.

OMG!...I know, right??!! LOL (although it is really not funny at ALL!)

I told DS the same thing...if UM could barely beat Northwestern last week, then he should hope and pray that they keep Brady Hoke around for another year or two - it will make it much easier to get on the team! Supply vs. Demand....haha.

DS went to UM Youth Camp in 7th and 8th grade, and Brady Hoke was the hands-on coach for the defensive line, so DS spent three whole days being coached by him both years. At the time, I thought that was awesome....now, I am wondering how much that has hurt his technique LOL (j/k)

BTW...we have a picture of DD10 talking to Hoke - she has no shoes on. She was just practicing her handstands and tumbling when he walked by and said "Good Job!" to her and stopped to chat for a couple minutes LOL. I don't know why that strikes me as so funny...

 

[puffkin]

I am surprised, in a good way, that your school does not allow them in the weight room until Freshman year. My DS8 swims in a very competitive league and he does do strength/core training but there is absolutely no weight training allowed until they are 14. I hear of other clubs that have the kids doing actual weights that are 8-10 years old. That is beyond crazy! That to me shows that your coaches know what they are doing. I would definitely be networking with the coaching staff and alumni weekend people as much as possible over the next year. They will probably be your biggest resources and help guide you through the process.

 

[Mersmom98]

Our daughter just finished playing 4 years of DII softball at a school here in Texas. We started really getting serious about the scouting process during her junior year and that was actually too late for the DI schools even though she had the ability to play at that level. We just didn't know and had her on a team that wasn't experienced in getting girls noticed, so it's awesome that you are already thinking about this. She went to the college exposure tournaments with her team we moved her to during her junior year and had quite a bit of interest. The team had a bio for each girl that was available to any scout that asked for it. We visited 3 schools that were recruiting her from those tournaments. After all that traveling it was actually her high school coach who put her in touch with the school that she eventually wound up playing for. It was great for her to see and hear what the other schools had to offer because she made the decision on her own and it worked out wonderfully. So my advise to you as parents is to definitely take your own initiative and get his name/stats out there ASAP as well as talk to the high school coach to see who he knows. Also, listen to each and every offer because you just never know. His responsibility is to stay healthy and maintain his grades because that is a HUGE factor. There are a lot of good athletes but to be a good athlete and a good student will open so many more doors. The NCAA has a lot of rules as far as who/when/how (like the kid can contact the school but the school can't contact the kid, etc.) the kids can be recruited so read up on those so you know what to expect. And yes even at DII her sport was her job. She really struggled her freshman year with the schedule but she eventually adjusted. Good luck to you and have fun! This is an exciting time for you all!

 

[3mickeymom]

Getting invited to the Nike combine or the NUC Rivals National underclassman combine is a great plus for a high school football recruit. It allows your son to have verified times and stats, which college coaches know are not pumped up numbers of parents or high school coaches. Nike usually offers a free camp/combine where players can get a feel for what is expected and what caliber of athlete possible recruits are. I would try to attend the free one after your season. Check out their website for dates near you. I would also recommend training for the events, as there are tips to performing well. Also, know what times are good for a player of your position because if your time is not that great, you can scratch it.
If your son played Varsity, put together a HUDL highlight film.
Research college camps in your area and attend as many as you can afford. Most camps now are day camps and some are in the Spring on weekends, so do your research and plan your summer calendar. Find out what schools are sending coaches to the camp you choose to attend. Div I FCS coaches and Div II coaches will often attend Big Div I college camps. College offers go out earlier and earlier. Big time schools put their offers out to their big recruits their junior year.
I could go on. My son is a senior who plays OL/DL and we are in the recruiting game as we speak. He has 1 offer and 4 Walk-on offers. Yes, you have to be INVITED to walk-on. His two older brothers played college football as well. One had a full scholarship. We have learned a lot along the way. Some kids need to work extra hard. My son trains everyday. EVERYDAY he does something-lifts, runs, speed trains with his trainer - even during the season. He takes vitamins, drinks shakes and limits the garbage he puts in his body(very hard for teenager) It can pay off. I have one son that it worked for and one that it didn't. But they all love football. Best of luck to your son. If you have any specific questions, just ask.

