Exciting Time For Us!

[Randy Walls]

September 1 is the first time colleges can "officially" contact and speak with potential college athletes in their junior year of high school. My daughter is considered one of the top volleyball prospects in nation. Since mid-night she has received a ton of e-mails from division 1 schools. This is on top of all the questionnaires she has received since her first week of her freshman volleyball season!!! I am sure this will get old quick and she will tire of everything, but for a dad and mom it is exciting.



We want her close to home, Michigan State, Purdue, Indiana, Ball State, Notre Dame, Illinois etc..... We live by Chicago but across the border in Indiana. She "thinks" it would be cool to go to The University of Miami, Georgia Tech or some other southern school. Who knows what will happen but one thing for sure, this is going to be fun!



Randy!

 

[Texas Transplant]

I'm certain that you are right on all counts. Exciting now, boring down the road. However, Mom, Dad and Daughter should be proud of her accomplishments that bring all of this attention.



Tex

 

[Randy Walls]

Believe me Tex, we are!



Just living with the girl and seeing her everyday and how she acts (cell phone, boys-UGH!, car, beach, t.v., etc.) Doens't seem "that" special to me. Just a normal little girl. Guess that means to date she is handling it very well!



Randy!

 

[Greg Meyer]

Do not rely on what "they" tell you/her... Check with her coaches and see if they can give you some "heads-up" on how the system works. Find out what the school offers and how she will be treated. My daughter attended SIU on an atheletic scholarship and on the whole it was a great experience. I have had friend's kids at U of I on football scholarships and it was a real "eye-opener" to hear the boys talk/tell about the "whole deal" (not all good and not all bad).



My impression is that some schools treat the kids well and the spectrum runs down to schools that consider them meat for a cash cow (atheletics) program.



She needs her Mom and Dad now more than ever...guidance and good information are as must. As you said, very exciting and the prelude to even greater things. Congrats.

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

Heed the wise old Meyer Bear:lol::lol: I would be as excited as well, especially if it meant I didn't have to mortage the farm for college!!



TOXIC

 

[Randy Walls]

Our coach (high school) is great with this. She knows most of the colleges and the coaches in the country. She understands which girl will most likely fit in what college and coach. She has placed every graduate from her program in a college with a scholarship/endowment for the last 13 years. It is a grea program and she is with you all the way. I was a division one recruit years ago (football) and my brother was the number one football player in the nation as a senior (football) but htings have really changed and tightened up on recruiting.



Randy!

 

[TrepMan]

Randy - that is nothing but good news anyway you slice it! If she ends up at Purdue, i'll be happy to have her as another Boilermaker!! If she goes to GA Tech, bring her down and we'll go fishing!

 

[Eddie Payne]

Randy congratulations to you guys, a very exciting time. My oldest played two years at a D3 school in Austin. She opted out of her last two years to graduate in 4 and took a job as a Lutheran school teacher and walked into a head coaching job right away. She says all the time the experience of playing college sports was one no one can take away from her. Now she has two of her first year girls playing D3 and has one this year that wants to go farther.



Good luck to you guys. And of course you want the program who will take the best care of your baby girl.



You will have to keep us posted. Although not a big Texas fan, they have an incredible volleyball program!

 

[Derek Chance]

Great news. I was a college athlete in football and it was the best years of my life. the best part is that she will get a quality education for free because of her abilities and skills. that is the most important thing.

 

[Mini]

I attended college on an athletic scholarship.....if she is junior, try to shield most of it from her. let her be a kid while she still can and give her incentive to work harder (grades and conditioning). if she is one of the top recruits in the nation, they will be calling all day and night for a while.



do some research on coaches that call too. you would be surprised at how unsavory some of them are. some will tell her (you) anything you want to hear just to get you to sign. if you can, try to get ahold of other parents kids that go to the schools she is interested in.



good luck and while it is exciting, make sure she stays grounded and works even harder now. going from being a big fish in a little pond to a little fish in a big pond is something that takes a while to get used to!!!! I didnt have a father to look at these things and my mother wasnt much help either!

 

[Randy Walls]

Have already went through this with my oldest son. He is one of the best athletes that I have ever seen. Some coaches checked him out like a horse (Ball State, Indiana, Michigan State) some were much better.



She is VERY grounded and mostly worried about ACT's!!!! That is good. She is straight A but knows this is very important.



Both her mom and I played Divison 1 sports (Michigan State and Notre Dame)but like I said, this recruiting thing has changed a ton.



Randy!