Sports are the short game and your degree/network is the long game. Even if an Ivy is $240k for 4 years these kids get out of there making $150k a year first job a lot of times. A lot of people do not understand how the service academies(no tuition in exchange for serving your country), Ivy or top tier schools like Duke, Georgetown, Hopkins or high academic D3 schools work. You are entering into a network that will set you up for the rest of your life. Without lacrosse these kids probably do not get in. It is like how compound interest works when you go to these schools you are compounding your income for the rest of your life if you do things right and take advantage of it.
This is only true for select majors. I recently had an applicant Harvard undergrad Columbia grade school for a $45k a year starting salary. Majored in something like East Asian studies and grad degree in something else almost as useless. If your kid wants to major in something useless, they should go to the cheapest school available. I have also hired Penn History majors and Urban Studies. Cost just as much as finance and much lower ROI. I doubt the Penn Nursing grad is paid anymore than the Penn State Nursing grad.
The reality of getting recruited to the ivies/duke, etc are ridiculous. Top Tier Athlete + Top Tier Student is hard to come by and most likely aint your son. If it is, you have great genetics and have done a great job parenting. I agree with guy above. Getting into the ivies is amazing, but if you blow your opportunity on some non-essential major, that is on you. I do doubt lacrosse players that make it to the ivies would ever find themselves in one of those dead end majors (see point above about great parenting most likely happening). Honestly though, I bet east asian studies is not as bad as you think given the current global climate. Plenty of 3 letter agencies probably looking for those graduates. And Nursing is a great profession no matter what (I understand what you are saying about PSU vs UPENN, but come on... That degree is in high demand and those people bust their humps to help people)
