What's Happening at College?

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hccsvolleymom		#11	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 64 (05/16/08 2:47 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	I hope that this is not the case for our daughter, but I would say that there is a lot of pressure to make decisions based on what looks good from the outsider's perspective rather than what is best for the individual athlete. I think it is absolutely necessary to keep a list in front of the athlete and parents that has the non-negotiables clearly stated so that when the urge to make a decision based on for example: mid to lower Div. 1 school far away versus Div. 2 school close to home (in our case), go back to the list to remember what is really the goal and why. I am sure that even under the best circumstances when wisdom is used making a college choice, mistakes will still be made. That can happen without volleyball in the mix. It will be interesting to re-visit this thread after the '08-'09 school year to see if good decisions were made.
Phaedrus	Early signing	#12	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 2002 (05/16/08 2:58 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Rich Kern keeps telling me that his data does not bear me out. But many college coaches think that the institution of the early signing period has placed more pressure on players to commit early, its kind of a trickle down effect. the top guns commit early and then the domino effect follows through with the others, thereby resulting in more bad decisions and then more transfers and dropping out of volleyball. Bottom line is that many kids commit before they have made their official visits and had a chance to visit with the existing team, which serves as a sanity check for some players. As I said, Rich's data doesn't agree so far, but its early yet and the full effect of the early signing may not be evident just yet.
Online Dad		#13	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 10 (05/16/08 10:46 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Phaedrus, the stats will prove you are correct over time, look at how many 2009 commitment's , un commited , then re commited to another school in just 6-8 mos . after they commited the 1st time.( I guess we can use the phrase "commitment" pretty loosely in prep volleyball) why do the college coaches not get it? Why do the parents and players not get it? The number of transfers move exponentially after the 1 st year of school and experiencing the volleyball program.. We all know it is about ego's , at all levels , Coaches, Players and especially Parents. How in the heck can any volleyball coach know that a 15 year old female HS Freshman is the correct fit for their team in 4 years, or that matter any college coach in any sport. We know see they are getting 8th grade baseket ball players to commit to college.It is a slippery slope.
volleysisters		#14	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 44 (05/17/08 9:30 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Ultimately it is a very personal decision for families and players to make. Keep the real tangibles on the table. Ask what personal attributes besides vb IQ and skills make her suited to life in the whole collegiate experience and work from there. Academic rigor, demands of VB coach and program, size of school, support in learning to cope with new independence, and other interests are all huge factors in your daughters' ultimate success in the transition. Big Volleysister had some offers on the table at several levels. The match she made was based on the culture of the university AND the fit of the volleyball program. As a parent I could not feel more blessed that she made a choice that was good for her needs. (and she was close enough to home that we could see her play) She completed her freshmen year with an incredible sense of accomplishment and well-being. It was not easy. She had to work hard both in the classroom and on the court. The personal payoff is that she has grown up a lot and become a part of her new community. I know that instead of running home when things get tough, that she will turn to the people around her that are sharing the same experiences and figure it out. D-1?? could have been a very different experience. Good grades, good new friendships, 33-1 and a NAIA Championship fit just fine.
Schmidty3		#15	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 9 (05/17/08 10:55 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Here are some thoughts to ponder...according to this thread it seems we are seeing many 'females' falling short in their dreams of playing a 'career' of college volleyball. (It's not to say all or countless...many as in more than we should see) It seems many 'males' have been more prepared to play college ball in their sport based on numbers, professional opportunities and society's emphasis on sports. (Not to say all were prepared) I am definitely not saying this is a gender difference, but there are some things here we may should consider that takes in account the way we are preparing each gender. Males generally understand the 'commitment/job' factor when entering college sports. (Again, not all) Females, well through my experiences, many don't understand it's a 'commitment/job' at the college level. (I have to keep repeating myself because someone, somewhere will take this out of context...not all or even many females lack this understanding) Males are raised competitive from the get go. Females, once dad and granddad get over 'she is my precious girl' are finally taught to be competitive once they are in their sports for a period of time. Males were taught to go mow the lawn, fix your car, and build the fence, etc since they were small boys. Females were told to play with their dolls, clean the dishes, and cook the meals, etc since they were little girls. Can mowing the lawn provide the tools to compete and find success in our competitive society? Can playing with dolls prepare someone to compete and find success in our competitive society? Here is another staggering fact, the basis of our world's economic and professional philosophies are based on male ideals. These same philosophies are developed using the tools often taught to males from an early age and developed through team sports. A stat to back this up: of all of the executives in Fortune 500 companies the majority are still males. For those few who are females eighty percent of them played team sports. Now, if we have known all our lives males perform competitive/constructive activities and females plays with dolls, are we preparing both genders to be successful and have a lengthy career playing sports in college? Again, this is something to ponder and create opinions/suggestion/ideals. Some ideals I have thought up, but not necessarily promote for why females aren't as prepared for the next level of college sports (of course, we know almost every problem doesn't have just one issue effecting it, generally there are many different issues collectively to create a problem): * Females lack enough dreams/opportunities to be professional athletes * The older generations have set the tone from the get go by how we socialize and raise our kids * The lack of respect and support for female sports * The self-entitlement/pampered era * How parents have put "I" back in team * The stress of winning/keep our jobs on coaches * Coaches 'forgetting' to leave their pride/ego at the door before entering the gym
