In Episode 17, Chuck and Brian got together a few days after the recent tryouts for the remaining 15-18U teams to discuss TNT's approach to the tryout process. Tryouts are stressful for Players, Parents and Coaches alike. This episode takes listeners behind the scenes of the process that takes place from the time the tryout is completed until the teams are fomed.
In segment one, Chuck and Brian talk about the steps that are taken by the club before, during and after a tryout. We learn how TNT schedules and conducts their tryouts, and how no positions are offered before the tryout. How are players rated? How do coaches evaluate players? How are team rosters built? What if players want to compare offers? Can players 'Move Up'? Why does it take so long? All of these questions are discussed during Segment 2. The segment ends with discussion on the dilemma of not having enough spots for all who wish to play, and ways TNT tries to find homes for as many players as possible.
Segment two answers specific questions sent by TNT parents and players immediately after tryouts were conducted. What does loyalty mean to a club? Why do players get moved to lower teams? Chuck and Brian go though some data that explains why some positions (OH, DSL) become more competitive as players get older. We answer the common question about why a player didn't make a team and where she "fell short". A recommendation made for those looking for in-depth feedback about a player's performance and what they need to improve in order to make a team. The segment concludes with advice for families about what to do if an offer is not received. As always, we finish by answering some great Volleyball Moms questions about tryouts.
Timeline:
2:11 TNT's approach to the process to conducting the tryout itself
9:11 The decision on how many teams to fill prior to TNT conducting a callback session
10:30 The process of extending offers
12:00 Challenges the club faces in extending offers, having to wait for responses, and having to start the process all over again for each offer that's not accepted
14:56 Clubs who do not allow for wait time, extend offers right after tryouts expecting immediate response, and how some even fill teams before tryouts
18:09 The current reality of more players trying out than we can extend offers to at TNT
20:24 How the club determines the number of teams to offer at each age group
24:21 The importance of loyalty to the club and the role it plays in the process of filling teams at TNT
26:27 Addressing concerns brought up about players who are no longer on the same level of team as in past years --- or recevied no offer at all
28:42 How the game changes as the players get older and its impact on tryouts with some postiions that become even more competitive as a result
32:20 Discussion about why the evaluation of a player at tryouts is not one that will give the in-depth feedback about a player's performance that some parents desire if an offer is not received
34:16 Explaining why private lessons are the route to go for in-depth feedback about player performance if tryouts don't go a players' way
36:10 What families should and should not do after tryouts if an offer is not received
38:45 Reasons for the decision to forego the 15-18U callbacks at TNT after tryouts were held
40:32 The unpredicable nature of the older age groups (17 and 18U) when it comes to tryouts from year to year
45:08 Volleyball Moms question #1 - a parent venting about a player who didn't receive an offer
48:11 Volleyball Mom's question #2 - is an in-house league just a money grab?
50:00 Wrap-up
