NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

Dear Coach Taylor,

I have set up a few unofficial visits for the coming months, can I be recruited on these trips?

Highlight tape is crucial to the recruiting process. Due to a lack of funding for college programs athletic departments college coaches now use highlight tape to  make initial evaluations of student athletes before making the commitment to see them play in person. Below 30 year college coach veteran Randy Taylor talks about highlight tapes in the recruiting process.

Navigating the recruiting process can be difficult for  student athletes, coaches and especially for parents. It is hard for parents to know when to help their student athlete and when to take a step back. 30 year college coaching veteran Bob Chmiel mentions some key points for parents to remember below.

Parents Golden Rules Part 1

Rule #1: Don’t Be a Helicopter Parent

• A helicopter parent hovers over their child, not allowing him/her to grow or act for herself
• A WE parent lives vicariously through their child’s accomplishments
• Remember: during the recruiting process, let the student athlete become the team captain
• A parent’s first response is always to jump in and rescue their child when they are struggling but this is a great time for your student athlete to learn how to be independent and responsible
• Just try to remember that a coach wants to hear from the person they are putting the investment in, which is not the parent in this situation.

Rule #2: Teach Humility

• Young athletes who are talented can sometime receive too much support and praise, and develop attitude problems and less motivation
• Teach your athlete to be humble and gracious, to work hard academically and athletically
• Parents are primarily responsible for their children’s attitude, teach your athlete they have to earn everything they receive
• Teach your student athlete to be accountable for their actions, NCSA suggests a three part ACE formula
• A- Academics: Remember that college coaches will not recruit a student athlete who cannot compete in the classroom. Academic performance tells a coach a lot about a child’s ability to manage time, set goals, and prioritize
• C-Character: Character is a big part of a sport. No coach wants to work with a sore loser or and ungracious winner. Remember that you can tell a lot about a child’s character by the company he keeps. Parents need to make sure their children know how to make good decisions and are accountable for the actions they take
• E-Effort: Effort and work ethic are a big part of children’s ability to be successful student-athletes. Won or lose, a coach wants to know that student-athletes did their best not only athletically, but also academically. So as long as a student makes his best effort with every play and in every classroom on every homework assignment and in every practice, a coach will see that the athlete is a class act.

Parents this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for your athlete! Make sure to stay tuned for part 2 and part 3 of the parents golden rules in recruiting.

Dear Coach Taylor,

How binding is a verbal commitment from a student athlete? Can an athlete back out of a commitment?

Dear Coach Taylor,

How should I approach coaches when I am at their camp? Should I introduce myself?

Dear Coach Taylor,

Should I be a walk on or accept a scholarship at another school?

Dear Coach Taylor,

I have been offered a scholarship to a great school and accepted.I still have a year until I sign my NLI, how binding is a verbal offer from a college coach?

Dear Coach Taylor,

I have been offered a scholarship as a junior, the coach is pushing me to commit but I am not sure I am ready. How long do I have to accept a scholarship once it has been offered?

Dear Coach Taylor,

Do college coaches do a majority of their recruiting during their season, during the off season or during the summer?

Do you need more help in the recruiting process?

Call 866-577-6272 or get started at http://bit.ly/GetRecruitedNow

Learn more at http://www.ncsasports.org/

Dear Coach Taylor,

I was talking to a college coach, but now I can’t seem to get a hold of him. We were emailing and talking on the phone but he has not responded to me in over a week. What does this mean?

Do you need more help in the recruiting process?

Call 866-577-6272 or get started at http://bit.ly/GetRecruitedNow