Playing College Sports & Scholarships

First & Foremost: Have Game Videos available.

College Coaches want dedicated ‘student-athletes’ in their program and on their teams. Dedication does not only mean practicing 5-7 days a week during the off-season, or running 4 miles a day and watching videos in your free time. DEDICATION means school work. Sitting in the front of the classroom, participating in a class, studying as often as possible so when the test is issued, you are not nervous or ill-prepared. If a college coach must choose between two student-athletes with equal athletic talent, they will always choose the better student because good grades come from dedication and less of a risk to become ineligible or fail out of college. Given the NCAA rules (see below), coaches have a limited number of scholarships to award, therefore, they must minimize their risk and only award a student-athlete with an athletic scholarship that shows intelligence and dedication to academics. The higher your grades and exam scores, the more schools will be able to recruit you and the more opportunities you will have.

GETTING THAT SCHOLARSHIP
DO NOT expect college coaches to be calling you or making you offers during your junior & senior year of high school.
It is up to you to PROMOTE yourself, not your High School Coach. Although high school coaches can be helpful, they typically have full time jobs and their time is limited especially considering they are also a coach. Additionally, a high school coach may have some strong contacts at some major colleges, however, it is unlikely a high school coach knows more than 10 college coaches.

PREPARE & PROMOTE
A student-athlete seeking a college scholarship must be a sales person.
(S)he must be dedicated; both in the classroom and to their sport.
VOLUNTEER – spend 1-day a month working as a volunteer at a hospital or a school for special children. Become a leader within your community as a teenager and people will notice your efforts, and you will be rewarded.

Make a TARGET LIST of 10 colleges that you would like to attend & play for. Look at their academic programs and see if the school is a fit for you.
Write a letter to the Coach, introduce yourself, express your interest in attending the school and be sure to include your information (stats, grades, academic accomplishments, etc.).

Another way to promote yourself is to go to camps at the schools on your TARGET LIST, send them a highlight video of your skills and attend showcases.

WHAT NOT TO DO:
Do not have your parents write a letter or an email to a college coach. College coaches DO NOT want to deal with parents. Write the letter yourself using your words. Provide the coach with your telephone number and email address.

Stay away from tweeting or face-booking negative things. THINK, BEFORE YOU HIT SUBMIT….your text, tweet or anything else you do online and/or through your cell phone does not go away when you delete it. It’s amazing how things POP-UP when a college coach starts doing due diligence on a high school student-athlete.

Twenty-Five Reasons to Contact a College Coaches

In short, don’t shy away from sending a message to a college coach, even if the NCAA recruiting rules and calendar prevent the coach from contacting you back at that time.

If there’s only one piece of advice that you remember about the recruiting process, it’s this: You must be proactive and reach out to college coaches at programs of interest.

Don’t leave your future up to chance by waiting around for college coaches to find you. Instead, research schools and teams you’re interested in and show them why you’d be a great addition to their roster.

Your initial communications with a coach will be about introducing yourself. However, after your first few emails and calls, it’s equally important to follow up with coaches, so they know that you’re still interested in their program. The problem is that many athletes just aren’t sure what to say or write in their follow-up communications with college coaches.

If you are ever at a loss about what to talk about, we’ve put together a conversation starter pack with a list of reasons to reach out to college coaches. If there’s a school you’re really interested in, reach out every other month or so to stay on the coach’s radar.

You have a new highlight video.
Your travel/club team just released its schedule, and you want to invite the coach to upcoming games and tournaments.
You want to tell the coach that you will be at their camp, and you’re looking forward to meeting them in person.
You just received a new accolade or recognition such as all-league, all-region, all-state honors (also academic recognition).
You have a new personal best that you’re proud of (assists, bench press, rebounds, etc.).
You recently got new combine numbers, which reflect that your off-season training has really paid off.
You have your ACT or SAT results to show that you’re academically eligible.
You want to congratulate the coach after one of their athletes received a prestigious award.
You were impressed by a coach’s recent win.
You’d like to schedule an unofficial visit at the school and want to know the best time to meet with the coach while you’re on campus.
You just applied to the school.
You received a scholarship offer from another school and would like to know if this coach is close to offering before you make your decision.
You just had your best game of the year and want to share the footage with the coach.
You developed a new skill that will make you an even more valuable recruit.
Your team just won a championship.
You’d like the coach’s advice on skills or training to work on.
You have a new reference you want the coach to contact.
You’re emailing the coach to set up a phone call.
You want to know what tournaments the coach will be attending this summer to see if your schedules align.
You’d like to know what camps, combines and showcases they will be attending so they can watch you compete.
You are congratulating the coach on winning an honor or award.
You received your eligibility stamp of approval from the NCAA Eligibility Center or the NAIA Eligibility Center.
You noticed that the university just won an award and you’d like to congratulate the coach.
You’re visiting the campus and want to confirm your meeting time.
You’d like to know if they need more video footage in order to better evaluate you as a recruit.

If you’re targeting NCAA Division I or Division II schools, you might be aware of the NCAA recruiting rules and calendar, which regulate when and how college coaches can contact recruits. For many sports, the NCAA recruiting calendar has dead periods and quiet periods, during which times coaches’ contact with recruits is limited. However, athletes can always contact coaches — only coaches are required to comply with these rules.

In short, don’t shy away from sending a message to a college coach, even if the NCAA recruiting rules and calendar prevent the coach from contacting you back at that time. Coaches will still see your message and, if they are interested, get in touch with you when the rules allow.

College is expensive. For many families, the only way to afford a college education is for their student to receive financial aid. An athletic scholarship is a great way to help lower the price for qualified student-athletes. However, to take advantage of this opportunity, you must know all the facts. This article lays out the fundamental information you need to find your best athletic scholarship opportunity.

How do athletic scholarships work?

Athletic scholarships are non-guaranteed, financial aid agreements between an athlete and their university. College coaches award these scholarships to athletes based on the coach’s perception of their athletic ability. Most scholarships are one-year agreements that must be renewed each year. Scholarships are either classified as equivalency, in which coaches give partial scholarships to players, or head count, where all offers are full scholarships. Athletic scholarships are offered at the NCAA DI, DII, NAIA and Junior College levels. Schools competing at the NCAA DIII level are not allowed to offer athletic scholarships but do offer other forms of financial aid.

How college coaches use scholarships

There is no “industry average” when it comes to athletic scholarship amounts. Each coach and sport has different theories and processes for using scholarships to put their teams together. That said, here are a few ways coaches use scholarships.

All the money to the top athletes – Some programs offer full or almost full scholarships to the top athletes on the team and fill the rest of the roster out with recruited walk-on positions. This is popular in sports like baseball, softball, track and swimming where an elite recruit at a specific position or event(s) can be worth a lot to their team’s performance.
No scholarships to underclassmen – Many coaches like to use scholarships as a reward to athletes who’ve been with the team. They choose to offer very little or no scholarships to most underclassmen, with the understanding that if you have been with the team a few years and are a major contributor, you will get a scholarship.
Divide scholarships (almost) equally – Some coaches like to divide scholarship up among several individuals so each person has something. This is popular in sports or events where you keep extra people on the roster and want a larger group of equally talented individuals. Coaches often use this strategy to bring in a large recruiting class and give the top performers a larger scholarship in future years.
Underfunded Programs – Organizations like the NCAA and NAIA limit the number of scholarships a team can offer based on division level. However, not all schools can offer the maximum number of scholarships due to limited funding. When trying to determine if an offer is “good,” you will want to ask if the school is fully funded. The only way to do this is to talk with the coach.

