2024 Season

[senoiajacket]

Maybe schools and donors will pay more attention to their baseball players and treat their players better. Most players and their parents pay to go to school and pay to spend their days practicing, training, traveling and playing. They dedicate themselves to their coaches and program. Years and years of over recruiting and misrepresentations made by coaches and recruiters while the head coach makes a lot of money. For those of us who have been through the entire process with our own kids and their teammates through the years, I see it as the playing starting to level out a bit. Just some perspective. Baseball is a microcosm of life…..sometimes it’s just not fair, the hardest worker doesn’t always succeed and the best team doesn‘t always win.

I don’t have your insight and experience. However, isn’t what is being paid for is an education and baseball is an activity the student-athlete chooses to take part in?

Please don’t get me wrong. I appreciate (as best I can based on what I know and have been told) the time, effort, and dedication that the guys on our team put in. As anyone who has been there knows, Tech is not an easy place to get a “higher education” even when you can fully focus on it.

I am not opposed to the players being supported with a stipend or some sort of compensation for their efforts, much as a full time student that is also working while in school is compensated. Perhaps that compensation can/should be a standard package across all schools at a certain level?

For me, the out right and open bidding war and “buying” of players such as has now happened twice in consecutive years to NCST is quickly destroying the “charm” of the game that I have enjoyed for many years. Again, I understand that the situation is much more complex and beyond just for the enjoyment of the “casual fan” such as myself.

 

[JacketOff]

Maybe schools and donors will pay more attention to their baseball players and treat their players better. Most players and their parents pay to go to school and pay to spend their days practicing, training, traveling and playing. They dedicate themselves to their coaches and program. Years and years of over recruiting and misrepresentations made by coaches and recruiters while the head coach makes a lot of money. For those of us who have been through the entire process with our own kids and their teammates through the years, I see it as the playing starting to level out a bit. Just some perspective. Baseball is a microcosm of life…..sometimes it’s just not fair, the hardest worker doesn’t always succeed and the best team doesn‘t always win.

Oh trust me, I know. Been through it all myself, and still somewhat involved with the process.

When I was coming up, “academic money” was a very high selling point for a lot of schools. Even if 2 schools were offering the same amount of a scholarship, the costs of attending could still vary widely based on how much money you could get via academic scholarships at a particular school. This meant that the actual school itself played a pretty major factor in where a player decided to spend their eligibility. In college sports today, the schools are barely relevant. They’re just an entity that the sports’ programs use as an identifying factor. There is now no such thing as a “student-athlete” at most places. Now that has been the case with football and basketball for a while now, but baseball was different in that aspect.


The schools have been made largely irrelevant because what does a couple thousand dollars in tuition money matter when you’re going to get paid $500k+? Why does it even matter where you get a degree from when you can walk out of school damn near a millionaire? Once again, I’m not blaming the players for taking their hard earned opportunities to make potentially life altering money. I wish I had that chance when I was coming through. I’m just saying that what’s currently going on is not in the spirit of intercollegiate athletics. They’re setting up professional sports under the guise of amateurism without any of the regulations that actual professional sports have. It’s really bad for the future of college sports, and it’s taking away a lot of the novelty and connection that college sports fans had, especially at the smaller programs who are getting raided by the bigger ones.

 

[FittedJacket]

I don’t have your insight and experience. However, isn’t what is being paid for is an education and baseball is an activity the student-athlete chooses to take part in?

Please don’t get me wrong. I appreciate (as best I can based on what I know and have been told) the time, effort, and dedication that the guys on our team put in. As anyone who has been there knows, Tech is not an easy place to get a “higher education” even when you can fully focus on it.

I am not opposed to the players being supported with a stipend or some sort of compensation for their efforts, much as a full time student that is also working while in school is compensated. Perhaps that compensation can/should be a standard package across all schools at a certain level?

For me, the out right and open bidding war and “buying” of players such as has now happened twice in consecutive years to NCST is quickly destroying the “charm” of the game that I have enjoyed for many years. Again, I understand that the situation is much more complex and beyond just for the enjoyment of the “casual fan” such as myself.

