NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

The NCAA always has its eyes on any company involved with college athletic recruiting.  A recent NCAA basketball panel began to discuss legislation that would place some basic parameters on the industry.

Meeting June 1 in Indianapolis, the committee recommended that the NCAA Division I Championships/Sports Management Cabinet sponsor legislation in the 2009-10 cycle that would preclude institutions from subscribing to services unless the services:

• Disseminate information at least quarterly;
  

• Make all applicable rates public;

• Make public whether the service is local, regional or national (the quarterly reports must reflect broad-based coverage of that chosen scope);

• Incorporate analysis into the report beyond demographic information or rankings of prospects; and

• Make sample reports available to subscribers before purchase.

The committee’s rationale for amending the rule centers on the proliferation of scouting businesses. Members acknowledged the potential value of some such services, though some believe they do not provide information consistent with the intent of the current scouting-service legislation.

Many service operators are tied directly to teams or events involving highly skilled prospective student-athletes. Many coaches believe the service is used as leverage against them. In other words, they think that unless they subscribe to these recruiting services, their staffs will be disadvantaged in recruiting prospects linked with the service operator.

NCSA would welcome any of these rules since our Recruit-Match database is always free and open to college coaches.  They trust our verified database to be the national leader in the industry, which sets all of our student-athletes for the best possible exposure and recruiting success.

Zac Wolf, Baseball, Dominican University
Kyle Severns, Baseball, Penn State Brandywine
Jonathan Dorsey, Baseball, Alcorn State University
Tyler Spencer, Baseball, Kansas City Community College
Brenden Kalfus, Baseball, Saint Mary’s College of California
Brett Balkan, Baseball, San Diego Mesa College
Karl Fiske, Baseball, Brookdale Community College
Kyle Campbell, Baseball, Stetson University
Scott Thornton, Baseball, San Joaquin Delta College
Joshua Brooks, Baseball, Ottawa University
Colin “Mana” Greig, Football, University of Oregon
Anthony Stephens, Football, University of Redlands
Tyler Verga, Football, Monmouth College
Gabriel Castillo, Football, Navarro Community College
Nick Hammaren, Football, Santa Rosa JC
Emir Lopez, Football, University of Nevada–Reno
Aaron Wilson, Football, Butler County CC-KS
Christopher LaBouff, Football, Sacramento State University
Michael May, Football, Mount Union College
Gage Ford, Football, North Carolina Wesleyan College
Landon Greve, Football, University of Central Oklahoma
Garrett Coontz, Football, Bakersfield College
Drew McAllister, Football, University of Indianapolis
Robert Daigle, Football, Central College
Ethan Elzinga, Football, Long Beach City College
Craig Morris Jr., Football, East Texas Baptist University
CJ Wilson, Football, Brevard College
Michael Bilton, Football, Drake University
Joseph Grieci, Football, Western New England College
Alex Jones, Football, Florida State University
Gino Trinchero, Football, Western Oregon University
Aaron Edwards, Football, Christopher Newport University
Brendan Evans, Football, Springfield College
Heath Parling, Football, NCSA
Sylvester Moore Jr, Football, Charleston Southern University
Michael Bonacci, Football, Utica College
Giles Menard, Football, Louisiana Tech University
Tyrone Jackson, Football, North Carolina Central University
Andy McAteer, Football, Fort Lewis College
Ty Fields, Football, Tusculum College
Cody Dunaway, Football, Mississippi College
Kyle Hansen, Football, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps-McKenna College
Kellen Pagel, Football, Bowling Green State University
James Michael Miller, Football, Texas Christian University
Ryan Samuels, Football, Coastal Carolina University
Brandon Esposito, Football, University of Kansas
Sebastian Frausto, Football, College of the Desert
Samuel Juzbasich, Football, Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Robert Hodges, II, Football, Johnson C. Smith University
Travis Duffey, Football, Southern Virginia University
Robert Franco, Football, University of California–Los Angeles
Shawn Khanamuenwai, Football, Old Dominion University
Jake Wallace, Football, Emory and Henry College
Derek Todd, Football, University of Idaho
Arvin Williams II, Football, Ventura College
Kris Dearie, Football, Norwich University
Hayne Darby, Football, Bridgewater College
Joel Teal, Football, Hiram College
Sam Stratton, Football, University of Wyoming
Cole Daniel, Men’s Basketball, University of Alaska — Fairbanks
Jonathan Sauls, Men’s Basketball, Coker College
Christopher Frey, Men’s Basketball, Mount St. Mary College
Amir Smith, Men’s Basketball, Santa Monica College
Antowan Epps, Men’s Basketball, Madison Area Technical College
Tanner Reno, Men’s Basketball, Reinhardt College
Matthew Trelenberg, Men’s Basketball, Hope College
Brandon Laubach, Men’s Basketball, Austin College
Colin Smart, Men’s Basketball, College of Mount St. Joseph
Kyle Martin, Men’s Basketball, Warren Wilson College
Andrew Beischel, Men’s Golf, Valparaiso University
Dominic Lingua, Men’s Golf, College of the Canyons
Alex Wohl, Men’s Lacrosse, SUNY College of A&T–Cobleskill
Kleckner Charles, Men’s Lacrosse, University of Vermont
Riley McCleister, Men’s Lacrosse, Florida Southern College
Joe Wolin, Men’s Soccer, University of San Francisco
Christopher Henderson, Men’s Soccer, St. Joseph’s College
Christian Batch, Men’s Soccer, California State University–San Marcos
Blake Swanson, Men’s Soccer, Cypress College
Steven Baudoin, Men’s Soccer, La Sierra University
Jon Martinez, Men’s Soccer, Spalding University
Jacob Rose, Men’s Soccer, Santa Clara University
Sean Moran, Men’s Soccer, Stonehill College
Andy Grossman, Men’s Track, University of Wisconsin–La Crosse
Demetrius Jacobs, Men’s Track, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point
Tyree Leonard, Men’s Track, Rider University
Garrett Crow, Men’s Track, Fresno State University
Joshua Alonzo, Men’s Track, Texas A&M University–Kingsville
Ethan Harbison, Men’s Track, University of Alabama – Huntsville
Sherwood Egbert, Men’s Track, Moorpark College
Alexis Garrison, Softball, Susquehanna University
Lindsy Robison, Softball, Jackson Community College
Alyssa Hara, Softball, Methodist University
Jaclyn “Jazz” Kellon, Women’s Basketball, Goucher College
Ashley Torres, Women’s Basketball, Lamar Community College
Christina Jackson, Women’s Golf, Loras College
Jacqueline Gonzalez, Women’s Soccer, Bluefield College
Jasmine Parker, Women’s Soccer, Alcorn State University
Brianna Smith, Women’s Soccer, Canisius College
Alexandria Jimenez, Women’s Soccer, San Jose State University
Julie Larsen, Women’s Track, Brigham Young University — Provo
Candice Vaughn, Women’s Track, Albany State University
Gabrielle “Mandy” Irizarry, Women’s Volleyball, Augusta State University
Paige Mitchell, Women’s Volleyball, University of Hawaii–Manoa
Belinda Nwagbara, Women’s Volleyball, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Brett Kingsley, Wrestling, Lindenwood University

