Totally agree on the premise of the thread. The "signings" are an opportunity to pat oneself on the back.

 

What really frosts me, is the valedictorian sits down the hall, with full-ride offers from a handful of prestigious universities, and only gets an asterisk by their name in the graduation program.

 

Several schools are having signing day ceremonies for academic scholarships too. Which is terrific.

I was a scholarship (1/2, not full) D1 baseball player and didn't have a signing ceremony. Signing ceremonies weren't common outside of football and basketball 30 years ago, and even then it was only guys going D1 that got any kind of publicity. Signing ceremonies for all levels is a fairly recent phenomenon. The many D3 football signings that are held amazes me, as the vast majority of these "signees" never play a snap at the college level. Some don't even make it out of summer camp.

errbody wants their social media updated with their moment. It is what it is.

The school that this event occurred had has had 4 D1 signings in the class of 16 & 17 with each individual getting financial support from the Athletic Departments of their universities and it just frustrates me that this individual was trying to get same recognition that those 4 students who put in their hard work and earned it.

Totally agree on the premise of the thread. The "signings" are an opportunity to pat oneself on the back.

 

What really frosts me, is the valedictorian sits down the hall, with full-ride offers from a handful of prestigious universities, and only gets an asterisk by their name in the graduation program.

This is so true for every Cole Vonhandorf , Sean McNeil their are dozens of dozens going to school for free . I do think it's cool if a kid gets a full ride to have a signing day . That kid has worked their tail off . But so has that kid who is going to college based on grades for free and they should be recognized .

Edited February 23, 20179 yr by spindoc

Just because you don't get a scholarship, it doesn't mean you should not be rewarded for your hard work. I was not born with division 1 height, speed, strength, or skill. I had to work extremely hard, and even got up at 5:30 am to shoot and work on ball handling 4x a week in high school, and I was extremely fortunate to receive about 10 opportunities to play at various division 3 schools. It is something I dedicated my entire high school career to, as I skipped all school dances, had an extremely limited social (party) life, and it kept my grades up in the classroom as well.

 

Only 6% of high school basketball players get to play college basketball at ANY level, including division 3 JV. It is an accomplishment that 6 out of every 100 high school athletes get to experience. Let that sink in.

 

Check out this link for reference. (does not include NAIA or JuCo) Probability of Competing Beyond High School | NCAA.org - The Official Site of the NCAA

 

 

So if they want to sign a piece of looseleaf paper in front of their best friends, teammates, coaches, parents, and teachers like I did, then so be it. It is a day that I will never forget as it was a celebration of the results of my hardwork and dedication. Not a "participation trophy."

 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

And for what its worth, I also participated in my school's academic signing for students who received more than half tuition scholarship. My parents were proud of me on both days.

Just because you don't get a scholarship, it doesn't mean you should not be rewarded for your hard work. I was not born with division 1 height, speed, strength, or skill. I had to work extremely hard, and even got up at 5:30 am to shoot and work on ball handling 4x a week in high school, and I was extremely fortunate to receive about 10 opportunities to play at various division 3 schools. It is something I dedicated my entire high school career to, as I skipped all school dances, had an extremely limited social (party) life, and it kept my grades up in the classroom as well.

 

Only 6% of high school basketball players get to play college basketball at ANY level, including division 3 JV. It is an accomplishment that 6 out of every 100 high school athletes get to experience. Let that sink in.

 

Check out this link for reference. (does not include NAIA or JuCo) Probability of Competing Beyond High School | NCAA.org - The Official Site of the NCAA

 

 

So if they want to sign a piece of looseleaf paper in front of their best friends, teammates, coaches, parents, and teachers like I did, then so be it. It is a day that I will never forget as it was a celebration of the results of my hardwork and dedication. Not a "participation trophy."

 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

And for what its worth, I also participated in my school's academic signing for students who received more than half tuition scholarship. My parents were proud of me on both days.

 

So what about ceremonies for kids who are playing for a club team?

I agree that kids who receive full academic scholarships to schools deserve recognition, but lets not forget that it is easier and more common to receive scholarships for academics than it is for athletics. My college scholarship was partial athletic and partial academic because most schools just don't offer full rides for sports other than football and basketball.

 

But I think we are getting away from the main reason I posted this thread which was people taking advantage of the situations and high school coaches using it for their own benefit instead of what is best for the athlete and their family.

I agree that kids who receive full academic scholarships to schools deserve recognition, but lets not forget that it is easier and more common to receive scholarships for academics than it is for athletics. My college scholarship was partial athletic and partial academic because most schools just don't offer full rides for sports other than football and basketball.

 

But I think we are getting away from the main reason I posted this thread which was people taking advantage of the situations and high school coaches using it for their own benefit instead of what is best for the athlete and their family.

 

I agree 100%. I've watched myself coaches stage fake signing day ceremonies in order to make it look like they are getting their kids to college. Kids who have the talent but aren't making the grades or aren't getting the help from the high school coaches. It's a shame. We've seen it a lot here.

Easy In it to win it

I agree 100%. I've watched myself coaches stage fake signing day ceremonies in order to make it look like they are getting their kids to college. Kids who have the talent but aren't making the grades or aren't getting the help from the high school coaches. It's a shame. We've seen it a lot here.

 

Agree !

When you are approached in the cafeteria at Small College U and asked if you want to play on the jv basketball team (or whatever jv team)...and yes, that happens...hey great for them and they might get to play a little bit of ball and have some fun...but I'm not so sure that's much of an "accomplishment".

 

Signing ceremonies used to be held for those special athletes that were recruited by post secondary schools to play a varsity sport and are getting some sort of high level benefit...such as a full ride scholarship or a large portion of their education paid for. Signing ceremony to go play on the jv or club team? Naaaa, not a fan of that.

errbody wants their social media updated with their moment. It is what it is.

 

100% Correct! It's the way society is now. And most of it is the age of Social Media. It's their moment! True statement @spindoc I was offered multiple basketball scholarships over 20 years ago and honestly very few people had signing ceremonies.

100% Correct! It's the way society is now. And most of it is the age of Social Media. It's their moment! True statement @spindoc I was offered multiple basketball scholarships over 20 years ago and honestly very few people had signing ceremonies.

I played Div 1 sports in college. Had many friends do the same. No ceremonies. I know times are different, and maybe had we had phones glued to our hands, it might have been a big deal. Times change. We were happy if the local paper gave us some pub. Now we are looking for confirmation from the world

I played Div 1 sports in college. Had many friends do the same. No ceremonies. I know times are different, and maybe had we had phones glued to our hands, it might have been a big deal. Times change. We were happy if the local paper gave us some pub. Now we are looking for confirmation from the world

 

I exist, therefore I am deserving, so give give give...me, me, me.