Ask Coach Taylor – I attend a small high school, will this hurt me during the recruiting process?
February 24th, 2010 - byCoach Taylor – I attend a small high school, will this hurt me during the recruiting process?
The answer, like many recruiting questions, is Yes and No. More often than not, a larger high school that has sent numerous athletes to college has established itself as a must-see stop on the recruiting trail. Their head coaches have built relationships with college coaches over time from going through the recruiting process over and over. Essentially more schools come to them, and their coaches help them reach out more. It also helps that larger schools tend to be near metropolitan areas making it easier for college coaches to visit.
Athletes at smaller schools tend to have sent fewer players to the next level and their coaches usually have fewer relationships with coaches. This naturally leaves them further off the recruiting map.
But does playing at a small school stop you from maximizing your scholarship potential and playing at the highest level? Absolutely not! Student-athletes that are further from the traditional pipeline simply need to work harder. That can be in a number of ways that we outline in this blog and newsletter, but the bottom line is they need to be more pro-active. They need to work harder, and build more relationships with coaches.
I recruited many players from smaller schools and once I was convinced they had the ability to help our team, I couldn’t have cared less what size high school they attended!
Send your recruiting questions to askcoachtaylor@ncsasports.org
If you would like to speak with a NCSA Recruiting Coordinator about your personal recruiting situation, call 866-579-6272.