How do you get a full-ride scholarship?

The first thing to understand is that full scholarships are the exception and not the rule. If you play a headcount sport (football, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s tennis, volleyball or gymnastics) at the NCAA DI level, any scholarship offer you receive will be for a full-ride. Getting a full-ride outside of headcount sports requires the following:

Fill a critical role on the team – Not all positions or events are created equal, and being a great athlete at one position isn’t going to get the same scholarship offers as another. For example, in baseball, pitchers will get much larger scholarship offers than an outfielder. Sprinters get larger offers in track & field than long jumpers.
Have multiple schools offering a scholarship – Scholarships are a limited resource for coaches, and they need to stretch those dollars to field the best team possible. The only true leverage you have with a coach is to have other offers. Having multiple schools with genuine interest will ensure each school is maximizing their offers to you.
Move down a division level – If you find that you aren’t getting the financial aid package you need at one division level, contacting schools at a lower division level might lead to a better offer. A lower-level DI talent will typically be a better recruit at a DII school.

Athletic Scholarships vs Academic Scholarships

For many student-athletes, the appeal of athletic scholarships is that they will offset some–or all–college costs. The truth is, more money is available through academic scholarships, and your best financial aid package would be to combine different offers.

Here are the facts if you are considering combining academic money with an athletic scholarship.

You need a minimum GPA to combine athletic and academic money – There is an NCAA rule that requires you have a minimum GPA/test scores to be able to accept academic money as a student-athlete. You need one of the following, a minimum of a 3.5 GPA, 25+ on the ACT or 1200 on the SAT. Without this minimum, your academic money will be counted against the athletic scholarship dollars of the program. If you meet the minimums, coaches can give you academic money instead of or together with athletic money.
Getting an academic scholarship in place of an athletic scholarship – In a scenario where a coach thinks you are worth a 20 percent scholarship, if they can get you that money through academics instead of athletics, they will do that. Many families feel “I should get the athletic AND academic money,” but that is not how it works for most coaches.
Academic scholarships stay with you – Athletes are an injury or bad season away from potentially losing their athletic scholarships. Academic scholarships are a more secure form of financial aid. They may not come with the perceived prestige of an athletic scholarship, but if money is the most important factor to your family, you want to earn that aid through your grades.

1st email to college coach

Being proactive in your recruiting is essential to connecting with college coaches. Most student-athletes begin to get noticed only after they’ve emailed their highlight film to coaches, not because they were discovered at a camp or showcase.

And like everything else in the recruiting process, you have to go into it with a set strategy. For example, when there are multiple coaches at a program, who are you going to contact first? Or should you email everyone at once?

Consider this your go-to guide when finding the right person to email:

Recruiting Coordinator

This is your best contact (for obvious reasons). Larger programs usually have staff dedicated to recruiting efforts and virtually all prospects are filtered through coordinators. So, if you find a recruiting coordinator on the list, look no further. That’s the person you should contact.

Position Coach

No recruiting coordinator? Check to see if there’s a position-specific coach you can email. This is especially important for football, baseball and softball players. A position coach tends to recruit on demand—if they have a lot of upperclassmen, they most likely have roster spots to fill.

Assistant Coach

When the previous options are dead ends, you should expand your search to an assistant coach. But make sure the assistant coach is a full-time staff member before you reach out. If they’re only part-time, they’re probably not as involved in recruiting as the head coach. And in that case, you can just go directly to the head coach.

Head Coach

You may find that the head coach is the best person to email—and that’s okay. Just keep in mind that head coaches are very busy and a little more difficult to get a hold of initially.

Consider the Division

Your plan of attack will be based on which division you’re interested in and the size of the program. Division I programs typically have multiple full-time coaches who are involved in recruiting, so you’ll rarely go right to the head coach.

With Division II and Division III programs, on the other hand, usually only have one full-time coach—the head coach—who manages all the recruiting responsibilities. Therefore, you’re most likely going to email the head coach for Division II and Division III programs.

What about Graduate Assistants?

Graduate assistants tend to help with duties outside of coaching, such as looking over game tape. While they can lend a hand in recruiting, they won’t be your initial contact and you should consider them a last-ditch effort.

Insider tip: Always go down the list, not up. Let’s say you email an assistant coach at a school you’re interested in, but you haven’t heard back. Now, you’re considering emailing someone else. To maximize your efforts, make sure you go down the hierarchy to a position coach. You never want to work your way up.

The one person, one email rule

The worst thing you can do is email multiple college coaches at the same time, especially coaches at different schools. Honestly, it comes across as lazy. Coaches want to see that you are engaged and interested in their program. Including a personalized sentence or two about why you would like to join their program goes a long way.

“I would receive about five emails a day and I never had time to look at every video I was sent. But if a student-athlete sent a very thoughtful message and followed up with a voicemail, it showed me they were genuinely interested and the least I could do is go back to their video and check it out,” said JC Field, who coached Division I baseball for nine years.

General rule of thumb: give college coaches the individual attention you expect in return.

Insider tip: Follow up your introductory email with a voicemail. College coaches get hundreds of emails from recruits, but not too many calls. Like JC’s example above, it’s an easy way to stand out and get noticed. Try catching them when they’re in office—between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m.

After you’ve identified the right person to contact, you’re ready to send your first email.

Recruiting MYTHS

Myth No. 1: NCAA Division I is the only/best option

Fact: Participating in intercollegiate athletics at any level is a tremendous accomplishment and Division I certainly isn’t the only opportunity to receive a college scholarship. Not every high school basketball player can make the roster at Duke and not every student-athlete will have the grades to play at Princeton, and that’s okay! There are many other schools that offer a great education, an opportunity for a high school athlete to continue his or her athletic career and a scholarship to help cover the costs.

There are athletic scholarships in most sports at the NCAA Division II, NAIA and Junior College levels. Also, while NCAA Division III schools don’t offer athletic scholarships, they do offer other financial aid, grants, loans, etc., and the athletic department can generally help find sources of money to help their athletes with the cost of tuition.

Myth No. 2: The college recruiting process starts your senior year in high school

Fact: One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to wait too long to start the recruiting process. I’m not telling you to start emailing college coaches when you’re in middle school, but many college coaches look to connect, develop and maintain relationships with athletes as early as their freshman year in high school. In today’s world of incredibly competitive athletics college coaches are forced to start identifying and recruiting prospective athletes earlier and earlier. If you wait to start your recruiting efforts until your senior year, you most likely will be too late.