 

[SEA333]

I am surprised, in a good way, that your school does not allow them in the weight room until Freshman year. My DS8 swims in a very competitive league and he does do strength/core training but there is absolutely no weight training allowed until they are 14. I hear of other clubs that have the kids doing actual weights that are 8-10 years old. That is beyond crazy! That to me shows that your coaches know what they are doing. I would definitely be networking with the coaching staff and alumni weekend people as much as possible over the next year. They will probably be your biggest resources and help guide you through the process.

Yes, I am pleased with this as well. DS was a little on the chunky side in 7th grade (before his 6-inch growth spurt in 6 month) and wanted to start weight lifting (he got it into his head that it would help him lose weight, and you know how 12-13 year old boys are), and we told him not until he was in 9th grade. Then when he started HS football camp this summer, the older boys would go to the weight room and they kept the Freshmen out on the field. DS was so annoyed LOL, but I was glad that they take the well-being of the kids into consideration first and foremost.

Player safety has grown into such a huge part of youth and high school sports in the past few years - DS14 learned the "traditional' way to tackle, for instance, when he started playing football in 2007, and then in 2012 when he was 12, our youth league joined Heads Up Football and committed to teaching Heads Up tacking. Boy, did DS have a hard time with that, especially since proper-fundamental tackling was his forte! But, on the other side of the coin, my younger DS8, who has been playing tackle football since he was in Kindergarten (yes, K - DH coached his team so they would let our tiny younger son play the game he loved so much) started, he was taught the Heads Up way and he is fine with it. it doesn't always work in game situations, but at least there is some sort of safety there. And all of the coaches in our youth league have to be Heads Up certified before the season starts. I think this is ironic because, as a Cheerleading coach for my DD10's 5th/6th grade team, we have had more injuries and close calls than the boys so far this season!

 

[SEA333]

Getting invited to the Nike combine or the NUC Rivals National underclassman combine is a great plus for a high school football recruit. It allows your son to have verified times and stats, which college coaches know are not pumped up numbers of parents or high school coaches. Nike usually offers a free camp/combine where players can get a feel for what is expected and what caliber of athlete possible recruits are. I would try to attend the free one after your season. Check out their website for dates near you. I would also recommend training for the events, as there are tips to performing well. Also, know what times are good for a player of your position because if your time is not that great, you can scratch it.
If your son played Varsity, put together a HUDL highlight film.
Research college camps in your area and attend as many as you can afford. Most camps now are day camps and some are in the Spring on weekends, so do your research and plan your summer calendar. Find out what schools are sending coaches to the camp you choose to attend. Div I FCS coaches and Div II coaches will often attend Big Div I college camps. College offers go out earlier and earlier. Big time schools put their offers out to their big recruits their junior year.
I could go on. My son is a senior who plays OL/DL and we are in the recruiting game as we speak. He has 1 offer and 4 Walk-on offers. Yes, you have to be INVITED to walk-on. His two older brothers played college football as well. One had a full scholarship. We have learned a lot along the way. Some kids need to work extra hard. My son trains everyday. EVERYDAY he does something-lifts, runs, speed trains with his trainer - even during the season. He takes vitamins, drinks shakes and limits the garbage he puts in his body(very hard for teenager) It can pay off. I have one son that it worked for and one that it didn't. But they all love football. Best of luck to your son. If you have any specific questions, just ask.

Thank you so much!!! This is exactly the personal experience information I was hoping to get. I had no idea the kids have to be invited to "Walk On" - I will def tell DS this.

DS trains every day as well. We had a scare the last week of the season where DS thought he cracked a rib on a play, and he was devastated that he thought his season was over - he actually cried his eyes out when the Dr left the room with the bad news. Luckily for him, it was just a really painful contusion that they had to treat as a break until they could confirm it wasn't, but it took him out for a good week. He ended up playing in the last Freshman game of the season in a limited capacity (he started, but his team was winning so they made him sit out for the 4th qtr), but he is more determined than ever now to stay in shape and build muscle mass to get stronger and faster.

What kinds of shakes does you son drink? We have been buying DS Protein Bars for after practice/games, and we have been looking into protein powders, but I really have no idea what is good for a teenager in that regard. He used to be bigger than he is now - at 13 he was 5'8" and 180 at his biggest, then he decided he wanted to be faster and in better shape, so we signed him with a speed/agility trainer and of his own free will, at 13 years old, DS adjusted his diet to include the healthy foods I had harped on all his life and cut out the junk. He lost 30 lbs and is now a healthy 150 lbs and 5'10". Now I *want* him to gain weight!! lol They did the body fat % test at the beginning of the season in Aug, and he was at something like 8% it is all muscle now. But I don't know where to go from here. Carbs? Protein? What is the best thing to do?

