NCSA College Athletic Scholarships Blog

Charlie Adams brings 23 years of experience covering the recruiting of high school athletes who reached their dream of playing college sports. Adams was an award winning sportscaster at television stations and is one of NCSA’s Recruiting Experts.

I had a long conversation with a mother and father whose daughter, a soccer player, had just found the right fit for college.

She was found by the college coach when he was looking at another recruit’s video. The other recruit was not clearly identified on the video, and the college coach noticed their daughter making plays on it. This is why you cannot make college coaches play detective in trying to figure out where you are on video, or some other kid will get a scholarship off your tape. I have found the NCSA guidance in this area critical. An arrow pointing at the recruit at the start of a play is very important. One of the points of College Recruiting Simplified is to make a “winning Highlight/Skills video.” The key word there is ‘winning.’ Families often have no idea how much more successful they will be in recruiting if they had a better understanding of how to work the video process. I continue to be amazed at how many families don’t even have a plan for it, and don’t have video of their kid – even as 12th graders sometimes!

The mother, father and daughter made several unofficial visits during her High School days. The young lady evaluated out to be a NAIA or D3 player, so they met with several coaches. One young head coach got all wound up during their meeting and talked about how they would have a “D1 mentality” at the D3 school. He was a little too gung-ho. They appreciated his fever and enthusiasm, but wanted to find someone a little calmer. They continued the process, made more visits, and found a school with a veteran coach who still had the fire for coaching. It wasn’t the reason they picked the school. Their major reason was the school would allow her to grown in her faith, athletics and academics, but they felt this particular coach had the calm, steady approach and decades of experience to better fit her. Now, the next kid might eat up that other coach’s wound-up approach. It’s all part of getting out there and finding the right fit. I spoke at the Mizuno Mid East Regional Volleyball Qualifiers in Indianapolis earlier this year. I talked with one mother whose daughter had already been on three unofficial visits in the Fall of her junior year, and was close to firming up the right fit. It was because she was “out there.”

For an Evaluation of your College Recruiting potential

Charlie Adams

NCSA Senior Speaker

cadams@ncsasports.org

In this article by Curtis Eichelberger found on Bloomberg News today, you can read about the advantage students who play sports in college receive in employment after college.  You should read the entire article, but here’s the money quote:

“Athletes can bring something extra that’s necessary for success in finance, Werner said.

“In a business where it tends to knock you down a lot, they tend to get back up,” he said. “That drive, that level of discipline, the rigor they have in their own personal lives and their willingness to take on hard challenges; a lot of that gets taught to you on an athletic field.”

NCSA is THE Athletic Recruiting Network.  We empower our student-athletes in their chosen careers through our network of employers who hire student athletes.  You can find out more about that here.

When we sent out our newsletter promoting everyone to share their sports story with us, we had the privilege of getting in contact with a student athlete’s mother, who wanted to share her son Luke’s very inspirational story with us.

His story is an inspirational journey through adversity, set in a football environment. Like many of student athletes in high school who have also shared their stories with us, Luke was a high school football player anxious to finally play on Friday nights with the varsity team his junior year at Edison High School in California.

The week before two-a-days, July 2008, Luke developed a nosebleed that lasted over 2 hours. After going to the hospital, the Gane’s were told that Luke had a rare blood disorder called Severe Aplastic Anemia, which is known to be fatal. The bone marrow in your body, when you have this disorder begins to rapidly malfunction and ceases to produce more new blood cells. The Gane family saw this nosebleed as a very important “blessing-in-disguise” because if it did not occur, one big hit during football practice would have caused internal hemorrhaging, killing him.

A month later, Luke under went chemotherapy, but it became evident that he was in need of a bone marrow transplant. Coming from a family of 5 boys, they tested the family and found that two of his brothers were a match. When Jim, Luke’s father, asked who wanted to volunteer to be Luke’s donor, both brother’s hands shot up, but it was 10 year old Jacob Gane’s hand that went up first. The surgery was a success! The Gane’s community was extremely supportive in anyway they could, setting up multiple fundraisers, when the Gane family had not asked for anything.

Luke fought back extremely well and made a full recovery! He was able to play every game, both ways, his senior year.  He helped lead his team to an undefeated regular season, losing only in the CIF championships to a rival team that supported Luke during his illness.  Luke Gane then found himself accepting an offer as a preferred walk-on at UCLA for football beginning this Fall!