Myth No. 3: You need a professional highlight video

Fact: While a professional highlight video set to inspirational music is nice for your grandparents, it is certainly not necessary. College coaches are not looking for a commercial, they want to focus on your skills and be able to quickly decide if you’re a candidate for their program. Here are some simple tips on how to create an effective highlight video:

Keep it short: A coach will know if he or she is interested almost immediately, so 2 or 3 minutes is long enough.
Put your Best Highlights First: You only get one chance at a first impression.
Make your video accessible online.
Make sure your video includes what coaches want to see in your sport: If you’re not sure about this, ask your current coach.
Showcase all your skills and use clips that show your athleticism.
Use spot shadows when necessary. You need to stand out from the rest of the athletes.
If your highlight video doesn’t make you look like a stud, don’t send it yet!

Myth No. 4: If you receive an email from a coach you are being recruited

Fact: College coaches send out letters and emails to thousands of athletes every year. They talk to hundreds of athletes, but can only sign a few. If you receive an email from a college coach it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re being recruited. Obviously, if your first correspondence is a personal message from a coach, then he or she is very interested. However, if your correspondence is not personalized, it is an indication of interest, but you are not actually being recruited yet.

Any form of correspondence from a college coach can be the start of a relationship so take advantage of each opportunity. The point is, just because you’ve received a few emails from coaches asking you to attend a camp or other event, that doesn’t mean a scholarship is in the bag. Meaningful conversations and personal emails about how you might fit in their program is the only sign you are really being recruited.

Myth No. 5: College coaches don’t want to hear from prospective athletes

Fact: College coaches actually hope to hear from good athletes who are interested in their program. Obviously if your abilities don’t match the athletic and academic qualifications at their school, then you probably won’t be receiving a response from that coach. However, if you are contacting appropriate schools, then being proactive in the college recruiting process can pay big dividends. For many athletes, contacting a college coach can be intimidating, but understand that most coaches are happy to hear from you and every year they sign many players who have initiated the contact.

Myth No. 6: Good grades don’t matter if you are a good athlete

Fact: Wow, anyone who believes this myth is going to have a long and disappointing recruiting journey. You have to qualify for admission academically for any college you are considering athletically. The admissions office at every university has derailed many athletic scholarship opportunities.

Additionally, while it is true that elite athletes will be recruited more actively, coaches want to invest in athletes that will represent themselves and their university in a positive light and good grades are a good start. When a coach is trying to decide between two players of similar abilities, they will go with the better student every time. So, you better have your academic house in order.

Myth No. 7: If I’m good enough, the college coaches will find me

Fact: There are many high school athletes every year that could play in college, but believe that just because they haven’t been discovered, they aren’t good enough. College coaches have recruiting budgets, and except for Division I football and basketball, those budgets are limited. They can’t afford to travel the country looking for recruits. Therefore, if you wait around to get recruited, it may never happen, even if you are good enough. If you’re a junior or senior in high school and you are currently being “under-recruited”, you need to reach out to the colleges on your own. If you don’t, the chances of a college coach suddenly finding you is about as likely as finding a needle in a haystack.

Different Color Shirts

What does it mean to be a red shirt athlete?

Most student-athletes and their families have at least heard the term but may not fully understand how it all works. Typically, a red shirt athlete will have a scholarship but cannot compete for one year. They will participate in all team activities like practice, training, and receive benefits such as academic tutoring, but they will not see any playing time. However, red shirts will get an opportunity to play four seasons in five years. Reasons for being red shirted include a coach wanting a year to physically prepare an athlete for college competition (like Warren Alfson), or a chance for a student-athlete to recover from an injury. You can also be an “academic” red shirt. In that case, you are a freshman who may not have met all academic eligibility requirements.

Red shirt athletes face the challenge of not being able to play or dress for games and travel with their team. On the plus side, it is a great opportunity for your athlete to adjust to college life while on scholarship, and focus on developing physically, mentally, and academically for the rest of their college career.

What does it mean to be a gray shirt athlete?

This is one of the more challenging situations for a student-athlete. In some cases, gray shirt offers are made by programs that have more commits than open roster spots. Most coaches try to be clear about offers being made, but some student-athletes who committed early have been surprised to learn they have been gray shirted.

A gray shirt offer means that an athlete will be on scholarship at the start of the second semester. This delay scenario is most commonly seen in football. Your student-athlete would enroll first semester as a part-time student at the school or possibly a two-year school. The good news is that gray shirt athletes are delaying their eligibility and will also have five years to play four seasons. Plus, there’s a chance it could be turned into a regular scholarship offer if there is an unforeseen opening on the team’s roster.

Gray shirt athletes do miss out on being on building relationships and being part of the team that first semester. As part-time students, they cannot workout or practice with the team.

What does it mean to be a green shirt athlete?

More and more fall sport athletes are getting a jump on their college careers by graduating in December and enrolling a semester early. Usually, it is the more sought-after elite recruits who take this route. The benefits to green shirting include the chance to get ahead on classes and attend spring training and practice with your new team while on scholarship before the new fall season. Student-athletes who green shirt are allowed to play their first year but the can also red shirt and have five years to play four seasons.

One drawback is that your student-athlete would be missing out on graduating with their high school class. And, some student-athletes may just not be ready to make the move to college. There’s a lot of growing up that happens during that last semester in high school.

What does it mean to be a blue shirt athlete?

Blue shirting is becoming a more popular (but hardly common) way to creatively manage the number of athletic scholarships. Blue shirt rules allow for unrecruited players to be awarded a scholarship at the start of freshman practice. Like a red shirt, they will practice with the team but won’t be allowed to play for a year. This allows a team that may have too many commits to essentially borrow against their next year’s scholarship total. The rules are rather strict in regard to what is defined as being “unrecruited.” That means there was no official visit taken by the athlete, the coach didn’t visit the athlete at home, there was no National Letter of Intent signed, and no form of athletic aid.

Given those recruiting restrictions, it is still a pretty rare occurrence for a student-athlete to be considered for a blue shirt scholarship offer.

What all of the many different color shirts tells you is that it’s now more important than ever to know exactly how a coach plans to bring you on board and why, and what that means to your eligibility. Keep in mind, being a red, gray, green, or blue shirt may not be the start you imagined, however, many athletes have benefited from these different scholarship scenarios and go on to enjoy successful college careers.

Recruiting; when to start & when to wait

Freshman year: Why start the recruiting process?

Because your student-athlete can—and wants to—compete at a Division I school. It’s no secret that top programs recruit early. They look for freshman who have varsity or elite club film, were ranked as a top-tier recruit at a tournament or showcase, or received prestigious awards, such as All-State. If your athlete falls into one of these categories, they have the potential to compete at this level and most likely received general recruiting materials already. They can begin filling out questionnaires, looping in their high school or club coach, and emailing college coaches.

Insider tip: Team sports tend to recruit earlier than individual sports. Softball Division I programs and heavy hitting conferences, like PAC 12 and SEC, especially move quicker in their recruiting timelines.

Freshman year: Why wait?

Because they’re not ready. Most 14-year olds have a lot of growing and development to do before they can compete at the college level. While coaches are definitely looking for potential when they evaluate prospects, late bloomers will have more success in their recruiting journey if they wait a year before reaching out to college coaches. This is also true for freshman who are currently playing on a junior varsity or freshman-level team. When your student-athlete begins contacting college coaches, at a minimum, they should have varsity highlight film to show.

