NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

Dear Coach T,

I was  injured last week, should I tell the college coaches that are recruiting me?

In this day and age of recruiting we see a lot of top student athletes de-commiting from the original school that they chose. There are several reasons for the increase of de-commits as of late, a major reason being that athletes feel pressured into making early decisions, the most famous right now being the #1 quarterback in the country Gunner Keihl. Gunnrt de-commited twice before finally deciding on Notre Dames football program. Scouting expert Tom Lemming and Randy Taylor give advice on how to handle the situation if you chose to de-commit.

For Immediate Release, May 3rd 2010

The National Collegiate Scouting Association (NCSA), a nationwide college athletic recruiting organization, has partnered with the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) in an unprecedented move that signifies each organization’s commitment to further education and opportunities for all student athletes.

NCSA has earned the reputation as the most trusted source for college athletic recruiting education, data, and technology for collegiate coaches, student athletes, and their families. Now, the collaboration between the two organizations will allow members of the NFLPA to take an active role in supporting NCSA’s efforts to empower all students who are looking for more opportunities through athletic scholarships.

Through NCSA’s “College Recruiting Simplified” seminar program, an impressive list of current and former professional athletes, coaches and sportscasters work as educational speakers for NCSA. Super Bowl Champion Derrick Mayes, four-time Pro Bowler Blaine Bishop, and 1990 All-Decade team member Levon Kirkland are among the former NFL players currently traveling the country to speak to student athletes about their own experiences with college and professional recruiting.

This mutually supportive relationship with the NFLPA has resulted in NCSA becoming the largest employer of former NFL players worldwide. According to Director of NCSA’s Speakers Bureau and former Dallas Cowboy Izell Reese, “NFL players are the ideal candidates to educate the next generation of student athletes on the importance of the college recruiting process.”

“As an active professional athlete, you are always conscious of life after football,” added Reese, who also serves as Vice President of the NFLPA Retired Players Atlanta Chapter. “Working with NCSA has provided a meaningful career that allows us to interact with kids and educate them on the recruitment process through our personal experiences.”

The NFLPA will also lend its support to NCSA’s National School Lunch Program, which offers extended recruiting services to student athletes who show extraordinary promise but may not have the financial means to support their dreams of playing college sports. The outreach program is available for student athletes who qualify for the organization’s free recruiting services and also receive “reduced or free lunches” at their high schools.

“The partnership for us is simple,” NFLPA Director of Retired Player Andre Collins said. “We see NCSA as a premiere company that not only enhances the college recruitment process, but serves as an essential and advantageous resource for all student athletes.”

NCSA recently had a chance to attend the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) National Convention held in Nashville. The time at the convention allowed NCSA staff to network with the college coaches and build on those relationships allowing us to help our NCSA student-athletes find the right college fit. NCSA speaker, Bridget Venturi, joined me in attending the convention meeting over a 100 coaches on the two days of the exhibitor event.

Talking with the coaches at the event to find out what needs they have and where they are in the recruiting process was very valuable. A topic with many of the college coaches was about communications during the recruiting process. It reinforced the things that we at NCSA teach our student-athletes in our coaching sessions:

Coaches emphasized:

• They do want to hear from the student themselves – the high school athlete needs to be prepared to talk and communicate with the college coach by answering questions thoroughly and having some questions of their own to ask. Some coaches have mentioned that they have stopped recruiting students when parents are too involved and the students are not the ones communicating with the colleges.

• Getting back to the coaches in a timely manner and also providing information that the coaches request from the student-athlete.

• Grades are essential and coaches emphasize the students taking the honors and AP classes through out high school.

• Be honest in communication – hear the coach out before saying ‘no’. Learn enough about the college and softball program before declining an invitation for a visit. Best is to take a visit to know for sure if the school is a good fit or not.

• Coaches said the intangibles such as: character, maturity, leadership and how they treat their teammates are often the best way to separate potential recruits.

• It is more about overall fit with the student-athlete and the college than just about how much money that the school gives them to play softball. They want student-athletes who want to come to their school and want to be a part of their softball program for all the right reasons.

