NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

College tryouts are an important but often overlooked opportunity in the recruiting process. They can be especially helpful to athletes who suffered an injury during the season or were not able to secure enough film.

Here are the rules broken down by division:

Division I:  ONLY men’s basketball is allowed to hold tryouts. Those tryouts are limited to prospective student-athletes who are 1) seniors in high school, 2) junior college transfers or 3) four-year transfers who have completed their basketball season. They also must be on an official or unofficial visit to the campus.

The on-campus evaluations are limited to two hours per week, whether during the collegiate season or out of it. The two hours must take place during the regular allowable practice time (20 hours during the season, eight hours out of it).

Division II schools are allowed to hold one practice or tryout for a college-bound student-athlete on its campus as long as the student-athlete is a high-school senior who is enrolled in a term other than the term in which the traditional season in the sport occurs. The school may conduct a medical examination of the student-athlete, and the tryout may include tests to evaluate the student-athlete’s strength, speed, agility and sport skills. The tryout may include competition except in football, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer and wrestling. The tryout is limited to the length of the school’s normal practice period in the sport, but in no event can it be longer than two hours. The school may loan equipment and clothing to the college-bound student-athlete during the tryout.

NAIA students are permitted a maximum of two days of tryouts throughout their entire career, and the tryout cannot interfere with school time. The tryout must occur on campus. If a school has a policy for reimbursing all students for such visits, the same can be applied to you as a prospective student-athlete.

Division III schools are not allowed to hold practice tryouts with college-bound student-athletes.

NJCAA schools are permitted to host tryouts as long as the State High School Activities Association in the student-athlete’s home state allows it.

If you want to play in college, talk to an NCSA College Scout by calling 866-495-7727 or clicking here. They can educate you about the recruiting process and help you build your recruiting game plan.

Dear Coach Taylor, what does it mean if a college coach is calling me once or twice a month?

Do you need more help in the recruiting process? Call 866-577-6272 or click here to get started!

Dear Coach Taylor, If a coach leaves his number in a recruiting letter should I call him? Why isn’t he calling me?

Do you need more help in the recruiting process? Call 866-577-6272 or click here to get started!

Coach Taylor-

Is junior college a good option to explore during the recruiting process?

Knowing what to wear on a college visit can be difficult for a student athlete. Thirty year college coaching veteran Bob Chmiel discusses how important what you are wearing when you meet a college coach is. Male student athletes should wear their pants around their waist, wear a nice shirt, make sure your hat isn’t covering your eyes. Ladies stick to a simple outfit, be appropriate, follow your school dress code. You only have one chance at a good first impression so make it count!

Dear Coach Taylor,

I have been reaching out to coaches and they haven’t gotten back to me, what should I do?

Dear Coach Taylor,  throughout the recruiting process several coaches have mentioned to me that their athletic program offers training table for student athletes. What exactly does this mean?

Dear Coach Taylor-

What should I be asking college coaches during our phone conversations?

47 seconds on the clock. You’re down six, facing 4th and 5 on your opponent’s 40.

You huddle up, get the count, and the center snaps the ball. Your QB takes a five-step drop, and he locks onto the star of your offense, a six-foot-six TE. He watches him off the line, he watches the break in his route and start off down the field. His eyes stay right on him.

Meanwhile, your scrappy little five-eight slot receiver ran a little curl just past the first down marker. Nothing flashy, but the guy is wide open because the defense pulled a safety to cover the tight end.

But your quarterback isn’t looking at his slot receiver. He guns it downfield to the big TE in double coverage – and gets picked off. The game is over.

What was going on? Why didn’t he hit the open man?

Because he didn’t have vision.

Out there in the recruiting world, athletes (in football and every other sport) make the same mistake every day. They get locked onto one target and miss the rest of what’s out there. In football, this can cost you a game. In recruiting, it can mean missing out on a life-changing opportunity.

So how do you avoid tunnel vision? Here are 5 tips:

1. Know Your Best Fit
Where is the best school for you? Each division level has their own guidelines for athletic ability, size, and academics. Make sure you’re qualified for the schools you reaching out to. Also be aware of what you want in a school, whether it’s big or small, urban or rural, target schools that you want to go to and are qualified to go to.

2. Keep Perspective
It’s easy to get caught up in the “Division I or nothing” trap. But Division I can be like that big tight end – you lock your eyes on it, and miss out on other, better opportunities that aren’t so obvious. Over 80% of all college opportunities in the United States are outside of Division I. There’s lots of scholarships, plenty of great teammates to compete alongside, and great academics. A college education will change your life, whether it’s Division I or not.

3. Find Great Academic Opportunities
Some of the best academic institutions in the world are Division III schools, including: University of Chicago and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, both ranked by US News in the top 5 universities in the country; New York University, one of the nation’s top business schools; Carnegie Mellon University, among the best in the world for engineering and computer science; Johns Hopkins University, internationally renowned for medicine and biology, and Williams College, the nation’s top liberal arts school.

4. Cast a Wide Net
Even if there’s one school you are really interested in, don’t just apply there. Recruiting is highly competitive and well prepared recruits often contact coaches at more than a hundred schools. Just like a passer in football “goes through his reads,” you should have a first option, a second, and a third, all the way down the line. Don’t limit yourself. If you get into your top choice – great! If you don’t, you have other options, and you can still play college sports and get money towards your education.

5. Take Advantage of “Mismatches” on the Recruiting Field
A lot Division III and NAIA coaches don’t have the resources to start reaching out early, so if you get a jump on the process and contact them, you can find yourself with a wide-open path to a scholarship. Build that relationship early and keep on it, and you may find yourself far out in front of your competition.

Keep your vision, and you will find great opportunities. Don’t stare down that “one sure thing” and close yourself off from a world of possibilities. Get educated, stay flexible, change your life.

Dear Coach Taylor,

I have received a lot of questionnaires from college coaches. Should I fill all of them out, what if I do not have all the information they are asking for?