North to the Future - Volleyball Question

I stumbled upon this page (and your blog) quite by accident, but I'm glad I did! In this comment about scholarships, you've answered questions I've had for a year or so and was never able to get an answer to.

My high school daughter is very interested in playing vb at the college level, and as a father I'm interested in helping her achieve her goals, both academically and athletically. Unfortunately, here in Alaska we only have two universities with vb programs (both DII), so the chance to approach coaches is limited. My daughter has played club vb the past two years, which included trips Outside--to Arizona and Florida.

Do you have any recommendations for a situation such as ours? That is, how can we showcase her talents to coaches at schools which are in most cases thousands of miles away?

Perhaps you've addressed such a situation in previous pages on your blog, which I'll search, and bookmark.

Regardless, thank you for the answer (above) to questions I/we have long had about scholarships. Denny


Your situation is not a common one with being so physically removed from traditional College Volleyball regions, but many Prospective Student Athletes might feel the same way coming from states in which women's volleyball in high school is non existent. Unfortunately, there are still so many areas of the country where women's volleyball for junior high and high school females is no where to be found and when suggested, is looked upon as some weird thing that other places engage upon.

The good news is that your daughter plays in a time where technology can reduce the miles between PSA and college coach. In the not too long ago, getting a skills video tape made, copied and sent was a long process. Now, you can do everything in a couple of hours.

My suggestion is simple, use technology to its maximum positive advantage and don't be shy. Since you are not in a prime recruiting area, you need to get your daughter in front of those programs for which she is best suited. Reach out to your club coaches, high school coaches and adult level players (with a college background of volleyball, if possible) to ascertain what level of volleyball your daughter should be targeting. Remember that you have NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and JC - There are a bunch of spots available, but only if you are looking at the right level.

Once you get the right evaluation, then start sending out contact information with an attached/linked video for your daughter and keep updating the video footage. It is amazing how much improvement a player can make during a club season - I see it all the time, how a player will look average in January and then just be blowing the doors off come May. Don't be shy about sending out updates on new footage, about informing coaches when you might be coming down into their area for a big tourney. When you venture south, make sure that every school you have been interacting with is aware of your schedule - Better to over inform that take the chance they did not get the update.

Finally, should your location preclude your daughter from reaching her desired level and college ideal, don't hesitate to jump in with a Junior College for a season or two (depending on her NCAA eligibility status). More and more NCAA college coaches are going into the JC's to recruit today. In the past, JC's for volleyball were looked upon as the destination for bad volleyball players or volleyball players will really poor academics.

While the JC's still offer a viable alternative for PSA's to improve their academic standing, more and more athletes are taking the JC route because it allows them to compete at a high level, refine their skills and continue their recruiting efforts for a NCAA school which they are more comfortable with. For your daughter, the JC route would allow her to be seen by more 4 year programs, while she improves her abilities.

My last bit of advice is patience. Because of your location, this might be the thing you need to focus upon the most. Even today, talented seniors in volleyball areas are still securing their future colleges and having to be patient.

Good luck!

Volleyball Food

It has been said that an army runs on its stomach and I think the same is true of college volleyball teams. A few observations which may apply to any coach trying to manage the meals of the always hungry.

• Sit down and order type restaurants seem to always clock in around 2 hours from walk in to walk out, no matter how many wait staff they provide.
• Salad bar style places are the way to go - Pay quickly, enough variety to keep everyone happy and you don't have to spend half the day there.
• If there is not a good Salad bar type restaurant, then I have begun pre-ordering for the place we are going to. Most places will have the menus on line and the managers are more than happy to get the business, because most times, teams are eating away from the peak hours.
  
• Mine is not one of those teams which can afford to stay at a full service hotel which has the meals waiting in a meeting room down stairs. The basketballs enjoy this set up, but I think it would get a bit un-culinary for my tastes (even if we were one of the anointed few).
  
• If the budget is tight, wait as long as possible to feed the team dinner - If the players get hungry enough, they will suddenly feel that Subway is like the Cheesecake Factory.
• Speaking of the Cheesecake Factory, they have a shrimp, bacon and tomato club sandwich that is so good it should be outlawed.
  
• If you know you are playing a late match one night, with an early turn around to a noon'ish match the next day, absolutely do not eat big post match. I had a track coach tell me that they never let their kids eat late, until they have drank a full quart of Gatorade. The reasoning was the the body did not have time to process a meal and metabolize for the early next day's events. The Gatorade is easily processed, replenishes them and fills them up before eating, so they do not eat as much at the post-event dinner.
  
• I learned to ask about this the hard way because we won a great match, ate like victors, and then lost the next day to a weak team because we were sluggish and slow.
• If I am in that situation now, I say everything and more about winning, being smart, bribing with a great dinner at the end of the weekend, unlimited desserts and no dirty dishes, to convince them this will help us win.
• Water, water and more water. Makes for many bathroom breaks, but when doing any traveling, if a player gets dehydrated, they are burnt toast.
  