Plus, it might be too early for your athlete to start their recruiting simply because they haven’t thought about what kind of college experience they want. Don’t worry, this is totally normal.

It’s okay to approach the first year of high school as a year to focus on skill development and learn more about college sports programs. For example, maybe your student decides they want to stay close to home, or you realize that college is more affordable at an NAIA school.

These kinds of factors should be taken into consideration before your son or daughter jump starts their recruiting. Rest assured, there are several opportunities out there—from Division II and Division III to NAIA and junior college—that offer competitive programs and athletic and financial aid.

Sophomore year: Why start the recruiting process?

Because your child did their research and has a pretty good idea of where they want to go to college. So, they’re ready to take the next step and talk to coaches to learn more. For many sports, Division I programs have solidified their recruiting classes by this point. However, it’s possible to find a few with roster openings due to a student-athlete de-committing. Your athlete can also focus on Division II, which recruits heavily during sophomore year (and can personally reach out to prospects on June 15 after their sophomore year), or start building relationships with Division III and NAIA coaches. Your family can even plan unofficial visits as a way to meet coaches and see campuses in person.

Sophomore year: Why wait?

Because waiting a little bit longer will bring more opportunities. Ask yourself: If something were to change, would my athlete get interest from different schools? For example, maybe they’re struggling in the classroom and a boost in their GPA would help them qualify for colleges on their target list. Or maybe they suffered an injury and more recovery time will lead to a much stronger highlight film. The goal is to find a school that is a good academic and athletic fit for your athlete. It’s okay taking a little more time to ensure that happens.

We also come across sophomores who aren’t ready to pursue college sports yet. They’ve just started to look more closely at colleges and are unsure of whether they want to take on a commitment like this. So, they need a little more time and a few discussions with their high school or club coach, or a current college-athlete, to understand what they’d be signing up for.

Junior year: Why start the recruiting process?

Because Division I college coaches can reach out to your athlete personally. On Sept. 1 of your athlete’s junior year, the NCAA allows coaches to send personalized emails, texts and social media messages. If they haven’t filled a roster spot already, they’re in contact with recruits to make sure they do soon. Also, Division II coaches are wrapping up their rosters, while Division III and NAIA coaches are turning their attention to the junior class.

Plus, this is the year most student-athletes are ready to attend showcases and camps, where they’ll play in front of college coaches and get ranked nationally. Even more importantly, your family has fine-tuned your athlete’s list of top college choices. So, this is a popular time for athletes to attend unofficial visits and make verbal commitments.

Insider tip: When your child receives a verbal commitment, the coach typically gives you a deadline to accept. Accepting means your recruiting process has ended. That’s why you want to make sure your athlete is pursuing schools that are a good fit.

Junior year: Why wait?

Because their ACT or SAT score is holding them back. They say junior year is the hardest year in high school, and we blame standardized tests. Luckily, data shows that more than half of students who retake the ACT earn a higher score. Remember that even if your student is offered a roster spot, they still need to be accepted into the college. Their grades and test scores should stand on their own. If a few points can be the difference between their dream school and back-up school, communicate with the coach that your athlete is retaking the test, or wait to reach out until they have the test score that would qualify them for that school.

Senior year: Why start the recruiting process?

Because college is around the corner! Senior year isn’t too late to start the recruiting process, but your family needs to be proactive. Division III and NAIA coaches still have scholarship opportunities available and that is a great place to start looking. Your athlete should follow their favorite programs on Twitter, too, to look out for any recruits who de-commit from a program as well. While it’s typical for an athlete to send coaches an introductory email that includes highlight film, your athlete should call college coaches directly. Senior year will fly by before you know it!

Senior year: Why wait?

Because your athlete isn’t sure if college sports is for them. As students visit campuses and start applying for college, they may realize that they want a more traditional college experience and time to focus on academics. Or maybe your athlete was accepted into their dream school, but they can’t compete there. There’s always the possibility of walking on to a team. We always tell families that your student-athlete should love the school—whether they’re competing as a college-athlete or not.

When it comes to senior year, every month counts in your child’s recruiting. So, if they want to play college sports, they can’t wait very long. Rosters are mostly full by this point and putting off their recruiting means fewer opportunities available.

When Can D1 Coaches Contact Athletes

Sports news organizations frequently post articles about high school freshmen who’ve verbally committed to a Division I sports program. A lot of families see this and scratch their heads. How can that student be in contact with a coach so early on? Don’t NCAA rules prohibit communication before a student-athlete’s junior year? In this article, we cover the ways coaches and athletes get around the NCAA rules and how athletes are connecting with college coaches before the official NCAA recruiting periods.

What the NCAA rules say

The NCAA recruiting rules around coach-recruit contact are written to protect student-athletes from getting too many calls and visits from coaches. To do so, the NCAA created a recruiting calendar that dictates when and how coaches can contact recruits. These are called “recruiting periods,” which include the contact, evaluation, quiet and dead periods.

The rule of thumb is that coaches can’t contact a recruit before June 1 of their junior year. (There are some variations depending on the sport.) While these rules limit when and how coaches can contact recruits, coaches often recruit and offer scholarships to athletes well before their junior year.

How does a high school freshman get a scholarship before coaches can contact them?

The NCAA rules state a college coach can’t “recruit” an athlete before September 1 of their junior year, so it might seem illegal for recruits to get offered and be accepting scholarships as freshmen or younger (be advised some sports have different contact rules. It isn’t illegal and here’s how it happens:

“Recruiting” has a very specific definition by the NCAA. Recruiting as defined by the NCAA means a college coach actively reaching out to an athlete. While the NCAA limits how and when a coach can initiate contact with a recruit, there are no rules prohibiting an athlete from calling or visiting a college coach. If the athlete initiates the contact, coaches and recruits can talk and discuss whatever they want, including scholarships.
These recruits’ coaches are very involved. Because college coaches can’t contact the recruits or families directly, they utilize their club or high school coaches to arrange a way for them to meet with or talk to the recruits.
These athletes are getting noticed by being at national events. The hard truth about athletes getting scholarship offers as 8th graders is they are very clearly some of the top athletes in the country for their age. When an athlete receives an early scholarship offer, it is very likely they are already competing at the national level in their sport. If you want to get interest as an underclassman, you need to be at these elite events and championships.

Get proactive in your recruiting

If you aren’t getting recruited as an 8th grader, not all hope is lost, but if you are dreaming of playing D-1 sports, you need to get busy.

Coaches can talk to athletes if the athlete initiates the contact

The NCAA rules prohibit coaches from calling, emailing or visiting an athlete before their junior year. However, if the athlete initiates the contact with the coach, they can talk. Here are the most common ways this happens:

Athletes schedule a call with a coach. A third party—like the athlete’s coach—will tell the college coach that the athlete will be calling at a specific time. When that athlete calls and the coach answers, they can talk about whatever they want.
Athletes make unofficial visits to the coach on their campus. If an athlete or family visits a college campus, they are free to meet with the coach and tour the campus. The key here is the athlete needs to make sure the coach knows they are coming and has agreed to meet with them. This is usually done through coordinated calls ahead of time.

