Initial Thoughts of Badger Region Summer Tryouts
The Badger Region announced on November 21 that clubs in the Badger Region will now have the option for a summer tryout. Yes, that is a huge change to the club tryout process which has traditionally been the week after…
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Continue ReadingThe Badger Region announced on November 21 that clubs in the Badger Region will now have the option for a summer tryout. Yes, that is a huge change to the club tryout process which has traditionally been the week after the state tournament in Wisconsin (usually the second weekend of November).
Do we all need to sound the alarms? No. Here are a few thoughts about the new tryout window in the Badger Region.
From the Badger Region press release on November 21:
Timeline
These policies will go into effect for the 2024-25 season, with the applicable dates below for the coming season
- Retention will open July 1, 2024, for the 2024-25 season
- the last day of the 2024 GJNC / BJNC will be July 11.
- The last day a retention offer can be signed will be July 18.
- The first allowed dates for tryouts will be July 20
- The first commitment date will be Aug. 1. Any offers made after this date are at the discretion of the club.
- The last allowed date of summer tryouts will be Aug. 18.
- WIAA (high school) season starts Aug. 19
- Fall tryouts can start Oct. 5 for 14-and-under (Commitment date: Oct.7)
- Fall tryouts can start Nov. 16 for 15-and-older (Commitment date: Nov. 18)
What is a retention offer?
Clubs have the option for a retention offer which allows for the athletes to commit to the club without having to tryout. However, I don’t believe that guarantees them to a certain team, just an agreement to that club.
Are other states doing this?
Yes. Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan are among some of the other states who are doing tryouts like this where they tryout after the club season during the summer. I know in Texas there is no break after the club season and some athletes will essentially tryout as soon as they get off the plane from nationals. Some athletes in Southern Wisconsin have tried out for Illinois clubs and have taken summer offers from them instead of playing for Wisconsin clubs. This will be consistent with other Great Lakes clubs.
Will every club have summer tryouts?
Not every club, but I would say most will exercise this option. If clubs offer a national program, they will most likely have this option. If one does this, they will probably all do this. There will still be tryouts as needed in November and my assumption would be that is the chance for athletes to tryout for a regional team or there will be a chance for clubs to fill in different spots in their national program.
What are the positives?
I know there are plenty of people who are against this in every way. I’m a glass half full person and I’ll take a look at the positives of this.
This will give athletes and clubs more time to pick their team. Tryouts right now have clubs and athletes to make decisions all within 72 hours. This will give both parties more time to evaluate and make decisions. This is similar to how some club tryouts work in soccer and softball. As a high school coach, I’m getting updates from my athletes from Sunday afternoons to Monday night of all the changes happening during tryout weekend. There is a huge trickle down effect of athletes accepting offers at clubs which creates a lot of movements with teams. For the top athletes and teams, this is a quick process, but for most athletes and clubs they are sorting through who got what offers at what clubs, what teams, and teams can look much different come Monday night than what they were originally going to look like after the tryout.
I could see clubs taking a half day or even a full day for a tryout as opposed to two hours. Kids won’t be having to chase after tryouts. They can also hold their offer longer (a summer offer can last until August 18). Again, if there are athletes who don’t tryout during the summer, there will still be tryouts in November (but most likely not at the top national programs).
Either way, there will be end of the season stress looking at what’s next. Yes, it will be weird for athletes and club directors to be preparing for the next year when they are still finishing their current season. For the athletes, whether its high school or club, they are having to decide what their next step is. If athletes tryout and accept a club offer in July, it will take away the unknown of those 72 hours in November and what their club options will be (which I know for some athletes is a huge relief).
What are the negatives?
This makes July extremely busy. When I posted the question on Twitter, a lot of responses were that athletes never have a break. July is the time where athletes are finishing nationals, going to college camps, Region All Star teams, and working with their high school teams. I agree, this will make July very busy – but I always feel July is busy no matter what anyone is doing.
I don’t know if this is a negative, but it will look different with clubs having to plan far in advance. They will need to know their coaches much earlier, months earlier. There are times where even coaches don’t know if they will be available for the next season. Coaches are always tough to find and this will put a little more pressure on clubs to have that staff in place when it comes to the next club season.
I am curious to see the trickle down effect. If clubs can start trying out on July 20, will kids hold on to their offer all the way until August 18? Or will we see a lot of commits right away? Will we see the same trickle down as what we do with the current tryout process, but it just lasts longer?
The club season is long, it’s emotional, and for some (directors, coaches, parents, and athletes), the last thing they want to do when the season is over is think about the next club season. There will be an eight day break before tryouts, that is the same amount of time for athletes who play in the state tournament and from when tryouts start in November. My initial thoughts are that there is the same amount of stress, it’s being worked through in late July instead of 72 hours in November.
What about the high school season?
Wisconsin isn’t the only state doing this. There will be adjustments in the high school summer calendar and that’s ok. As a high school coach, there might be athletes where I just tell them after tryouts to go take a two week break and spend it on a beach somewhere. If they are playing a full national club schedule, trying to go to a college camp, and if I want them fresh for the high school season, I can’t expect them to be at every little open gym and summer league. I might be in the minority here. I want them coming into the high school season mentally and physically fresh and sometimes that takes a parent telling their child no as well. Sometimes more is just….more.
In the 2024 high school season, high schools do start a week later than in the past (August 14 in 2023, August 19 in 2024). Coaches are not allowed to have contact days between August 1 and the start of the season, the summer calendars that some coaches have been following for years might look a little different this summer. I know this looks different for every program and it might take a couple seasons to find a balance.
“The Only Constant in Life is Change”
This is probably the deepest and most philosophical I’ve ever been on a Prep Dig article. Yes, this is a change, there will be adjustments, but before we throw stones at this – lets see how it works. I’ve never been a fan of “we’ve always done this before” and I think it will be interesting to see how this works for everyone involved. I know the Badger Region did not take this lightly, this has been talked about for years, and a huge survey was sent out last year regarding this. This was not decided over a ten minute zoom call.
A great mentor and friend of mine once said this and I even say this to my team when times get tough at the end of the day, it’s one giant game of keeping the balloon off the floor. This will be a change in Wisconsin, but at the end of the day it is still playing volleyball with your friends.