One of the classic mantras when talking with high school students about athletic recruiting for college is: “Use your sport to get a great education.” Your sport can get you into a school that you maybe wouldn’t have gotten into, so if you’ve devoted lots of time to your sport over the years, now is not the time to quit.
While it is estimated that only 1 in 16,000 student athletes will play after college, it is also true that you won’t know if you like playing in college until you try because it IS different from playing in high school. So give it a try because it can help you to get into a great college.
In this series of blog posts I will talk with you about the way to go about being recruited for college sports.
Here’s what you need to know about athletic recruiting and what to do to get the process going.
First Things First:
- Be willing to play any position. Flexibility is going to help you get recruited.
- MAKE SURE YOU PICK A SCHOOL YOU WANT TO BE AT REGARDLESS OF YOUR SPORT. The average college athlete plays about 1 ½ seasons in college, so be happy with your school!
- GPA and test scores are important
How To Connect With Coaches:
- You MUST let coaches know that you will be at the tourney.
- Send letters, emails, resumes and call.
- Coaches go to see the kids who have contacted them.
- Coaches watch kids who can succeed at their school.
- Mass emails to coaches are deleted.
- Make sure your email is personalized with the coach’s name and specific reasons why you want to attend that school.
Logistics:
- There is NO WAY to automate this process.
- Paid services to fax your resume around are a waste of time because typically randomly faxed resumes go directly into the trash.
Myths, Truths and Mistakes not to make:
Myth– D1 recruits kids for “full rides”.
Myth– D3 doesn’t recruit. They DO recruit and can give money in the form of “talent awards”.
Truth– Less than 1% of students are actively recruited, the other 99% recruit themselves. Those 1% of kids are always the best in the state/league/country.
Mistake– DON’T go to the school that is recruiting you the hardest. Instead, create a list of schools that are right for you and work from that list. D1 girls have a 40% transfer rate after the 1st year because they made the mistake of going to the school that recruited them the hardest.
Mistake– 99% of kids make the mistake of thinking that no one is interested, but until a coach says “no”, you are a potential, so keep your head in the game!
Strongly consider putting yourself out there to get recruited if you are AT ALL interested in playing your sport in college! Remember, everyone loves a proactive kid, so don’t be embarrassed just because recruiters are reaching out to the star of the team and not you. A different school might LOVE to have you!
Plus, sports make adjusting to college much easier because you have instant friends/activities. It’s a win-win.
Look for Athletic Recruiting Parts 2 and 3 coming soon! Also, check out our Athletic Timeline to get serious about being recruited. Yay, college!
