NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

College Coaches pay more attention to schools that consistently turn out lots of high quality student-athletes.  If for no other reason it gives them more bang for their buck.  Traditional powerhouses that produce stud after stud are always given preferential treatment during the recruiting process.

Boyd Anderson in Fort Lauderdale is one of those schools.  They have produced an incredible 31 Division I football players the past three years.  Due to their past success college coaches are now jumping on their underclassman earlier than ever making sure they are in the mix at this talent pipeline.

After producing 31 Division I players the past three years, including five-star safety and Under Armour All-American Demar Dorsey this past recruiting cycle, it stands to reason that the Cobras would have a hard time continuing to average more than 10 Division I prospects a year. A Friday visit to the ultra-talented school showed proof that couldn’t be further from the truth. The high volume of college recruiters who make Boyd Anderson a priority will continue to flock to the 5A school for years to come in search of some of the top talent in the Southeast.

Not only is the 2011 class one that could produce double-digit Division I prospects, but the 2012 and 2013 classes are already drawing praise from head coach Mark James. James should know — he has coached at Boyd Anderson the past four years and played for a stacked 1990 state championship team at Fort Lauderdale Dillard. That squad featured a number of Division I and NFL players, including Isaac Bruce and Frank Sanders.

“I think this junior class is one that is going to supersede the 2005, 2006 and 2007 classes,” said James. “The one thing I love about this class is that there are already a lot of guys who are academically eligible. They are part of a group that we started testing [academically] as sophomores and the guys have benefited. We have over 20 D-IA offers ready for our kids and I think it will be a successful recruiting season for our kids,”

Along with the bevy of prospects in the junior class, some special young talents are emerging in the sophomore and freshman classes.

Coaches have a proven source of talent and academics, therefore its no surprise they are jumping on the next crop as early as possible.  How can recruits at smaller schools associate themselves with other high quality recruits?  Join NCSA and Recruit-Match.  NCSA has sent thousands of players on to play at each level and coaches trust our athletes will have the athletic and academic qualifications necessary to play at the next level.  Its a proven pipeline, if you are interested in joining that pipeline you can start here.

What does this phone call mean?  How many offers should I have by now?  When do coaches start calling?  These are extremely difficult questions to answer, especially because everything depends on the timing.  Receiving letters as a freshman is great, but if you are still at that level a few years later you are in trouble.

Right on cue here is the entire Chapter 2 of Athletes Wanted, Gauging a Student-Athletes Level of Recruitment.  We encourage you to Share This Page with as many of your teammates as possible.  The first step in the recruiting process is evaluating where you are at in the process.  Athletes Wanted can help you take that first step.

Order Athletes Wanted Today!

Isaiah Cavaco enters his fourth year as the head coach for the Oberlin College men’s basketball team.

Under Cavaco’s guidance, Oberlin made its first NCAC Tournament appearance since the 2000-01 season and swept conference rival Earlham for the first time since the 1997-1998 season. The Yeomen also won back-to-back road games for the first time since the 1990-91 campaign.

NCSA: How would you describe yourself as a coach?

Coach Cavaco: I like to teach and see guys improve in there time at Oberlin. I expect my guys to bring a great effort so that I can help them put it towards something positive. As a staff, we teach our guys how to play, how to read situations and let players go out and make the right plays.

NCSA: What’s unique about the experience at Oberlin College?

Coach Cavaco: This is a very diverse campus with people from all 50 states and over 35 countries. We have a lot of history including being the first school to graduate women and African-American students, and the progressive-thinking atmosphere continues on today. Our team doesn’t have a single player this year from Ohio or a state touching Ohio.

NCSA: What do recruits need to know about you?

Coach Cavaco: We are building the program from scratch. We have no seniors this year, three juniors that were recruited by our staff while we were just interim and a solid freshman and sophomore class around which we are building. This is a stage where we need guys that want to work hard to make a difference in a program.

NCSA: What do you look for in recruits?

Coach Cavaco: I look for good ball skills, basketball smarts, guys that communicate well and those that play defense with the same vigor as they play offense. Everyone in our program has to be able to do something offensively, so ball skills are key.

NCSA: What is the one thing every recruit needs to do with the recruiting process?

