US College Signings 2018 (and general college chat)

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

RE: US College Signings 2018 (and general college chat)

The Realist · Junior player

Looks like she is transferring to Oklahoma in January

http://www.soonersports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31000&ATCLID=211677482

indiana · Tennis legend

The Realist wrote:
Looks like she is transferring to Oklahoma in January
http://www.soonersports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31000&ATCLID=211677482

Maybe known, but I see ( in Ivana Corley's "Why OU" ) that Amy Sargeant is a coach there.

Elegant Point · Satellite level

College signings those going fall 2018: Emile Hudd - Oaklahoma state, Oliver Okonkwo - Iowa, James Wilkinson - University Delaware, Oscar Cutting - University Memphis. Finn Bass - allegedly going pro rather than Wake Forest.

Oakland2002 · All-time great

Jasmine has obviously done really well to be recruited to a Div 1,school in a strong conference. Community college fees are much more affordable than Div 1 schools so perhaps she is just finishing off a few classes to make sure she is academically eligible?

Born2WinTennis · Club Coach

Liam Hignett is going to Tennessee Tech, not on the current list but Hallam Doney plays for Le Moyne.

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

Have added the names above to the list on P1. Also Chloe R, Beth L and Hannah D.

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

No knowledge of community college fees but stands to reason they would be cheaper. But without a scholarship as well as the cost of attending Jasmine's family would have to pay for accommodation, food, medical and textbooks plus a few other bits and pieces and it really racks up.

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

Born2WinTennis wrote:
Liam Hignett is going to Tennessee Tech, not on the current list but Hallam Doney plays for Le Moyne.

Have added Liam to the list of those going. Don't have the time to list those over there below Div 1 (Le Moyne is Div 2), but if anyone else wants to - feel free!!

Oakland2002 · All-time great

TJC out of district annual fees ( tuition $4524, room and board $7300) compare well with Oklahoma (tuition $25,203, room and board $10,280) as you mention books and materials are an additional cost an Oklahoma estimate at about $714 with another $5433 for other expenses.

One term to address academic requirements if that is what has happened even if unfundee before moving onto a full scholarship at a Div 1 school seems a reasonable sacrifice, particularly if one is eligible for team selection in 2018. Let's hope that Marcus Walters is able to make a similar transition after such a good start, qualifying for and then playing in the ITA fall national championship was a great opportunity for him to get his name known.

Born2WinTennis · Club Coach

The Optimist wrote:
Born2WinTennis wrote:
Liam Hignett is going to Tennessee Tech, not on the current list but Hallam Doney plays for Le Moyne.
Have added Liam to the list of those going. Don't have the time to list those over there below Div 1 (Le Moyne is Div 2), but if anyone else wants to - feel free!!

Excuse my ignorance but is Div 1 the top or is there a Premier tier too? Has anyone got a link to the full structure? I assume Le Moyne from Div 2 this season could get promoted to Div 1 for example next season? Is it the same format as our university competition, 4 x singles and 2 x doubles per match?

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

Born2WinTennis wrote:
The Optimist wrote:
Born2WinTennis wrote:
Liam Hignett is going to Tennessee Tech, not on the current list but Hallam Doney plays for Le Moyne.
Have added Liam to the list of those going. Don't have the time to list those over there below Div 1 (Le Moyne is Div 2), but if anyone else wants to - feel free!!
Excuse my ignorance but is Div 1 the top or is there a Premier tier too? Has anyone got a link to the full structure? I assume Le Moyne from Div 2 this season could get promoted to Div 1 for example next season? Is it the same format as our university competition, 4 x singles and 2 x doubles per match?

No it's not a promotion / relegation type of league. There's Div 1, 2, 3, Junior College (JUCO) and Community Colleges. Colleges are fixed in their divisions and conferences. The deciding factor as to which division a school is in tends to be a major sport such as football, baseball or basketball (usually football). As far as tennis goes the strongest teams are the Division 1 schools in the 'power conferences' (the five conferences that have the strongest football teams and therefore the most money for other sports - Brits divided by conference on P1). However, some of the coaches in those teams tend to recruit highly but not really move the players forward whilst they are there and some in less impressive conferences (say Wisconsin where Josef Dodridge is) may not attract the high profile names but do a much better job of improving their players.

