How to Get Noticed
1. Create a list of 10-15 Colleges
Your list should include:
2-3 “Dream” colleges
“Dream” colleges play at a level that is beyond your current/projected skill level. However, if your skill level improves beyond projections, you have a chance to be recruited.
6-9 “Wheelhouse” colleges
“Wheelhouse” colleges play at your current skill/projected level and you have an excellent chance to be recruited.
2-3 “Back-up Plan” colleges
“Back-up Plan” colleges play at a level that is below your current/projected skill level. It’s important to have connections with “Back-up Plan” colleges in case, for example, you sustain an injury prior to signing with a “Dream” or “Wheelhouse” college.
Be realistic. Don’t include top tier D1 colleges as your “Wheelhouse” colleges if you are a lower tier D1 or D2 skill level player.
Choose colleges that have academic program(s) that align with your post athletic career path. Even if you turn pro in your sport, you will spend more time in your post athletic career than your athletic career.
Choose colleges that you would attend even if you were not participating in their athletic program. Circumstances can change very quickly with college athletics. A new recruit can come in and take your spot. Or you might find that the grind of college athletics is more than you bargained for. Regardless of the reason, the reality is that you might not be participating in an athletic program all 4 years of college.
2. Identify the Recruiting Coaches
Depending on the size of the college/program, the Recruiting Coach could be the Head Coach or a Coach specifically assigned to the task of recruiting Student Athletes. Most college websites identify the Recruiting Coaches.
3. Contact the Recruiting Coaches
Contact the Recruiting Coaches via email/phone periodically. During the initial contact, let them know that you are interested in their program and would like to learn more about their program. Also, include a statement that demonstrates you know something about their program (i.e. congrats on your winning season last year, congrats on your new Head Coach position, congrats on getting three of your players drafted etc.).
After an initial contact, some colleges will request that you complete a Recruitment Application on their website. Each college handles the recruiting process in a slightly different way, so be sure to follow each college’s specific instructions and requests.
Keep your colleges updated on your successes (i.e., you took 0.2 seconds off your 40 time, you made 10 tackles in a game, you increased your Velo by 4 mph, you had 5 aces, you earned All-Conference or All-State honors, etc.). Send them links to your College Recruiting/Highlight Videos.
Regarding phone calls, keep in mind that College Coaches can’t initiate calls until September 1 of your Junior year (this date differs slightly by Division and sport). Prior to this date, you need to initiate every call (in fact, College Coaches can’t even return your calls prior to this date). If you don’t get through to a Coach, don’t get discouraged. Keep making the calls. Everything else being equal, College Coaches will have more interest in a player that demonstrates a consistent and continued interest in their program over one who doesn’t.
Over time, it will become evident which colleges are interested in you. Begin to focus your efforts on these colleges.
Additional Thoughts
Projectability
College Coaches put a lot of effort into and emphasis on projecting (predicting) how good a high school athlete will be in college. If College Coaches project you to be a D2 athlete, then you must become better than they project to become a D1 athlete. College Coaches consider attributes such as your current talent level, your build and maturity (i.e. are you done growing) when making projections. The one thing that is difficult for College Coaches to consider is how hard you are going to work to become better. The bottom line is this…”Work harder than expected to become better than projected.”
You are Your Best Salesperson
We tell Athletes all the time, “No one can sell YOU to a College Coach better than YOU!”. Even though Athletes need to engage their High School/Club Coaches and possibly others, Athletes need to stay engaged in their recruiting process at all times. At the end of the day, there is nothing more powerful than an Athlete articulating to a College Coach why they should be recruited.
Be Tenacious
Approach the recruiting process with the same tenacity that you display on the field. It’s nearly impossible to contact a College Coach too often.
High School/Club Coaches (HS/Club Coaches)
Engage your HS/Club Coaches right away (i.e. ask for their input regarding your list of 10-15 colleges) and keep them informed throughout every step of the recruiting process. When the time is right, ask them to reach out to your College Coaches. Understand that your HS/Club Coaches are your best advocates. They have seen you play over an extended period of time. Also, they know other things about you that are very important to College Coaches, such as your character, your work ethic, your dependability, your trustworthiness, your loyalty, how you perform under pressure, the type of leader you are, how you perform in school, etc.. The bottom line is this, before any College Coach extends you an offer, they will have extended conversations with your HS/Club Coaches. So keep them engaged and informed!
College Recruiting Services
Before you engage a Recruiting Service to represent you, make sure that they have an established relationship with many (if not all) of the Colleges on your list. With an established relationship, a Recruiting Service can call a College Coach, gain access to the College Coach and have a conversation about you. Established relationships are developed and earned over time by the Recruiting Service demonstrating that they put the interest and needs of the Coach’s program before the interest and needs of their Client Athlete.
