Contemplating college can be difficult for any high schooler. But for baseball players, navigating the world of showcases, camps, games, phone calls, letters, coaches, and more can be downright daunting. In this article, Sam Petersen discusses how he decided, how he got there, and what advice he has for younger players.

 

Sam Petersen, Ballard class of 2023, has become one of the top players in his class as he has developed over the years. At the 2019 PBR Future Games, he put on a show in the field, earning the MVP title. He was then ranked 1st and 5th in the state as a shortstop and overall respectively by PBR. Throughout the showcase experiences, Petersen connected with collegiate baseball programs in various states and, ultimately, committed to the University of Iowa.

 

Petersen’s venture into the recruiting process started as a sophomore. “Nothing really happened until my sophomore year, when I went down to the Future Games and kind of blew up there,” he said. “I won the MVP there, and then after that, it all kind of moved really fast.”

Petersen had to pick between a variety of different schools. “Eventually, I started getting invited to visits to certain colleges,” he said. “I visited TCU, Nebraska, and Iowa. I had scheduled visits for Creighton and Wichita State. Some other schools had just offered me over the phone. But I kind of narrowed it down to those five.”

The Future Games allowed Petersen to show his skills to those schools. “Well, before the Future Games, I was talking to one college coach,” he said. “After that, they gave me an opportunity. Being from Iowa, I don't really get those opportunities to travel and play in front of these coaches. We're in the summer all the time playing with my buddies, which is exactly how I want it to be. At the same time, it doesn't give you the opportunity to play in front of coaches like TCU and Nebraska and all the other coaches that expressed interest in me.”

But the University of Iowa stood out. “I toured it again, but I was a lot closer with those coaches, obviously, and that was one of the ultimate decisions I made that helps me make the final decision,” Petersen said. “I talked to those guys my freshman year, and it felt kind of homey there. I'd always dreamed of going there.”

Visits with his family made the process better. “What I enjoyed probably the most was the visits with the family,” Petersen said. “My family has given me tons of opportunities doing things for the Sticks and supporting me. My dad was my AAU coach my mom was my little league coach. Both of them had an aspect in my baseball career, so that was just kind of coming full circle with them and getting to do it all together.”

 

Sam Petersen 9/5/20

 

But it came with some difficulty. “The fact that I was choosing my college at 16 years old,” Petersen said. “I really didn't know what I wanted to study. Colleges asked me what I was studying, and I hadn't even taken the ACT yet. It felt early to be making that decision.”

Petersen thinks young players should learn the love the game. “I think if you're not having fun, you're not going to play well,” he said. “At the end of the day, it is a game. So never did I leave my high school friends to go to showcases or showcase my name. Ultimately, I thought the point of the game is to have fun, and doing it with the people that have been there forever solidified that for me.”

And it is important to be patient through the process. “Opportunities will come,” Petersen said. “If you've been working your hardest and you've been building up to this moment, don't force anything. And when the opportunity comes, just make the most of it.”

Sam Petersen navigated through the recruiting process with his family supporting him and PBR showcases highlighting his skills and abilities. Along the way, he focused on loving the game and staying patient even though it felt early to be choosing a college. With his college decision complete, Petersen can maintain focus on loving and playing the game with his friends for one more season.

 

Savannah Dennis is currently a senior at Johnston High School and has been working for Prep Baseball Report Iowa as an intern since October 2020. She has been managing the Johnston baseball team since she was a freshman and has also worked for the Iowa Sticks team as a data collector. Outside of the baseball industry, Savannah is the Print Editor for the Johnston Black & White newspaper. In the fall, she plans on going to college and majoring in statistics while managing the chosen school's baseball team.