NJCAA Signing Period Kicks Off Today
January 15, 2015
By Rob Allison
Minnesota State Director
January 15th is the Official Signing Day for prospective student/athlete's to sign their National Letter of Intents (N.L.I.'s) to the 2-year college of their choice. N.L.I.'s officially bind a student/athlete to that junior college for one calendar year (Fall 2015-Spring 2016). Unlike the NCAA signing periods which provide a window of days for athletes to sign; once the NJCAA signing period begins- it is open and athletes are allowed to sign the remainder of the year.
Junior college has become an attractive option for baseball players in Minnesota; with only one Division 1 university in the state- University of Minnesota- supporting a baseball program. There are currently 95 players in Minnesota that have committed to college baseball programs; 20 of those who have verbally committed to attending junior college.
Junior college's have reaped the benefits over the last 5-8 years with many attractive prospects ultimately deciding to attend junior college and re-visit their options after two years in pursuit of a Division 1 or possibly a professional opportunity in the future.
Junior colleges are classified in three categories: Division 1, Division 2, and Division 3. The state of Minnesota has two DIII teams currently ranked in the Preseason Top 10 Coaches Poll; St. Cloud Tech at No. 4 and Century CC at No. 9.
No. 6 ranked Ty Buck has committed to reigning NJCAA National Champion and Preseason No. 1 ranked Iowa Western CC. No. 17 ranked Josh Falk has committed to Gulf Coast CC in Panama City, FL. No. 25 ranked Mitchell O'Connor has verbally committed to Des Moines Area CC; along with No.'s 45 and 46th ranked Scott Richardson and Alexander Glick. No. 34 ranked TJ Nicholson has committed to North Iowa Area CC and No. 35 Parker Hanson to Dakota County Tech. No. 36, Jackson Buelow, is headed to Century CC.
Below is the full list of current in-state verbal commitments to junior colleges listed by # of overall commitments to each school:
Century CC
| 2015 | Jack Atkinson | RHP | St. Cloud Apollo | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Hunter Blommer | OF | St Cloud Apollo | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Jackson Buelow | SS | Highland Park | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Nash Dalzell | RHP | Rogers | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Benjamin Johnson | 2B/MIF | Elk River | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Winston Lane | SS | Osseo | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Jay Noorgard | C | Robbinsdale Armstrong | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Troy Ouellette | OF | Robbinsdale Armstrong | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Matt Probst | 2B/MIF | Prior Lake | MN | Century CC |
| 2015 | Keith Unterberger | C | Champlin Park | MN | Century CC |
Dakota County Tech
| 2015 | Parker Hanson | RHP | Hawley | MN | Dakota County Tech |
| 2015 | Max Kaplan | 3B | Waseca | MN | Dakota County Tech |
| 2015 | Wyatt Meyer | C | Mounds View | MN | Dakota County Tech |
Des Moines Area CC
| 2015 | Alexander Glick | RHP | Anoka | MN | Des Moines Area CC |
| 2015 | Mitchell O'Connor | LHP | Bloomington Jefferson | MN | Des Moines Area CC |
| 2015 | Scott Richardson | LHP | Burnsville | MN | Des Moines Area CC |
Iowa Western CC
| 2015 | Ty Buck | 3B | Red Wing | MN | Iowa Western CC |
Gulf Coast CC
| 2015 | Josh Falk | 1B | Minnetonka | MN | Gulf Coast CC |
North Iowa Area CC
| 2015 | TJ Nicholson | C | Minnetonka | MN | North Iowa Area CC |
Iowa Lakes CC
| 2015 | Joseph Bernard | 1B | Princeton | MN | Iowa Lakes CC |