Division 2 and 3 is generally a lower standard, but not always. Those colleges at the top of the lower divisions are often better than some of the Division 1 tennis teams in the weak conferences. Education can also be a higher standard is some of the lower conference schools. Also, the educational requirements are not as strict for athletes in the lower divisions as in Division 1. Recruits really need to do their homework and decide what their priorities are. A Division 1 school is not always the best option.

Junior Colleges such as Tyler (the best for tennis) where Jasmine / Marcus are offer a way in to college tennis for those who don't meet the criteria for the Div 1,2, 3 schools. Courses at junior colleges last only for 2 years. At the end, a player can transfer to a Division 1 school on a scholarship and study for the extra 2 years.

Community Colleges I think are based largely in California but I must admit to knowing very little about them. Again, I believe you can transfer to a Div 1, 2 or 3 school at the end of the course. Ceire Mullins went off to one last year.

I can't think of a link which gives the structure clearly (the NCAA site is a bit impenetrable) but TennisRecruiting.net isn't bad. The banner headings on the first page include 'Men's Teams' and 'Women's Teams'. It defaults to Div 1 schools but once there on the left hand side is a box which lets you change division.

-- Edited by The Optimist on Wednesday 15th of November 2017 02:22:05 PM

Oakland2002 · All-time great

But there is division 1 and division 1.

The teams in division 1 play in what were regional conferences but increasingly commercial sporting collaborations between academic institution of similar sporting prowess or more correctly aspiration. They arent fixed in stone and programmes will move for cash or opportunity related primarily to optimising their review from football. Colorado and Utah joined the PAC 10 to make it the PAC 12 which then split North and South culminating in a money spinning championship game between the respective winners.

From a tennis perspective the SEC schools contribute almost half the NCAA finals singles draw. The big conferences are the SEC, PAC 12, ACC, Big 10 and Big 12. The O has outlined this on his very comprehensive posts at the beginning of the thread.

One way of looking at it would be to use professional club football across Europe, North America is so large you could see each of the power conferences mentioned as being European leagues with the SEC being the premier league, the PAC 12/Big 12 a bit like the bundesliga and Seria A, the Big 10 like Spain with Ohio State being Real Madrid on the Mens side etc.. After the power conferences there is a drop off, gradual for some conference (American Athletic Conference) bit like the championship and then a bit steeper down to NP2 in others. So some of the college players are signing for big hitting programmes in tough conferences others will get organised competitive tennis at a lower level but all within Div 1.

The programmes all have strengths and weaknesses with for example Long Beach State being the Blackpool of Ladies College Tennis? Interestingly no Brits there anymore, now recruiting from India, Iran, Spain, Finland and Brazil

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Wednesday 15th of November 2017 06:06:39 PM

Elegant Point · Satellite level

College signings fall 2018 : Josh Wilson - Liberty. There is an article but couldn't get the link to copy

Spectator · All-time great

It is an arcane system, isn't it. Just to build on what The O said, Division 3 universities, I discovered when I investigated during a discussion a few years ago, include some of the world's leading academic institutions. So for example, the University of Chicago (dear - or not so dear - to many economists' hearts) is Division 3. So, I think, is MIT, a powerhouse in the social sciences, engineering, physics, maths, etc. Between them, they probably have more Nobel prize winners than many countries.

If I remember correctly, they and the Division 1 Ivy League can't offer athletic scholarships. But the wealthier among them have such good financial assistance for all their students that it doesn't make a difference. So, for example, I just looked at the University of Chicago's website, and they guarantee to meet with grants and loans 100% of demonstrated need of any student they admit. Dartmouth, where Charlie Broom is, does the same. So does MIT. Columbia (a very strong Division 1 team) has the most complex financial pages possible, so I can't quite work out what they do. Princeton, where Thomas Colautti went and Damian Rodriguez is currently a student, offers 100% grant aid, so that its students graduate debt free. My guess is though that that's fairly unusual.

In terms of the academic variability of Division 1 schools, one of the things that has often struck me is the wide variety of excellent 'state' academic institutions in the US. So, for example, among the tennis powers, many such as the University of California in various places, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Illinois at Champaign, the University of Virginia, University of Wisconsin at Madison, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, etc are regularly ranked among the top universities in The Times global rankings. But as The O says, there doesn't seem to be much regulation.

-- Edited by Spectator on Thursday 16th of November 2017 05:48:45 PM