NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

The College Recruiting process can be a long and winding road.  One thing is certain, it helps to have options.  That is why it is so important that recruits consider schools that some might think unconventional.  By bringing more schools into the mix a student-athlete increases his leverage and increases the odds that he will find the perfect fit.  That usually means expanding the search past your state borders and looking for contacts beyond what is offered by your high school coach.

New Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney was discussing his team’s Heisman trophy candidate C.J. Spiller and the path he took choosing the Tigers over much closer rivals.

“The young man beats to his own drum, does things in his own fashion,” Swinney said this summer. “He’s not afraid to go against the grain. He knew what he was looking for and stayed true to that. I’m so proud of him.”

“He was hem-hawing around, and I said, ‘You said you’d visit, all I want you to do is come visit,’” Swinney said. “You like Clemson and you haven’t even been there. I said, ‘Let me tell you something. It’s better to go six hours to the right place than 30 minutes or 90 minutes to the wrong place.’”

We couldn’t have said it better coach.

Sports are a powerful vehicle.  One of NCSA’s often repeated lines, “It’s not a 4 year decision, its a 40 year decision,” has a lot of different applications.  One of those applications is that the decision to play a sport in college will affect an individual’s professional career for the rest of their life.  The experience of playing college sports can help positively brand a professional for years.

After, Tennessee Coach Phil Fulmer was fired last fall after 17 years at UT he found himself working for an investment firm.  He discussed with the NYT Quad Blog how his athletic background has helped him contribute to his new team.

Oh, absolutely. I think there’s carry over in any successful business. From a philosophical standpoint, they have a very successful business but, you know, in anything it’s always good to have another perspective on things. People don’t realize that from a management standpoint, as a head coach in the Southeastern Conference or at a Division I school, you’re very much a C.E.O. You’re managing a lot of dollars and people. So I think from that standpoint I’ve added value. That was the thing before I took it. We sat down, and we took a month after he talked to me about and said ’Look, you be sure you want to do this and I’ll be sure I want to do it.’ I evaluated it from my standpoint. Was it worth my time? And it’s turned out to be. I’ve learned a lot from them and I think that I’ve added value to the company. Credibility and all those things that make a company successful. Like I said, they’re doing well anyway, so it was just a few little things.

Before I delivered “College Recruiting Simplified” at a recent Club Softball event, I had a chance to talk with a NAIA Softball Coach, Anna Welsh of Bethel College (IN). I asked Anna to share some recruiting insights into her program:

“Charlie, we look for versatile softball players. We really don’t recruit one position. I encourage young players that if you don’t play outfield, learn it. That’s three positions right there. Speed and versatility are important. Lefty slappers are in demand. Even right handers should learn to bunt well. I encourage players to be proactive in the recruiting process. You have to find ways to seek me. As far as packages, grades are HUGE. We go after kids with test scores. When I watch players before games, seeing them carry their own bag is important. I know some coaches will say it doesn’t matter if they carry their own gear as long as they can hit. Well, it matters to me. As far as video, the number one thing is I don’t want game footage. I want skills footage. I want to see five reps of every skill you do. Five cuts off the tee. Five bunts. Taking five grounders. Things like that. Running to first. I can sit there with my stopwatch and time you. As far as taking grounders and such, take your time. I see some skills tapes produced where the girl is doing one thing right after another and is out of breath. In a game, you are not going to have five grounders hit at you in rapid fire fashion. Also, your tape does not have to be fancy.”

I wrote recently that Coach Welsh is one of the many coaches that constantly go to NCSA looking for qualified softball players. For those of you working on video, “Get ‘er done,” as Coach says she will not look at any kind of recruiting profile unless there is skills video. She goes right onto the player that has video.

Its no secret that being a part of a major Division I program is a lot of work.  However, sometimes even college players balk at the daunting workload.  The University of Michigan was rocked this weekend by allegations by current and former players that the school was breaking several NCAA rules by requiring workouts that far exceeded NCAA time limits. But is this even a story worth breaking?

According to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, no.

You’re naïve if you think every FBS program practices for no more than 20 hours a week or no more than four hours a day. You’re naïve if you think members of the coaching staff don’t attend voluntary 7-on-7 scrimmages during the offseason — or receive direct reports about what happened. You’re naïve if you think players aren’t strongly encouraged to spend more than the required eight hours a week working out during the winter and summer.

These “violations” happen everywhere. They don’t leak out publicly for two reasons.

1. The NCAA-mandated time limits for practices and workouts aren’t exceeded in excess.

2. Players aren’t motivated enough to speak out against their coaches and trainers.

The Michigan situation stands out because if the allegations are true, the coaches and trainers didn’t merely go over the time limits for practices and workouts — they obliterated them. If you’re regularly keeping players at the football facilities for 10 to 12 hours on the Sundays after games — as current and former Michigan players told the Detroit Free Press and ESPN.com — you’re probably asking for problems.

Then again, most college football players wouldn’t raise a finger to such demands.