Also, a couple more questions -

Did you have to do a player profile with organizations like the NCSA? I've read through a lot of their info, but it seems like there is a catch somewhere.

On a personal note, I keep wondering if DS is going to grow again! He grew 6 inches in 6 months the summer between 7-8th grades, and really hasn't grown a whole lot in the 18 months since. He has always been "huge" for his age, and now he is just average. Did your sons do this as well, or were they more steady in their growth?

Thanks again! Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss any of this offline.

 

[rcpae]

I have 2 daughters who both were recruited and ended up signing and going to Div I schools to play softball. We did spend a lot of money, but not necessarily to get them recruited, it was for them to be on travel teams and continue playing at the high level of their sport. I'm not sure how that relates to football, but my daughters did go to camps and high level tournaments in order to showcase talent.

I agree that your son needs to pick the school first and the sport second. He may one day decides he doesn't want to play or (heaven forbid) get injured. If he's not able to play, then he needs to make sure that he will happy at that school not matter what. Remember coaches can change.

Basically scholarships are year to year. Your son will commit again every year. Just remember that that road goes both ways. The school will commit to your child and your child will commit to the school, every year. If either party is unhappy, then they can opt out on a yearly basis. We told our girls that so that after the first year, if they felt they made a huge error, then they didn't feel that their life was over. We also reminded them, EDUCATION FIRST. That is the primary reason they are there.

Good luck to you and your son! Its a fun journey

 

[puffkin]

On a personal note, I keep wondering if DS is going to grow again! He grew 6 inches in 6 months the summer between 7-8th grades, and really hasn't grown a whole lot in the 18 months since. He has always been "huge" for his age, and now he is just average. Did your sons do this as well, or were they more steady in their growth?

Thanks again! Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss any of this offline.

My family is tall on both the paternal and maternal side. All my male relatives are over 6 foot with the exception of my maternal grandfather who is 5'6".

I am most familiar with my brothers growth trajectory since we are fraternal twins. We were both always off the charts for height pretty much our whole lives. In middle school/8th grade I was actually about an inch taller than my brother. I did not really grow anymore past 8th grade and am about 5'9" now. The summer between 8th and 9th grade my brother had a huge growth spurt and was well over 6' by the time school started. It was crazy. I'd say he grew another inch or two over the next year but by the start of 10th grade he was basically done growing. He topped out at 6'5"...but I really think he's closer to 6'6". My mom claims my younger brother had a similar growth curve but I am not as familiar with it since he was 5 years younger. He ended up at 6'3". Your son's growth curve sounds similar to my brothers so I would guess he will probably only grow another inch or two but then again, who knows. Right now I would say he is VERY small for a D1/D2 player. It sounds like you guys are doing a great job with your son and managing his love of the sport with realistic expectations, and I would just be prepared to continue doing so. He may not get the size he needs to compete at the level he wants to.

 

[SEA333]

My family is tall on both the paternal and maternal side. All my male relatives are over 6 foot with the exception of my maternal grandfather who is 5'6".

I am most familiar with my brothers growth trajectory since we are fraternal twins. We were both always off the charts for height pretty much our whole lives. In middle school/8th grade I was actually about an inch taller than my brother. I did not really grow anymore past 8th grade and am about 5'9" now. The summer between 8th and 9th grade my brother had a huge growth spurt and was well over 6' by the time school started. It was crazy. I'd say he grew another inch or two over the next year but by the start of 10th grade he was basically done growing. He topped out at 6'5"...but I really think he's closer to 6'6". My mom claims my younger brother had a similar growth curve but I am not as familiar with it since he was 5 years younger. He ended up at 6'3". Your son's growth curve sounds similar to my brothers so I would guess he will probably only grow another inch or two but then again, who knows. Right now I would say he is VERY small for a D1/D2 player. It sounds like you guys are doing a great job with your son and managing his love of the sport with realistic expectations, and I would just be prepared to continue doing so. He may not get the size he needs to compete at the level he wants to.

