Josh Sturges - Carthage College
I joined NCSA at the end of my junior year, but I would recommend starting earlier to have more time for researching colleges and programs. Before starting the recruiting process, I set goals for what kind of college experience I wanted. That way when I was contacted by a coach, I knew whether or not I wanted to visit the college. I would suggest talking directly to coaches of the colleges you are considering. For me, it helped to evaluate the coach and the program through a personal conversation.
Visit some colleges and spend time with the teams. It is important to know if you will fit in with the rest of the players. It took several months before I was sure which college I would attend. It came down to a decision between my first choice and my third choice. I chose a small college where people showed an interest in me and my goals, where I have a chance to play lacrosse, and where I feel I can succeed academically. Visits to campus and personal contact with the teams and coaches were the keys to my decision.
Finances were another factor. A lot the colleges offered scholarships and grants, but not for athletics. Grades and test scores are a big factor if you want to earn money towards your education.
Don’t get discouraged if you aren’t contacted immediately. There were cycles of communication. Most coaches contacted me from August to October, then again from February to early April. The NCSA recruiting process showed me what to ask and helped me to confidently approach coaches in my interviews.
The video highlights that NCSA created were a great tool to give coaches a look at my skills in a variety of game situations. It’s important to show what you can do in as many aspects of the game as you can provide. The video highlights by NCSA sparked interest for me in a lot of coaches.
