jcgatennismom
Hall of Fame
I am trying to get a general idea of the tennis recruiting timeline. As far as US juniors, it seems like about 30-40% of the blue chips and 5 star boys for 2016 verbally committed in the spring or this summer. Even some 3 and 4 stars made early verbal commitments. Most of the rest of US juniors commit by Nov of their senior year with maybe 25% or less committing spring of their sr year. However, my son knows internationals who come to the US after they graduate and then look for a college spot. If it takes more than 6 months, then they can't compete in tournaments the 2nd half of their gap year.
Do the top tier internationals also verbally commit early or on time (Nov of sr year)? Some of the older (18/19 year old) international players still looking for spots are those who are working on their English and SAT scores. Is there a difference in the recruiting timeline of Western European players (already speak English, strong academic background) vs international players from the rest of the world? The one international player my son knew who had English as his first language did not have an offer by Nov of his senior year but had one by spring, and when my son checked his freshman friend's social media this fall, he saw his friend was playing for a different school-must have changed over summer.
I am curious because with most teams at least 50% international, I wonder how many and how long spots are held open for international recruits so the scenario does affect US recruits. I do see that a lot of the Western European players are named to ITA academic teams or honors so I would assume the more selective colleges probably draw more players from that region, and those players might get earlier offers.
I assume when players commit also depends on where players will fit in the lineup. If they could play towards the top of the lineup, I assume they get early offers but if they are competing for lower lines or a spot at all, they may not find out until later in their senior year. Also it seems spots can become available at the last minute as players decide not to return to school, and international graduates are happy to start in Sept or even in January. Also it seems like a coach can somehow always find money if the right international player is interested. While most international players my son has met are eager to sign (often without a campus visit) to a school that gives them the largest ride, he knew one international player who had a lot of late offers-some from school that supposedly already had full rosters for the following year.
My son, a junior, is in the early stages of recruiting; ironically for some reason, he has heard more stories from international recruits he trains with rather than from other US juniors but maybe because he was at 16s tourneys. Now that he is just playing 18s, he will be able to talk to more seniors on how they made or are making their choices. Another question is if the scholarship package will include athletic and academic money, does that delay the timeline? Wouldnt admissions wait until sometime in the recruit's senior year before being able to offer merit/academic aid on top of the athletic?
Thanks for any clarity you can give. From what I have seen, players have committed from early spring of their junior year(15/16 y/o) until a whole summer after they graduated (18/19y/o). This big time range makes the process confusing.
Do the top tier internationals also verbally commit early or on time (Nov of sr year)? Some of the older (18/19 year old) international players still looking for spots are those who are working on their English and SAT scores. Is there a difference in the recruiting timeline of Western European players (already speak English, strong academic background) vs international players from the rest of the world? The one international player my son knew who had English as his first language did not have an offer by Nov of his senior year but had one by spring, and when my son checked his freshman friend's social media this fall, he saw his friend was playing for a different school-must have changed over summer.
I am curious because with most teams at least 50% international, I wonder how many and how long spots are held open for international recruits so the scenario does affect US recruits. I do see that a lot of the Western European players are named to ITA academic teams or honors so I would assume the more selective colleges probably draw more players from that region, and those players might get earlier offers.
I assume when players commit also depends on where players will fit in the lineup. If they could play towards the top of the lineup, I assume they get early offers but if they are competing for lower lines or a spot at all, they may not find out until later in their senior year. Also it seems spots can become available at the last minute as players decide not to return to school, and international graduates are happy to start in Sept or even in January. Also it seems like a coach can somehow always find money if the right international player is interested. While most international players my son has met are eager to sign (often without a campus visit) to a school that gives them the largest ride, he knew one international player who had a lot of late offers-some from school that supposedly already had full rosters for the following year.
My son, a junior, is in the early stages of recruiting; ironically for some reason, he has heard more stories from international recruits he trains with rather than from other US juniors but maybe because he was at 16s tourneys. Now that he is just playing 18s, he will be able to talk to more seniors on how they made or are making their choices. Another question is if the scholarship package will include athletic and academic money, does that delay the timeline? Wouldnt admissions wait until sometime in the recruit's senior year before being able to offer merit/academic aid on top of the athletic?
Thanks for any clarity you can give. From what I have seen, players have committed from early spring of their junior year(15/16 y/o) until a whole summer after they graduated (18/19y/o). This big time range makes the process confusing.