Thanks. I am 5'7" and DH is 5'10"...DS was "predicted" lol to be about 6'2" based on his growth curve growing up, so we will see. I don't have any male in my family that is less than 6 feet, but DH does...not sure on the genetics due to DH never knowing his bio father and his brothers have different dads. They are across the board...one brother and nephews are over 6', other brother is no bigger than 5'5" or so, with an equally-sized son. The sisters are all short. So, who knows!! DS has always measured above the 100th% in height and weight until this year. Can't fight genetics, so he will have to live with what he gets!!! He just turned 14 a few months ago, so there is still time, I guess, to see what happens, size-wise.

 

[eeyorethegreat]

Thanks. I am 5'7" and DH is 5'10"...DS was "predicted" lol to be about 6'2" based on his growth curve growing up, so we will see. I don't have any male in my family that is less than 6 feet, but DH does...not sure on the genetics due to DH never knowing his bio father and his brothers have different dads. They are across the board...one brother and nephews are over 6', other brother is no bigger than 5'5" or so, with an equally-sized son. The sisters are all short. So, who knows!! DS has always measured above the 100th% in height and weight until this year. Can't fight genetics, so he will have to live with what he gets!!! He just turned 14 a few months ago, so there is still time, I guess, to see what happens, size-wise.

The height predictors can be way off. My eldest was predicted to be 5'10" I am just under 5'3 and my husband is 6'1. My son has been 5'6" since his freshman year in high school. He is now 20. I have given up pn the idea that he will reach 5'10".

 

[Anastasi]

Thanks, although I disagree with some of what you are saying. Our high school is in a smaller district in the huge metropolitan area of the city of Chicago, and us and the surrounding schools that may or may not be larger, are routinely sending players to college with full-ride scholarships, whether it is DI or DII - a Senior OL from our school just accepted a full ride to Central Michigan University this past spring, which I believe is DII. And two boys from the club/feeder league that my son was raised in went to the NFL in recent years, and many more of them have gone on to college to play. We know this because we have "Alumni Weekend" every year and see them. The majority of our coaches have played DI college ball as well. I don't think it is so much the school that the kid goes to, especially in football, but the talent and the commitment of the kid, coaches, and parents to help make it happen has much more to do with the exposure the child gets playing for a better school. it makes it harder, yes, but still possible. And even playing in a smaller school, we are lucky enough to live in an area where there are "top-notch" teams that are highly state-ranked that our school plays against. One of them ranked #6 in the state this year, and although DS's team lost, DS had a personal best game of his life so far with 3 sacks, 8 tackles for losses, a blocked punt, and numerous pancake blocks against a player much bigger than him. 3 of the kids on the opposing team were former teammates of DS in our club/youth league. So as far as playing against the "Big Boys" in his age group, DS did just fine.

And, as a general rule, no Freshman lineman plays on Varsity in our school, nor should they in ANY school if it can be helped. Have you been in the loop about player safety lately??!! I guess that if there is a player in a skilled position that is absolutely amazing and the Varsity team needs someone in that position, they will pull a Freshman up, but as a lineman, that rarely happens even if a Freshman *is* amazing. Boys who just turned 14 simply do not yet have the physical body and muscle mass to compete with 18 year olds. At 14, even big football players have *just* hit puberty. My son has always been a head taller and 20 lbs or more heavier than the majority of kids his age, but that still doesn't make him physically ready to play the OL or DL with 18 year olds at 14. I have no doubt that he CAN, but no respectable coach is going to take a 14 year old kid and put him in the line of fire with a 280 lb 6'3" 18 year old if they don't have to. So, I am fine with my son playing on the Sophomore team as a Freshman with kids 1-2 years older (since he has always played "up" due to his size and ability AND he is the youngest kid on his team, just having turned 14 a couple months ago) this year, and we will see what next year brings. Like I said in my first post, we are not looking for a reality check - both DH and I were very involved at a coaching and director level in our feeder/club league with DS14 and continue to be with DD10 and DS8. We understand the slim chances and what it will take for this possibility to become a reality. And I have stated many times that DS understands this even more and just wants to continue to !play past high school - wherever it may take him, whether that is a DI, DII, or other.

What I am looking for is advice on how to start the exposure process for recruiting purposes. Thank you to everyone who has given advice on that - you have given me so many resources to look at. I appreciate it!

No need to get snarky and defensive. I made sure I said that is how it works in our area and may not be the same elsewhere.

In our neck of the woods, the chances you are going to be scouted from anything other than a 5A powerhouse school are slim to none.

I never said your son did not do well against the "big boys," so no need to take that personally. I said that the recruiters have a presumption that anybody who plays in the smaller schools is questionable on how they would stack up against the bigger, powerhouse schools. They want the proven players, the ones that have shown they get multiple sacks every game against the best of the best.

