The process was all new to me and Jamil. I had no idea where to start or what to do in order to get him noticed by college coaches. I was browsing the web and ran across the NCSA web site and joined within a few days. It has been a lifesaver. Although the coaches at Fork Union have been great, I still think it helped to get the extra push and advice from NCSA. Jamil went to three camps over the summer, all of them recommended by his school or he was requested to come by the schools sponsoring the camp. I believe it was his film and being featured on NCSA recruiting database that got us "over the hump". Anyway, Jamil did very well in May at his school's combine with Nike Sparq, he ended up first. Then it was off to the Nike camp in North Carolina, but we did not feel he got the attention of coaches. Next it was the Marshall camp and then Ohio State camp. At the Ohio State camp, the MAC conference began to look at Jamil as a D1 prospect. He played very well at the cornerback position (it doesn't hurt that he is a tall DB or Safety according to the coaches). This camp was the second week of July so we didn't know if anyone was truly interested. I remember one evening Jamil told me he was "hoping" for an offer and felt he should get an offer, but I didn't know. Lo and behold, by the second week of August he had two offers from MAC teams. He went on two unofficial visits before school started and talked to the coaching staff at both schools. I was a nervous wreck because I couldn't go but had Jamil's grandfather take him. Jamil assured me everything went fine. After school started, Jamil began playing his DB position, which was new as he played Linebacker the year before. Next in November came two official visits with Jamil making his verbal committment during the second visit. This recruitment process has been eye opening and exciting at the same time. It is good to know Jamil will receive a good education while continuing to play football on the next level. The support from NCSA was invaluable and I have spread the word to other mothers looking to help their son/daughter get to play their sport at the college level.
Thank you NCSA. I am looking forward to seeing Jamil play in a college stadium and growing as a person in his academic endeavors.
Deborah Shaw
