2017-2018 Division I Commitments

[ManBehindTheCurtain]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Verbal contracts are every bit as binding as written contracts. The reason that they are hard to enforce isn't that they aren't valid; it's that it's hard to prove the exact terms.

This part I completely agree with.

Verbal commitments to NCAA athletic programs aren't enforceable because they aren't contracts. NCAA rules explicitly prohibit programs and athletes committing to an actual contract prior to a specific date during the athlete's senior year of high school.

For this part I would add that even if they are contracts, which I agree NCAA rules clearly establish that they cannot be, the Statute of Frauds would prohibit enforcement of a purported contract made by a high school freshman for an event to occur after her high school graduation, obviously more than one year after the commitment.

[HockeyEast33]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

The bottom line is that the student athlete is free to make the decision at a time that she feels is optimal. If she'd rather wait until she is a HS senior so she better knows what she wants, she can. There may be fewer options at that time, but there will still be some sort of options.

Two comments:
- No one can argue that anyone can do whatever they want if they are willing to live with the consequences. It doesn't make it a good decision. The hope is that a 14 year old gets some guidance to understand the consequences of committing early and just doesn't do it because it's cool, boosts her ego, and the ego of her parents.
- I wouldn't encourage any player to wait until their senior year to commit if they want to play D1 hockey (if they have options). The opportunities are hit and miss at best and their is no guarantee that there will be one - even National Team level players have had trouble trying to find a place they are happy with in their senior year in recent years. The period of time in women's hockey where senior commitments occur frequently has passed (as evidenced by freshman making "commitments").

I want it to be her choice, because going through life attempting to satisfy anonymous posters on internet message boards is even more ridiculous.

No one should make decisions to "please" anonymous posters (such as yourself). That doesn't change my opinion that committing to a college after your freshman year in college is generally a poor decision.

[pakidnyc]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Handzlik is 16 (98). She just happens to be a '17 grad. MANY more 98s have committed ahead of her. And, there are other 2017 (99s) who have committed. They just haven't made it public yet.

[TonyTheTiger20]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Verbal Contracts are worth the paper they are written on.

I laughed

Pretty good stuff in this thread. I'm not sure how I feel.

[OldDave]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Kids make decisions about their futures all the time. How many times have we read about an athlete or fireman or doctor who admitted they wanted to be an athlete or fireman or doctor since they were five? If you think there is a girl taking ballet lessons who doesn’t want to be a prima ballerina, you would be wrong. Motivated kids pretty much all set their sights high. And they make lots of decisions that they hope will advance those goals, sometimes as four and five year olds.

Claims that a kid cannot or should not make a decision about their futures as 15 year olds only make sense if you think the decision is made in a vacuum. We know that is not the case. These kids have wanted to be hockey players (or ballerinas) for a long time, they have worked hard to hone their skills over the years, and they have mapped out their steps to their ultimate goal (national team or Mayo Clinic or prima ballerina) a long time ago. My experience is that these kids have a list of schools that fit their needs in terms of academics or athletics by the time they are 14 or 15, and making a commitment to one of those schools is only the next logical step for them.

Will there be disappointments? Absolutely. Only a tiny percent will ever realize their dream, whether it be national team, prima, or Mayo. Will all the training and hard work be seen as wasted effort? Never. Each of these kids will have a fantastic basis for the rest of their lives. After all, which would you pick as an employer: the kid that tried for but failed to make the national team, or the kid that reached level 12 on some video game? Easy choice for me.

My two cents...

[Eeyore]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

I'm not sure how I feel.

That's probably incipient food poisoning.

[Cali]

Kids make decisions about their futures all the time. How many times have we read about an athlete or fireman or doctor who admitted they wanted to be an athlete or fireman or doctor since they were five? If you think there is a girl taking ballet lessons who doesn’t want to be a prima ballerina, you would be wrong. Motivated kids pretty much all set their sights high. And they make lots of decisions that they hope will advance those goals, sometimes as four and five year olds.

Claims that a kid cannot or should not make a decision about their futures as 15 year olds only make sense if you think the decision is made in a vacuum. We know that is not the case. These kids have wanted to be hockey players (or ballerinas) for a long time, they have worked hard to hone their skills over the years, and they have mapped out their steps to their ultimate goal (national team or Mayo Clinic or prima ballerina) a long time ago. My experience is that these kids have a list of schools that fit their needs in terms of academics or athletics by the time they are 14 or 15, and making a commitment to one of those schools is only the next logical step for them.

Will there be disappointments? Absolutely. Only a tiny percent will ever realize their dream, whether it be national team, prima, or Mayo. Will all the training and hard work be seen as wasted effort? Never. Each of these kids will have a fantastic basis for the rest of their lives. After all, which would you pick as an employer: the kid that tried for but failed to make the national team, or the kid that reached level 12 on some video game? Easy choice for me.

My two cents...

My only concern would be that kids (and parents) say yes to the first thing that comes their way without truly doing their homework. If a HS freshman came out and said "I had 3 or 4 schools interested in me and I chose XYZ" then I would say go for it. I truly believe that early recruits are jumping at their first offer without doing their homework. JMO

[pakidnyc]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

My only concern would be that kids (and parents) say yes to the first thing that comes their way without truly doing their homework. If a HS freshman came out and said "I had 3 or 4 schools interested in me and I chose XYZ" then I would say go for it. I truly believe that early recruits are jumping at their first offer without doing their homework. JMO

In all honesty, these early commits have done more homework than you know. There is the rare exception where a player commits after her 1st visit, but that will happen with that particular kid whether she is early or not. These "top" recruits have many options, they know their options and are researching, visiting the schools and choosing what is the best situation for them, on and off the ice.