We are very grateful to  for sharing her family’s story with us. If you have your own inspirational sports story that you would like to share with us and countless student athletes and their families across the nation, please submit yours today on our “What’s Your Story” Facebook page! We’d love to hear your story!

If you are interested in reading more about Luke Gane’s incredible journey, here are some places to find out more:

Luke Gane Video

Luke Gane’s Blog

In this article about Ben Garland, it’s easy to see why he’s where he is.  He set goals from a very early age and that was his compass that directed him to where he is.  Here are two quotes from the article: 

As a little boy, Ben Garland clutched a poster of the Air Force Thunderbirds, the planes roaring into the sky, and he knew exactly what he wanted to be. He pinned that poster to his bedroom wall, beside the pictures of John Elway, and he told his mother, Syndee, he was going to the Air Force Academy someday.

”Can you imagine you had two dreams as a little kid?” he asks one day at Broncos training camp, where he is trying to make the team as a defensive end. ”One to be a pilot in the Air Force and one to play for the Broncos? Not just any team. The Broncos. And now you have both opportunities before you?”

If you’re a student-athlete reading this, you must set specific, measureable, attainable goals that are time-bound.  This will eliminate procrastination and put you in a position to be recruited to play the sport you love.  If you’re a parent reading this, teaching your children goal setting skills will empower them to achieve great things.  If either of you need help in setting S.M.A.R.T goals, NCSA teaches goal setting skills.  If you wish to play in college and don’t know how to begin, call 866-579-6272 or go here.

Have you seen the new NCSA video site?  In an effort to further promote our student-athletes we have launched the NCSA College Recruiting Videos Site.  http://www.ncsasports.org/college-recruiting-videos
To celebrate its launch we are giving away an iPad to the video with the most Facebook “Likes.”  How can you win?  It’s simple, just search for and send out your video to your family and friends.  Ask them to hit the “Like” button.

• You can email it
• You can Post it on Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace
• You can tell your friends to look you up

You can spread your video in any way you think up!  The contest will run through July 26th at 12 p.m.

Drew Vandermeer of Fairbanks, Alaska was a 2009 State Champion in the 100 Breaststroke and third in the 100 Free, but he didn’t wait for recruiting to come to him.

As a result, he has a scholarship to swim at a Division One program in one of the most beautiful cities in America. “I am super stoked,” Drew told me as he gets set to go to Seattle University.

Drew and his father made the effort to hear me deliver College Recruiting Simplified in Fairbanks, Alaska this past October. Drew was a couple of months into his senior year and recruiting was not happening as much as he thought it would. For sixty minutes, he listened as I shared the ’5 Things You Need to Know and the 5 Things You Must Do’ to have successful recruiting experiences. I remember talking to them off to the side for 15 minutes. I am always curious as to what those families do at that point. Do they continue to hope that the recruiting process plays out, or do they start doing more?

Not only did Drew immediately build a Profile that showcased his athletic and academic accomplishments, he also took advantage of opportunities that came his way. His West Valley High School team finished a practice at the nearby University of Alaska Fairbanks. He noticed the University of Alaska Fairbanks swim team was getting set for a women’s Dual Meet against Seattle University. Drew took the initiative to introduce himself to one of the women’s assistant coaches at Seattle and shared his impressive times with her. He asked her where those times would fit in with the men. Would they be middle, top middle, or where? She happened to also coach with the men, so she relayed those to the men’s coach and they started recruiting him.

“Earlier in High School I was expecting coaches would come to me,” said Drew. “They’ll look but not that hard because there are good swimmers all over the country. You have to make yourself known.”

This comes from a young man that stood six feet and four inches and was a swimming machine and State Champion.

His NCSA Profile caught the attention of the University of Wyoming and other D1 programs such as Pacific, and they got into the mix. He ended up seriously looking at Wyoming and would have gone there had Seattle not been the perfect match.

Drew arranged an official recruiting visit to Seattle University. They paid for half of the trip.He had a very productive time on the visit. He liked the close knit nature of the team. He was very impressed with head coach Craig Mallery and his stand on academics related to athletics. Drew is very serious about getting a Masters in International Business with a minor in Spanish.

“What really pulled me in,” Drew told me, “was that Seattle University is a true student-athlete school. D1 is important to them and they work your butt off in practice, but they know I am there to get an education first and that is their priority. I have lived in Fairbanks my whole life. I wanted to get out for my college education. I want to get an International Business education, manage a business or be a CEO, and travel the world.”

