Depending on your sport, playing on a club/travel team can be extremely important or cannot be important at all. It is important to know and understand no matter what playing on a club/travel team will not guarantee that you will be recruited to play in college. You need to understand that these club/travel teams are a business for the people that own them. Just like the events they compete in, they are also a business for the people who put them on. Their motivation is to make money and keep their business going-not to find you an athletic scholarship. Playing on a club/travel team will give you an opportunity to play against top competition which can help you get more exposure to college coaches in some cases and this can lead to scholarship offers, but millions of athletes will play on a club or travel team each year and most will not get recruited from doing so. Playing on a club/travel team can be a relevant piece of the puzzle, if it makes sense. Again, this is why taking ownership over your own recruiting is so important, because it leads to finding opportunites that MAKE SENSE FOR YOU AND YOU ONLY. Don't do it just because your peers or teammates are doing it or the neighbor's kid that lives down the street did it and it worked for them. It worked for them because it made sense for them. 

 

As indicated before, many camps, combines, and showcase events are not made for recruiting purposes even though they are marketed that way. Most are companies or are privately owned by people who are in business to make a profit and more often than not-they do not have college coaches present at their events. If a college coach attends a camp, combine, or showcase it’s usually because he wants to see a player he/she is already recruiting or is wanting to be seen by that recruit at that event. Again, you need to remember that camps, combines and showcases can be helpful to getting recruited but only if they make sense for you. They are a way to get all of your athletic information verified as well an opportunity to test yourself against top competition in your area, but they do not always lead to good exposure. There are sometimes hundreds if not a thousand other recruits at these events and it can be very difficult to stand out. Again, these companies and colleges that run the event's primary goal is to generate revenue. Finding viable prospects sometimes ends up being an added bonus for them. However, those are random odds that are too risky to take a calculated risk on. You are better off, through taking ownership and determing if these different events can be a calculatted risk for you to take or not. 

 

Do coaches use social media for recruiting?

Yes college coaches use social media to get more information on their recruits and also as a recruiting tool. Coaches can learn a lot about athletes by looking at their social media if they use it. They can also learn a lot by looking at an athlete’s friend’s information. You must be very mindful about what you post in social media and who you associate with on social media because negative content can hurt your chances of getting recruited.

College coaches also use social media as a tool to reach out to recruits. They may post on a recruits page or direct message them on a certain site. 

I play Junior Varsity. Should I wait to play Varsity to start the recruiting process?

Do not wait until varsity to start your recruiting process. Even though you have not played varsity yet the timeline in recruiting still matters. If you are one of the best athletes on your team, for your age, it is wise to start the process. Waiting to start the process until you play varsity sometimes can be the difference between you earning a scholarship or not. Don’t wait, because it is too big of a risk to take. Plus it will be added motivation for to work harder and improve, etc. 

Is being a multi-sport athlete going to hurt my recruiting?

No. Being a multi-sport athlete shows your passion for sports and also your athletic versatility which is very important to standing out. Go ahead and play as many sports during your High School career as you feel make the most sense for you and your recruiting goals. 

I can get recruited on my own, right?

Yes you can and you should handle your own recruiting and that is why you are taking this course.  It is YOUR FUTURE, so it makes zero sense to place it in the hands of someone else outside of your family and pay them to handle it. Once they get paid their motivation goes away and sometimes so do they or they let a software system handle the exposure etc they promised you.

*To do it on your own it will take a lot of time, a consistent effort, a well planned game plan and knowledge about the recruiting process. And at times the process can be very confusing and frustrating, but again it is YOUR FUTURE. And building organic relationships with college coaches that you have interest in playing for is the best and only optimal way to ensure that your future is in good hands which enhances your odds of having the outcomes you want. 

What kind of film do college coaches want to see?

For most sports college coaches want to see actual game footage. Highlight videos are a good way to get a college coaches' attention, but you should always offer them the ability to view actual/full-game footage. It is important for you to send games that you played well in, played decent in and even some games that you played poorly in so they can get a full-perspective on you. However with baseball, softball and golf coaches actually want to see your skills footage. Certain sports like soccer, volleyball and lacrosse can actually be a mixture of both highlights and full-game footage depending on which position you play. Always make sure you are sending coaches the correct type of film because that will help make the difference in your recruiting success.

Is my GPA an important part of getting recruited?

Yes! Your GPA is very important if you want to get recruited and if you want to get a scholarship. The NCAA has raised their minimum requirements to be eligible, in recent years.The NAIA and Junior College levels also factor in your GPA for their own eligibility requirements. Also there is so much recruiting competition out there, so the higher your GPA the easier it will be for you to navigate the recruiting landscape and get offers.

Is it ok for me to call college coaches or do I have to wait for them to call me?

There are no limitations when a student athlete and parents can call college coaches. College coaches will be able to take your phone call at anytime. But, the college coaches have rules and limitations for when they can contact recruits. Again, this will be covered in the Rules and Eligibility lesson.

What role does my high school coach play in the recruiting process?

You will want help from your high school coach, so it is important to have a great relationship with your coach. College coaches will talk to your high school coach, because high school coaches are a great source of human intel on you and can provide insight that other sources cannnot. However at the end of the day it’s the coaches’ job to win high school games and it is your responsibility to get recruited.

Similar to your high school coach it is important to have a good relationship with your travel or club coach and any help they can give you is a bonus as well. Many travel or club coaches tell athletes that being part of the team will help you get recruited. Many times recruits are disappointed because at the tournaments they attend no college coaches are present. Please don’t get misled. Club coaches sign up for tournaments before the season begins because the tournament operators tell your coach that college coaches will be present. Tournaments can’t control which coaches attend or don’t. Again, you have to do your own due diligence on these different opportunities. Research them out and don't be afraid to ask your club coaches hard questions on these events, etc because they have to be a sound investment for you. 

Always remember, this is YOUR future on the line. YOU are responsible for connecting with college coaches and you can't be wasting your time and resources on things that are not optimal investments. 

 

Does my family need to invest a lot of money to get recruited?

If you decide to invest in a scouting or recruiting service for help it will cost you anywhere from $500-$4,000.00 or more depending on how long you hire them out for. If you do go this route, make sure you contact the NCAA Compliance Division to make sure the service you go with is "ACTUALLY" NCAA Certified. A lot of these services advertise they are, but haven't renewed their certification in several years or have never been and are lying about this, which can lead to problems for you and your recruiting.

If you decide to navigate the process yourself, which we recommend, recruiting DOES cost money! Whether its camps, combines, showcase events, travel expenses, professional video editing, or travel/club team fees you could end up spending thousands of dollars trying to get recruited. But, again it is more cost effective to take full-ownership and determine what makes sense for you based on the outcomes you want and the organic relationships you will build with college coaches when navigating the recruiting landscape on your own. 

The number one question you always need to be asking yourself is: Am I spending money in the right places? Answer: Taking ownership makes the most financial sense for you, because no body knows better than you what makes the most sense for you. This course is designed to help you with that which makes it a sound investment. 

 

If you have detailed questions you need answers for, please contact us here.