Anon Looking ahead to large 2031 recruiting class

[Anonymous (b245)]

I know it may be getting a little ahead myself but, our gym currently has a pool about 8 to 10 state champion /regional/ state team member girls who are training level eight, nine, and ten and in 2031 grad class. That would be quite a historic 2031 recruiting class for our gym if they all stay on track for 4-6 years of level 10 each. Obviously a large 2031 recruiting class would attract a ton of college scouts, but are their negatives you can see to having so many from the same gym and grad year competing for D1 spots? The majority of this squad is homeschooling. (The pressure is real at our gym to homeschool).

 

[Anonymous (dd99)]

Burn out is real, injury is very real. It is not very likely that all of those kids or even the majority will make it that far. This is not to put you down but the reality of elite sports especially with kids and teenager performing at such a high level (homeschooling to do gym and the like). I would hence not worry about your question. Enjoy the ride, all the best!

 

[Anonymous (a595)]

That’s current 7th graders. Lots can change.

Our gym has had similar bubbles move through the ranks. 7th/8th grade was one major inflection point where girls got really hurt and their progress paused for a long time, and 10th grade was another. Girls I thought would go all the way quit mid-season in middle school or decided to go to in-person HS and then quit the fall of 9th grade. Girls who had never been hurt barely competed for 2 seasons with injuries.

A giant recruiting class shrank to 3 girls and it looks like 1 of them ultimately won’t do gymnastics in college.

It may attract college recruiters, but that’s often a function of having 1 top ranked recruit who everyone wants to see or a club coach who is really skilled at working their relationships with college coaches rather than just a big crop of potential recruits.

 

[Anonymous (3054)]

Just wait about 3-4 years. Burnout, teenage life, and can be just the pressure of level 10 getting to Nationals. Hate to say it but state champions and state team doesn’t mean anything. Once you hit level 10 colleges don’t care about a level 7 or 8 state champion

 

[Dahlialover]

I would not count these chickens before they hatch.

 

[Anonymous (6566)]

I’d be quite surprised if even half of them are still there by graduation.

 

[Anonymous (6fd6)]

The chances of even 50% of those girls still being in the sport in 2031 are probably close to zero. I think you are in for a surprise when you come back and read this post in 6 years.

 

[Anonymous (624a)]

When my daughter was in 7th grade there were 8 in her graduating class/level, she’s a sophomore level 10 now and there’s 3 left. I wouldn’t read into it too much.

 

[Anonymous (624a)]

Having a bunch of recruitable athletes won’t attract college coaches, what will is having one strong specific athlete they want to see.

 

[Anonymous (6566)]

When my daughter was in 7th grade there were 8 in her graduating class/level, she’s a sophomore level 10 now and there’s 3 left. I wouldn’t read into it too much.

Yeah, I think there were something like 8-10 when my daughter was in 7th grade. There are four now. We saw a huge drop off after l8, including many girls who had been at the top of the podium all the way through. After 9 it’s generally a big injury or major burnout that has caused teammates to leave.

 

[Anonymous (624a)]

We saw a huge drop off after l8, including many girls who had been at the top of the podium all the way through. After 9 it’s generally a big injury or major burnout that has caused teammates to leave.

Yep, after level 8 was the biggest drop off, then a couple more after 9. And honestly the ones left weren’t the ones always winning all the things at level 7.

We still have 3 more years, so TBD if the 3 left will all go to college or not.

 

[Anonymous (ffa2)]

Short answer, yes, all things being equal, having a large group of recruitable L10s is a good situation that brings more exposure and interest than having only one athlete. It is ultra-rare, if at all, that these girls end up competing for the same spots. Remember its a two-party situation, and schools sometimes aren't interested in an athlete that is interested in them, and vice versa.

Long-answer/commentary, As several posters alluded to, while sitting at L8, L10 seems like a natural progression of things, it is not. Odds are you will lose at least 2-3 for a variety of reasons (injury, diminishing interest, inability to attain skills, family issues or move, take your pick). Compounding this, I think some dont fully realize how different the MIND-SET and the amount of work and effort training at L10 has to be. At least to become a recruitable athlete, like, "I can have multiple offers" type athlete. It is a problem that we have at our gym. It really has to become a "this is serious, this is my career, if presented with go to the friday night high school football game and miss practice, I am not missing practice, I dont care about the social high school structure" mind-set type thing. Almost as if training elite. One can make L10, do their thing and be fine and I am sure another 2-3 of that group will fall into that category. These might generate some interest, if they develop one particular speciality of interest, like Y1.5 vault, but probably not. Its the final 3-4 of the group that really grind that will generate the interest.

Two other points to make, one the coach really does make a difference, so if your gym does not have a well connected coach, it might not be a bunch of colleges banging on the door. Second, the recruiting journey is different for everyone, so there will probably be a cluster of 2-3 that come June 15th they are swamped with calls and have committed by Sept (Assuming this "super" group of L8 all translate to L10) but others will be recruited into next year and even others into their senior year after they have graduated. So that group of 10 will be spread out over 2 years of recruiting.