Drew had a 3.2 GPA at West Valley High in Fairbanks with challenging courses. He made a 24 on the ACT and 1090 on the SAT. He will start with athletic scholarship money plus $18,000 of other scholarship money, mostly merit. The majority of his college education will be paid for because of his athletic and academic credentials.

At Seattle University he will do mostly sprints such as the 50 and 100 Free and the 100 Backstroke. He loves the atmosphere of the campus and that it is off to itself but a 20 minute walk to the city.

The photo below is one of the most exciting events a family can experience. Look at the smile on Drew’s face as his father Tim signs his Letter of Intent. All those hours in the pool and classroom have paid off as he is going to swim in College and get a top quality education. He understood you have to work the recruiting process.

“What I loved about NCSA is that I learned what I should do and should not do,” he said. “It helped arranged everything and the information was so helpful. These schools like the University of Wyoming would not have known about me. My teammate Greg Evershed, who is a year younger than me, saw what happened with me so now he is doing the same thing.”

Drew wants to be a CEO one day. When you combine the quality of the education he is going to get, with the discipline and time management skills he will take from having been a high level swimmer, that young man is going to be very attractive in the job market. Companies are going to want his competitive nature in their culture. He is making a 40 year decision by getting an education AND being a college athlete. When I called to talk to him about his decision, I found him to be highly respectful, well spoken and very mature for his age.

I have had the chance to speak three times in Alaska on recruiting. People have flocked from all over the hear the Talks. At one Talk, a bunch of folks drove down from North Pole High School! The looks on their faces were, “Help! We need to know about recruiting!!” Later this summer I will be speaking in Montana. It will be another chance to help educate families in places far from the beaten trail on how to connect with scholarships, and to have their dreams come true like they have for Drew!

For an Evaluation of where YOU stand in the Recruiting Process

If you would like this seminar delivered in your community, at your school or club, contact me at cadams@ncsasports.org

Charlie Adams

NCSA Senior National Speaker

National Letter of Intent:

The Signing Period ends on August 1st. This is the last 31 days for a student-athlete in the following sports to secure an athletic scholarship to a DI or DII program: Field Hockey, Soccer, Track & Field, Cross Country, Swimming, Baseball, Softball, Tennis, Volleyball, Lacrosse, Wrestling, Ice Hockey, and Water Polo.

Visits:

Remind student-athletes to take time to visit college campuses over the summer months. Plan to visit colleges around summer tournaments, games and family vacations. Reach out to the coach prior to visit, do not just show up on campus and hope the coach is available.

If a student-athlete is a top tier recruit, the unofficial visit during the summer may be the vital key in securing their scholarship offer and spot in the team. Majority of DI and DII program intend on having the recruiting done as early as possible. This also includes top level DIII and NAIA programs.

Camps:

All student-athletes should attend a few camps, combines and/or showcases throughout the summer months in order to get evaluations of their skill set, stay conditioned, compile additional video and get exposure.

Reminder: Don’t plan on getting discovered, prepare to get evaluated!

JULY RECRUITING CALENDARS

Men’s Basketball, Women’s Basketball:

• July 1-5 Quiet Period

• July 6-15 Evaluation Period

• July 16-21 Dead Period

• July 22-31 Evaluation Period

Football: Quiet Period.

Baseball, Softball, Volleyball, Men’s Lacrosse,

Women’s Lacrosse, Cross Country/Track and Field: Contact Period

PHONE CALLS:

Juniors, 2011 Grads (Division I):

1. Men’s Basketball, Men’s Ice Hockey: DI – 1x per month.

2. Women’s Basketball: DI – 3x in July (max one per week).

3. Women’s Ice Hockey: DI – 1x per week starting July 7th.

4. All Other Sports EXCEPT Football: DI – 1x per week starting July 1st.

Juniors, 2011 Grads (Division II):

1. All Sports: 1x per week.

Sophomores, 2012 Grads (Division I):

1. Men’s Basketball: DI – 1x per month (includes letters/emails).

2. Men’s Ice Hockey: DI – 1x per month (includes letters/emails).

3. Women’s Ice Hockey: DI can call Internationals 1x from July 7-31.

JULY RECRUITING TIPS

Football: End of June and the beginning of July is the best time during the summer to reach out to coaches, as coaches’ head out for vacation in July and August to get ready for pre-season.