Tennessee Head Coach Lane Kiffin has certainly made an impression on the college recruiting landscape during his short time on campus.  While he succeeded in landing a top 10 recruiting class, he has also taken criticism for several comments and several rule infractions (he actually breaks the rules in this video by having media present while meeting with a recruit).

However, Kiffin aggressively argues that everything he has done has been by design to bring attention to his university.  He acknowledged how hard it can be to stand out during the process.

Recruits need to possess that exact same attitude towards recruiting.  They NEED to aggressively seek exposure and reach out college coaches.  If they don’t take that approach they run the risk of just blending in with the rest of the pack.  Don’t fall into that trap and break out with NCSA.

Navigating the athletic recruiting process can get really confusing,  really fast.  Most of the time the student athlete needs to rely on a support system to handle the intense time requirement.  ESPN’s Bruce Feldman recently profiled the Elite 11 quarterback camps and their impact on the football recruiting scene.  One top recruits mother had an interesting quote about just how much time and effort she had invested in helping her son.

Julie, like most QBs’ parents, has tried to become a recruiting expert in the past year to help her son navigate this minefield. She says she didn’t realize just how closely she’d been following this stuff until today, when she started recognizing kids she’d never seen in person just from their head shots. “It’s been a little bit frustrating,” she says of the process. “There are a lot of secret handshakes we’ve had to figure out because it’s so hard to get accurate information. For two weeks I’ve been trying to get Matt’s height and weight updated.”

The reality is it is extremely difficult for anyone to go through this process and not get frustrated.  Thats why many families turn to NCSA to make sure that they have an expert on their recruiting team.  Our Verified Scouting Reports keep college coaches up to date on every detail and the guidance we provide keeps the athlete on track.