• Sometimes, you just gotta have a cheeseburger and fries.
• Whatever you make off limits, your team will just make that their food of choice when they are away from the coach. If possible, we should make fruit off limits in the hope they would eat more fruit. Heck, I should make fruit off limits to me, so I would react to myself and eat more fruit.

In the end, if you can pass, you will win, no matter if you eat papayas from Tahiti or cheeseburgers from Chicago!

Volleyball Recuit Calling a Coach

Hi Coach,

My daughter is a OH/DS for a 17 Open team. She is actively searching for a college to play for by sending out many many emails.

At 5'10", the club lists her at 5'11" in shoes, she has her work cut out for her. Lucky for her she does have strong back row skills considering her lack of size.

When is it appropriate to call the coach? Do coaches assume if they don't get a phone call the player isn't that serious about the school?

Also, how often should a player call a coach?

Thanks for your help! J


Good questions because communication is central to the recruiting process.

1. It is appropriate the call the coach, if the coach has responded to initial e-mails and expressed interest. A call does not need to be anything overly serious, just an opportunity to chat a bit about volleyball and the club season. There is no rule that says you cannot call the coach to introduce yourself, but it helps to make sure the school is interested in recruiting you.

In the accelerated time frame of today's recruiting climate, the PSA's calling the coach makes it all happen; whether they are Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors. Of course, the coach can return the call of Seniors, e-mail the Juniors and to just make sure that no possible recruit goes without making a call, the coaches can request calls via the Club directors or coaches.

2. With today's accelerated recruiting scenarios, if a coach has expressed sincere recruiting interest, especially to a Junior, then a call is a validation of the PSA's interest. Many athletes are understandably nervous or intimidated about dialing up a college head volleyball coach. This mental discomfort leads many players to stick with using e-mail. On the whole, a call does help, as coaches will interpret this as serious interest from the player.

If I was to take an either/or approach to this specific question, then I would say that if a recruit has not called a coach by March'ish of their Junior year, then the coach would take this to mean the PSA was not sincerely interested in the program/school.

3. Calling a coach all the time is not really a needed thing. If you called every couple of weeks during the process, that would be more than enough because of the prevalent use of e-mails. To be honest, getting a phone call every now and then from a top recruit is nice during the recruiting process, but 4 calls a week would get old for everyone very quickly!!!

It is important to remember that making a phone call to a coach allows for an important exchange of information and impressions. Be prepared to have a question or two about the school/program when a PSA calls a coach and listen to how the coach answers - Seriously, do they answer clearly and with confidence or is it a lot of talking and no real information?

Before your answer goes into the pantheon of the blogosphere, I want to squash the notion that 5'10" is not tall enough to play college volleyball with any specific level, including NCAA Division I. There are many, many outstanding outside hitters in DI who topping out at 5'10" - I see them on my team and staring at us through the net. Now, if your daughter has the vertical of my grandma and the arm swing of a toddler, then maybe height is the least of your concerns. But, by your e-mail, your daughter is playing 17 Open and has a nice touch on the ball.

Keep sending out e-mail, make sure to have a video link, encourage her to be active in her communication and stay positive. Now can be the silly season for the 17's age group, as it seems as if everyone and their twin sister is making verbal commitments to colleges. Don't get panicked, there are still a great number of quality schools/programs with scholarships available.

Good Luck!

How High in Men's Volleyball?

LOVE your blog! Thanks for it.

My son is a 6’3 setter for his club and high school team, he picked that up as a 16 year old and has been progressing very well.. He’s a technically good blocker, hitter, and passer too. He’s versatile and can play any position. He’s a junior, and is interested in playing in college at some level in the future. He has great grades and scores, too.

Question: he presently touches a little over 10 feet with a stationary vertical jump. Is there any general advice you have for how high his vertical abilities would need to be in order to play in college? How would a college coach look at that? How high above the net would he need to play to be competitive? Any advice for things off the top you’d suggest he focus on as he works at it over the next year?

Thank you J

Appreciate the nice compliment with regards to the website. I am still amazed by the lack of effective information available to parents/players with regards to the NCAA and all the various rules. I know the NCAA has some type of a recruiting guide or information guide available, but I don't know how aggressive they are about letting folks know it exists. I may not be 100% on the mark with all the rules and trends, but I hope I can shed some light on the craziness of college volleyball and recruiting.

The Men's college volleyball game is just so physical, in comparison to the women's game. For some followers, this is the attraction, while for other fans this is a deterrent. I know when I watch the men's college game, even on television, the sheer power of the play is unreal - When every attack and block look like the best attack and block I have ever seen in college volleyball, it can be overwhelming.

This physicality of the men's game has mandated that everyone jump high, probably even the liberos can fly! As a setter, your son can 'get away with' not jumping as high as the outside hitters, just because the position specific skill of being a setter can create an emphasis on other needs. If he is touching over 10' from a stand still jump, then he should be able to fulfill his blocking responsibilities on the right side - He may not dominate and other teams may try and target him, but in the less rotation numbers of rally score, he can hang tough.