Keep in mind that there are only 11.7 scholarships in Baseball. Thirty five players on a roster. Before NIL many of the players paid much of the costs of room, board and tuition. At Tech the ”Georgia Hope Scholarship“ helped many of the players but out of State students had to figure the 55k price tag. Needless to say, many players pay to play baseball at many division one schools. At this point, the SEC will basically corner the market on talent withbuge pools of NIL money. The chickens have come home to roost. The fiction of amateur student athletes is gone.

 

[GT33]

The partial scholarship rule is BS. These kids work their butts off and deserve to not have to amass a mountain of debt in the process. Yeah I get they receive a partial scholarship, but out of the $1-2B or more GT budget we can’t swing $500k to give them all a free ride. Wonder how bad we’re screwing volleyball and tennis players or golfers?

 

[senoiajacket]

The partial scholarship rule is BS. These kids work their butts off and deserve to not have to amass a mountain of debt in the process. Yeah I get they receive a partial scholarship, but out of the $1-2B or more GT budget we can’t swing $500k to give them all a free ride. Wonder how bad we’re screwing volleyball and tennis players or golfers?

I believe the 11.7 partial scholarship rule is an NCAA rule? That rule really doesn't matter anymore with NIL though.

 

[FittedJacket]

then there is this

 

[FittedJacket]

S

then there is this

So for all of the complaining about our baseball team this chart tells what the school itself thinks of the program. With the advent of NIL we are never going to be able to dig our program out of the hole it’s in.

 

[Killerbees]

S

So for all of the complaining about our baseball team this chart tells what the school itself thinks of the program. With the advent of NIL we are never going to be able to dig our program out of the hole it’s in.

I didn’t see Oral Robert’s on the list and they look to be doing fine.

 

[Eli]

S

So for all of the complaining about our baseball team this chart tells what the school itself thinks of the program. With the advent of NIL we are never going to be able to dig our program out of the hole it’s in.

Yet we have three straight top 5 recruiting classes…

 

[eokerholm]

NIL does matter. Every little bit helps, but some schools DOMINATE NIL while most barely dabble in it.
Most can't even smell it.

If these athletes can make something on top to help pay tuition, rent, etc when the schools are putting butts in season and using them for Marketing to do so, recruiting, TV $$, etc.
BS there isn't more of a system wide stipend...

HOPE is AMAZING for GA schools and totally makes a difference and helps recruit out of state (if interested) compared to other states... count your blessing, BUT
I also think it's crap that athletes in GA can "Make money" with Hope and Scholarships....while out of state players have to fork over big money....
I get it, you can't expect the kid to get a HOPE, but yeah you can....you have their transcripts....

Out of State tuition just SUCKS.
Either you want to recruit talent from out of state or you don't....

GA is great, and all, but not enough to consistently fill a roster.
FL is similar... very hard to get in out of state.....

From USNews & World Report....

School / in state / out of state
FSU $17,989 / $33.155
Florida $16,780 / $39,058
UNC $20,880 / $49,440
GT $26,750 / $47,862
UGA $21,632. $40,672
TX A&M $24,578 / $51,487
VT $25,318 / $44,948
Auburn $25,604 / $45,764
NC ST $21,876 / $43,617
Clemson $216.972 / $50,916
UCF $16,368 / $32,467
OK State $18,350 / $33.870
East Carolina $16,987 / $33,264
Coastal $21,600 / $38,450
GA Southern $17,782/ $31,600
Virginia $34,041 / $69,497

Notre Dame $77,011
Wake $80,910
Campbell $52,360

 

[eokerholm]

Yet we have three straight top 5 recruiting classes…

No offense.....but you know I'll shoot ya straight...

GT, "the school" is the major draw.
Coaches. Hall is a huge draw. So is Ramsey, so was DBo.
The field, bar none, TOPS!! Absolutely amazing! ....
Way more scouts in attendance (usually) great draw to a program to a player....
then the baseball program. (record and history doesn't help you here)

GT does a great job drafting guys too and a degree from GT is worth way more than most any other schools....

Again, no offense, but the fans don't come to games at GT, students barely either, and it's obvious.

It isn't that exciting or loud to be at a game, compared to other stadiums in the ACC or elsewhere with more of a consistent fan base and student support and attendance....
Even smaller schools or programs have a way better "game atmosphere".....