Use online tools to monitor your recruiting interest

Online profiles like the ones provided by NCSA allow athletes to see what coaches have been looking at their information. The challenge for recruits who can’t be contacted by coaches is that a coach can’t tell the athlete they are interested. If the recruit can see a coach is looking at in their profile, however, they can take that as a clear signal the coach is interested. Then, the recruit can try to establish contact.

Use your current coaches to establish contact

A student-athlete’s high school or club coach is the perfect person to help them establish connections with college coaches before the contact period. It is not uncommon for elite recruits’ coaches to arrange a visit or phone call with college coaches interested in them. Without this third party, families would rarely be able to take advantage of the major rules loophole.

Recruiting Tip 1

How to get recruited if you’re from a small high school

Powerhouse high school sports programs can tend to hog the spotlight. And for athletes at smaller high schools, this can create some roadblocks in recruiting. Most college coaches just don’t have the time or the resources to travel to every high school in the country looking for recruits. So, they tend to go back to powerhouse programs time and again knowing they usually turn out elite athletes every year. Even athletes who are the best on their team can fall through the cracks. This is where technology, talent, and persistence must come into play for small-town athletes.

To get started, student-athletes need to be realistic about which programs might be interested in recruiting them. Students at small high schools generally play other small high schools, and may not have the opportunity to compete against elite athletes. In other words, if you’re dominating in your high school division, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re an elite DI recruit. Do your research and don’t get hung up on reaching out to DI programs if you aren’t a DI player. It’s always better to be a top recruit, and oftentimes that means moving down a division level or two.

Here are the steps athletes from a small high school can take to start getting noticed by college programs:

Put together a highlight video that shows off your best qualities as an athlete

An athlete’s highlight video is the best way to capture a coach’s attention for most sports. Coaches use these highlight films to make initial evaluations of players. Your film should only be about 5-7 minutes at most. Start off with your most athletic plays and round out the film with your best game footage. Most coaches receive around 100 highlight videos a day, so yours needs to really stand out. Post your film to your online profile, YouTube and/or Hudl and send the link to college coaches. This method works better than sending a DVD.

Find a travel or club team in your area

For many sports like volleyball and soccer, college coaches prefer to recruit from club or travel programs. College coaches scout for athletes at club/travel tournaments, because they can see multiple top recruits in just one weekend. Plus, coaches have the advantage of seeing elite players face off against other top athletes, giving them a better idea of how they will perform against college-level competition.

However, club/travel programs can be expensive and may require a huge time commitment. Families need to weigh the cost against the return. Do your research on the club/travel team and find out if their players are actually being recruited by college coaches before you invest. Check with other families who might be interested in joining the same club/travel team and look into carpooling to games and practices.

Take advantage of recruiting technology—including social media—to get exposure to college coaches

Recruiting has joined the digital age, which is great news for athletes in under-recruited areas. Athletes can create an online recruiting profile (like the ones offered through NCSA) and upload their highlight film, stats, academic information and more. College coaches then search for recruits to find those who would be a good fit for their team. This helps coaches by making it easier to find recruits, and it’s also beneficial for athletes who normally wouldn’t have exposure to college coaches.

Social media also plays a crucial role in recruiting. Athletes can DM coaches on Twitter, and, as an extra bonus, coach response times tend to be quicker through Twitter than email. Coaches also use social media to get a better sense of a recruit’s personality and interests. This is the perfect opportunity for recruits to showcase their athletic skills, highlight videos and sportsmanship. However, social media can backfire for recruits who post inappropriate content. Keep it clean!

Attend camps or showcases that coaches host

For many sports, college coaches will host one- or two-day weekend camps for high school athletes. This is a great opportunity for recruits to learn from college coaches and get to know a school’s coaching staff. You should always introduce yourself to coaches and make a good impression.

Be prepared to bring your A game. Coaches will invite players they are already recruiting to these camps, so non-recruited athletes have to make a very strong impression to get noticed. If you’re sick or injured, consider waiting to attend a camp when you’re back in peak condition.

After you attend the camp or showcase, email or DM coaches through social media to thank them for the opportunity. Even better: give them a call. Whatever you do, stay connected with the coaches and let them know you’re interested. Capitalize on the momentum of the camp.

Keep your grades up and make sure you’re academically eligible to play your sport in college

Coaches can’t take a chance on recruits who don’t keep their grades up. Instead, they look for athletes with solid academics. These recruits may qualify for academic scholarships, and the coach can save some of his athletic money for other quality players. Recruits should also double check the NCAA eligibility requirements to ensure they’re on track from an core course requirement standpoint.

With technology, social media and options outside of high school sports, it’s easier than ever for small school athletes to get recruited. Use recruitment as personal motivation to be your best athlete and student, so college coaches can’t afford to overlook you.

Body Language

How coaches evaluate body language during a game

There’s a superpower that instantly impresses college coaches—and it has nothing to do with your student-athlete’s size, speed or agility.

It’s all about their body language. From shoulder shrugs to high fives of encouragement, a coach can learn everything they need to know about a recruit without even talking to them. And when your child displays confident, positive body language on the field, it’s a tell-tale sign they can make a successful impact on the team.

In fact, many college coaches adapt coaching techniques around body language. Mike Brey, men’s basketball coach at the University of Notre Dame, explains in an interview with Positive Coach Alliance that bad body language can be “cancerous.” His solution? Have players watch film to see how they communicate on the court, and then correct it.

But, like most of us, your child may not even realize the subtle physical messages they’re sending. Here are some common scenarios during a game when college coaches are taking note of your athlete’s body language—and what it’s telling them.

BODY LANGUAGE IN A HUDDLE

For those few seconds, when players are in a huddle around the coach, what’s your student-athlete doing? Are they engaged and actively participating, or wandering off? This brief interaction tells a coach a lot about your child’s personality.

For example, recruits who don’t hustle over, or are standoffish, are typically viewed as players who don’t work well in a team setting and would rather function independently. But those who take charge in the huddle and motivate others are viewed as leaders.

BODY LANGUAGE ON THE SIDELINE

When your student-athlete is taken out of the game, coaches get a critical question answered: Will this recruit need a babysitter? Being benched, especially when a college coach is watching, brings out a lot of different characters (we’re talking about teenagers, after all). There’s the athlete who pouts, the one who argues with coaches, the ‘all about me’ recruit who doesn’t handle criticism well—you get the picture.

The truth is coaches have several other players and personalities to manage, and depending on the school, there’s a chance your student-athlete won’t see as much playing time their freshman year. Quite simply, coaches want to work with student-athletes who can handle sitting on the sideline with grace.

BODY LANGUAGE AFTER A TOUGH PLAY

Mistakes happen. Actually, scratch that—mistakes are bound to happen. And this is when coaches get a glimpse of your child’s mental toughness. Specifically, they keep an eye out for what recruits do immediately after a bad play.

For example, if they throw their hands in the air, or always accuse other teammates, it shows they have a hard time with blame. Coaches also take note of how quickly your child bounces back from a tough play. Letting it go and moving on proves they’re disciplined mentally.