Coach Cavaco: Everyone needs to get us a transcript so we can see if the recruit is acceptable. We have high standards and averages like 30 as our average ACT, so we need to know how good a student we are recruiting. They also need to have footage sent to us of high school action. They need to also fill out the CSS profile as soon as possible.

NCSA: What sort of questions do you really like to hear from recruits?

Coach Cavaco: I like recruits to ask about the overall experience of being a student-athlete at Oberlin. This is a lifestyle for 4 years, and that is something that is most important – being comfortable in a day-to-day routine. I also like to hear them ask about what someone can do coming out of Oberlin. Finally, they should know how selectively we recruit so we can explain that we don’t recruit bulk numbers like most D3 schools.

NCSA: What turns you off when you’re recruiting a student athlete?

Coach Cavaco: I don’t like to hear that a recruit is looking at extremely ‘lesser’ academic schools because I know they will get merit money at those schools that we can not give because it may be a stretch just to get him accepted. I also don’t like to hear “I just want to keep my options open” because I’ll come back with, “well, what is it that will magically make you realize the right school?” This is a logical decision and an emotional one, but if a school has what you want and need, you should want to secure a spot – it is more likely that a spot will go away than a “better” spot will open up.

NCSA: What do you think your program is the most successful at?

Coach Cavaco: I haven’t been here long enough to create a tradition, but we are good at maximizing the abilities of our current players. Our program is successful at creating a great experience for a D3 program by traveling to different places, playing in unique situations and getting to meet and befriend people from all over the country and world.

NCSA: Why should a recruit consider your program?

Coach Cavaco: A recruit has the opportunity to create a legacy instead of deal with pressures of carrying on an identity that isn’t his own. Many people go places and only get a chance to play in about 50 of 100 guaranteed games, but here, at the place we are now, a recruit can realistically be an important player in all 100 of those games.

NCSA: If a recruit is interested in your program, how should they reach out to you?

Coach Cavaco: A recruit should E-mail me and fill out our on-line questionnaire. I can also be reached at 440-775-8407.

Recruiting Simplified for Coaches is a new NCSA program designed to give you, the college coach, an edge in the recruiting process. NCSA recently polled more than 1200 student-athletes about what recruits are thinking. Our approach is designed to give you honest feedback about what the student-athlete wants and will help you find ideal recruits for your athletic program. Here are a few of our results:

Did you know that 40% of student-athletes would rather know if you have scholarship money available as opposed to whether they are one of your top recruits? Other factors athletes think are important:

32% of student-athletes are afraid to ask coaches about your interest level in them. Here are some of the other questions student-athletes want to know, but are afraid to ask you:

What do recruits want to do on a campus visit? 58% of student-athletes would prefer to attend a campus event, over other activities:

Have you ever wondered how many contacts you should have with a prospect before expressing your true interest level? 29% of student-athletes want to have approximately 3 contacts with you before you tell them where they stand on your list of recruits.

To hear all the results from this in depth survey (more than 35 questions!), be sure to register for “In the Mind of a Student-Athlete” – a FREE educational conference call exclusively for college coaches.  The next call is:

March 25th at 11 am CST.  Register Here.

To learn about other conference calls that NCSA offers college coaches, click here.

This past week I was educating families on the College Recruiting process at Triton High School. After the program, families came up to me for quite awhile with specific questions. One young man was a 12th grade cross country runner with a 3.9 GPA and so-so cross country times. He seemed genuinely interested in running in College, but had not been recruited by any cross country coaches.

He had been getting letters from Colleges, which sometimes confuses families.

My son, an 11th grade cross country runner has been getting letters from colleges. He gets two kinds of letters:

* He gets general letters from Colleges interested in him because of his good Test scores. These Colleges have no idea he is in Cross Country and that he wants to run in College. They learn of kids who do well on various Tests, and fire off a lot of letters. These sometimes confuse families with athletes. They aren’t the same as getting letters from the Coaches.

* He gets letters from Colleges Cross Country coaches that have learned about him because he is in NCSA. They are watching his development.