Colleague Bruce Feldman recently conducted a confidential players’ survey for ESPN The Magazine in which he asked players: What’s the one thing that you never realized about being a college football player until you actually became one?

Almost all the players talked about it being a full-time job.

“I never understood that you were signing your life away when you sign [that Letter of Intent],” one FBS quarterback told Feldman. “They control everything you do: When you wake up, when you go to bed. I get told I’m going to birthday parties for kids. You don’t have a choice. You have a dictatorship. Every time we don’t show up to a voluntary workout, we’ve got [to run] stadiums and hills. And there’s no money to show for it. You definitely don’t realize it when you’re getting recruited and they’re being all nice to you.”

The allegations against Michigan probably speak more to the unrest in the program created by the arrival of new coach, Rich Rodrguez, than a time commitment differing from most college programs.  However, the allegations open a window to all potential recruits to see just how much work goes into playing any sport at a major Division I university.

The reason I bring up this important point is that many of the athletes we work with at NCSA understand this workload ahead of time and choose a different division level to better balance their academic and athletic goals.    Its another example of why starting early and really taking the time to make an informed college decision is key to finding the right university.

Recruiting process.  Often times it is the second of those two words that can be the central source of frustration with the recruiting process.  What many families who are new to recruiting do not immediately realize is that this process will not happen overnight.  It could take weeks, months or years depending on a number of factors, but it will almost never provide the instant gratification that some recruits seek.

Earning a roster spot or athletic scholarship is the culmination of all the hard work a student-athlete has put into their academics, athletics, and recruiting process.  Success in those three areas does not happen in a day.  It takes years. 

To effectively make this point, I will default to an analogy that we have used in the past.  The recruiting process is very similar to the process of finding a job.  How often does a job-seeker decide one day out of the blue, with no regard to their past academic or work experience that they want a quality job and simply post their resume or send it through the company website and have an offer waiting the next day  or even the next week?  Not often, if ever.

The ability of that individual to find a quality job is contingent on two things; all the work they have done in the past leading up to that point and how they take advantage of all that experience in their pursuit of employment.   Obtaining a quality job typically requires years of proper schooling and work experience which both demand hard work.  Additionally, once you have gathered that experience, the process of actually finding a job is no small task.  Sending resumes to display all that you have accomplished is followed by rounds of interviews before a job is secured.  I think you start to get the idea.

The recruiting process is similar.  All the years of playing for youth, travel, and high school teams combined with the countless tests and projects completed in grades 1-12 make up the resume of a recruit.  The attractiveness of that resume is only as valuable as the efforts made in getting it in front of the right people and understanding how to properly build a relationship and separate yourself from the thousands of competitors.

The recruiting process can frustrating, overwhelming, and maddening…but it can also be rewarding.  The formula for success?  It’s simple.  First and foremost, work as hard as you possibly can in the classroom.  Next, put 110% into all your athletic pursuits.  Finally, be sure to do the 5 things that every recruit needs to do.  If you do all those things, more times than not, you will find success. 

While the formula might be simple, the work it takes to be successful is not.  But it is possible if you are willing to have a little patience.

Many student-athletes opt to attend Junior Colleges after their high school careers are complete.  The main reasons are either poor grades or lack of offers to top athletic programs.  For athletes that choose this route, the recruiting process only takes a short break before launching into an even more confusing spiral.

For that reason NCSA works specifically with potential junior college transfers to help them find a home at a four year university.  Our relationships and experience in guiding athletes throughout the process makes NCSA the number one scouting service for Junior college transfers.

Bobby Bowden and Florida State used to rule over the ACC.  they produced first round pick after first round pick and Bobby Bowden held the title of the winningest 1-A football coach.  Times have changed.  The team that won 12 ACC titles and finished in the top five nationally 13 times has won one one ACC title in the past five seasons.  The reason for the drop is evidently clear to Coach Bowden.

He says the other reason why the Seminoles have a 40-24 record the past five years is mostly self-inflicted: poor recruiting.

For example, Bowden points to starting quarterback Christian Ponder. He is a fourth-year junior, but this is his second season as the starter.

Bowden starts to recite a line of quarterbacks who didn’t start for the Seminoles until they were fourth-year juniors, after they had learned the playbook and gotten used to the speed of the college game.

“I think the [NFL] draft this year, where are the Florida State kids in the draft?” Bowden asked, before answering that only one player was drafted. “They aren’t in there. Used to have four in the first round. And forget the five-star stuff. Some of them five-stars played like one-stars, two-stars.

“We just have to look at and evaluate. We better look at potential better. Do a better job of going by the high school and scrutinizing the kid to see what he really brings to the table, rather than what the newspapers said.”

Bowden says he thinks they are close to getting back to the top, but will he be there to see it?

FSU has named offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher as Bowden’s successor. They’ve even promised him $5 million if Bowden doesn’t retire after the 2010 season. Bowden says he knows when he’s going to step down, but hasn’t yet told school president T.K. Weatherall or athletics director Randy Spetman.

