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This portion of the Web site is designed to
provide information to college-bound softball players, their parents,
and coaches. Every other month, we'll look at recruiting-related issues and try
to answer questions you might have
about collegiate softball. If you’d like
to review archived articles click here.
TRAVEL TOURNAMENT
ETIQUETTE
Etiquette is probably a funny word to use in conjunction
with softball tournaments. We tend to
think of tournaments as tough, competitive, down and dirty affairs; the term
etiquette carries with it an image of bent pinkie fingers and high tea! A college coach actually suggested the word
"etiquette" to me in frustration not long ago because of the lack of
standardization in several aspects of travel and tournament competition. Although it's not precisely the term I would
use, it works well in the context of courtesy which is really what this coach
wanted--from both tournament staffs and participants.
The main goal of tournaments, of course, is to provide
competition for athletes. And there are
many tournaments each year that college coaches don't attend. (However, I would add that you never know
when a coach might drop by your tournament even if only to look at one player
for one game!) If you disagree with the
premise that college coaches need to use tournaments to scout recruits,
identify new prospects, etc., then you will probably disagree with this
article. However, as someone who works with both colleges and prospective
college players all the time, I believe this issue is very important.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR
TOURNAMENT STAFFS
All tournament directors should plan ahead. If you are a running a tournament that
college coaches are likely to attend, ask your teams to submit a roster with
each player's name, jersey number, position, year of graduation, accurate
Travel teams--for the most part--know exactly who will be
on their teams to within a player or two by early June. It shouldn't be a big deal to type up rosters
and fax them to tournament directors well in advance of their tournaments. As a tournament director, you only need to
make copies of these rosters and staple them together to hand to college
coaches who ask for them, (although coaches really appreciate it when you
include a tournament bracket as well!)
While tournament programs are nice, a simple packet of team
rosters will do just fine and shouldn't cost you very much. (And if your tournament is on such a tight
budget that you can't afford to give away rosters, I think you'll find most
college coaches will be glad to pay a couple of bucks for a set.) Collecting rosters and assembling them takes
time and effort, but college coaches will be more likely to return to your
tournament and recommend it to other coaches as well. This in turn will help you attract good
travel teams and ensure your tournament's continued success.
Another area travel tournament staffs need to look at is
admission prices. If you're not charging
anyone, there's no problem. If you are,
however, it's a good idea to admit college coaches for free. If you can't afford to do this for some
reason, then be sure to provide each gate and ticket taker with something to
use as receipts. Many college coaches
are on a tight budget, and if they have to pay (which they shouldn't!), they at
least need a receipt so they can get reimbursed.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR
TRAVEL TEAMS
Every year I see teams who go an entire summer without
having anything to hand to college coaches or to give to tournament
directors. (And sometimes this sole reason
for this is because the team is trying to put together a fancy book with glossy
pictures and the life story of each player.)
While it may impress parents and other teams to show off a
book that cost $5.00 apiece to print, this is completely unnecessary. (As is the $1000 price tag for having a two hundred
books made!) What is necessary,
however, is a team facts sheet.
You can type up the necessary information for each player, put these
together on one or two pages and have two hundred copies made for no less than $50.
Believe me, most college coaches would vastly prefer to
have one page to carry around rather than a twenty-page full-color book. Your team’s info sheet should include the
following for each player: her name, year of graduation, jersey number,
position(s), accurate GPA/
There is nothing more frustrating to a college coach than
to spot a player you really like at a tournament only to find out you just
wasted time watching a signed senior. Neither
I, nor any of the college coaches I know will ever understand why travel
coaches play games with their players' futures.
It should not be up to the travel coach to decide whether or not a
player is good enough for a specific college or which coach she should play
for. These are decisions for college
coaches and the players and their families to make.
Many college coaches perceive a travel coach's control to
be manipulative or even arrogant, and this only hurts the players. College coaches have told me they don't even
bother trying to recruit players off of certain teams because they know the
coaches discourage their athletes from considering any but a few chosen
colleges. I also hear constantly from
college coaches how frustrated they are when there are no rosters
available--either from tournament staffs or from travel team coaches.
If, as a tournament director or a travel coach, you do all
you can to help your athletes be more visible to college coaches, you are to be
congratulated. If you don't, shame on
you! But remember, it's never too late
to start. Plan ahead so this coming
summer, you're prepared for both tournaments and college coaches.
*
* *
For more information on giving your athlete the
competitive edge during her college search, consult my book, Preparing to
Play Softball at the Collegiate Level. The current edition can be ordered
from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association in
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Collegiate Softball Connection 2010