If he were to incorporate a swing block technique, he may capture another few inches of vertical because of the approach component of this skill. In addition, once a player gets to college, they find out that the weight room is a part of their collegiate existence and this will also add inches to the jump.

The men's game is a different beast than the women's because of its emphases on the net play. Even when the men's players are attacking from the back row, it still looks like a front row set because the ball is 'hittable' at 6 feet from the net for the high flying attackers, and these attackers are still going against 2 or 3 blockers. Again, setters can escape some of the vertical demands which the hitters have to display.

Setters need to run the offense, they don't have to attack from back row, so for three rotations they won't have the responsibility of being vertical. Even though the eye is drawn to the game being played above the net, setters play most of their game below the net (for simplicity, please don't count jump setting!). The best thing a setter, any gender, can do is focus on becoming a great setter. A team will capture more points, because of a setter making correct choices and hittable sets, than they will by the setter blocking balls. A team can structure its defense to try and defend around a weaker blocking setter, but they cannot hide a poor setting setter very effectively.

The men's game truly has some outstanding, long term successful coaches because of the limited number of jobs. To hold down the UCLA or Stanford or Penn State job, you need to know what you are doing and be very good in doing it. The coaches understand that once a setter has reached the vertical threshold of getting high enough above the net not to be a liability, then the coaches won't worry about that. If they can find a setter who touches 11', they won't complain, but my belief is they would be more concerned about finding a smart setter who empowers the hitters and provides effective leadership in this all important position.

Since your son picked up the game as a 16 year old, he might be a little green or inexperienced, versus other setters competing for the college setting spot. If he is going to take over the college setting duties, he is only bringing two years of experience - that is not too much for any college level athlete, much less one playing a critical position. My suggestion is for him to play, play, play and play some more. It is only by being in competitive situations, as often as possible, that setters can improve in the mental side of the game.

The physical side of setting is not difficult - Setting a volleyball is rather easy. But the mental side of being a setter is demanding. Practicing and running through drills will always make you better, but the big leaps in setting knowledge/ability only come through competition, through running a team, through being able to make a great choice and perfect set when you are up 24-23 and need that last point to win the match in three, instead of giving the opponents any hope of coming back to win in five.

Good luck and make sure he focuses on being a setter, not on being a blocker!

College Volleyball Scholarship Question in Two Parts

If someone's DD gets a "full ride", is it "usually" the case that her tuition is paid, but the family needs to pay for room/board....

or some other combination thereof??

is it ever the case where absolutely EVERY single school-related expense is taken care of???

AND, the scholarship is just for the first year of college, being re-evaluated every subsequent year???

thnx - N


Since NCAA Division III athletics is non-athletic scholarship supported, I will limit my answers to Division I and Division II.

1. DI Women's Volleyball being a NCAA Head Count sport limits players (heads) to 12 on scholarship (which is the NCAA Division I limit for funding WVB) - So if a DI school fully funds their program, then each player would receive a Full Scholarship. Per DI, a Full ride consists of Tuition, Books, Fees, Room and Board (simplest catch all). Each DI school defines "Fees" differently and this can create some variations with what is covered - For instance, my current school does not cover the Application Fee (trying to make money off of athletics), but other DI's I have coached at waived the application fee; the same may go for certain Lab fees or Housing Renewal Fees, etc. Many times the decision to cover a Fee, comes down to how the university wishes to try and generate extra income or cut expenses via athletics.

1a. Division I has another commonly used term and this is Cost of Attendance. CoA is meant to capture all expenses related to going to college; pencils/pens, calculators, toiletries, etc. The Full Scholarship is always below the CoA. The CoA is used to determine how much an athlete can work during the year, if they have time. An athlete can work up to the CoA, without breaking NCAA rules.

1b. What I tell my recruits, and I have done this at my other DI schools, is that their scholarship covers everything other than shampoo and going to a movie! About the only major item schools don't cover is primary insurance - athletic departments act as secondary for any injury. This becomes an issue with international players and lower income families needing to purchase primary insurance. All training equipment, season travel expenses, food/hotel, pre-game/post game meals, etc. are all covered by the program. Hence why DI, full scholarship athletes can become spoiled!

1c. The NCAA manual says that the scholarships are one year renewable for up to 5 years (red-shirt year). But, the manual also says that if a scholarship is reduced or terminated (reduced for Equivalency sports) that the player has the right to appeal to a non-athletics committee. The majority of the time, the player loses this appeal. Each spring, I generate scholarship agreements for the next school year, to be signed by my returning players. The only time I don't renew an athlete is if there has been an academic failing, behavioral issue, or significant lack of effort; and, sometimes the athlete wishes to attend another school to find a better volleyball playing time fit. Most DI programs will renew players, even if they do not fill the ability projections the coach had for them as a recruit; unfortunately, there are too many DI programs who just 'push' players off who will not make them better. We are seeing this happen more and more in the DI ranks by some upper teams and mid-level teams whose coaches just want to get the next best player.