We have a D1 FBS school in our backyard, the D1 head coach's boys are on our team, and we have some extremely talented players. So, it is not like our team does not have any pull or talent. Yet, no D1 offers this year. Even the D1 coach's boys, although extremely talented, know they won't be going off to play for their dad or any other D1 school. Add to the fact that they are on the smaller side, 5'10", so that really hurts their chances.

I gave you advice on how it works in our area. If your son is as talented as he seems to be, the first thing you would need to do is move out of your smaller school if you lived in our area and get him into a recognized program. In our area, beating a 6th place ranked team in a smaller division would not even register on anybody's radar. But again, that is our area. As I said, we are the #1 ranked school in our division, but since we are a smaller division, it doesn't matter what our ranking is.

An example; our sister school, in the same district, is one of the powerhouse schools. All the very serious players choose the powerhouse school over any of the other smaller ones in the district. We beat them this year, yet the recruiters are all over their school and not at ours. And if people are not in a powerhouse school area, they move during 8th grade to make sure they clear the state HS transfer rules and their child can start playing immediately as a freshman.

We knew that going in, but although talented and a OL varsity starter, my son has no desire to play in college. So, the smaller school was great for him.

Oh, and yes, my child has been playing since 7. I am intimately familiar with all the safety protocols. Our team puts safety first at all times. Our coach is obsessed with safety, including having the sports medicine doc come out every summer during camp to do a concussion baseline on all the boys, has all the highest rated safety equipment replaced every 2 years so we have the most up to date helmets, every player wears knee braces, and although not a law yet in our state, we follow the new California laws for number of hours of practice allowed, along with so many more safety protections in place, this would be a novel to list them all. So, no snark needed there either.

For supplements, our upperclassmen have a regimen of Muscle Milk, I think it is an hour after they lift. There is some other protein powder they do too. However, our coaches highly discourage the freshman and sophomores from taking supplements as their bodies are still in active growing. That safety stuff, you know.

Good luck to you and your son. On a good note, my older son, grew 3 inches during his freshman and sophomore year of college. So, if you have late bloomers in your family, your son may still get the size he needs to play D1 ball.

 

[SEA333]

No need to get snarky and defensive. I made sure I said that is how it works in our area and may not be the same elsewhere.

In our neck of the woods, the chances you are going to be scouted from anything other than a 5A powerhouse school are slim to none.

I never said your son did not do well against the "big boys," so no need to take that personally. I said that the recruiters have a presumption that anybody who plays in the smaller schools is questionable on how they would stack up against the bigger, powerhouse schools. They want the proven players, the ones that have shown they get multiple sacks every game against the best of the best.

We have a D1 FBS school in our backyard, the D1 head coach's boys are on our team, and we have some extremely talented players. So, it is not like our team does not have any pull or talent. Yet, no D1 offers this year. Even the D1 coach's boys, although extremely talented, know they won't be going off to play for their dad or any other D1 school. Add to the fact that they are on the smaller side, 5'10", so that really hurts their chances.

I gave you advice on how it works in our area. If your son is as talented as he seems to be, the first thing you would need to do is move out of your smaller school if you lived in our area and get him into a recognized program. In our area, beating a 6th place ranked team in a smaller division would not even register on anybody's radar. But again, that is our area. As I said, we are the #1 ranked school in our division, but since we are a smaller division, it doesn't matter what our ranking is.

An example; our sister school, in the same district, is one of the powerhouse schools. All the very serious players choose the powerhouse school over any of the other smaller ones in the district. We beat them this year, yet the recruiters are all over their school and not at ours. And if people are not in a powerhouse school area, they move during 8th grade to make sure they clear the state HS transfer rules and their child can start playing immediately as a freshman.

We knew that going in, but although talented and a OL varsity starter, my son has no desire to play in college. So, the smaller school was great for him.

Oh, and yes, my child has been playing since 7. I am intimately familiar with all the safety protocols. Our team puts safety first at all times. Our coach is obsessed with safety, including having the sports medicine doc come out every summer during camp to do a concussion baseline on all the boys, has all the highest rated safety equipment replaced every 2 years so we have the most up to date helmets, every player wears knee braces, and although not a law yet in our state, we follow the new California laws for number of hours of practice allowed, along with so many more safety protections in place, this would be a novel to list them all. So, no snark needed there either.

