What Does September 1st Mean for Recruiting?
August 26th, 2009 - bySeptember 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?