2. DII is an Equivalency Sport which means that no mater how many players are on scholarship, the total of these individual scholarships must equal or be less than the scholarship limit of the sport. For DII WVB, the scholarship limit is 8; so no matter how many players you put on scholarship the total amount awarded cannot exceed 8. It can get a little tricky in DII, because some scholarship support is not counted against the NCAA limit (for instance, the Pell Grant or certain academic awards) - It has been my experience that fully funded DII programs (and DII programs encompass a wide range of funding - unlike DI, in which the majority of programs are fully funded) will award a Full scholarship to a couple of their elite players and then everyone else is on a partial scholarship. One of the tough things about DII, is you get into bidding contests for players.

2a. How a partial scholarship is broken out, depends upon the protocol of the school. For instance, some schools may say the first $6,000 of a scholarship must be applied to tuition; so in these scenario, the parents would pay for room and board. DII coaches can be positive in the presentation of this award, by calling this a Full Tuition and Fees scholarship (if tuition and fees are 6K for their school).

2b. As I referenced above, the scholarship amount can be reduced (and the athlete has the right to appeal) or eliminated. It can also be increased. There seems to be three philosophies with DII scholarships - Start the player high and reduce if they don't play well - Start the player low and increase if they play well - Start the player at the scholarship amount that she will have throughout their career. When I was a DII coach, I tended to start the player at the level they were going to be at their career, but would increase a bit to reward someone who surprised me with great effort or attitude.

OK - Hope that helped answer your questions!



yes, thanks for the quick reply...

I thoroughly enjoy your blog...I learn something(s) every time I check it out...

glad you decided not to discontinue it....

and it's not just the D1 athletes who are being spoiled...
I have a running discussion every time I see our tennis coach about how kids these days feel they are entitled to every single thing they can be given without lifting a finger for it...

keep up the good work!!

btw, I didn't see my question on your blog for the athletes & their parents...that's why I emailed you directly...

(some just seem to think that a full ride is that easy to get)...

thanks again - N


Your previous question my have gone via the Comments section and those just post with no reply - I need to figure out a way to respond/rebut those few Comment posts I disagree with, but I am not smart with this whole computer thing! Thanks for e-mailing me direct, as I struggle with my technological failings.

It is a disconcerting situation with the entitlement mentality of athletes. Either they play a sport which requires money to get better at and tend to be used to having parents bring them bottled water courtside, or they play a sport which college/high school administrations cannot say the word "NO" to and they quickly develop attitude they are special because of their sport.

Under the now passed, President Miles Brandt, the NCAA did no favors to anyone by pushing the Student-Athlete Experience agenda. Being able to play intercollegiate athletics and either receiving a scholarship and/or substantial non monetary support was not deemed good enough by the NCAA administration - They decided to give the athletes way too much power by emphasizing that they have a great experience. For the last decade, this was the mantra of every newer AD who had not participated in athletics as student-athlete. This idea of making the Student Athlete Experience most important created such problems - Without being too dramatic, it was much like letting the inmates run the prison!

I think we are well into a back lash of this Student Athlete Experience now, as AD's are no longer tolerating athletes coming directly to them to complain about every little thing that was not perfect on the last road trip or not providing a fifth second chance to student-athletes just to keep them happy. Unfortunately, for 10 years the NCAA and AD's put coaches at a severe disadvantage by encouraging the athletes to back door the coach, which only multiplied the mentality of entitlement which the SA's were arriving on campus with.

My view is quite simple - NCAA athletes are older teenagers and young, young adults. They are not grown-ups, they are not adults. They need structure, support, leadership, discipline, accountability and consequences. Yes, they should be treated with common courtesy and respect, but they are not equals to coaches and should not be afforded the impression that they are. Much like a parent dealing with the consequences of spoiling a child and faced with a difficult teenager, the NCAA and too many Athletic Directors are now dealing with the spoiled student-athletes in which they created.

Don't interpret these statements as a blindness to coaches who are not very good leaders, on or off the court - Trust me, when you are in the profession, you know who talks the talk, but does not walk the walk.

Again, it is nice to see the small changes and momentum away from this entitlement attitude. Back in the day, when I played, I liked being a college volleyball player and no one was telling me they were concerned with my student-athlete experience. If you trained hard, played hard, took care of your academic responsibilities and behaved off the court, you enjoyed what it meant to be an athlete. So many of my fellow coaches, who were former athletes, all wondered when the experience became poor!

Posting Update

VolleyFolks - Sorry for no recent posts. It is a crazy time in the spring for Division I volleyball; off campus to recruit, on campus for team training, off campus for spring season competition, on campus for hosting Official and Unofficial Visits!!!

I hope to get a post or two up next week, specifically to answer a few Reader Questions which are awaiting in my Inbox! For those who have submitted questions, I will get to them and I apologize for the delay!

Coach

It Begins

Georgia State University, Division I, member of The Colonial Athletic Association is seeking candidates for: Head Coach - Court and Sand Volleyball: This position is responsible for coaching the Women's Court and Sand Volleyball teams, which includes the following: coaching, recruiting, and student-athlete development; successful identification, evaluation, and recruitment of academically and athletically qualified student-athletes; meeting all objectives of the sport within the University, Athletic Department, NCAA, and CAA rules and regulations; development of practice plans and competition schedules; organize and direct student-athletes at meets and practice sessions; coordination of team travel for both Court and Sand Volleyball; management of all operations, recruitment and scholarship budgets.