Fall Sports: Recruits should reach out to coaches during June and July, as fall sports will be getting ready for their seasons in August.

!!!ALERT: DI coaches are always recruiting and looking at athletes, however, at this point in the recruiting process there is not always a spot available or money tied to that spot. Seniors this late need to look at walk-on spots, junior colleges and understand that they may need to tryout.

Here is what Northern Arizona Women’s  Swim Coach Andy Johns has to say about his recruiting and his program:

1. How would you describe yourself as a coach?

Process goal oriented. Meaning, we are setting goals that we have control over and feel that the outcomes will take care of themselves by taking care of the process.

2. What is unique about the experience at Northern Arizona University?

Flagstaff is a great town in the mountains of Arizona at an elevation of 7,000 feet above sea level.

3. What do recruits need to know about you?

That I care about my swimmers as people and that we work hard and have fun.

4. What do you look for in recruits?

Good students and swimmers who have a great work ethic in all aspects of their lives.

5. What is the one thing every recruit needs to do with the recruiting process?

Respond to communications and follow through with completing all the paperwork that is requested of them.

6. What sort of questions do you really like to hear from recruits?

What was the highlight of last year’s season?;  What was the funniest thing that happened this/last year?; What do you do as a team outside of the pool?

7. What turns you off when you are recruiting a student athlete?

If all of their questions are athletically related and none are about academics or the culture of Flagstaff and our campus.

8. What do you think your program is the most successful at?

Balancing athletics and academics and preparing to compete at our best at the right time of year.

9. Why should a recruit consider your program?

It’s a great combination of CLASS – cost, location, academics, size of school, and swimming.

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

E-mail

We are always focused on answering your recruiting questions.  Its our firm belief that spreading recruiting education is a necessity to ensure that qualified student-athletes maximize their scholarship potential.  The following is the best of  “Ask Coach Randy Taylor” series.  Coach Taylor has been named the nation’s top recruiting coordinator by ESPN.com and high school football recruiting analyst, Tom Lemming. He most recently served as the Director of Football Operations for the University of Minnesota.

You can always send your recruiting questions to askcoachtaylor@ncsasports.org

You can also get your questions answered directly by contacting an NCSA Recruiting Coordinator at 866-579-6272.

Unofficial and Official Visits

How do I set up unofficial visits?

How many official visits can I take?

What is the difference between official and unofficial visits?



Do DIII schools offer official visits?

What should I wear on a campus visit?

Do I have to know a coach to take an unofficial visit?

How should we contact coaches about visits?

How can I schedule college visits during spring break?

Are official visits for ALL sports?

Scholarships/Financial

What types of financial aid packages are available for DII and DIII?

When should I expect a written scholarship offer?

Do DIII schools offer athletic scholarships?

Can you get paid to play?

How do I secure financial aid?

Do Ivy League schools offer athletic scholarships?

What to do with a verbal scholarship offer?

Are there any tax implications with athletic scholarships?

Are we on pace with financial aid?

How do college coaches divide scholarships?

When should we express financial need to a coach?

If I get hurt will I lose my scholarship?

Should we expect a full ride?

Academics

Is there a different application process for athletes?

Can I get recruited even if I am home schooled?

What GPA do I need to play in college?

When is it too late to take the ACT/SAT?

Recruiting

Should my son/daughter call the coaches?

What role does the eligibility center play in the recruiting process?

When is the best time to call a college coach?

What division level can I play at?

How important are stats in recruiting?

How do you get on a coach’s recruiting list?

I get nervous talking to college coaches.  What can I do?

Do summer camps help with exposure?

Do college coaches come and watch high school games?

When should I ask a coach where I stand?

Should parents write letters to college coaches?

Where can I find recruiting questionnaires for college coaches?

Should I fill out all those questionnaires?

What happens during a coaching change in recruiting?

Should my son/daughter have heard from college coaches?

Rules and Regulations

The contact rules are confusing! Can you clarify?Can a coach rescind a signed national letter of intent?

What are the restrictions about emails from college coaches?

What about text messaging?

Can college coaches talk to 7th and 8th graders?

When can a college coach call?

How binding is a verbal commitment?

When is the earliest you can make a verbal commitment?

NCSA

How can my son get “pre-evaluated”?

What about my question?

