Ongoing UF Softball Commentary

This may be a dupe. If so, let me know and I will delete it.

 

Extra Innings Softball just released a ranking of their top 248 players in the Class of 2025 for the Southeast Region (not national...just the SE states). Neither Makenna nor Kylie are on it. It is probably behind a paywall so you'll have to trust me on it. I went through it twice to make sure. Edit: I'm thinking this can't be right so I went through it a third time. They are not on the list. Three from my list are on it....all three in the Top 10. Extra Elite Class of 2025: All-Regional Rankings... Region 2 (Oct. 4, 2023) - Extra Inning Softball

 

This is why I view all of these ranking lists with a huge heap of skepticism. I know a girl from Tampa by the name of Makenna Sturgis was also important to us and she has committed to FSU. She is also not on the Extra Innings "best" 248 southeast player list. Just simply isn't credible.

 

At the risk of beating a dead horse, and I should probably just delete these past few posts but won't since some may have seen them, I somewhat misunderstood the Extra Innings list. Apparently, it is a compilation for the region from their overall national rankings so while it is a very large list it is something less than 248 players. Number 248 would be 248 on their national list. I'm not going to count it but the list is still well over 100 and probably closer to 200. The point is...it is an absurd list and I don't use it for information regarding Kylie or Makenna. It covers Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North and South Carolina and Tennessee. These top level players are not on the list (and I am sure there are many more): Makenna Sturgis (FSU commit); JoJo Lamar (uncommitted); Lily Livingston (uncommitted); Anna Roman (uncommitted); Elsa Morrison (committed to Tennessee); Kendall Wells (committed to Oklahoma); Natalie Cable (uncommitted). The list is a complete joke in my opinion. As an aside, at this point, I believe we are still after and in the hunt for Lamar, Livingston, Roman and Cable.

 

As an aside to bigigator...who I don't know....don't get me wrong. I never intended to imply that Kylie Shaw was a Plan B level kid. I believe we went to Plan B for other reasons. I simply don't know her or her promise. Based on my research I don't believe she was initially a priority recruit for us. I do believe that changed once we struck out time after time with those I think were on our top list. None of that means she might not be someone with promise. Softball talent over the past five years or more has just exploded. Talent is everywhere and lists are useless in my opinion except, possibly, for the clear top 10 or so. I trust Tim's judgement far more than I trust these subjective lists put together by unknown people who couldn't possibly have actually seen all of these hundreds and hundreds of players actually play. I'm all in for Kylie until I have a reason not to be.

 

And while I'm also beating Kylie Shaw to death, I might as well relate one other story I do know about her. Kylie played this past year for Rock Gold-Manetta. She has apparently jumped to Spark Elite for next year which surprises me. Anyway, Rock Gold won the PGF National Championship in California a year ago playing in the second level division. This year they jumped up to the premier division and to the shock of most everyone in the softball world won the PGF National Championship again. Against the Hotshots, Lady Dukes, Georgia Impact, Texas Bombers and everyone else considered to be elite level travel teams. I watched the championship game. Didn't pay one iota of attention to Kylie, as I didn't know her, and I need to see if I can find that game again somewhere. But those Rock kids apparently adored their coach, Manetta. A big and apparently loveable character. When it became apparent to everyone that they were going to win it, with his kids jumping all around, he started bawling. Clearly one of the better "can't miss" moments anywhere in the entire travel ball season.

 

I dont have great credentials for softball, I have a few nieces who played at high major I levels who now coach, one of them in that area. I also know and work with a lot of the softball players up in the Charlotte area along with my business partners and sons and they play at prestigious HS up here and are scattered throughout the country playing major college ball or the professional circuits. That means very little to me, I did however play both football and baseball in college. Again that doesnt qualify me for anything, I have reached out since this started up earlier..it is not biggie to me but I just wanted to be nosy. As you have stated and correctly I might add Shaw was not at the top of the original list they were going after. With her play and others falling off the board from either going to other schools or just not performing up to par she moved up the list. So I am not sure she was a plan A to start with but she did end up a plan A player. But that kinda sounds like you explained it also. That being said they really like her a lot. I like her alot more then a few girls we have recruited the last few years that were so called cant miss players.

 

Does anyone know what this means?

 

Well deserved!

 

Jojo commits to UCLA:

 

That's disappointing

 

Yeah, this one hurts.

 

I can't believe we have been waiting months for Fall Softball and the first game is probably going to be a rainout. They need to make it an afternoon game.

 

This is the second time that I know of where the sister/sister combo didn't make a difference. Layla is set to sign with us in November. JoJo to UCLA. Berkley Zache is an excellent pitcher from Illinois that we really wanted and I thought we might get. Her sister, however, is set to sign with Missouri this November. Berkley committed to Oklahoma which simply adds another name to their unbelievably strong recruiting this year.

 

Pretty sure I read the one committed to Missouri flipped her commitment to Oklahoma as well.

 

Johnny, If you and Ocala go to the game Saturday please give us a report. Many of us are looking forward to this upcoming season. Go Gators.

 

Thanks. I had not heard that. It is rare to get a flip like that very close to signing day. At least in softball.

 

The ladies are playing an intrasquad game now at KSP.
Sandman 70 is there and called to tell me. I was almost home, so I did not go back.
Starting at 6 pm the rain is supposed to be here and continue through tomorrow.
Sandman said he was just trying to determine who was who.