Lineup Cards: Scouting the Best University Prospects

As a manager in baseball has many tough and important decisions, I also have many hard choices about what's next.

Last year I held a bit of a spring training for colleges. In spring training, teams get to take a look at young players and get a sneak peek at how their team is looking. With my college search, I got to kick the tires on several schools—scouting to see which universities I might attend. I got a taste of what college life will be like and what options will be available.

Like any good scout, I first evaluated the statistics. I researched which schools had good journalism programs and which schools I could expect to be accepted to. I found many promising schools across the countrythat had strong journalism or communications programs.

Like an owner sets the budget for a general manager, my parents set guidelines on where I should look at schools. They supported me in all the schools I was looking at but made it clear that making trips to the East or West Coast to visit schools would not be financially feasible. I narrowed my search to Midwest schools and began to schedule visits. 

During a break from school, my dad and I traveled down to Missouri to take a look at the University of Kansas and the University of Missouri. I knew that Kansas had a good journalism program from my research, and the stop at Missouri was a result of a suggestion from my journalism teacher, who had attended workshops there. It was cool to get a suggestion from someone who knows journalism and who had studied some journalism on the campus.

The trip was a very productive one as we attended a Twins game against the Kansas City Royals on our first day—which was a great experience despite a Twins loss. During the car ride south, I was more excited about seeing the Twins on the road than I was visiting colleges. Still, I was glad to have the opportunity to get my college search started.

We met someone at the game who was able to give us some information about KU, which was helpful. After hearing about KU from our newfound friend, I was beginning to become excited about visiting the campus.

On the second day of our trip, my dad and I toured the KU campus. We met with the head of the journalism department, who gave us a wonderful presentation and had fantastic information. We were very impressed and grew even more impressed by the honors college. They had so much to offer and were very personal with their presentations, which left a great impression on my dad and me. I felt very important, as if the university really did want me on campus.

We visited Mizzou on the third day. It had a beautiful campus and great journalism building. We were left a little disappointed, however, because the tour was not as personal and the opportunities not as impressive. Yet I began to picture myself as a college student and became very excited picturing myself walking the picturesque grounds of Mizzou or working out in their new recreation center. This trip was a great experience—not only because I got my first taste of what I can expect from college life, but also because it was nice taking a trip with my dad.

When back in Minnesota, I naturally had to tour the University of Minnesota. The tour was a group tour and was unfortunately unimpressive. I didn’t learn as much about the school as I was hoping and did not get a great feel for life on campus. In other words this prospect had a rough game. I did not feel all that comfortable with the campus being in such an urban area and preferred the atmosphere of a college town.

My final college visit was to Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. The university has a fantastic reputation and its journalism school is nationally renowned. The campus was very nice and right on Lake Michigan. I was feeling a little intimidated at first because of all the activity going on but warmed to the idea of living in a major city. Unlike the U of M, Northwestern is not in the middle of the city, so it still has the feel of a college town even though the opportunities in Chicago are still available.  The university also had its own private beaches, which was impressive to me.  

As of right now, Northwestern would be my first choice of schools to attend based on their fantastic reputation and ideal location near Chicago. The problem is, the price tag is very high. The league I am a part of has a salary cap.

I ended up applying to these four schools as my top choices. They are my four starting pitching options and I need to choose which one to pencil in as my ace. As of right now, I have been accepted to Kansas, Mizzou and the U of M but am still awaiting a decision from the Kansas honors college. It was really thrilling to recieve that first acceptance letter. Even though I figured I could get into the schools fairly easily it is a great relief to see it officially in writing. I have not yet heard back from Northwestern and do not expect a response for a couple more weeks.

I have received merit scholarships to Mizzou and KU, including the Midwest Exchange Scholarship at Kansas which gives me a price very close to in-state tuition. It is a fulfilling feeling to recieve scholarships. It is like the schools are appreciating the hard work I have put in.  

For now, I am just waiting anxiously, and admittedly a  bit nervously, to hear more from these schools regarding acceptance and financial packages. I'm thankful to have so many good options. It is nice knowing that regardless of my selection there will be new and positive experiences to look forward to next year.

Once I have my information in order I will need to make another visit to my top choices because, as every manager knows, talent is not the only factor in evaluating a player. I must heavily consider the way the school feels to me and whether the atmosphere is right. I must look beyond the numbers and find a player that fits into the plan of the organization