BODY LANGUAGE AFTER A PLAY THEY’RE NOT A PART OF

Coaches pay attention the entire game. When the ball is across the field, their eyes are still on your athlete. Why? Seeing how recruits act during plays they’re not involved in helps coaches determine how self-motivated they are. And motivation is not an easy characteristic to teach, especially among college-athletes who are on their own for the first time. In fact, it’s one of the reasons coaches request full game highlight videos.

Whether it’s a head hanging low or lack of hustle, certain movements tell a coach your athlete needs a little inspirational boost. On the flipside, coaches tune into recruits who display an all-in attitude and encourage teammates, even when they’re not a part of the action.

Skill evaluation is really the easy part. When coaches evaluate recruits in person, they already know their athletic ability. What they don’t know yet is character. And because of the huge impact of body language, your student-athlete can tell them everything without saying anything at all.

Parents Can Help

In the recruiting process, you’ll find there are a lot of “to do’s” for athletes and “to don’ts” for parents. Don’t call coaches on your athlete’s behalf, don’t approach coaches during your athlete’s game—and the list goes on and on. This lengthy list of actions parents shouldn’t take can make it seem like they don’t have an active role in the recruiting process, and that is simply not true!

To give parents a better idea of how they can help their student-athlete in recruiting, Chris Sartorius has some advice. Over the past decade, Coach Sartorius has coached college basketball at three Division I schools—in other words, he knows what college coaches are looking for from parents.

Help your athlete develop realistic expectations and create a diverse list of target schools

Parents have a huge responsibility early on in the recruiting process to help their student-athlete understand the different collegiate options available. There are a few key pieces here. First, parents need to help their student-athlete gain realistic expectations about the division level that best suits their talent and skills. This often means seeking input from the student-athlete’s high school/club coach and third-party recruiting experts.

Second, students tend to focus solely on one or two schools, and that’s not a realistic way to approach the recruiting process. “Force your athlete to diversify, they need to look at more than a couple schools,” Coach Sartorius advises. “Research schools for your student-athlete to show them the options out there.”

We recommend starting out with a list of 50 target schools, mixing in a few different division levels.

Third, parents can also prompt their athlete to be more educated about athletic recruiting and be proactive in starting the process. “Make sure the student fills out their recruiting questionnaires,” Coach Sartorius says. “Be engaged while allowing the athlete to take ownership of their recruiting.”

Ensure your athlete is on the path to academic eligibility

“Academic standards are huge!” Coach Sartorius says. Research and understand the NCAA and NAIA eligibility requirements. Check if they have completed the right number of NCAA designated core courses and their GPA and test scores meet the requirements. If your athlete is interested in academically competitive institutions, have a list of the requirements for that school and contact your athlete’s guidance counselor with any questions.

While pestering your athlete about grades and test scores can result in a series of eye rolls and “I knows!” reminding them of academic eligibility standards is an important piece of the college athletic recruiting puzzle. “Be engaged and know what’s going on and help make sure your athlete is prepared,” Coach Sartorius advises. Overall, the more you know about the eligibility requirements, the easier it will be to determine if your athlete is on the right path or needs some extra help to meet the criteria.

Get your athlete involved in the right camps and combines

Camps, combines and showcases have become a key part of the recruiting process. It takes some research to make sure that your athlete is going to the events that will move the needle on their college athletic recruiting. If you’re not sure which events to attend, ask your athlete’s club/ high school coach for recommendations based on the schools your student is interested in.

Coach Sartorius explains that parents can typically attend camps, combines and showcases and observe what’s going on. Notice what the coaches are doing, who they are looking at and what seems to capture their attention. While this is not the right time for parents to try to approach the coaches, you can certainly get a general understanding of how your athlete stacks up against other aspiring college athletes.

After the event, encourage your athlete to write a follow-up thank you note to the coach or coaches who hosted the event. This is a great opportunity for your athlete to keep their name in front of college coaches and continue to make a positive impression.

Communicate with college coaches—when they initiate the contact

Parents communicating with college coaches is a widely debated topic. In general, the student-athlete should be the ones that email, call, text, DM and communicate with the college coach. However, that doesn’t mean parents don’t have a place in this flurry of contact. In fact, Coach Sartorius advises parents to proofread their athlete’s messages when possible and have a general understanding of the communications that have been going on.

“Don’t hover during conversations between the coach and athlete, but understand what they talked about. Eventually, mention to the student-athlete that you want to talk to the coach. That’s not overbearing. Coaches want parents who are involved, but parents don’t necessarily need to instigate the conversation. Let the athlete instigate that the parent wants to be more involved, and have them give the coach their parents’ number,” says Coach Sartorius.

Coach Sartorius adds that, during his experience as a coach, he usually called a recruit’s parents when he was looking to give that athlete an offer. “If I can get the parent on my side, then I have more of a chance to get the student on my side,” he says. In other words, your time to talk to college coaches will come. Be patient and, in the meantime, keep up-to-date on what your athlete has been discussing with each coach.

Getting Recruited with an Injury

Many high school athletes dream of competing at the college level. In order to give themselves that opportunity, they will often go above-and-beyond their peers. Extra training, countless hours in the weight and film rooms, personal coaches, diets, etc. But what happens when something happens that is out of their control; like getting hurt? Is all the hard work and dedication suddenly for naught? Even though they may think their college dreams are over, fear not, there’s still hope.

Here are a few things you can do to help manage your student-athlete’s college recruiting with an injury.

Honesty is Key

The one thing your student-athlete should know that’s guaranteed to make an injury worse, is when they are not being honest with themselves, current teammates, and college coaches about an injury. Physically, down-playing or ignoring an injury could cause it to become more severe and at a minimum, delay the proper treatment and recovery. And one of the more critical factors in the recruiting process is open and honest communication with college coaches at every phase. Whether it’s your level of interest in a program, an offer from another school, or your injury status. Always play it straight.

How Much Time You Miss Matters

Unfortunately, timing can be everything. If your student-athlete misses an entire senior season that will obviously have a greater impact on their recruiting than missing a few games. The good news is a lot of incoming college freshmen end up redshirting, so an injury during senior year of high school isn’t the end of the world. If your child had expectations of playing Division I before an injury, it may make sense to alter your plans depending on the severity. Division II, or III may now be a more realistic option.

Don’t Rush Your Recovery

After an injury, the first thought for many athletes becomes, “When can I come back?” While the dedication and the will to play through the pain may be admirable, you will want to be wary of your student-athlete trying to rush their recovery. Far too often student-athletes come back before they’re fully healed. They may think they are helping their recruiting chances, but coming back too soon could lead to more injuries or making the original injury worse.

Some ways to get back out there as fast as possible include, of course, following the proper rehab recommended by doctors and trainers. Maintaining proper diet and nutrition helps, too. Don’t forget, to get some rest, meaning actual sleep.

A healthy sleep schedule can help your athlete heal faster and also help to prevent injuries from happening in the first place.