I’m always amazed at what people’s definition of recruiting is.  Some think they are getting lots of interest when in fact they are among thousands on a college coach’s mailing list.   Below is a list of check points to see where you are.  If you’re a 2010 student-athlete and you’re not at a 4, 3, 2, or 1, you’re behind your peers.  If you’re a 2011 graduate and you’re not at a 7, you’re behind your peers.  If you’re a 2012 grad and you are not at a 10, you’re behind your peers.  If you wish to catch up, click here.

YOU means the student-athlete, not the HS coach or club coach.

1. Have YOU received a full or partial scholarship or grant & aid offer in writing from your dream school?
2.  Have YOU received a full or partial scholarship or grant & aid offer in writing from any school?
3. Have YOU received a full or partial scholarship or grant & aid offer made verbally from any school?
4. Have YOU been offered or taken an official visit?
5. Have YOU received a video and/or transcript request from a college coach?
6. Have YOU received phone calls from college coaches?
7. Have YOU been offered or taken un-official visits? 
8. Do YOU receive personal, handwritten letters from college head coaches on a regular basis?
9. Do YOU receive emails from college coaches on a regular basis?
10. Have YOU received questionnaires or camp information from college coaches?

I happened to be in the office of the Area Manager for a major Midwest Construction Company this week. Chris, the Manager, said this: “Charlie, I was just talking with my Supervisor about how we need to emphasize hiring former College Athletes more. They are more competitive. When they go for a bid on a project, they can’t tolerate losing. With some people in Sales, if they lose a bid they go, “Oh, well.” Not with College Athletes. They are so determined.”

The new book “Athletes Wanted” does a tremendous job exploring this breaking subject of companies going after College Athletes.

When I delivered “College Recruiting Simplified” at Debartolo Sports University in Youngstown, Ohio this past weekend, I talked about this in my presentation. Afterwards, a company recruiter came up to me and confirmed the message.

“Charlie, as a recruiter for my company, I target former College Athletes and distinguished Military first, and then the regular College student with great grades.”

I will explore this subject more in future blogs, but I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for young people and families to know this as they go through the recruiting process. Companies are looking to bring in people who have the fire within. College athletes, ESPECIALLY those with high GPA’s, are their targets.

Navigating through close to 1600 schools that offer women’s volleyball can be quite a daunting task. When I was going through the recruiting process I remember hearing from a lot of schools that I had never heard of before. At that time, I didn’t know where to start. I tried a few outlets available to me, namely my parents and my coaches. They certainly tried to help me, but unfortunately they did not know much about the schools either. In order to realistically consider a college you should really know all the basics: location, size, environment, campus type, entrance difficulty, admissions requirements, majors offered, and financial aid policy.

When you have a lot of coach contacts coming in (as many NCSA athletes do), you need a quick and easy way to familiarize yourself with a college/university. I know that high school student-athletes do not have a whole lot of extra time with your academic requirements and year round volleyball.

The initial response is to go to the school’s website for more information. While this may seem like the best place to start, there are a few reasons why it may not be the most effective way to learn about a college. First, you are looking at a biased site. A college/university is going to display facts about itself that portray it in a positive light. They will show you pretty pictures and their best stats. This may not be an accurate portrayal of the college/university. Second, college websites have become very intricate. Navigating through each page can take a long time. Usually the information you are looking for is buried three pages deep. Then you need to navigate around again to find the next piece of information you are looking for. All this just to find basic facts about the school! Third, you can only research one school at a time. You may have been contacted by 15 colleges in one day, how long is that going to take?

So, what is a better you ask? Well, there are a few resources that may be more efficient and effective for you during your college search. I regularly use a site called Petersons. They offer a “quick college search” feature that allows you to enter a college name and immediately get basic information about the college fast. The best thing is that this information is recorded from a third party, with no frills to distract you from the real facts. For example, I looked up Lake Forest College and learned immediately that the school has 1381 students, costs $32,130, is “very difficult” to gain entrance to, and the average ACT scores of incoming freshman range between 23-28. After one simple click I can also find the average incoming freshman GPA (3.51), the % of students living on campus,a list of majors, the financial aid policy and funding breakdown and much more. It’s simple and takes less than a minute per college.

In addition to this simple search function, this site also allows you to do an advanced college search by adding filters. There are several other sites that have a similar feature such as Collegeboard, Princeton Review, Usnews.com, College Navigator, and AnyCollege. I personally prefer Petersons because they allow you to search by sport and multiple divisions as well, which as an athlete is important when targeting schools.

