Why You Need to Talk to Your High School Coach ASAP
May 19th, 2009 - byYour high school coach will be a critical part of your recruiting process. Plain and simple. However, it’s not always for the reason that most families expect.
As we have explained in the past, your high school coach cannot get you a scholarship. That myth was built years ago when the high school coach was one of the few avenues from which a college coach could receive both game film and objective evaluations of potential prospects. With the development of technology and the internet, coaches now have access to information like never before. Also, due to scholarship reductions, college coaches can no longer offer a scholarship to a recruit as a “favor” to the high school coach. Finally, the average high school coach has less than five contacts with college coaches…less than 1% of the total opportunities! The responsibility to get athletic scholarships ultimately lies with the student-athlete, mom, and dad.
Now, you’re probably wondering, “if my high school coach cannot get me a scholarship, why is he so important…and why do I need to talk to him as soon as possible?”
While your high school coach cannot get you a scholarship, college coaches will absolutely utilize their role in the recruiting process to gain access to recruits. We asked Former Division I Recruiting Coordinator, Randy Taylor, how college coaches will take advantage of the high school coach to further their recruiting efforts, and here was his response:
“A college coach would be making a huge mistake if they did not work through the high school coach the whole way through the process. This allows the high school coach to feel as though they have some control and will help the college coach assure a good relationship for future recruits. Keep in mind, at some point in the future, the college coach will want to recruit a prospect from the same school, and the better the relationship, the more 
inclined a high school coach will be to grant access to his players. That access is crucial”
“Also, there are certain times when the college coach is unable to contact the recruit based on the recruiting timeline, so rather than contact the recruit directly and violate the rules, the college coach will express interest through the high school coach. With the accelerated pace of college recruiting, coaches are exploring every way to connect with a recruit as early as possible, and the high school coach happens to be one of those outlets. This might involve sending recruiting letters to the high school coach regarding one of their players, making a phone call to request an honest assessment, or even making an offer. The high school coach is really a key part of the relationship that the college coach needs to develop with a recruit.”
Hopefully it’s becoming clearer why your high school coach is a critical part of the process and again, why he really cannot get you a scholarship. Rather, your high school coach is a conduit to the relationship that will occur between college coaches and recruits throughout the process. However, if you do not have the proper relationship with your high school coach, you could be missing potential opportunities.
Which college coaching staffs does your high school coach have a relationship with?
Have any college coaches contacted your high school coach expressing interest in you?
When was the last time you discussed your collegiate athletic aspirations with your high school coach?
Next week, we will explain how to properly develop that relationship with your high school coach and the one way they might be hurting your chances of playing in college.