MORE WORK, SAME PAY, THANK YOU AVCA.

Late Developing Club Volleyball Players

Worth the read:

Hi Coach!

I love your blog, since there is some fascinating information about college volleyball
recruiting. My daughter is currently a high school junior. Compared to a lot of the girls that are discussed in the blog, she got an exceptionally late start in the sport. She played rec league basketball in elementary and middle school, and only discovered volleyball in her freshman year of high school. Her freshman team was exceptionally raw, since only two or three girls in her grade had even attended any camps (they were quickly pulled up to the JV team).

She found a low level club team after the high school season ended, and has made a
tremendous amount of progress over the last two years. She loves the sport. Her days as a basketball player ended the first day of practice for her sophomore season, when she came home and said that the tryouts reminded her how much she had grown to hate that game.

She's been 100% dedicated to volleyball since then.

Her skills fell a bit further behind some of her peers during her sophomore year, since she was still in the midst of her growth spurt while they had moved out of that awkward stage. But she's made a huge amount of progress during the last year -- started out on the JV team last fall, pulled up to varsity for the playoffs, and started by the second round of the playoffs.

It appears that her skills as a middle were finally beginning to catch up with her 6'2"+ body. She did not try out for one of the power teams that travel to the big tournaments, because we never really thought about her playing at that level and also because she will be away on one of the five weekends the power teams would play in regional tournaments. She did change to a club that offered a much more competitive situation than her old club this year, and ended up getting placed on the top club team in the 17U age bracket.

Unlike a lot of people who read your blog, we never thought about her playing in college until we saw her team competing in the 18U open qualifier for the region, against all the power teams that I mentioned earlier. The top tier of those teams were remarkable, and a parent from one club (which seems to take pride in the number of girls sent to colleges, since they list the colleges their players have committed to) told us that those girls had played together for four years or more.

We saw a lot of college coaches at that tournament, since there were 32 teams (mostly 18 powers) playing for seeding in the open division. My daughter's team played fine when they were not matched up against the most elite (eventual gold division) teams, and that's when the thought that she could play at the next level first crossed our mind. She's way behind the curve set out in your Junior year recruiting plan, but that also fits in with where she is on the growth curve.

Our daughter has been getting inundated with letters and emails from colleges on the
academic side, based on her PSAT scores. She's having a hard time, but the thought of
playing in college (whether it's for a D3, D2, or even low D1 school) might make the
selection of a school easier for her. Is it OK for us to ask any college coaches we may see at the open tournaments for their take on if she would be a fit for college, and at what level?

We could also ask the coach of our HS girls basketball team about that, since he is an
assistant volleyball coach at a local D2 school, if that won't cause any problems. That might be a bit awkward for her, since she had to break his heart by telling him that she was quitting basketball back in her sophomore year. (And he was so looking forward to having some height in the middle of the court!).

Sorry for the long-winded message. The basic question is whether there are many
opportunities for girls who do not develop their height and skills until sometime in their junior year. If you choose to answer this in the blog, you could use this simple summary rather than the detailed text.

Ken


Let me get to your specific questions first, then some thoughts about those players that mature a bit later than their peers.

1) Per NCAA rules, Coaches are not allowed to speak with Junior PSA's/Families over the phone or in person, the only exception being on the campus of the coach. You could ask, but a coach who follows the rule would make sure what year your daughter is, then politely defer based on the rules.

When you see College coaches talking to parents on the sidelines, they are (our they should be) visiting with the parents of players who have already committed and/or are Seniors in high school.

A disturbing trend for many coaches, are the few coaches who don't pay attention to this rule and engage in long conversations with Junior year families at tourneys. It is one thing when you bump into the parents of an athlete you are actively recruiting and say a courteous "Hello, good to see you", but quite another to start talking with Mom and Dad like you are hanging out at a baseball game not a club tourney.

2) I honestly have not heard of a volleyball assistant coach being an high school coach (in volleyball or another sport) - I am not as familiar with Division II rules, so please do not interpret this remark as something against NCAA rules. If he is on the high school campus as a member of the faculty or coaching staff, then you might as well ask his opinion as to where she might stand with regards to peer PSA's.

Don't worry about his feelings - He should know by now that tall, athletic female high school athletes like volleyball best!!! Not too much of a stretch, but high school volleyball coaches are just despised (exaggeration, but not much) by high school basketball coaches because so many players like playing high school and club volleyball more than being on the basketball court!

Each person has their own timing clock when it comes to their growth and athletic (or lack thereof) development. In my case, I made a large physical jump in my build from Freshman to Sophomore year, then another large jump in my skill development from Sophomore to Junior. Some PSA's clock will tick faster and they will look very developed to their peers, yet seem to 'flatten' out by their Junior/Senior year.