Not that GT or GT Baseball can do much, if anything, about most of the above.
Tuition, hurts.
Can't get academic money as easily either....

I think you know your lane and stick to it. Can't be like other programs and that's OK.
Other programs can't be like GT....

My $.05 as an out of state parent that came to quite a few games.....

 

[leatherneckjacket]

No offense.....
GT, "the school" is the major draw.
Coaches
The field, bar none, TOPS!! Absolutely amazing! ....
Way more scouts in attendance (usually) great draw to a program to a player....
then the baseball program. (record and history doesn't help you here)

Again, no offense, but the fans don't come to games at GT, students either, and it's obvious.
It isn't that exciting or loud to be at a game, compared to other stadiums in the ACC or elsewhere with more of a consistent fan base and student support and attendance....
Even smaller schools or programs have a better "game atmosphere".....

Not that GT or GT Baseball can do much, if anything, about that....

My $.05 as an out of state parent that came to quite a few games.....

What does this have to do with his counterpoint that we are top 10 recruiting team despite not being a top NIL program? I am not sure what you are arguing for or against but it seems completely unrelated to anyone's point.

 

[Eli]

No offense.....
GT, "the school" is the major draw.
Coaches
The field, bar none, TOPS!! Absolutely amazing! ....
Way more scouts in attendance (usually) great draw to a program to a player....
then the baseball program. (record and history doesn't help you here)

Again, no offense, but the fans don't come to games at GT, students either, and it's obvious.
It isn't that exciting or loud to be at a game, compared to other stadiums in the ACC or elsewhere with more of a consistent fan base and student support and attendance....
Even smaller schools or programs have a better "game atmosphere".....

Not that GT or GT Baseball can do much, if anything, about that....

My $.05 as an out of state parent that came to quite a few games.....

When Tech baseball isn’t .500 the place is packed out. UGA game good example when we were currently undefeated. My point being we aren’t in a “hole”. Tech is a top baseball job in the country regardless of NIL money. The statistics prove this as we aren’t even in the top 35 spending yet still are getting top 100 talent.

 

[eokerholm]

Yep, was supporting the draw of the program it sure ain't the NIL.....
You can't be all things to all people.
You aren't in a hole either and don't have issues recruiting, but outside of GOFH, attendance pretty much consistently sucks.

 

[Eli]

Yep, was supporting the draw of the program it sure ain't the NIL.....
You can't be all things to all people.
You aren't in a hole either and don't have issues recruiting, but outside of GOFH, attendance pretty much consistently sucks.

Disagree I have been going to Tech baseball games since I was 7 and when Tech is good they draw a crowd just like all the other Tech/Atlanta programs. I remember watching us go to the CWS when Eric Patterson was leading the way. Standing room only.

 

[leatherneckjacket]

Yep, was supporting the draw of the program it sure ain't the NIL.....
You can't be all things to all people.
You aren't in a hole either and don't have issues recruiting, but outside of GOFH, attendance pretty much consistently sucks.

Attendance sucks because we have underachieved for the last 15 plus years. When we get back to playing to our talent level, people will attend the games

 

[LargeFO]

Disagree I have been going to Tech baseball games since I was 7 and when Tech is good they draw a crowd just like all the other Tech/Atlanta programs. I remember watching us go to the CWS when Eric Patterson was leading the way. Standing room only.

Yea I attended a solid amount around 06-12 and there was usually pretty good crowds.

 

[FittedJacket]

I didn’t see Oral Robert’s on the list and they look to be doing fine.

Sure highlight the outlier that has all seniors and fifth year players from the portal

 

[eokerholm]

Disagree I have been going to Tech baseball games since I was 7 and when Tech is good they draw a crowd just like all the other Tech/Atlanta programs. I remember watching us go to the CWS when Eric Patterson was leading the way. Standing room only.

As an out of state recruit family, we've only been following GT for 3 years closely.... imagine attending or following for those 3 years.... now you know where I'm coming from

 

[FittedJacket]

Watched every game the past four seasons been to almost every game the past three home and away. Have to agree with Okerholm. Our place is very visitor friendly.