Bowden says having Fisher has helped with recruiting. He knows the recruits doubt if he will be there by the time they leave. Having Fisher as coach-in-waiting eases their minds.

“You know something like that, you’ve got have the cooperation of everybody,” Bowden said. “I’m still the head football coach at Florida State. Jimbo is the offensive coordinator and coach-in-waiting. That’s all there is to say about it. It’s worked good.”

Bowden’s quotes bring up to extremely important points about the recruiting process.  One, recruits that are worrying about getting a lot of stars by a recruiting website are playing the wrong game.  College coaches focus on evaluating talent, not staring at websites.  Recruits need to focus on getting themselves in front of college coaches, so they can truly get evaluated.

The second point is also extremely important.  Recruits need to develop a trusting relationships with college coaches.  It is obviously hard to develop a trusting relationship with a coach long rumored to be retiring.  Recruits need to show coaches that they are mature enough to inspire trust that they will be a solid student-athlete at the college level.  Coaches need to have trust in their recruits, the same way recruits choose schools based on trust in coaching staffs.

Congratulations to NCSA Student-Athlete John Hochstatter and the USA National Baseball Team on their World Championship.

September 1st is right around the corner.  Do you know the significance of that date in the recruiting world? If not you need to take a step back from the process and educate yourself on the rules and regulations regarding your graduation class and sport. Below are a few simple guidelines for student athletes to review before moving forward in the fall.

Seniors:

September 1st should serve as a significant benchmark recruiting date for seniors.  The reality is that for many sports, a majority of Division I scholarship offers have been given out and final evaluations will be completed.  Division II and Division III recruiting will start to pick up.  Although the actual timelines will vary slightly based on sport, every recruit should evaluate where you stand.  Are you happy with your recruiting situation?

As we mentioned last week, official visits will be taken by thousands of senior recruits around the country over the next few months and those are allowed on the first day of classes.  Also, September 1st marks the beginning of an Evaluation Period for football players and other sports will soon follow.  If you’re not sure what an Evaluation Period is, then you haven’t read “The Guide for College Bound Student Athletes” published by the NCAA and you should consider yourself behind with the recruiting process.

The level of contact between recruits and coaches will soon start to pick back up  from the lull in the later summer months.  If you are not in close communication with several colleges by the end of September, you should re-evaluate your recruiting strategy.  As a smart recruit you should look to match this rise in the level of communication with coaches by reaching out to more and more schools. If you haven’t already started to inquire about applications and visits, now is the time to do so. Be more direct with coaches about where you stand. If a school is going to be an option for you, great!  However, if you sense that the school is not interested in you or it is not a good fit, take that school off your list and move on.

It’s important to note that DII, DIII and NAIA coaches often wait until senior year before showing significant interest. 

Juniors:

On this date, DI and DII college coaches are allowed to send written recruiting information. (The date is different for men’s basketball and men’s ice hockey) For many athletes this is the first point where a college coach can show serious interest. If you’ve taken the proper steps of researching schools during your freshman and sophomore years you should have a target list of programs put together that you can reach out to.  DI and DII coaches are now allowed to respond to your emails so be sure to include questions. For some athletes this will mark the first point where they start receiving written scholarship offers from schools.  Remember to be on your toes and respond to any information you receive, regardless of your initial interest in the school. The more options you have on the table the better.

It’s important to note that recruiting does not start on September 1st of your junior year, which leads me to freshmen and sophomores…

Freshmen and Sophomores:

Many experts have pointed out that the majority of recruits separate themselves from their recruiting competition during the freshmen and sophomore years.  The recruits who actively put together a serious recruiting game plan ultimately will have more success than those who wait until junior or senior year. 

While recruits cannot technically receive official recruiting letters or phone calls for the most part, they can take several important steps:

- Receive an initial third party evaluation to determine what you need to improve to reach your ideal level of play.
- Begin building an online athletic and academic resume.
- Start researching colleges and universities.
- Proactively reach out to college coaches through letters, phone calls and unofficial visits.  Warning: Make sure you understand how to do this properly though so you don’t hurt your chances!
- Educate yourself about the recruiting process. 

The reality is that in some sports, college coaches begin putting their recruiting lists together in 7th and 8th grade.  Even more coaches will compile those lists when prospects are freshmen and sophomores.  The work that freshmen and sophomore put into the recruiting process will dictate their position junior and senior year.  Remember, this process will affect the rest of a your life…why wait to get started?

-Quiet Period

The college coach may not have any in-person contact with you or your parents off the college’s campus. The coach may not watch you play or visit your high school during this period. You and your parents may visit a college campus during this time. A coach may write or telephone you or your parents during this time.

-Contact Period

During this time, a college coach may have in-person contact with you and/or your parents on or off the college’s campus. The coach may also watch you play or visit your high school. You and your parents may visit a college campus and the coach may write and telephone you during this period.

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