It is important to note that some College Coaches don’t work with Recruiting Services due to the potential conflict of interest. When a Client Athlete pays a Recruiting Service, the Recruiting Service could be motivated to put the interest and needs of their Client Athlete in front of the interest and needs of the Coach’s program and paint a picture of their Client Athlete that isn’t 100% accurate.
Some Recruiting Services tout that they have “relationships” with thousands of College Coaches. Make sure that they define what they mean by “relationship”. To some, a “relationship” with a College Coach means they have the College Coach’s phone number/email in their data base. This type of “relationship” is not an established relationship and it’s not going to help you get recruited.
If you do engage a Recruiting Service, make sure that you still keep your HS/Club Coaches engaged in the process. Your HS/Club Coaches know you better than the Recruiting Service does, and College Coaches know this.
College Recruiting/Showcase Camps
There are many Recruiting/Showcase Camps to choose from. If you are not careful, you could spend thousands of dollars attending Camps. As such, it is important to prioritize. Everything else being equal, you will get more bang for your buck by attending a Camp that is hosted by a College itself (as opposed to a Camp that is hosted by a Third Party). Most College Coaches will tell you that 30-50% of their current roster is made up of Athletes who attended one of their Camps in the past. In light of this, do some research on your Top 3-5 Colleges and determine if they host their own Camps (you will find most do). If they do, do everything you can to attend their Camps. With this said, don’t ignore Camps that are hosted by Third Parties. Sometimes you can find a Camp hosted by a Third Party that is going to be attended by several of the Colleges on your list. Big picture, Recruiting/Showcase Camps are an important tool for College Coaches and you need to do everything you can to attend several.
College Recruiting Videos
Videos continue to be an important component of the recruiting process. At some point a College Coach will request to see your College Recruiting Video. College Coaches review thousands of Videos for each recruiting class. In light of this, many Athletes engage a Professional Sports Videographer to produce their Video(s). An experienced Professional Sports Videographer will know what College Coaches are looking for (i.e. different angles and types of shots) and will utilize high end cameras. If you film/produce your own Video, make sure that it is pleasing to the eye (i.e. it is focused and not shaky) and that you are easily identified in the Video. Recruiting Videos should be 1-5 minutes in length.
Social Media
If you are serious about getting recruited, you need to make sure that your social media pages do not contain unacceptable language/pictures. College Coaches will check your social media pages to gain a perspective on your character. Don’t let your social media pages prevent you from getting recruited.
1. Create a list of 10-15 Colleges
Your list should include:
2-3 “Dream” colleges
“Dream” colleges play at a level that is beyond your current/projected skill level. However, if your skill level improves beyond projections, you have a chance to be recruited.
6-9 “Wheelhouse” colleges
“Wheelhouse” colleges play at your current skill/projected level and you have an excellent chance to be recruited.
2-3 “Back-up Plan” colleges
“Back-up Plan” colleges play at a level that is below your current/projected skill level. It’s important to have connections with “Back-up Plan” colleges in case, for example, you sustain an injury prior to signing with a “Dream” or “Wheelhouse” college.
Be realistic. Don’t include top tier D1 colleges as your “Wheelhouse” colleges if you are a lower tier D1 or D2 skill level player.
Choose colleges that have academic program(s) that align with your post athletic career path. Even if you turn pro in your sport, you will spend more time in your post athletic career than your athletic career.
Choose colleges that you would attend even if you were not participating in their athletic program. Circumstances can change very quickly with college athletics. A new recruit can come in and take your spot. Or you might find that the grind of college athletics is more than you bargained for. Regardless of the reason, the reality is that you might not be participating in an athletic program all 4 years of college.
2. Identify the Recruiting Coaches
Depending on the size of the college/program, the Recruiting Coach could be the Head Coach or a Coach specifically assigned to the task of recruiting Student Athletes. Most college websites identify the Recruiting Coaches.
3. Contact the Recruiting Coaches
Contact the Recruiting Coaches via email/phone periodically. During the initial contact, let them know that you are interested in their program and would like to learn more about their program. Also, include a statement that demonstrates you know something about their program (i.e. congrats on your winning season last year, congrats on your new Head Coach position, congrats on getting three of your players drafted etc.).
After an initial contact, some colleges will request that you complete a Recruitment Application on their website. Each college handles the recruiting process in a slightly different way, so be sure to follow each college’s specific instructions and requests.
Keep your colleges updated on your successes (i.e., you took 0.2 seconds off your 40 time, you made 10 tackles in a game, you increased your Velo by 4 mph, you had 5 aces, you earned All-Conference or All-State honors, etc.). Send them links to your College Recruiting/Highlight Videos.
