Prep post Grad (PG) questions

[3rdPersonPlural]

A friend of mine has a kids who's a tremendous Lacrosse and soccer player and he's considering encouraging him to take a PG year at a NE West Prep School. As an Alum of that league, I can speak to the rigorous academic perparation and the brilliant success they have getting kids into their college of choice, but I have no understanding of what today's HS players feel about this. Thus my post here.

The basic concept is that young men take a year after they graduate from High School to do some intensive academic preparation, boost their SATs, get acclimated to living away from home in an environment more structured and supportive than a college freshman dorm, and get to ball on leafy New England campuses in one of the most competitive leagues around. This process gives them a little more time to figure out what they want from college, more choices for college, and is sort of an intermediate step between childhood and college.

Since it's my personal opinion that 18 is too young to get anything more than drunk out of the college experience, I wonder why more athletes looking for a solid D1 or DIII career don't go this route.

Any thoughts?

[shiftylax]

I did a PG year. It taught me humility and gave me a good work ethic - but also took away my chances of playing at a higher level because I tore my groin playing 3 sports in a row without a break. It was a good lesson to learn - even if the rehab sucked. FYI - cortizone shots near your sack are not fun.

But immature kids with serious ability should consider it, but play 2 sports, not 3 in a row.

[3rdPersonPlural]

Shifty, I doubt any HS senior is going to define himself as 'immature' until he wakes up one morning in a frat house with a lampshade on his head. By then it'll be too late and even then 'immature' might not register.

Maybe 'feeling a little uneasy about facing the rigors of college just yet' might resonate a little better....

[shiftylax]

Kinda what I meant, but you're right. I was just sharing my experience. Prep schools WORK PG's hard, its like playing D1 without the perks and parietal rules. If you're up for that - and the pressure that's how you'll knwo if you were ready for college or not. I didn't think the academics were the hard part. Goign to school on a Saturday is also just plain wrong.

[3rdPersonPlural]

Prep schools WORK PG's hard, its like playing D1 without the perks and parietal rules. If you're up for that - and the pressure that's how you'll know if you were ready for college or not. I didn't think the academics were the hard part.

Prep schools work everybody hard, Shifty. Preparation is defined by hard work - just ask your coach. Just read the text laid down by a notable proportion of the posters on this board and you'll see a quick flame-out if they manage to get themselves into any DI or DIII program of any note. It's tough to have a college career if you can't handle the freedoms and demands of college, ya know?

Going to school on a Saturday is also just plain wrong.

Idle hands are tools of the devil, Shiftless. :bartmoon:

[shiftylax]

Yo, I'm I'm 26 I don't need to ask my coach - I'm the coach. I've coached college for 2 years, D2 and D3. And I had a great college career. All I'm saying is that a PG year isnt for everybody and should pretrty mich only be utulized by those who need it, not the "Shiftless". Ypu should check yourself before you assume I'm some 20 year old wiseass. I gave my opinion, it didnt match up with yours, deal with it.

[Monkey grass]

Should you do PG only if you have the serious talent to play at a higher level? I mean just a prep year like that sounds like something worth it, but I'd want to play lax as well. I don't think I'd be near good enough to play though.

[3rdPersonPlural]

Yo, I'm I'm 26 I don't need to ask my coach - I'm the coach. I've coached college for 2 years, D2 and D3. And I had a great college career.

Sorry, I made an erroneous assumption. You gotta admit that it's tough to tell how old someone is in this medium. "Ask your coach" is clumsy shorthand for "The mantra of preparation is a prominent coaching theme in all competitive sports and all of us can recall this point being beaten into us since we first suited up lo these many years ago."

All I'm saying is that a PG year isnt for everybody and should pretty much only be utilized by those who need it, not the "Shiftless".

I still think that was a pretty clever play on your screename.....


You should check yourself before you assume I'm some 20 year old wiseass. I gave my opinion, it didnt match up with yours, deal with it.

I value your opinion, or I wouldn't have solicited it. I NEVER took a PG year, and the few I knew were a class or two ahead of me and that was 25 years ago. My library of knowledge on this topic is admittedly slim, so I'm not differing with you, just probing with some follow up questions and provocative comments hoping for a little more elaboration from you or someone else with experience in this arena.

[shiftylax]

Well obviously my overreaction stemmed from the "How old is this dude and why is he making assumptions about me" alarm in my head. I didn't mean anything by it, but we have had a rash of new littuns invade the board that aren't even 15 yet.

To answer another part of your initial question, I think PG years are mostly for hockey payers when it comes down to it. Occasionally basketball players will take a PG to help their grades. I even know of a PG at my prep school right now who is there to play football and his tuition is being paid by UNH so he can develop more before he goes there.

I was weird because I decided to take my PG year rather last moment, I was very small coming out of high school (145lbs) and didn't get recruited anywhere prominent (A few small school D3 schools with beginning programs) and I wanted to play college ball very, very badly but had no idea how to get noticed other than going to the one camp that I could afford. So I looked around and PGed at the first school that threw money at me. It was a blessing and a curse. I learned a lot about work ethic and I learned how to fight after I got thrown down a staircase by a giant football/hockey player.

However, after playing in a tournament in portsmouth abbey I got recruiting calls throughout the next two weeks from better lacrosse schools in the south (Lehigh, Lynchburg, Denison, Wooster, St. Michael's, Bryant, WNEC etc.) and after I played in another tournament I got the attention of a D1 school (UNH) who lost their funding about 2 days after they called me and had to drop their program. I ended up going to St. Michel's and then transferring to a better academic university (Clark) with an admittedly sub par lax program. But after I arrived the school became more serious about the sport and eventually (by my senior year) hired a full time head coach.

That's sort of my life story with the bad crap cut out, but I think it relates back to the PG year question - why would you do it? If it's your best option, I'd do it over community college any day and it does prepare you. But it may not prepare you in the best way.

[spenny]

parietal rules.

now there's something i havent thought about in a few years!

[blckout20]

I was considering going PG for a year because right now I am probably good enough to atleast play D2. I've talked to a few D3 and D2 schools about cmoing to play there but really there not where I want to be as far as lacrosse goes. I want to play either a more high level D3 or mid road D1 school and I think a PG year would help me out a lot. Also, my academics aren't very great so it would help me get into a better school too. But unfortunately, I don't have the money for a PG year so I"m probably going to a local college for a year and just playing club and then transfering to a nicer school.

[3rdPersonPlural]

Shifty, I'm not sure whether to be flattered or take my turn at righteous indignation that you thought I might be a littun. I guess it really IS impossible to tell a member's age online........ I mean....like....Dude!

Thanks for the thoughtful analysis. My friend's kid is half inclined to walk on to an eastern D1 team and try to get some traction and half inclined to go to Stanford or Berkeley and play out his days there. His mom wants him to attend a school close to home because she feels he's too sociable and undisciplined to handle the workload AND the temptations of a college environment, and My friend is thinking that a year away from home in a more supervised environment might just give him the tools and experience he needs to ensure success at the higher level, both athletically and academically. Thanks to you, I can relate a more realistic picture of the PG experience, not just my hazy golden memories of my own feckless (shiftless??) youth. I truly appreciate your taking the time to help out.

I owe you a beer, and it's nice to know that we're both old enough to drink it..... :yumyum:

[3rdPersonPlural]

Blckout, most prep schools have very generous scholarship endowments. If you inquire you might find that, like Shifty, money will be 'thrown at you'....