[Trillium]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

In all honesty, these early commits have done more homework than you know. There is the rare exception where a player commits after her 1st visit, but that will happen with that particular kid whether she is early or not. These "top" recruits have many options, they know their options and are researching, visiting the schools and choosing what is the best situation for them, on and off the ice.

I just hope as an important part of their research, they are doing the appropriate due diligence on the coach's track record for reneging on commitments, and thus view their commitment in comparable seriousness.

[96IllinoisDad]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

In all honesty, these early commits have done more homework than you know. There is the rare exception where a player commits after her 1st visit, but that will happen with that particular kid whether she is early or not. These "top" recruits have many options, they know their options and are researching, visiting the schools and choosing what is the best situation for them, on and off the ice.

I disagree. In my experience, early commits visit almost no schools individually. In many cases, they visit 1-2 at most. In general, they are shocked when they get an offer and end up accepting.

Here is Hanzlik's story:

http://www.wisconsinrapidstribune.co...nsin/13078063/

Not criticizing because being honest - my daughter probably would have done the same thing.

[OldDave]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

I disagree. In my experience, early commits visit almost no schools individually. In many cases, they visit 1-2 at most. In general, they are shocked when they get an offer and end up accepting.

Here is Hanzlik's story:

http://www.wisconsinrapidstribune.co...nsin/13078063/

Not criticizing because being honest - my daughter probably would have done the same thing.

As the story points out, though, She had already done her homework: she had a list of schools (the article only mentions the top five). She's also going half way across the country to hone her skills at NAHA. Your article proves our point about kids having a plan and taking the necessary steps. It's true that the article doesn't mention if she had visited any other campuses, but she had been to St. Cloud, and my guess is that she has at least informally been to others. Plus, she didn't accept the offer until she had a couple of days to talk it over with her family. As far as I am concerned, she's already way ahead of where I was when I first stepped into a college classroom (deer in the headlights applies).

[DC78-82]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

As the story points out, though, She had already done her homework: she had a list of schools (the article only mentions the top five). She's also going half way across the country to hone her skills at NAHA. Your article proves our point about kids having a plan and taking the necessary steps. It's true that the article doesn't mention if she had visited any other campuses, but she had been to St. Cloud, and my guess is that she has at least informally been to others. Plus, she didn't accept the offer until she had a couple of days to talk it over with her family. As far as I am concerned, she's already way ahead of where I was when I first stepped into a college classroom (deer in the headlights applies).

Playing with the JWHL U-19's will get her on a lot of other campuses as well, as they play their league tournaments on college campuses to give them exposure to different schools in different regions.

[Ted Knight]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Kids make decisions about their futures all the time. How many times have we read about an athlete or fireman or doctor who admitted they wanted to be an athlete or fireman or doctor since they were five? If you think there is a girl taking ballet lessons who doesn’t want to be a prima ballerina, you would be wrong. Motivated kids pretty much all set their sights high. And they make lots of decisions that they hope will advance those goals, sometimes as four and five year olds.

Claims that a kid cannot or should not make a decision about their futures as 15 year olds only make sense if you think the decision is made in a vacuum. We know that is not the case. These kids have wanted to be hockey players (or ballerinas) for a long time, they have worked hard to hone their skills over the years, and they have mapped out their steps to their ultimate goal (national team or Mayo Clinic or prima ballerina) a long time ago. My experience is that these kids have a list of schools that fit their needs in terms of academics or athletics by the time they are 14 or 15, and making a commitment to one of those schools is only the next logical step for them.

Will there be disappointments? Absolutely. Only a tiny percent will ever realize their dream, whether it be national team, prima, or Mayo. Will all the training and hard work be seen as wasted effort? Never. Each of these kids will have a fantastic basis for the rest of their lives. After all, which would you pick as an employer: the kid that tried for but failed to make the national team, or the kid that reached level 12 on some video game? Easy choice for me.

My two cents...

this is the best post EVER!!!

[96IllinoisDad]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

As the story points out, though, She had already done her homework: she had a list of schools (the article only mentions the top five). She's also going half way across the country to hone her skills at NAHA. Your article proves our point about kids having a plan and taking the necessary steps. It's true that the article doesn't mention if she had visited any other campuses, but she had been to St. Cloud, and my guess is that she has at least informally been to others. Plus, she didn't accept the offer until she had a couple of days to talk it over with her family. As far as I am concerned, she's already way ahead of where I was when I first stepped into a college classroom (deer in the headlights applies).

I'll stand by what I said.

As for homework, I guess we just have a different grading system.

[ARM]

Re: 2017-2018 Division I Commitments

Does every non-athlete who enrolls in a college do some exhaustive search beforehand? Some do, some don't, just like some people spend months researching what automobile to buy, while others show up at a lot and make a deal. There is no single "one size fits all" approach to most things in life. If a person selects a college that winds up being less than optimal, five years after graduation it isn't going to matter all that much; the most important outcome is to get a degree.

For certain players -- goalies in particular -- waiting can be a disadvantage. If a goaltender wants to attend a particular school, as soon as another goalie from her class commits there, it is unlikely that there will be any more scholarship money available. She is the one who has to spend four years of her life there, so if she thinks that is what she wants, IMO it is narrow-minded to say that her commitment is a sign of ego on the part of anyone in her family.