by PDad » Tue Apr 21, 2015 3:47 pm
8. What is the single most important advice you can give a player starting the recruitment process?
stay on coaches and keep you options open.
To take your time and know that it will work out the way it is supposed to. Get a feel for as many different campuses as you can and go with your gut feeling. Don't force something just because an offer is on the table - you want to enjoy your four year experience and a lot of that has to do with it being the right fit.
Narrow down the schools you are really interested in instead of sending letters out to 300 schools. Keep a long list to start and then narrow down as you get older and closer to decision time.
Grades and scores are the difference makers.
Do you homework. Understand what you are looking for and why.
Academically, Socially, Financially and Athletically.
Sending an email to 300 schools is just lazy.
Control your parents. They will likely be the REASON a school drops you who may otherwise really like you. THIS IS YOUR JOURNEY.
Work hard on your skills as an individual, and learn how to play the game right. Too many players only know how to showcase themselves and don't have the fundamentals to perform at the college level.
Most D1 programs only have a couple of can't miss prospects we call blue chippers. These type of players will be discovered in over 98% of the instances. All other players connect with our programs in some way and this gives them an edge to be recruited by our staff. Connections include coming to camp, a visit, or communication.
Do you own research. Ask questions. Decide what you actually want. Don't be deceived by glamour. The WCWS looks awesome on TV, but you must understand what those girls give up on a daily basis to get there. College athletics is a job. If you just want it to be fun, play intramurals and enjoy college. There is no shame in that.
Keep your grades up, register with NCAA Clearinghouse, always hustle and remember you never know who is watching you on the field. Keep parents involved with finances, health and academics...softball is for the recruit.
Do your research, understand the program, the coach, the players and the school. If you are not happy with the school and the program, you will not be the best player you can be. Additionally, don't rush into a program just because they are the first to offer you. Take your time and do your research.
Write your own letters;Don't let Mom and Dad do your dirty work. Be respectful, we are always watching how you interact with teammates, parents, and coaches.
Play the game the right way. Sprint on and off field, slide hard, do things right in warm ups, never let your parents carry your stuff, be accountable, and smile and have fun
Get seen. A coach cannot recruit a prospective student athlete if they are not seen. Go to camps. Go to showcases. Go to tournaments. MAKE SURE THE COACHES KNOW YOU WILL BE THERE.
Start early - do your research and be persistent. Make phone calls yourself - don't have your parents doing it.
Do the work herself. DO NOT have her parents write the emails or do the phone calls, or ask all the questions on the visit.
Be realistic about what you want in a school and where you think you can play. Contact the schools specifically and do a little research on that school before you do. Know how to spell the coaches names correctly and see if they will need a player at the position(s) you can play.
Also go on a lot of visits. There may be something about every school that you like but it is a very important decision to make so make sure you like a lot of things about the school you choose.
Start early by going to camps and clinics. This is a great way for college coaches to see your skills, see if you are coachable, for you to learn how each coach teaches and if you could see yourself playing for them, and lastly it gives you the opportunity to visit the campus.
Work just as hard in the classroom as you do on the field. Academics can open and close doors for you before a coach has ever seen you play.
All correspondence should be from the student not written by a patent.
Send email to all schools they are interested in
Become the best student athlete you can. Be coachable, get strong, get powerful, get the best fundamental skills possible. Be versatile!!
Don't write to me from your parents email account. Take initiative in the process because if your parents are writing to me on your behalf, I will not even read or respond to the e mail.
Keep an open mind and reach out. Emails, camps, etc. The student needs to be involved in the recruiting process, not the parent doing all the work. We want people that demonstrate that softball and the opportunity to play in college means enough to them to do the work and get themselves recruited.
There is a lot of work involved once you get to college. If you're too lazy or too scared to get yourself recruited you're probably too lazy and too scared to achieve at the next level.
Look at several schools to find a right fit. Not just the first school you look at.
Go an watch practices and games a the schools you are interested in attending and be aware that there are other divisions than Division I where athletes thrive.
Make a phone call to the coaching staff and tell us how you are going to help the TEAM win.
Do what is best for you and dont try to compare your recuitment to that of other teammates or players you may have played against. Dont try to figure out how college coaches evaluate other athletes or make offers to others you may compete against.
Dont put all of their eggs in one basket. All schools have choices; so should the athletes. Each program is going to choose 4-5 players for the roster each year. It is not personal, it is business choosing the best fit for each program. Keep you mind and options open.
Do not limit yourself by saying you are a ______. Show us you are a ballplayer who loves the game, wants to work, wants to compete and is willing to do whatever it takes to help your team be successful.
Do not try to find an "opening" on a roster that matches up with the position you play.Do you really think that just because we will have a senior who plays your position who leaves the program that it means we automatically have a need? Don't ask, so you need a ____, tell me why I have to have you!
Be flexible about your college choices. Be a verbal player.
Pick a travel team that plays high level competition
Market yourself
Be relentless. Be martketable. Be respectful to teammates, coaches, and parents. Carry your OWN bag.
Be honest, be persistent, keep an open mind.
Get to where you can play in front of the college coaches you want to play for. Be on a club team that will put you in those siuations.
Don't be afraid to call coaches and ask questions. Be honest with yourself about your ability. Not all players are div. I prospects.
Be Noticed. they need to get out there and compete during every game, not let there parents carry their bags for them. They need to work at all times whether they are playing or not. They need to do their homework on a program to see who they will follow or who they will sit behind.
pick your top 5 and be realistic of your level. attend their camps, be personable and coachable then play well in the tournaments they come watch you play in.
Contact coaches and schools of choice.
Work to be the best at your sport and opportunities will come. Make a list of things you want out of your college experience and make a decision from there. Remember you can't put a stadium on a resume.
Your grades and test scores will be the deciding factor when evaluating like talent.
If you are interested in a school, talk to the players on the team and former players to get a realistic idea of what it is like to attend that specific university and play for that coach.
Start early, get your video out through emails. Realize that every player has a chance to play in college. Be realistic about your skill level.
Look at a school that you will be comfortable even if you are not playing softball
Keep your blinders on and worry about your process and not anyone else's.