This is one reason I do not like going hard in the recruiting process when I take a look at the 16 year old age group. Of course, the next Tom or Hodge will stand out and stay out, those are the easy ones to recruit and only about 10 schools have a shot at those two. My experience has taught me that the 16 to 17 year is the separation year with club volleyball players.

As an example, a few years ago there was a Midwest 16's club volleyball team that looked like they had 9 kids that were all DI caliber recruits; each of the 9 'looked' good in their development and physicality and there were one or two, that stood out as the best of the 9. Yet, when I saw that same team, same group of players at the 17's age, now there were only about 3 players I thought were DI caliber and those one or two kids that grabbed my attention as best, were no longer standing apart from the others. The other six had flattened out in their development, while the top three kept getting better - their clock was still ticking.

I think that this is one of the reasons we seem to have so many college transfer examples now; coaches committed a PSA when she 'looked' good as a 16's or early 17's player, only to have everyone catch up or pass the committed PSA as they transitioned into 18's or freshman year of college. When the freshman year rolls through, the now college student-athlete is not happy because they were told as a recruit they were the greatest thing since knee pads and now they are not seeing the court or worse. Also, the college coach now has an athlete they know will not be anything more than a practice player for the next 4 years. This example, though sounding far fetched, happens many, many times each college volleyball season.

The late blooming athlete will always have a home for three reasons, 1) When they reach their late arriving abilities, these abilities are very good (not very good, is not very good, no matter how long it takes to be not very good!), 2) There are coaches like me who do not rush into the recruiting cycle and keep aware of players who come onto the 'scene' later, 3) Things change on college rosters (not always because of bad things) and scholarships can come open that catch the coach by surprise.

As I have written about, there are always opportunities for college scholarships and/or roster positions very late into the process, including spring of a PSA's senior year. The key is to be aware of exactly what the comfort zone of a PSA is, and keeping an open mind to all possibilities.

With your daughter carrying a very healthy gpa, and thus attracting lots of academic attention, it can make the picture a bit more busy. I suggest that, sooner than later, start to guide your daughter into thinking about what she wants to accomplish in college. The wonderful thing about college volleyball is you can achieve academic fulfillment and play at any level of competitive ability you desire. Stanford academically is great and so is Washington University - Division I or Division III, each with outstanding volleyball histories. To manage the situation effectively, help her express what she is thinking, and then start to sort out or group her options so she can manage them.

Hope this was of some help and enjoy the ride!

Club Volleyball Playing Position?

My daughter is in 8^th grade and in the middle of her season, the coach wants to know where she wants to play because she likes to set but is also a powerful hitter, however, she is only 5’ 3”. My question is; where should she focus if she wants to play college volleyball, as a setter or hitter, or what? Or should she just find a different sport? Or should she just plan on a high school career because of her height?

Thanks,

Davina

This is a good question and a bit of a scary question. Short answer is don't worry about college volleyball and encourage your child to play the position she most enjoys!

I would discourage you to just plan on a high school career because the definition of being a college player is incredibly varied. Whether you are starting for Penn State or a practice player at Tillamook College (this is where you learn the finer point of cheddar), you are a college player!

How about we work backwards first - College Volleyball. So, a 5'3" club volleyball player walks into a bar and...... Thought I could come up with the punch line but no luck! Your daughter is in 8th grade and 5'3"; yes this is not tall, but she is still just in 8th grade. Question being, how tall is Mom and how tall is Dad, and do you have a 4'8" grandparent lurking in the recent family tree? This will determine if 5'3" is the max or maybe there is a chance of an extra inch or two coming up.

5'3" with a very good jump may open up some opportunities as a setter in NCAA Division III, Division II and Junior Colleges, but may well preclude any Division I looks unless she is the mini-me version of Misty May (did I really blow my achilles on Dancing With the Stars) Trainer.

As a hitter, she would need the jumping ability of a men's outside hitter on the Moon, but it is still possible in the NCAA Division III ranks, along with a few select JC's and Division II programs, but again, she would need hops, ups, elevation, etc.

Each inch she grows (hopefully still a possibility) she will become more attractive to college coaches in each category outside of Division I. As a setter, if she hits the 5'7" ish range, with very good skill sets and a solid jump, then she will start to attract the attention of DI programs.

If the Volleyball Gods have decided 5'3" is it and she wants to play in college, she should probably stay in the outside hitter position as long as possible in her club experience, then move into the Libero role when she hits the 16's or 17's age groups. Stay in the OH position because she will get more touches in varied situations, which will just make the game 'clearer' to her when she moves into the Libero roll (or dive and roll!).

Now, to the here and now of the current club season - She should play whatever position she enjoys playing the best. If she likes setting, but is also a fan of attacking (and who does not like to bang the ball?), then maybe the coach would consider a 6-2 offense or an offense which is a 6-2 with her going all around and a setter/opposite go front row/back row with each other. If she just loves the physicality of passing and attacking, then encourage her to keep at it.

As I have written about before, do not worry about anything having do with college volleyball other than being a fan (seriously, try to get to some college games - I know high school season makes it a bear, but every fan counts!). There really is no advantage to getting her name out 'early' because she is not going to grab any one's attention with her current stats, so why complicate the mental picture she enjoys now. Extend this no pressure, no worries about college volleyball as long as possible.