Much of the information we received from the college coaches reaffirmed the value of finding the right overall fit. This means looking at the college for the right

My name is Megan Mayfield and I’m going on a softball scholarship to Lynn University.  Being recruited isn’t something that just happens overnight and you can’t just rely on talent alone, a lot of work goes on behind the scenes.  Between team and individual practices, the hours spent on the practice field are uncountable. If you’re struggling with something, work on it until you get it. Go out with a coach, a parent, or even one of your teammates and practice it until you get it. Playing softball is only part of the process; you can’t be recruited if no one knows about you.  You have to get your letters out, get them out early, and make them personal. No coach wants to get a mass email; if you can’t take enough time out of your day to personally contact them, why do they want to take time out their day and personally come watch you?  When you get to the tournament, you can’t do anything more so relax and just do your best.  Make yourself standout from the rest of the team, my coach will tell you that the only reason she started watching me was because she saw me take off on a dead sprint to my position in outfield. Do something to get yourself noticed, be loud, be focused, hustle, or wear bright crazy sunglasses anything to make them look at you, because they’re looking at you they’re watching you.

There are ups and downs to be recruited.  Being denied is the worst part about the recruiting process and I was denied like there was no tomorrow.  I’ve been told that I was too small to play college ball since I was a kid, but when a college coach says it, it can be discouraging. However, I was determined to get recruited so I shook that stuff off and kept doing my best. The first time a coach waits behind the dugout after your game to talk to you is the most exciting part of being recruited. In your mind you’re thinking I did it, I got recruited and now all those practices, games, batting slumps, everything else pays off. The NCSA did the best they could’ve done for me, they put reality in perspective. They made me realize how competitive being recruited was and they helped me have a chance in that competition by telling me what I needed to do. They gave me an upper hand on all the other athletes that didn’t have someone walking them through the long process.  The only thing I can tell anyone wanting to get recruited is never give up, hustle everywhere you go, be competitive,  challenge yourself, and most importantly have just have fun.

The quest to find the right college for a student-athlete is a challenge that we here at the National Collegiate Scouting Association readily accept with open arms. We understand not only what it means to families to have their student-athlete comfortable and excited to be attending the university of their choice, but we also understand the passion and desire that our student-athletes have to find that particular university. We also understand how important it is for college coaches to be matched up with qualified student-athletes who will help their universities grow both academically and athletically. With this being said, we here at NCSA will do everything we can to match student-athletes with universities that we feel would be a good fit. But when it’s all said and done, it’s up to the student-athletes to visit these schools, meet these coaches and decide for themselves if they truly see themselves being members of that university for the next four years of their lives. So how does a student-athlete go about doing this? How do they put themselves in the best situation possible to meet coaches and visit schools? They should be utilizing a somewhat untapped resource and with this I would like to introduce the unofficial visit.

For those student-athletes who have seen movies like The Program, He Got Game and Blue Chips, the recruiting process might seem like a dream come true. In The Program, Darnell Jefferson is welcomed to Eastern State University by a charter bus filled with cheerleaders. NBA superstar Ray Allen plays the main character in He Got Game and is whisked away from campus to campus for weekends of fun and spoil. Several “blue chip” prospects in Blue Chips receive gifts and frequent visits from the coaching staff. One thing each and every parent, coach and student-athlete needs to know is that these are movies attempting to depict a very long and difficult process. For the majority of high-school athletes, the best way to get a feel for a school and a coach is to take advantage of the unlimited amounts of unofficial visits a recruit can take during their four years of high school.

One might ask, “What is an unofficial visit and what other kinds of visits are there?” Great question. An official visit is one where the cost of part of the visit is incurred by the school. For example, a recruit is invited to visit the campus and during their visit the school will pay for their flight, hotel room and meals. These are less common than unofficial visits and are heavily regulated in terms of how many a school is allowed to give out and how many a student-athlete can attend. The alternative is the unofficial visit, where a student athlete visits the campus on their own and pays for it themselves. Although it may be less glorious than the official visits depicted in films, it is just as effective in terms of finding a school that you would be comfortable and eager to attend. Did I mention that you can take an unlimited amount of unofficial visits? Read on…

So let’s say you are a student-athlete and this blog has inspired you to take some unofficial visits…but you don’t know how to go about it. Here is your crash course to the unofficial visit.

