![\"Robby](\"http:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/robby.jpg\")
<\/a>As the National Director of Softball, one of my favorite \u201cperks\u201d is that I get to scout softball talent coast to coast, from some states you don\u2019t even think of when you say \u201csoftball.\u201d So I\u2019ve seen all types of \u201cshowcases.\u201d And I\u2019ve scouted many types of \u201cshowcase camps\u201d as well as regular college camps.<\/p>\n
There are some showcases doing things right. There also are a couple of showcase camps doing a marvelous job (similar to jerradhardin.com). But you can look back on the past and pretty much predict where you\u2019re going. Anytime there is a growing interest in something, there are those who will see an opportunity (no shame in that for them) and \u201cget in while the getting is good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Such is the case in the showcase\/tournament arena as well as the showcase camp arena in today\u2019s softball world. It\u2019s a shame, though, because it only takes a few years for things to go south with it and in softball, it\u2019s heading that way:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Four or five big-time showcases, all on the same weekend. Where should you go?<\/li>\n
- Showcases increasing cost by $100-$200 annually.<\/li>\n
- Showcases increasing the number of teams in each age group by 10-20 annually.<\/li>\n
- Several showcases on the same weekend. Where should college coaches go to see the talent they need to see? (D-I coaches have only 50 days to recruit annually.)<\/li>\n
- Camps before and after showcases, which cost more money and result in missed school days in the fall.<\/li>\n
- Most fall showcases are three or four days, which means more missed school.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Of course, playing softball is a bonus. But the entire concept of \u201cstudent-athlete\u201d is that student comes before athlete, and that you\u2019re going to college to get an education first, play softball second, correct? So why are the athletes being put in a position to miss school just to showcase? Not to mention the parents having to take off work which means less money.<\/p>\n
This is not a rant about showcases. This is actually about YOU. You just finished traveling all summer and fall, showcasing, attending various camps and clinics, driving all over and writing endless checks — all in hopes of coaches recruiting your daughter.<\/p>\n
But in the back of your mind you are reminded of all those athletes you know who went unrecruited and\/or under-recruited. So the possibility is creeping into your head: \u201cMy daughter could end up doing all of this and not even be recruited.\u201d The worries of \u201cfeeling like a failure\u201d start setting in. Your daughter could become stressed out about not getting recruited and, because of it, lose interest in the sport before graduation. Some athletes give up on it before their time is up because it\u2019s their way of saying: \u201cIt\u2019s not that I didn\u2019t get recruited; I took myself out of the race.\u201d<\/p>\n
Day after day, year after year, I deal with a new set of \u201crecruitable-age\u201d softball prospects and their families. I see the money strain and the recruiting stress (although it\u2019s supposed to be fun). It doesn\u2019t have to be a drain on the pocketbook. It doesn\u2019t have to be stressful and unproductive for your daughter. It doesn\u2019t have to be like \u201cshooting fish in a barrel.\u201d<\/p>\n
The softball recruiting world is changing, period. We all have to accept it. The number of softball athletes hoping to play in college has grown exponentially in the last few years and therefore, the chances of your daughter playing in college just got slimmer. But as Darwin said \u201cIt is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.<\/em>\u201d Therefore, if you understand the changes taking place, and realize that your summer, fall and winter proved less productive than you had hoped, it\u2019s time to adapt.<\/p>\n
As \u201ccamp season\u201d comes to a close, most softball prospects in the \u201crecruitable age\u201d are beginning to think about high school season or beginning to play spring ball with the misconception that college coaches don\u2019t recruit during the spring because it\u2019s their season. On the contrary, spring is actually when college softball coaches have the ability to maintain communication with those athletes truly serious about their programs, as well as continue communication with those \u201chandful of trusty sources\u201d such as NSR scouts, about those athletes.<\/p>\n
Come early June (June 9 at noon to be exact for D-I), those coaches already have their athletes atop their recruiting board; know when and where they\u2019re playing; and know what their recruiting schedule looks like. Those athletes who wait until June to resume getting recruited must get in line behind those who have been on the top of coaches\u2019 boards since February.<\/p>\n
So, how do you adapt, and not be left behind?<\/p>\n
My best recommendation is to invite an NSR scout to scout your athlete and determine whether she has the ability, grades, work ethic, attitude, family support, and drive to play in college. Why? The number of people a college softball coach talks to during the spring diminishes dramatically. But an NSR scout is typically in touch with them, especially in softball. All day, every day, an NSR softball scout is working in softball. He or she may talk to several college coaches throughout the day, while scouting practices, lessons, watching skills videos, scouting games, etc. The NSR scout has the schedule that most closely mimics that of college coaches and, therefore, is usually available to them.<\/p>\n
Parents invest a lot in their athletes over the years. Their daughters invest a lot, too (different type of investment). The only way to ensure that it pays off is to make sure you\u2019re following all steps correctly, targeting the right programs that have a need for your athletes and matching them athletically and academically.<\/p>\n
The only way to ensure these things take place is to be scouted by professionals. If your athlete qualifies as an NSR prospect, she will have guidance from Day One through graduation and National Signing Day. NSR softball prospects can and will go on to play college softball, period. Be scouted by an NSR softball scout: www.nsr-inc.com\/softball<\/a> and fill out the scout request form.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Robby Wilson I just finished reading where the average parent of a softball player in the \u201crecruitable age\u201d spends between $8,000 and $12,000 per year for showcasing and camps combined. That\u2019s an average, meaning there are some parents who pay less and some who pay more. Some reported paying as much as $15,000 per … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[31,233,222,245,512],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9570"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9570"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9570\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9621,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9570\/revisions\/9621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nsr-inc.com\/scouting-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}