The Journey: Evaluating College Softball Camps
So it’s very well understood that prospective college softball players should start at an early age going to college camps – but how do you decide which ones to go to? Evaluating college softball camps is a major factor in finding the right one for your daughter. If you are just getting started with them, here’s a few thoughts to help you develop a plan and budget for them:
Make heavy use of local camps – Map out the college programs that are easy to get to and back from within the same day and start going to them very early on (6th grade and older). Even if some of the schools will most likely not be on your daughter’s short list to consider attending someday, you will gain a lot of perspective on how your daughter fits in with the competition and your daughter will no doubt get some excellent instruction. Also, your daughter will get experience with a lot of different coaching styles, campus attributes, and team cultures – all of which will help her down the road when she needs to decide what type of school and program she really wants for herself. And, in reality, many players end up playing close to home so it often ends up making connections that pay off later anyway.
Attend camps of all levels of college programs (NAIA, JUCO, NCAA Div I, II & III) – It is common for many young players to get a picture in their head that college softball is mostly just about the schools which they see on ESPN. While those programs are exciting to be a part of, the reality is that there are many tremendous college opportunities at all types of schools. When it’s time for your daughter to get serious about creating a short-list of schools during her high school years, you’ll want her to have developed a good perspective of differing schools and programs from a realistic 360-degree view. In order to do that, she will need to have been exposed to many different programs over the years. She will need to decide what is right for her regarding the level of competition, potential for playing time, academic environment for her intended major, location and setting of the campus, and so many other things. If all she attended were major conference D1 program camps – she will be missing out on the exposure to a wide range of great options and could be well behind other players in developing relationships with college coaches that may, in the end, be the best fit for her. Unfortunately, many players miss out of significant scholarships to DII, JUCO, and NAIA schools because they don’t pursue those schools early enough. Roster spots may still be available to them, but coaches may have already committed their money to players that have shown interest in them earlier.
Be judicious when traveling far for camps – I have known many families which have spent many thousands of dollars making “random” trips across the country to attend camps of what they perceive of being flashy schools in the hopes of making a connection that results in a college opportunity or scholarship. While this may work out OK for the truly upper-elite athlete that can step onto the field and instantly “wow” a college staff – for the vast majority of players this is a waste of money. You have to remember that big name schools have been immersed for years in seeing the top talent that is near them through camps, high school games, and club tournaments. Many of the kids they are following they have seen play quite a few times and most likely have been communicating with their school and club ball coaches. They know A LOT about those kids – both what they are like on and off the field. Even though your daughter may be just as talented as them – the fact that the coaches know NOTHING about your daughter and only get to see her in one short camp setting, it will be very hard for those coaches to make a bet on her versus what they feel they are confident in knowing about those they’ve seen many times over. So, if your daughter is interested in pursuing a school far away – by no means do I suggest you just eliminate considering it. What I am saying is make sure you utilize other means of figuring out if it’s a realistic possibility first before dropping thousands of dollars flying all over hoping for a chance. Send them a video, have your club coach contact them to find out their needs and discuss if your skills might be a fit, encourage them to watch you at a showcase or national tournament, and so on, FIRST. That way you can target the right schools where there might be a realistic chance that your daughter gets a good look and it will help keep your budget intact.