First, come up with a list of schools and programs that you are interested in learning more about. Basically, you want to narrow down your list to schools you would realistically like to attend and compete for. Next, pick a weekend where you know the coach of your respective sport will be on campus. Football and basketball games are very popular events for coaches to entertain recruits, so pick a weekend where there is a game such as football or basketball. Next, you want to contact the coach to let him or her know that you will be visiting that weekend. Ask if they can give you a few minutes of their time to meet and possibly answer some questions that you may have (hint, hint…come prepared with academic and athletic questions for the coach). Next, contact admissions and also make them aware of your visit. Campuses are constantly giving tours and you want to make sure you see the campus in its entirety because it will be your home for the next four years. You also want to have a main contact in the admissions department to answer any questions you may have before, during and after your unofficial visit.

So now you’ve got your game plan to schedule some unofficial visits, but what is it that coaches are looking for when a recruit comes to campus. Marc Thibeault, head coach of John Carroll University’s baseball team, explains what he is not looking for.

“I can’t tell you how many times a recruit shows up with holes in his jeans, hat backwards, earring in and really has no questions when they visit. “

Coach Thibeault looks for potential student-athletes who can carry themselves well both on and off the field. Making a good first impression when meeting coaches is essential, and your appearance is key. A great point Coach makes is the ability of the recruit to ask meaningful questions during their visit. Think of it as a job interview; when your potential employer asks if you have any questions and you say “Nope, I think we’re all good here,” they are going to take that as a lack of preparation and excitement on your part when it comes to becoming a member of their team. College coaches will view this the same way.

When asked about some good questions for recruits to ask on their visit, Coach Thibeault had a few in mind.

-What did your graduating class end up doing upon diploma?

-How many freshmen ended up playing 4 years?

-What are the years of players playing my position?

-What were the credentials of last years recruiting class?

The above questions are great things to ask coaches and by asking these questions, a recruit shows the coach that they are interested, committed and eager to contribute to the program.

The bottom line is that no one buys a car without test driving it. No one gets married without dating first and no recruit should commit to a school without visiting campus. So instead of waiting by the phone or the computer for a coach to invite you for an official visit, maximize the unlimited amount of unofficial visits you can take and put yourself out there. The recruiting process may seem less glorious than depicted in the movies, but the end result of choosing the right school is all the glory a recruit needs.

Sports Illustrated recently questioned the effectiveness of paper mailing in recruiting techniques.

During his sophomore year at Santa Barbara (Calif.) High, Roberto Nelson placed a cardboard box behind a green recliner in the family room of his home. It was a decent-sized container—it once had been used to ship a microwave—and a sufficient catchall. If he tossed something behind the recliner, it almost always fell safely into the box.

Mail arrived at the apartment complex where Nelson lived at around 2 p.m. each day. Larger envelopes didn’t fit through the slot in the front door, so the mail carrier often dumped the delivery on the doormat. Nelson would leaf through the stack when he got home from school and then toss everything over the green recliner. Sometimes he would mimic a jump shot as he cast that day’s bundle into the box.

The box Roberto Nelson placed behind the green recliner was part of an experiment to see what, if anything, had changed 25 years later. In the era of e-mail, Facebook, Twitter and the like, did coaches still use old-fashioned correspondence to court players? Could recruiting by the post still sway a kid? In short, does recruiting mail still matter?

Nelson would eventually receive scholarship offers from UCLA, Florida, Ohio State and a dozen other top programs. A 6’3″ guard, he was ranked among the top 100 players in the class of 2009. At SI’s request, Nelson saved every piece of mail he received from recruiters. The collection started with that big box but quickly expanded to include another, and then a milk crate, three shoe boxes and two large paper bags. Nelson received 2,161 pieces of mail from 56 programs, a haul so massive that at one point his mother, Roberta, threatened to throw it all in the trash if SI didn’t cart it away. “It can’t stay here anymore,” she said, likening the expanding pile to a giant blob. “It’s taking over my house.”

As the 1984 SI article noted, basketball coaches began embracing the mail as a recruiting technique after the NCAA put restrictions on alternate methods, such as the repeated visits made by Switzer’s assistants. In the 1990s innovation came only in the form of carpet-bombing campaigns such as the one USC basketball assistant David Miller orchestrated in 1996. He twice sent a future Trojan, Kevin Augustine, 500 handwritten letters in a single day.