NerdusOperandus		#16	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 20 (05/17/08 11:53 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Frankly, one factor is that kids have such a good experience in club, that college doesn't quite measure up. It does take too much of their time.
vbmom2x	Lots of interesting comments	#17	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 207 (05/17/08 1:35 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	The parent who sells their club player on collegiate VB being anything other than a full time job is misleading their player. With my daughters, we began early in high school making sure they understood their options. If mom and dad pay the college bills, their list was pretty short and local. If they chose to pursue academic only options, then there were activities, AP classes and grades that had to be incorporated, with sports taking a back seat. If they pursued collegiate VB, then grades were still a factor, but they could have many more options in terms of distance from home, etc. As we took visits, we pointed out the rigors of being a collegiate player - hosting recruits on a weekend, workouts, lack of flexibility in class schedules to fit team workout times, waking up early for conditioning (certainly NOT the college norm), etc. But we also pointed out the positives found in the sense of accomplishment to be had in knowing you earned your education in a most honorable way by wearing the uniform of your school and hopefully make lifelong friends along the way. I, too, know many girls who were "one year wonders" but I feel many of these were predictable. They were stars in high school and could not survive the reality that there were many players just plain better than they were. I was team mom in club and watched a parent sneak food to her daughter because she didn't want turkey sandwiches -again- in spite of the fact that that is what the team and the coach requested. That same daughter struggled mightily in the controlled college environmenet and quit at the end of her freshman season. As for Scmidtys comments about the male environment, etc., one of my observations is that many females choose academics over sports during their time in college. They look ahead at their options and realize that grad school is more important than time on the court now with few options for play in the post-college years. I see more males choose sports over academics and leave a stellar four year sports career with no hope for a degree. Because of this, I am glad to see NCAA strengthen their academic expectations. In my opinion, it is almost criminal to send any collegiate athlete into the world unprepared to make a living. Keep up the spirited conversation. This is a good thread.
gotsandvb	Side question.	#18	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 187 (05/18/08 12:10 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Does anyone know which conference/school with the most players dropping out or players transfer into. I guess my point is which conference/school is more player friendly and which conference/school where expectation is a lot higher than just showing up.
VB ALL 1	Another Side Question...	#19	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 357 (05/18/08 12:31 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	Why is it that males end up playing after their college careers and females finish with college? Is it because females are burned out from playing since middle school while most males start later with volleyball? Or, because the career or starting a family factors into the decision to drop volleyball? I'd like to hear from some former players.
Schmidty3		#20	[-]
Registered Member Posts: 9 (05/18/08 1:52 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts Report Post	"Frankly, one factor is that kids have such a good experience in club, that college doesn't quite measure up. It does take too much of their time." In some incidents this possibly could be true, but since I've been on both sides over the past 15 years (club and college...NAIA, DI & DII) I also share some hesitation with this thought. If a players starts playing volleyball at age 12, her next break isn't until the summer AFTER her freshman year in college. So, who is taking up too much of her time? Think about it...club starts as soon as high school ends (unless you are in certian areas of the country then you have 'unofficial' workouts DURING high school), club runs through June/early July for most cases, then you have camps until high school season starts back up in early August. This is year round ball for seven years, with only one being college ball. Club is a great experience because one can grow so much in the early days of a career. Also, the expectations are far different. In college you are generally just progressing the team concept since most student-athletes entering college should be well-defined once they arrive. But, would you argue the same point (too much demand) if you had a son who is a football player? Of course not, many of us have to fill our ego/pride with a football championship, thus the expectation of playing football is a job has become extremely accepted. Face it, we generally have different views on sports and competition between females and males. The comment "It does take too much of their time" would not be made towards a football player. I know...I see the expectations far different. I wish we can make the college experience as fun as club, but playing college ball there is SOOOOO much more expected. And to acheive these expectations IS HARD WORK, SACRIFICES and DETERMINATION. These characteristics aren't pleasant! But, such is life. Again, I am trying my best to make my players experiences less stressful, but my job is on the line too just like that football coach's. I have my expectations set high so that my players perform the best they are capable...after all I would want them to acheive the same results after college in their professions. That's how they become successful and overcome the challenges of working in dominant male professions (nursing and educations are one of the few professions that isn't male dominant). We are preparing your daughter to stand strong against any male who has an edge and will demean her to get an edge because HE can. It's wrong and sad, but it's a fact of life! Please, don't sell your daughter short of their possibilities because she is your precious daughter. You are the ONLY one who will see it that way. Her CEO, the job she may want one day, WON'T! Facts of life! Your daughter is JUST as capable...only if we give her the same tools as your son!

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What's Happening at College?

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