With your daughter, I would not start sending out information until her Junior fall of high school. Let her enjoy 16's and see if any coaches send her introductory letters just because her abilities caught their attention. You will not be 'behind' by having her wait until her junior year just because there is plenty of time to get onto the 'to see' lists of college coaches who are preparing for the spring club season.

Just enjoy her loving a great game!

Coach

Volleyball Passing E-mail

Such a good e-mail that it deserves its own post!

DD is class of 2011, so feel free to reply/comment………

Just wanted to say how much I appreciate your blog. I’m so happy to see it back. We’ve learned a great deal from it.

Your last post had a comment regarding passing skills (or lack thereof). Having been in the club world for the last 7 years, I’ve seen this scenario played out many times.

It goes something like this

6’ OH: “Coach, I really think I need to work on my passing.”

Coach: “No, no….you need to work on closing the blocks, passing is taken care of.”

6’ OH: “But I’m only passing a .80……I really think I need to work on this.”

Coach: “We’re going to have 5’7” sub in for you in the back row, don’t worry about it.”

6’ OH: “But she’s an OH too.”

Coach: “That doesn’t matter; she’s 5’7”. That means back row.”

6’ OH: “Her kill stats are the same as mine.”

Coach: “I know, but she can’t block like you.”

6’ OH: “True, and she does pass a 2.5……..”

Coach: “And no D1 coach is going to look at her for an OH position……she’s too short.”

6’ OH: “Great, that’s a relief…..I’ll work on the block and let the short ones worry about passing………”

END SCENE

So, consequently, many of the “elite” players are never taught basic passing skills since their job is to be the marquee player. Too bad most of the “Open” level teams (just like HP tryouts, and upper level colleges) won’t look at the 5’7” for even a back row position. They’re all about their rosters saying their shortest player is their 5”11” Setter.

This isn’t sour grapes, DD (who, yes, is 5’7”) has a great starting OH club position, and will (hopefully, looks pretty good) have her college offer this spring. I’ve just seen many clubs follow the “taller is better” philosophy. Unfortunately, these then are the girls who get seen by the D1 coaches on the Open courts, when some of the better all-around players are relegated to the Club courts because the Open teams wouldn’t look at them during tryouts.

Just my two-cents……………

KS

Volleyball Concerns

I have some concerns with my favorite sport on the planet.

• Our sport is well into the twilight zone of intercollegiate athletics. We have it better than some sports, but we are getting left in the dust by way too many other sports. I am very concerned that we are falling back into the third tier of college sports.
  

• We have so many positive things to promote about Women's College Volleyball, yet we are the greatest sport nobody really knows. It is 2010 and I still get asked when is college volleyball season? Do you think college basketball or baseball coaches get asked when their sport is played?
  

• Within the Division I ranks, no vacant positions were filled by current DI head coaches and only two positions were filled by current DII coaches. Before anyone goes ballistic on this observation, it concerns me because the Athletic Directors have made the statement that for this 2010 hiring cycle, the sport of Division I women's volleyball was not worthy of hiring experienced Division I head coaches. I cannot for one moment believe that current, successful DI head coaches did not apply for some of the higher profile positions available this spring.

• Volleyball coach's salaries have been frozen, or at least frost-bitten for the last two fiscal cycles. Given the current economic climate is understandable, but this freeze does not seem to apply to other sports.

• On average, the 2nd/3rd assistant women's basketball coach makes as much or more than the head volleyball coach at Division I schools.
  

• The euphoria over the domination of USA volleyball achievements from the last Olympics sure faded fast. Did any organization with responsibility over any type of volleyball form (now that sand volleyball is in existence in many classifications) develop a successful marketing or promotions effort to maximize this possibly once in a generation occurrence? I remember when USA Women's Soccer was on its great run in the World Cup and Olympics, you could see the women's soccer promotions everywhere for youth, college, high school, potential professional league, etc.
  

• There is no dedicated College Volleyball Coaches Association. Right now, the AVCA's focus is "As a group, the AVCA is committed to the development, growth, advancement and publicity of volleyball throughout the world." Per its own website, you don't even need to be a coach to be a member of the AVCA. Please stop planting seeds and start taking care of the field - The date is not 1981.
  

• Women's college volleyball is the dominant media, salaried, budgeted and regulated volleyball entity in the USA, yet compared to even college softball we are minor league. The support needed by college volleyball coaches is unique, specific and desperate, yet is not being addressed by the organization which charges Division I programs (head and two assistant coaches) $595.00 to join.
  

• Between the cost to attend the AVCA Convention, the advertisements/stores on the website (6 by my count) and the numerous Girls Talent Showcases they organize, one gets the suspicion that the AVCA leaders are more interested in making money than providing for their membership.

• Don't EVEN get me started on them pimping out NCAA Sand Volleyball.

• Where did all the good passers go in club volleyball? I go recruiting and see outside hitters who can't pass the easiest serves possible playing on the miniature sport courts used by club tournaments. It is scary when the Libero can't even pass that well.