The only significant change in the last decade has been the targeting of recruits at younger ages. Middle schoolers began receiving handwritten letters from basketball coaches, and some recruiters started sending notes to fifth- and sixth-graders. The NCAA changed the language in its bylaws last year and now prohibits coaches from mailing recruiting materials to a player before June 15 of his sophomore year of high school. But there is a loophole. Coaches are allowed to send camp brochures, questionnaires or NCAA-printed materials, such as eligibility guides, to prospects regardless of their age. Some recruiters inundate a young prospect with those documents so as to get envelopes embossed with their school’s logo into his mailbox. In one instance a basketball program sent one page of the NCAA’s 21-page Guide for College Bound Student-Athletes to a recruit each week over a stretch of more than five months.

Most striking about the correspondence Nelson received was not the volume, not even Kentucky’s whopping total of 295 mailings, but how little of it was personalized. Of the 2,161 pieces of mail that arrived on Nelson’s doorstep, only 200—or 9.3%—featured writing tailored specifically for him. Everything else was a form letter, a media guide, a press release or, most often, a photocopy of a page from a media guide.

With that as the high point it is no wonder that on most days Nelson heaved the latest bundle behind the recliner without even a cursory look. In all, he opened only 387 pieces of mail, or about 18%. (He later permitted SI to open the sealed letters.)

Five other top recruits—three from the class of 2009 and two from the class of 2010—say they also opened only a small percentage of their mail after realizing it was mostly impersonal. Why, then, do schools still send recruiting letters?

“Most coaches, especially the younger ones, know the mail is not the way to build a relationship anymore,” says a recruiter for one Pac-10 school. “But everyone else is doing it, so no one wants to be the one not to.”

In Nelson’s mass of mail it was easier to find an NCAA violation than a well-turned phrase. LSU, for example, sent Nelson four recruiting letters before the NCAA’s first allowable date, then Sept. 1 of the player’s junior year. “That occurred under the previous coaching staff,” says LSU associate AD Michael Bonnette.

“Schools often mistake what year in school a recruit is, or they are just trying to get a jump on everyone else,” says Foti Mellis, an associate athletic director at Cal.

But even those breaking the rules still send mostly form letters and other impersonal correspondence. Thus there would seem to be little separating recruiters from the credit card companies, Pennysaver and Valpak.

They all mail junk.

Noting the environmental cost compared to the number of letters Nelson opened, Gleason asked the obvious question: “If recruits don’t open the letters, why keep sending them? Why waste all that money and paper?”

Some schools might soon ask themselves the same thing. In May, Michigan and Ohio State jointly announced that they would cease printing media guides. Bygones from the pre-Internet age, these publications contain as many as 208 pages (the NCAA-mandated maximum) of records, stats, player biographies and other team information that is now also readily available electronically. Long a recruiting tool, they are no longer of much value on that front either. (Nelson received 44 guides and says he looked at “one or two.”)

Cal, Iowa, Wisconsin and the entire Mid-American Conference quickly followed the Wolverines and the Buckeyes, perhaps signaling the beginning of a trend of athletic departments’ rethinking what they print.

“The environmental issue came up after the decision was made,” says Bruce Madej, Michigan’s associate athletic director. “Mostly it came down to: Why spend $100,000 printing something that is no longer doing what it was meant do be doing?”

Even if coaches continue to recruit via paper mail, the internet has still become the dominant media in the recruiting process. For recruits, the days of paper resumes and mailing film are numbered. Coaches are looking to streamline their recruiting by looking at online profiles and watching streamed highlight videos on the internet.

Q: How do I get noticed by college coaches?

A: There are Five Things You Must Do to get recruited. An athlete has to:

1. Get Evaluated: Coaches don’t have time to look at every player so they have to rely on credible sources to get their information.

2. Post your academic/athletic resume online: This is a fast and easy way to get connected with coaches.

3. Create a winning highlight/skills video: Again, coaches can’t personally look at every recruit so they need a way to see your talents.

4. Contact coaches: They can’t recruit you if they don’t know who you are!

5. Start building relationships and following up with coaches now: The recruiting process started yesterday! With how competitive recruiting has become, athletes need to start building relationships with coaches as early as junior high.