For supplements, our upperclassmen have a regimen of Muscle Milk, I think it is an hour after they lift. There is some other protein powder they do too. However, our coaches highly discourage the freshman and sophomores from taking supplements as their bodies are still in active growing. That safety stuff, you know.

Good luck to you and your son. On a good note, my older son, grew 3 inches during his freshman and sophomore year of college. So, if you have late bloomers in your family, your son may still get the size he needs to play D1 ball.

Thank you for the good note.

 

[undertheradar]

Just be realistic in your expectations. Very few athletes get full rides. Many D1 programs recruit community college players, so there are multiple chances for players to be "discovered." The hardest part about the entire thing is that the bigger college programs have a network of alumni that will send leads into the athletic department. You will need to put together a highlight video that your son will send to programs he is interested in. Only varsity highlights should be included on the video.
If your son is as good a player as you believe he is, the recruiters will find him. Be prepared that the D1 schools have pre-determined size stats for each and every position and players who don't match up are left for the lower level schools. When my son was on varsity in hs, the D3 schools near us had OL/DL players that averaged close to 265lbs per player. Again, this was D3, and the age range on the rosters was anywhere from 18 - 28 year olds.
From the 3 local high schools in his district, 5 players are currently in the NFL, several others are former NFL players. Most workout in the offseason at a specific training facility in Southern California. There was a series of articles in USA Today, prior to the current NFL season, interviewing the trainer that many of these players work with. This same trainer was profiled for his work with players prior to the NFL draft. Many of the hs players in SoCal go to this same facility to train.
Good luck, but be realistic.

 

[SEA333]

Just be realistic in your expectations. Very few athletes get full rides. Many D1 programs recruit community college players, so there are multiple chances for players to be "discovered." The hardest part about the entire thing is that the bigger college programs have a network of alumni that will send leads into the athletic department. You will need to put together a highlight video that your son will send to programs he is interested in. Only varsity highlights should be included on the video.
If your son is as good a player as you believe he is, the recruiters will find him. Be prepared that the D1 schools have pre-determined size stats for each and every position and players who don't match up are left for the lower level schools. When my son was on varsity in hs, the D3 schools near us had OL/DL players that averaged close to 265lbs per player. Again, this was D3, and the age range on the rosters was anywhere from 18 - 28 year olds.
From the 3 local high schools in his district, 5 players are currently in the NFL, several others are former NFL players. Most workout in the offseason at a specific training facility in Southern California. There was a series of articles in USA Today, prior to the current NFL season, interviewing the trainer that many of these players work with. This same trainer was profiled for his work with players prior to the NFL draft. Many of the hs players in SoCal go to this same facility to train.
Good luck, but be realistic.

Yes. Realism is our middle name.

I have already been accused of sounding defensive by one poster, so I will try to say this as best I can so as not to sound defensive: We were approached by DS's coaches...this was not something that we dreamed up ourselves. Our goal for football for this child was for him to play a fall sport for fitness purposes when he was 7. He chose football and has done the hard work since. As a matter of fact, being a coach myself for a different sport, I am trained to watch for mistakes and areas of improvement, so I look at DS's play critically (in a good way, I hope!), and he still surprises me every time he breaks through the line or pancake blocks his opponent because I still see him as the cuddly, sweet 3 year old I once knew LOL, even though his teammates voted him "Most Feared on the Field" this year. We don't care if he stays home and goes to a local college so long as he gets a degree. His coaches think that he is good enough for a chance to play in college, no matter where it may be - DI, DII, DIII, or the local community college. We are OK with whatever he is OK with, and have a college fund for him anyway, so we are not under pressure for him to get a scholarship in order to attend college.

You said that if a player is as good as their parent thinks they are, the recruiters will find them. That was kind of what I thought, too, but everything I have been reading has been to the contrary, so that is why my questions are only about the recruiting process itself, not the chances of him being able to play a collegiate sport. I do not know anything about the recruiting process, and it seems like it is very complicated - and I do not want to pay money to set up a profile or whatever if there are "free" ways to go about it. The two websites we were given were the NCAA Eligibility Clearinghouse, which comes with a $75 fee (and I trust), and the NCSA, which gives a LOT of information but I do not see anywhere where there is a fee to pay to create a profile? I just do not want to head down a direction that is unnecessary. Do you have any info about those, or remember hearing about that organization from when your son played? My nature is to be suspicious LOL