Regarding phone calls, keep in mind that College Coaches can’t initiate calls until September 1 of your Junior year (this date differs slightly by Division and sport). Prior to this date, you need to initiate every call (in fact, College Coaches can’t even return your calls prior to this date). If you don’t get through to a Coach, don’t get discouraged. Keep making the calls. Everything else being equal, College Coaches will have more interest in a player that demonstrates a consistent and continued interest in their program over one who doesn’t.
Over time, it will become evident which colleges are interested in you. Begin to focus your efforts on these colleges.
Additional Thoughts
Projectability
College Coaches put a lot of effort into and emphasis on projecting (predicting) how good a high school athlete will be in college. If College Coaches project you to be a D2 athlete, then you must become better than they project to become a D1 athlete. College Coaches consider attributes such as your current talent level, your build and maturity (i.e. are you done growing) when making projections. The one thing that is difficult for College Coaches to consider is how hard you are going to work to become better. The bottom line is this…”Work harder than expected to become better than projected.”
You are Your Best Salesperson
We tell Athletes all the time, “No one can sell YOU to a College Coach better than YOU!”. Even though Athletes need to engage their High School/Club Coaches and possibly others, Athletes need to stay engaged in their recruiting process at all times. At the end of the day, there is nothing more powerful than an Athlete articulating to a College Coach why they should be recruited.
Be Tenacious
Approach the recruiting process with the same tenacity that you display on the field. It’s nearly impossible to contact a College Coach too often.
High School/Club Coaches (HS/Club Coaches)
Engage your HS/Club Coaches right away (i.e. ask for their input regarding your list of 10-15 colleges) and keep them informed throughout every step of the recruiting process. When the time is right, ask them to reach out to your College Coaches. Understand that your HS/Club Coaches are your best advocates. They have seen you play over an extended period of time. Also, they know other things about you that are very important to College Coaches, such as your character, your work ethic, your dependability, your trustworthiness, your loyalty, how you perform under pressure, the type of leader you are, how you perform in school, etc.. The bottom line is this, before any College Coach extends you an offer, they will have extended conversations with your HS/Club Coaches. So keep them engaged and informed!
College Recruiting Services
Before you engage a Recruiting Service to represent you, make sure that they have an established relationship with many (if not all) of the Colleges on your list. With an established relationship, a Recruiting Service can call a College Coach, gain access to the College Coach and have a conversation about you. Established relationships are developed and earned over time by the Recruiting Service demonstrating that they put the interest and needs of the Coach’s program before the interest and needs of their Client Athlete.
It is important to note that some College Coaches don’t work with Recruiting Services due to the potential conflict of interest. When a Client Athlete pays a Recruiting Service, the Recruiting Service could be motivated to put the interest and needs of their Client Athlete in front of the interest and needs of the Coach’s program and paint a picture of their Client Athlete that isn’t 100% accurate.
Some Recruiting Services tout that they have “relationships” with thousands of College Coaches. Make sure that they define what they mean by “relationship”. To some, a “relationship” with a College Coach means they have the College Coach’s phone number/email in their data base. This type of “relationship” is not an established relationship and it’s not going to help you get recruited.
If you do engage a Recruiting Service, make sure that you still keep your HS/Club Coaches engaged in the process. Your HS/Club Coaches know you better than the Recruiting Service does, and College Coaches know this.
College Recruiting/Showcase Camps
There are many Recruiting/Showcase Camps to choose from. If you are not careful, you could spend thousands of dollars attending Camps. As such, it is important to prioritize. Everything else being equal, you will get more bang for your buck by attending a Camp that is hosted by a College itself (as opposed to a Camp that is hosted by a Third Party). Most College Coaches will tell you that 30-50% of their current roster is made up of Athletes who attended one of their Camps in the past. In light of this, do some research on your Top 3-5 Colleges and determine if they host their own Camps (you will find most do). If they do, do everything you can to attend their Camps. With this said, don’t ignore Camps that are hosted by Third Parties. Sometimes you can find a Camp hosted by a Third Party that is going to be attended by several of the Colleges on your list. Big picture, Recruiting/Showcase Camps are an important tool for College Coaches and you need to do everything you can to attend several.
College Recruiting Videos
Videos continue to be an important component of the recruiting process. At some point a College Coach will request to see your College Recruiting Video. College Coaches review thousands of Videos for each recruiting class. In light of this, many Athletes engage a Professional Sports Videographer to produce their Video(s). An experienced Professional Sports Videographer will know what College Coaches are looking for (i.e. different angles and types of shots) and will utilize high end cameras. If you film/produce your own Video, make sure that it is pleasing to the eye (i.e. it is focused and not shaky) and that you are easily identified in the Video. Recruiting Videos should be 1-5 minutes in length.
Social Media
If you are serious about getting recruited, you need to make sure that your social media pages do not contain unacceptable language/pictures. College Coaches will check your social media pages to gain a perspective on your character. Don’t let your social media pages prevent you from getting recruited.