With the fall signing period passed, many of the remaining unsigned seniors are still trying to decide their future college destination. With most Division I programs having their recruiting classes set for the Class of 2013, players are focused on marketing their attention to Division II, III, NAIA, and JUCO programs. At the same time, prospects in the Class of 2014 are at the beginning of the recruiting cycle and identifying potential colleges of interest.

Joe Wilkins is in his first year as the head coach of Tiffin University, a Division II program located in Northwest Ohio. He is in his fifth year in the program after coaching stops at Pepperdine, Wake Forest, and IMG Academy in Florida. Prior to coaching, he was a four-year letter winner at Ohio State and played three years of professional baseball in the Colorado Rockies organization.

Recently, he sat down with PBR Ohio Scouting Director Chris Valentine to talk about his program, the recruiting process at the Division II level, and the difference in the level of play between Division I and Division II programs. Earlier, PBR Ohio broke down Tiffin's impressive 2013 recruiting class. 
 

PBR: As a Division II program, what is your approach to recruiting? What type of player are you looking for?

Coach Wilkins: At any level, we are looking for the best possible player out there and with the emphasis on pitching, it seems that even outstanding position players are signed later in the year.  If we sign a position player early, it is either going to be a guy that matches up perfectly with our school and program or it is going to be a guy that gives us a couple of defensive options.  We are looking for the complete baseball "guy".  We need guys that are excited about being a Dragon.  They are going to be here for 4 years in most cases, so we need to make sure they are excited and hungry, as well as grateful for the opportunity.    

PBR: Obviously, many kids have the desire to play at the Division I level. How do you help them understand the advantages of playing Division II baseball at Tiffin?

Coach Wilkins: We run into obstacles, just like every other program does.  We are recruiting student athletes who are or can be good enough to compete at the D1 level.  They might be under the D1 radar for various reasons: They might be a fringe guy who fell into a numbers or timing game; they simply might have something that I like or see that I can work with that someone else doesn't see.  We have to recruit, not only on what we see, but what we think we can do with what we see.  There are a lot of good kids out there and only so many spots available at the D1 level.  We are a great option for many reasons.  I pride our program on education and development.  A kid is going to know more about himself within this game because he chooses Tiffin.  When we give a kid a shot here, we are going to make sure we give everything we have into helping him reach his potential by the time he walks out of here.  The student athletes, no matter what school they choose, are only going to reach their ultimate potential if they believe in what we are teaching and work as hard as they can to make our adjustments work for them.  Like I said, there are many schools and programs and many kids with different ideas of what is the best fit for THEM.  The kids we have had commit to us are outstanding young men who realize that we are the best fit for their development on and off the field.

PBR: As a former Division I assistant coach, what is the biggest difference between Division I and Division II programs?

Coach Wilkins: The most obvious difference for me would be familiarity with the names of the schools. When I mention, for instance, Ohio State or Kent State (especially after this past season), there is a high level of brand-awareness and with respect to recruiting, it is more attractive (on the surface) for a student-athlete to want to jump at any type of offer from those programs, even if it is merely to be a part of the program with a roster spot.  With that brand recognition comes a higher budget in most cases, which equals a some extra gear perks and little more attractive travel accommodations.  Conferences are spread a little further, geographically, so this only makes sense.  It all depends where you are though.  There are many different variables, not only between the levels of baseball, but within each level.  There are good programs all over the state at all levels, not just D1 and D2.  I can think of some very strong D3, NAIA and JUCO programs where there are different dynamics and challenges.