The young man at Triton High is strictly getting letters from Colleges that have seen his very good Test scores, and are interested in him being a student. They have no clue he likes cross country, and they have no clue that he is wondering if he could possibly run at the small college level. I advised him to make sure to put on his response forms to the Colleges that he had a sincere interest in running in College and that he wanted to communicate with the Coaches. In his case, D3 and NAIA Admissions folks would be well served to let their Coaches know about him. This young man has a 3.9 GPA and a good “upside” as a runner. A lot of young people just keep getting better and better, and he could be a solid athlete at some point in College. College coaches often recruit on “projectability.” They could see that this young man was okay as a runner in High School, but could project to be a contributor to them in College. As a High School athlete, he has been in that gray area of not really good but having the potential to possibly become college material.

Let’s say one of his general letters came from Benedictine University. That University was aware of his strong SAT or PSAT or ACT scores. They sent him and a lot of other kids like him info about their school. Benedictine is a D3 school with a gorgeous campus not far from Chicago. Not only should he send the form back to the College, but he should also clearly indicate he wants to communicate with the Coaches. You can see in a lot of those letters where they will ask if you have a specific interest in Athletics. Make sure they know you do. This young man should also go online and research the team, their roster, and the Coaches bio. If he doesn’t hear from a Coach shortly, he should then contact the Coach, let him know his story, and see if he could come for an unofficial visit. Coaches want to hear from young people.

Now, if he got a general letter from, say, the University of Tennessee, I don’t know that he would have much look getting their Cross Country coaches to have any interest in him, because his times are nowhere near D1 levels. I had a young man last year say he wanted to run at a Big 10 school, and he hadn’t even qualified for State in High School. He ended up at a prestigious D3 school getting a boatload of academic money and is among their top 5 runners. That is why it is so important to get a realistic evaluation from a NCSA scout, to help you understand which kinds of schools to target. That way you are not wasting their time, or yours.

Getting back to the 12th grader. Coaches want to see how much fire he has in him. His times now aren’t that hot, but does he have the burning desire to make great improvements over the next couple of years? Based on what I learned about him that night, I felt he was right in the neighborhood of being able to run in College. With a 3.9 GPA, he would be eligible for academic scholarship money at the school. As mentioned, he needs to make sure the Admissions people know on those form letters that he would like to talk to a Coach, or he could ask them to please let the Coach know he will be contacting him or her soon.

This young man is at a crossroads, like many other 12th graders. In talking to him, I could tell he wanted to run in College. He has work to do, but if he wants it enough, it can happen. The sand in the hour glass is running out. He has to “steady get after it” as my Uncle Everett used to say. Otherwise, one day he will be 37 years old and wondering if he could have run in College? I talk with a lot of 12th graders and their families that are starting to panic now. One young man thought College Coaches would read about him in his local newspaper. He is a very good basketball player, but only recruited by one local school. He is playing massive catch up, but we are getting him up to speed.

It is amazing how much lack of knowledge there is about recruiting. At every event I speak at, only about 5% of the people know what unofficial visits are. Very few know they can contact Coaches at any time. Few know how proactive they have to be. Most people think it is the job of the HS or Club Coach or AD to take the lead in the recruiting process. Don’t be ashamed about not knowing. Just make sure you become educated, and a great way is to come to a College Recruiting Simplified presentation. And please – make sure 7th and 8th graders are there so that they can learn what they need to do from 9th grade on to be in better position to be recruited and get funding for their education. If I hear one more person say, “My child is only an 8th grader…it’s too early,” I will keel over.

If your School or Club does not provide recruiting education you can contact NCSA here!

In what now seems as a weekly occurrence another football player has gotten into hot water using Facebook.  As a general rule of thumb if you can’t say something to your coach’s face you probably shouldn’t post it on Facebook for the world to see.

While it is true that the majority of professional athletes do come from DI programs and schools, student-athletes not getting looks from the biggest programs in the country should not feel like all is lost.  A large number of professional athletes have come from smaller DII or DIII schools.  Pierre Garcon, who played his college football at DIII Mount Union, caught a touchdown pass in the Superbowl.  Sometimes, as in the case of Hillsdale (MI) offensive tackle Jared Veldheer, it takes four years of college athletics at a smaller school to develop the skills and techniques necessary to play at the highest level.

I like to post updates about Florida State’s Super Scholar-Athlete, Myron Rolle. On cue Here is his latest update from Europe chronicling his balancing act between preparing for the NFL and life as a Rhodes Scholar.