What is “verified” information?



Do coaches really use NCSA?

What is recruit-match technology?

Videos

What do college coaches look for in a highlight video? Just ask Tom Lemming…

Where do I send my highlight video?

Do I need to edit my highlight video?

How do I get my video to college coaches?

When should I use full game footage?

Coaches

What about the politics?

What questions will a coach ask ME?

How do I find out where I stand?

Should I simply use a coach’s email address from the website?

How can I tell if the coach is seriously interested?

How can I find the right contact info for college coaches?

What should I include in my first letter to a college coach?

How should I respond to college coaches?

Why haven’t I heard back from college coaches?

Question to ask a college coach?

High School

Why would a high school coach hold back letters?

What can I expect from my high school coach?

Should we consider transferring high schools?

How do I decide which club team to play for?

I attend a small high school, will this hurt me during the recruiting process?

Do I have to start on my high school team to get recruited?

My high school team is terrible! What should I do?

Should I start on JV or ride the bench on Varsity?

Can I still play in college if I don’t play in high school?

What should I do with my newspaper clippings?

How can I show leadership in games?

What should I do if my coach is holding my recruiting letters?

Should student-athletes request letter of recommendation?

Miscellaneous

The one tool to answer ALL of your recruiting questions!

When should I commit?

What is the NAIA?

What happens if I change my mind about my commitment?

How important is a third party in the recruiting process?

Why haven’t I heard from my dream school?

What is a National Letter of Intent?

Should I tell a college coach about a past injury?

How do I register for the eligibility center?

What happens if I do not perform well at a camp or combine?

How can I register on rivals.com?

When do I have to decide on my position?

How do we market two-sport athletes to coaches?

What do I need to know about football camps and combines?

Can you explain the transfer rules? Part 1, Can you explain the transfer rules? Part 2

I don’t like my school options.  What should I do?

Even he is looking for an offer?

When are DI, DII and DIII rosters finalized?

What are the benefits of DIII and NAIA Universities?

Coaches Corner with Hendrix College Swim Coach Kelly:

1. How would you describe yourself as a coach?

Our goal is to complement the educational experience not compete for it. We are a Division III institution and as a result our student athletes (swimmers) are very engaged in their education, while at the same time they want to be able to swim fast. Our workouts are challenging and creative and based on the specific needs of the swimmers. Our swimmers are constantly analyzed and filmed to make sure that there technique is correct so that they can achieve maximum performance.

2. What is unique about the experience at Hendrix College?

Hendrix College provides a challenging academic profile that is supportive of its students. At the center of our core curriculum is the Odyssey program. All students must fulfill three of the six components of the program which are engaged and experiential learning. This component provides a working portfolio for a student, whether they are interested in applying for graduate school or entering the job market.

3. What do recruits need to know about you?

Our Program is supportive of their education. We provide a positive and productive work environment where goals can be achieved, both in the classroom and in the swimming pool. I am a mentor as well as a coach. I also hold faculty rank. This is valuable in my line of communication with the faculty since our swimming program has a strong advising infrastructure to assist our swimmers in staying on track in the classroom. The nature of coaching in a Division III environment is to guide the student athlete as well as coach them in the water.

4. What do you look for in recruits?

We recruit students who have a strong academic profile, but who are enthusiastic and goal orientated about their collegiate swimming experience, as well as their educational experience. These students athlete’s should exhibit the want to and the desire to want to get better technically, improve speed, develop a progression of skills (all four strokes), and continue to develop fitness and their swimming IQ.

5. What is the one thing every recruit needs to do with the recruiting process?

A punch list of questions that they may have for us. The college selection process is on going and questions will always arise. The punch list allows the prospective to contrast and compare.

6. What sort of questions do you really like to hear from recruits?

What’s the teams training philosophy? What kind of balance between academics and swimming? What kind of support structure for helping a swimmer establishes that balance? How much school does the team miss?

7. What turns you off when you are recruiting a student athlete?

When that prospective has no concept of the academic side of college.

8. What do you think your program is the most successful at?

Establishing that balance between swimming and academics that is so important to the student athlete.

9. Why should a recruit consider your program?

Hendrix College is a nationally profiled liberal arts college that is noted for its engaged learning and supportive environment. And our student athletes benefit from that as well as a strong supportive swimming environment.

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

We encourage our swimming prospects to let their fingers do the walking – Email, Phone or Write.