• Like the sunset before a stormy night, I am enjoying the peace and quiet of no college volleyball rule changes or 'interpretations' - Gotta love that one, the rule was not implemented or changed, we just decided it had a different meaning. I am afraid of what the darkness will bring forth from the NCAA Women's Volleyball Rule Committee.

• In today's economic climate, do National Qualifiers really need to cost $750.00 per team? Especially when they have 3 divisions of each age group - the next step is 1/2 age groups, "What age group are you playing in this year Mary?" "I am on the 15 1/2 year old Open team this club season".

• College Volleyball season does not cease to exist when college basketball begins its practice in October - This might be a good thing for a dedicated college volleyball coach's organization to remind athletic directors about, like maybe from a Title 9 perspective.

• When did volleyball coaches stop being coaches and start being yellers? If I had played for a coach who yelled the obvious at me after making a mistake, my response would have been "no sh.....". As a college coach, I see this happening all too often in the club ranks - Club kids need to be taught, and taught, and taught, and taught. Please see how many times I said taught - it is a teaching job, club coaches are teaching junior high and high school kids the sport of volleyball. Players are still learning the nuances of the game, they are still trying to process massive amounts of volleyball information as fast as their young teenage minds will allow. If anything, college coaches should be doing the yelling because the players are leaving those wonderful teenage years after being taught before they arrived at Giant State U.
  

Enough of me.

Coach

Volleyball Lent, Part II

A late submission:

My lent: I will give up trying to ‘fix’ my daughter’s teeny tiny complaints---instead I will let her VENT. When she complains that she only had 3 attempts (after the team passed a .80-----I will NOT explain why she COULDN’T get a set in the middle). I say this to my husband quite often (“let me vent, please don’t try and fix it”) Yet, I fail at the simple task with my daughter.

39 more days to go………………I CAN DO IT! Stacy

College Volleyball Unofficial Visit Costs

Thanks for all of the helpful insight you share via collegevolleyballcoach.com

I'm currently helping a 2011 Outside Hitter (and her mom) with the recruiting process.

She has sent several e-mails to coaches ... indicating interest in the school/volleyball program, providing video links and giving them her tournament schedule.

Many of the coaches have written back at least once and several have already attended a match or said they will watch her at an upcoming tournament.

I'm guessing that "unofficial visits" will be the next step

It will be somewhat easy for them to visit places that are relatively close to home, however, the player seems to have stronger interest in schools that are not close.

The family truly cannot afford any airfare or hotel stays.

Is this common?

What are the options for a player/parent in this situation?

Thanks - Lori


Glad you like the blog - Just trying to give back a little since college volleyball gave and gives me a lot.

I am glad to hear that the PSA has received solid interest from college volleyball programs. You are correct in that Unofficial Visits are the next step. You pointed out one of the challenges of this accelerated recruiting time frame we all find ourselves in - Unofficial Visits cost money. It is not like Club Volleyball is cheap, and then to add insult to financial injury, if you wish to explore schools outside of driving distance (not that is cheap anymore), it can get very expensive, very quickly.

Back in the day (you know, side out scoring, a double hit was always a double hit, players could pass, I was younger and smarter and prettier and well, you get the point) Official Visits were the vehicle for PSA's to explore possible schools which were out of their region. This is rather the point of an Official Visit - To go see someplace which you may not be able to afford to visit on your own dime. Now, the only players which seem to take old school Official Visits are uncommitted Seniors in high school trying to find a collegiate home.

The reality is that if a player has serious interests in schools outside of her region, then there is a choice to make - Either the family finds a way to get her there or they hope that these same out of region schools have scholarships still available come the first day of the Senior year for the PSA (this is the earliest a school can conduct an Official Visit). Unfortunately, these are the only options.

Obviously this places families into a tough financial position and I also think this places an unfair amount of pressure onto the PSA. For example, the family finds a way to take an Unofficial Visit to an out of region school; knowing that the family had to financial do something it was not comfortable doing, how much extra pressure does this place upon the PSA. Will they take an objective view of their Unofficial Visit or will they arrive predetermined to like the school because the family put forth a chunk of change? When you see the press releases of programs announcing their newest recruiting class, and these player's homes are a long haul away, then you can bet that the PSA's family spent the money to get them there for an Unofficial Visit.

Many schools do have scholarships still available come the Senior year of a PSA's recruiting cycle. But, then again, many schools do not have them either. By and large, the lesser ranked by RPI or conference affiliation a school might be, the more the odds are they would have a Senior scholarship available. But, this is a big by and large; some top flight programs have a late scholarship open up because of academics, injury or homesickness, while other lower rated teams were fortunate enough to secure their top recruits very early in the process.

So, to answer your question succinctly, the options for your player are to travel now or hope that they can take an Official Visit as a Senior. If the family can't afford airfare/hotel, then that answers the question. I suggest they take an Unofficial Visit or two to regional schools just to get a feel for the process and to have a back up.

Good luck and I hope a solution can be found.