Another powerful tool is the NCSA Power Rankings  that are posted annually.  The Power Rankings combine the Sears Cup Rank, US News Rank, and student-athlete graduation rank. So if you are looking for a quick reference as to whether the school has a good academic and athletic reputation, this is the place to go.

So in the future, focus on effective and efficient search habits.  Happy recruiting!

NCSA caught up with rising star Melissa Frixione to learn more about her volleyball career. Melissa is a sophomore setter from Leona Valley, CA. She plays for Revolution Volleyball Club and Quartz Hill High School.

NCSA: Why and when did you get involved in volleyball?
Melissa: I started officially playing in 6th grade but I had already been playing with my family since about 3rd grade. I wanted to play volleyball because my older sister played and I wanted to be just like her.

NCSA: How did your team do this season?
Melissa: For school, I was on the JV team and we were league champions, never lost a set. For club, we are in Division 7 I believe and we are doing fairly well.

NCSA: Do you have any big competitions coming up?
Melissa: Yes, I am going to AZ in the end of June for the Volleyball Festival! Whooo!

NCSA: What is the forecast for your fall high school season?
Melissa: I am hoping to make the varsity team as a junior this year, and if things go as planned, another year of being League Champions will follow. I want us to be a big force in CIF as well. It would be awesome to win!

NCSA: Tell us about your interactions with college coaches so far.
Melissa: I have sent emails to Tim O’Brien (UCONN) and before I had NCSA, I spoke to a BYU coach and started a relationship with her. Most interactions have been over emails.

NCSA: What camps do you plan to attend over the summer?
Melissa: For sure, BYU. I love their program and have been going to their camps for 3 years now. I’m also looking for one more hopefully, but it’s getting a little expensive.

NCSA: What are you looking forward to if and when you get the opportunity to play at the collegiate level?
Melissa: Of course, being able to play at a higher level, but I can’t wait for the friendships I’ll make and the experiences I’ll have as part of a college team.

NCSA: What are your goals – athletically, academically and in your community – for next year?
Melissa: As for athletically, I’m trying to gain a few inches on my vertical and get more into jump serving and jump setting. I also want to become better at my defensive game. Academically, I’m taking 4 AP classes and an IB class this year and I’m shooting for a 4.0. In my community, I would like to get more involved with my church youth group again. I have had practice on the meeting nights and I really miss seeing my church friends.

NCSA: What is the best part of being involved with NCSA so far?
Melissa: I love that anytime I have a question I have an amazing Recruiting Coach with all the answers just an email or phone call away. I never really had someone there to just work on volleyball for more than one season and it’s great that my Coach works so hard, just for me.

NCSA founder takes his new book, Athletes Wanted to the Friendly Confines

NCSA caught up with rising basketball athlete Peter Munch to talk about his basketball recruiting. 

NCSA: What are you doing to stand out in the recruiting process? 
Munch: I am attending various elite camps and contacting many schools.

NCSA: Have you taken any unofficial visits yet? Tell us about them. 
Munch: I have taken visits to FAU, FSU, UNF, and JU. They were all interesting and I loved all of them. I felt the most at home at either JU or UNF.

NCSA: Have you received a call from a coach yet and how did it go?
Munch: Yes, I have received calls from a few coaches. They all went very well and they all made me feel comfortable.

NCSA: How do you handle nerves before a big game or tournament? 
Munch: I pray to God and know that he will guide me to play at my very best level. It is all in his hands.

NCSA: How do you deal with disappointment in the recruiting process?
Munch: I know that God has a plan for me and I know if it was not meant to be, it’s not meant to be. So I just keep working and go from there.

NCSA: Can you give an example?
Munch: When Richmond told me they signed a SG for me class.

NCSA: Why should college coaches recruit you?
Munch: I will work harder than anyone. I have a shooting ability that is rare, and i can score in many ways. I am a complete player and tall for my position.

NCSA: What are your summer goals?
Munch: To get at least 3 more offers, to put on 10 pounds of muscle, and shape my game up even more.

NCSA: Who do you look up to the most to stay on track? 
Munch: My parents, they make sure I’m doing the right thing, keeping my grades and giving me motivation to be the best I can be.

NCSA: Overall, how has the recruiting process been for you so far? Has NCSA made a big impact for you?
Munch: I think my recruiting process has been pretty good, it can be better, but it’s not bad. NCSA has helped me out very much.