Parents Instagram (When Does My Athlete Need One For College Purposes)

[littlegirlsdream]

Just want to comment on a couple of folks who are saying that college coaches are not looking at gymnasts before high school. That simply is not true. College coaches have high level middle schoolers on their radars. Before the new rules, 8th and 9th graders were getting offers. These coaches may not be able to do that anymore but they sure are still watching from the sidelines. If a child makes it to L10 as a 7th/8th grader, then I would be setting up accounts then

Agreed! DD gym is ran by coaches that have a lot of college recruiting experience and this is exactly what they recommend. Lvl 9/10 and coaches will start looking was the advice given, along with teaching the kids how and when to reach out to colleges via email to start getting on the radar. Yes of course if they are 37 AA, national champs then they likely don’t need to do much of anything at all, or successful elites, but every college teams is not made up solely this type of gymnast.

 

[Lurker]

I know this is only a gymnastics forum and we are so far from this ever being a reality but I am just curious. Is this the norm for other sports too? As a former scholarship D1 soccer player forever ago I know vhs reals were a thing back then but I never did that. My travel team just went to allot of "prestigious" tournaments that my parents liked to refer to as meat markets. What is the point of far away meets if not to be seen?

 

[3cats]

Our gym's rule was atleast a level 9 and atleast 8th grade. They said there is no reason for it before then except to show off to the general public. My daughter has a trampoline and tumbling one now that she is a freshman and she is considering doing Acro and Tumbling in college.

 

[3cats]

Also, its not just gymnastics. My son has a few teammates on his soccer team with full on production studio quality IG accounts. Seems a little early in the process considering my youngest is in 4th grade. They have big dreams this early on, I guess.

 

[JPC13]

Also, its not just gymnastics. My son has a few teammates on his soccer team with full on production studio quality IG accounts. Seems a little early in the process considering my youngest is in 4th grade. They have overly invested parents , I guess.

Fixed it.

 

[gym_dad32608]

I know this is only a gymnastics forum and we are so far from this ever being a reality but I am just curious. Is this the norm for other sports too? As a former scholarship D1 soccer player forever ago I know vhs reals were a thing back then but I never did that. My travel team just went to allot of "prestigious" tournaments that my parents liked to refer to as meat markets. What is the point of far away meets if not to be seen?

Yes, this is the norm all around. Whether we bury our head in the sand or stand by looking with disdain, social media is a huge driver in everything youth. And it is hugely monetized. Hype houses, tiktok stars, Instagram influencers. Of course it all started with the Kardashians, who showed that you didn't actually have to do anything to make a lot of money, just be persistent and constantly have people talk about you (cough...sex....cough....tape). What is it, the Damelio sisters or something like that on dancing with the stars. Livy Dunn is worth multi-millions of dollars because she has a huge following, not from her gym posts, but from her silly, sexy montages. So ya, especially with NIL, its almost in your best interest to play the social media game regardless of sport. That includes a blend of showing off your talent and generating content for followers.

 

[JBS]

What is the point of far away meets if not to be seen?

There are several points of far away meets...

• The overall experience of traveling for a sports competition. Many of our gymnasts have great experiences that they will never forget... life long memories.
• To see new and different competition.
• To prepare the athlete for other competitions that may be travel competitions such as Regionals and Nationals.

 

[JBS]

Just linking this thread into this one...

For Parents - Social Media Account

Hello, I have 2 daughters who compete USAG. One is Level 6 (9yrs old) and the other Level 4 (8yrs old). I have seen many of their teammates have an Instagram account. Is this something I should be doing for them?

chalkbucket.com

 

[JBS]

Just another recruiting thread to link in here...

Anon - Gymnastics=Football? Gymnasts posting recruiting interactions

Not sure how many have been following the C/O 2025 recruits. But this year a few (2 that I have seen on insta) are pro-actively announcing when they receive scholarship offers or official visit offers. The most prominent is Sydney Seabrooks who is also an intern at college gym news. She...

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