Keep Your Grades Up

Injured or not, grades are still the most important thing. Period. After all, it’s “student-athlete” for a reason, not the other way around. Student always needs to come first. Keeping grades up, especially during an injury, is crucial. Make sure they’re using their new found down-time wisely. If they can’t practice, it may allow them more time to study. Getting good grades and testing well are important regardless of what college level your student-athlete intends to play. Plus, if a college coach sees an athlete’s grades dip after an injury, it may make them question their commitment.

Come Back Better Than Ever

An injury can sometimes even be a blessing in disguise. It may force your student-athlete to develop better eating and training habits. They may begin to develop a stricter, healthier diet to try and get back quicker. It might help them focus on their grades more. It can educate them on how they can try to prevent further injuries. It could also teach them to listen to their body more and know when it’s telling them to stop. It may make them more disciplined and tougher in all aspects of their life.

Athletes are used to competing. They are also used to facing challenges and overcoming obstacles. Your student-athlete should treat their recovery process as another one of those challenges. Make sure they approach it with the right attitude and remain positive. They can’t change the fact that they are hurt. However, they can very much control how they will handle their recovery. They may have to work harder than some of their peers—adjust their game, workout routine, etc.—but by no means does an injury always mean an end to their recruiting process.

Senior in high school with no college options? There’s still time

If you’re a high school senior who wants to play in college and you don’t have any college options yet, WAKE UP AND SMELL THE GATORADE! It’s January and you’ll be leaving for college soon, with or without your cleats. It’s time for “Panic Mode.” Creating another “online profile” isn’t going to do it! And neither will sending emails to elite Division I colleges. Their rosters are full.

If you believe that you have the talent to play in college and you’re a good student and a good teammate, then there is still time. That said, the chances of a college coach suddenly finding you without some help is like trying to find Waldo. You’re just another face in the crowd of thousands of high school athletes. Something needs to change.

There are only two possible reasons why college coaches haven’t contacted you yet: (1) They aren’t interested, or (2) they don’t know about you. There’s not much you can do about the first reason, so let’s focus on fixing the second. Here are some specific things you need to do if you’re a senior and you really want to play at the next level.

Be really, really realistic

I know everyone wants to play football at Alabama or basketball at Duke, but if you haven’t heard from their coaching staff yet, then it’s probably not in the cards. At this point, you need to be really, really realistic.

If you’ve been reaching out to college coaches and they aren’t responding, take the hint and move on. You might need to reassess the kinds of colleges you are contacting. To do that, have an honest conversation with your current coach about your abilities and take his or her input to heart. No matter what their evaluation is, don’t take it personally and just be thankful that they care enough to shoot you straight.

If you haven’t been contacting colleges yet, what in the world are you waiting for? Start today, right after you talk with your current coach, but make sure you only pursue colleges where you are certain you have a legitimate shot at making the roster. Then pursue some fallback schools. Forget about the elite Division I colleges. You have to concentrate on the colleges that are just as interested in you as you are in them. Plus, it’s a lot more fun and productive when you send an email to a coach and they actually respond.

Find the time to be proactive

Make a commitment to carve out the time necessary to find the right colleges, connect with the coaches and be persistent. This might take you a couple hours per week or it might take longer, but at this point it has to be done religiously.

Since it’s your senior year, you need to start yesterday. First, follow up with any colleges you previously contacted and eliminate the ones that don’t respond. Then, identify at least 20 additional schools that make sense for your athletic and academic abilities and send emails to those colleges also. It is important that you personalize your emails. Sending a “canned” email and not addressing the coach by name will get you nowhere. At this point in the recruiting process, college coaches want players who are truly interested in their program.

Really, your recruiting process is now a numbers game. The more appropriate colleges you reach out to, the better your chances are to find a scholarship. It’s that simple. Since you are finishing up your senior year, you have to get busy NOW!

Get your current coach involved now

Your current coach can make a huge difference in your recruiting process. If your coach is willing to contact college coaches on your behalf and vouch for your abilities, that goes a long way with a college coach.

If you can, ask your current coach to review your list of colleges before you spend any time contacting the coaches at those schools. Your current coach really needs to agree with the colleges you are pursuing. Then, ask if they are willing to contact a few college coaches on your behalf. Don’t give them dream schools to contact, give them the colleges where you definitely have a chance to make the roster. Give your coach the contact information for the colleges he or she will be contacting and a copy of your athletic/academic resume. This makes it easy for them to talk intelligently about you.

Make sure you have a quality highlight video

A clear, concise highlight video is critical if you want to have a chance with a college coach this late in the game. You don’t have to spend a fortune, but you really need to have a short (2-3 minute) video showcasing your athletic abilities. Since you’re a senior, most college coaches don’t have time to visit your games and/or a showcase event you might attend. They need a way to efficiently determine if they are interested in you as a player. Your highlight video can provide that information.

The reason video has become so critical in the college recruiting process is because there are two absolutes with respect to video:

Video doesn’t lie and
Video does not have an opinion.

Video provides the easiest and quickest way for college coaches to decide if they are interested in talking with you.

Be prepared to do whatever it takes

If emails are not working and your coach can’t get their attention, try Twitter, go on an unofficial visit, and/or just pick up the phone. You need to do whatever it takes to get noticed. Once you are noticed, you might actually get recruited.

Here’s the deal

If you’re a senior this year and you want to play in college, but haven’t been noticed yet then something has to change. You are either pursuing the wrong colleges, or you need to get off the couch and put in the time to find the right college opportunity. Everyone knows the old saying, “Don’t put off until tomorrow, what you can do today.” Well, if you’re a senior athlete and you’re not sure about your college future, you need to work on it today and again tomorrow!

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) notes that there are roughly 8 million high-school student athletes in the U.S. Of those, only 480,000 go on to play a sport at an NCAA school. All of those athletes are vying for a portion of the scholarship funds that the NCAA values at $2.9 billion. Some students will get enough money to cover tuition and room and board, but many will only get a partial scholarship. And college costs have risen a lot in recent years. According to the College Board, it costs an average of $20,092 to cover tuition, room and board for a year at a public college as an in-state student. At a private college, it costs an average of $45,385.

Table: Odds of getting an athletic scholarship for men

NCAA & NAIA schools	Number of high-school athletes	Athletic scholarships	Ratio of high-school athletes to college scholarships
Gymnastics	1,995	101	20:1
Fencing	2,189	99	22:1
Ice Hockey	35,393	981	36:1
Football	1,122,024	25,918	43:1
Golf	152,647	2,998	51:1
Skiing – alpine	5,593	107	52:1
Rifle	2,668	47	57:1
Basketball	541,054	9,504	57:1
Baseball	482,629	8,062	60:1
Soccer	417,419	6,152	68:1
Swimming & diving	138,373	1,994	69:1
Tennis	191,004	2,417	79:1
Lacrosse	106,720	1,251	85:1
Cross country	252,547	2,722	93:1
Track & field	653,971	5,930	110:1
Water polo	21,451	126	170:1
Wrestling	269,514	1,530	176:1
Volleyball	52,149	294	177:1

