We asked current college coaches and former college players and here are their answers

As a junior college coach, I feel the biggest difference for a player transitioning from high school to college is the amount of time spent on baseball related activity in a given week, month, etc. It isn’t uncommon for players to have to juggle multiple practices in a day with classes and study time. Long game days with long bus trips are not uncommon either. On top of that, much fundraising must be done to make budgetary ends meet which eats many weekends when a player may wish they could visit home. It takes a very dedicated player at the college level.

Ryan Suttenfield / North Central Missouri College / Assistant Coach

As far as the biggest change from high school to college, I would break it into on field and off field. On field it is simply the level of competition, having to be at your best every single time and not take things for granted while also realizing that you do not have to try to be the hero because you have teammates that will be there for you. Off field is the freedom and responsibilities of time management and handling your own daily schedule without the hands on guidance of parents or family members.

Scott Bateman / Florida State College of Jacksonville / Assistant Coach

The biggest difference to me was the amount of time and effort you have to put in to be successful in college. Its an every day job. High school was totally different in that aspect. In high school you just showed up to play and that was about it. College takes time and work. In most cases when you show up to college you will be looking at many other players that are just as good as you or better. Having the mindset to work on your game and beating out those other players for a position is key.

Dallas Baldwin / Coker University / Former Student-Athlete

The biggest difference between high school and college athletics is that college athletics becomes more of a lifestyle rather than just something you do after school. For players that want to make it to the professional level, they also must be resilient from injury, strong-minded and very consistent so they can have stats to prove their worthiness. You are away from home, taking college courses, around new people and new influences, and probably trying to make a relationship work all while trying to piece together your best on-field performance to keep your pro-ball aspirations alive. All this can be overwhelming unless you keep your head on straight and have a clear purpose for why you are there.

Alan Burnsed / Florida Southern College / Former Student-Athlete

The level of commitment is the main difference. Once in college athletics, your sport becomes who you are instead of just something you do and your teammates become your family whom you spend (almost) all of your time with. College athletes must be willing to fully commit to the team for the vast majority of their time for practice, weight training, study halls, fundraising events, and more.

Jarred Boyer / Iowa Wesleyan University / Former Student-Athlete

The biggest differences between high school athletics and college athletics is maturity of the athletes. The game gets a lot quicker in college and athletes really start to hit their strides as they are getting older and more mature in college. Also, parents are more involved in high school athletics and help their kids through a lot of their every day lives. When it comes to college, the kids have to figure out how to do things for themselves, and as a coach, you are just dealing with the kid most of the time compared to coaching in high school.

Matt Saliba / Webber International University / Assistant Coach