Table: Odds of getting an athletic scholarship for women

NCAA & NAIA schools	Number of high-school athletes	Athletic scholarships	Ratio of high-school athletes to college scholarships
Rowing	4,242	2,080	2:1
Equestrian	1,306	390	3:1
Rugby	322	36	9:1
Fencing	1,774	134	13:1
Ice hockey	9,150	612	15:1
Golf	72,172	3,056	24:1
Gymnastics	19,231	810	24:1
Skiing	4,541	133	34:1
Rifle	1,587	46	35:1
Soccer	374,564	9,266	40:1
Basketball	433,344	10,165	43:1
Lacrosse	81,969	1,779	46:1
Swimming & diving	165,779	3,550	47:1
Tennis	215,737	4,480	48:1
Softball	371,891	7,402	50:1
Volleyball	429,634	8,101	53:1
Field hockey	61,471	1,119	55:1
Water Polo	18,899	344	55:1
Cross country	218,121	3,817	57:1
Track & Field	545,011	8,536	64:1
Bowling	25,751	275	94:1

Only institutions in the NCAA’s Division I and Division II offer athletic scholarships. Members of smaller athletic associations like the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the National Junior College Athletic Association offer scholarships to athletes, but at a fraction of NCAA rates. In 2015, the $520 million those two lower-tier organizations offered student athletes was less than the $578 million offered by the NCAA’s Division II and was just a fraction of the $3.3 billion in athletic scholarships offered that year.

Just about the only student athletes assured full scholarships are those recruited for “head count” sports that assign full scholarships to the overwhelming majority of athletes on the team. Head-count sports include football, men’s and women’s basketball, and women’s volleyball (though women’s tennis and gymnastics sometimes fall into this equation). Division I schools offer as many as 85 full scholarships for football, 13 for men’s basketball, 15 for women’s basketball and 12 for women’s volleyball. The odds of getting a scholarship for each during the 2013-14 season, the last for which data were available, were 43:1 for football and women’s basketball, 57:1 for men’s basketball and 53:1 for women’s volleyball. The University of Notre Dame, for example, estimates the total cost of attendance for the 2017-18 school year (tuition, room and board, books and supplies, transportation and personal expenses) at $69,395. That’s roughly $5.9 million in scholarship money a year just for the storied Notre Dame football team. (Each school determines its scholarship dollar amounts on its own.).

There is no denying the crucial role highlight videos can play for many student-athletes in their recruiting process. College coaches are extremely busy; it would be impossible for them to travel the country to evaluate every potential recruit. Highlight videos are a chance to get student-athletes in front of coaches and give them an unbiased look at their skills and abilities. It’s a fact that online recruiting profiles that include a highlight video receive more than 10 times as much traffic as those without one. A great highlight video can sometimes be a difference-maker that gets a student-athlete some serious attention from college coaches.

Highlight video vs. skills video

A highlight video is exactly that: Clips of your game footage that highlight your talent and skill. These videos are important because they save coaches time by allowing them to quickly review hundreds of student-athletes without having to visit them in person.

A skills video, unlike a highlight video, includes a series of staged sport-specific actions outside of a game setting. It is not necessary for every sport or position but can be a helpful way to demonstrate to coaches your technical abilities and mastery of a key skill.

When and how do I get footage?

It’s never too early to start collecting video. You might not use the footage from middle or early high school in your final reel, but it’s a good idea to get used to filming, as there are nuances to capturing the best video for each sport. Ultimately, you should aim to have your highlight video created by the end of your junior year, as long as it feature varsity-level competition.

There are a few different ways to get video:

Before the start of your junior season, find out if your high school/club coach takes video. Coaches typically film games to break them down later. Ask for a copy of the footage.
Ask the families of other teammates for game footage they’ve shot.
Rent or purchase a good camera and tripod and shoot the video yourself.
Contact a video company to record the game.

Once you’ve secured video equipment, it’s important to keep in mind some filming best practices:

Get footage from multiple games throughout the season so you have plenty of clips to choose from.
Find a place to film where you have a clear view of the entirety of the action, while being as close as you can.
Keep your cheering to a minimum. While it’s hard not to root for your student-athlete, if you’re next to the camera, your sound is going to be picked up the loudest and can distract from the video.

Insider tip: If you haven’t gotten any attention from your junior year highlight video, update it with good clips from the first few games of your senior year.

How do I put together a highlight video?

After you’ve collected enough footage, it’s time to start editing. The goal is to put together a video that showcases what your student-athlete can do, as this is one of the main ways coaches evaluate a potential recruit. Here are some tips for putting together a great highlight video:

Include the right highlights. Depending on your sport, coaches will be looking for different types of footage. For example, it’s important for basketball and football videos to show in-game footage, but sports like baseball and softball should focus more on technical skills.
Keep your video short—about three to five minutes. If a coach wants to see footage of a whole game, they will request it.
Showcase your best clips first. Sometime coaches won’t watch more than the first 20 or 30 seconds of your video. If you start out strong, you have a better chance of capturing their attention.
Use freeze frames and/or spot shadows. Right before the action begins, freeze the video so the coach can see what has been set up. Then, add a circle or arrow to identify your student-athlete.
Vary the skills you showcase. While it’s impressive to be able to drain three-pointers, if your whole highlight video only shows that one skill, you’re not showing that you’re a well-rounded player. Include footage of other important aspects of the game such as playing defense.
Include footage from before and after the play. Coaches aren’t just interested in the execution; they want to see how you react and communicate during gameplay.
Make sure the quality of the video is high. You might have made an amazing catch, but if the camera is shaking and you’re out of focus, you’re more likely to be looked over. Coaches are making split-second decisions when they watch highlight videos. Don’t give them any reason to stop watching.
Keep it simple. There’s no need to include special editing effects or music in your highlight video. The fewer frills, the better.
Provide detailed information along with your video. The first frame of the video should include your name, school, jersey number, position, graduation year and contact information. You can also add sport-specific measurements such as height, weight, etc.

Insider tip: Video editing is tricky, and while the software that makes creating highlight videos is more accessible today than ever, something this important is often best left in the hands of professionals. There’s skill and technique involved, and the stakes are high for your student-athlete.

When and how do I send it out?

Once you’ve put the finishing touches on your highlight video, it’s time to put it online and in your NCSA athletic recruiting profile. Your best bet is to upload your video to a video hosting website like YouTube or Hudl and then add it to your NCSA profile. After it’s uploaded, you will be provided with a unique link. When emailing with coaches, include that link and let them know it’s your highlight video. You can send your video to coaches at any time as long as it is varsity footage. Before the varsity level, you should be focusing on your fundamentals and building relationships.

Insider tip: Who you should send your highlight video to varies by sport and division. For Division I, you should include the position coach or recruiting coordinator in the email, as the head coach is unlikely to view it. At the other levels, you will want to include the head coach and/or assistant coach.

What happens after I send the highlight video?

It’s crucial to follow up with coaches after you’ve sent your video. After two to three days, you should send a follow-up email or give them a call. Make sure to have the highlight video ready to resend when you reach back out. Check out these tips for maintaining communication with coaches. As you continue to progress in your season, make sure to update your highlight video with newer, better clips. This can be a great reason for reaching out to a coach again when you’re trying to build that relationship.