Every February, on the first Wednesday of the month, potential college athletes all across the nation make commitments to universities by signing letters of intent to play for their chosen academic institution.
Story by Kiley Long
It is a day that is highly anticipated by athletes, coaches, universities, and college sports fans alike for every institution in America, but do we really know what actually goes into this process?
For most sports fans they look for the highlights. They watch for their favorite athletes to be selected and to see which school they end of playing for. But when it comes to actually understanding the long and arduous practice of college recruiting, very few people can say they know what it takes.
Perhaps this is because the college recruiting process, unlike the world of sports entertainment, is not glamorous in the slightest bit. It is a world filled with interviews, meetings, school visitations, and often the incredible disappointment that comes with athletes backing out of commitments.
Recruiters must constantly keep their options open and be looking for replacements for every position on their roster due to injuries, switching of positions, and athletes having a change in their decision-making.
While most people are under the impression that college recruiting begins during an athlete’s junior or senior year of high school this is one of the biggest myths circulating the sports world.
Most recruiters will begin looking at potential athletes as early as the 7th or 8th grade and have the ability to offer scholarships to them as soon as their freshman year in high school (NCSA College Recruiting).
While coaches and recruiters attend events that include camps, combines, showcases, tournaments, and high school games to watch players they typically already have a set list of athletes that they are watching for. It is a typical myth as well that coaches or recruiters attend these events expecting to discover talent when in fact they have already spent months upon months, if not years possibly, researching and preparing for which individual players they plan on specifically watching (NCAA.org).
The majority of the college recruiting process is a matter of seeking out sought after, yet hidden talents in athletes. College coaches and recruiters will do the majority of their initial evaluation of an athlete by video (beRecruited.com)
This video is requested or received by reliable sources only and after watching enough footage the coach may then decide to have a member of his or her recruiting team make an in-person visit to take a closer look at the potential player (berecruited.com)
While pure athletic talent is obviously the main significance playing into scholarship offers, there are other factors that play a role as well. Shalini Shanker, Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance at Colorado State, notes that other non- traditional factors can be just as important.
“Obviously, coaches look at athletic talent but they are also looking at a student’s academic record. Coaches attend games. They will meet with high school coaches, guidance counselors and the student’s parents. If they are really interested in a student, they will bring them on campus and have them visit with professors, sit in on classes, watch practice, attend games to see if the student feels that Colorado State is a right fit for them.”
A Personal Side
For high school athletes preparing for the recruiting process can hold a great deal of pressure and a packed schedule.
Adam Akisanya, a former college football player reflects on the multitude of events he attended in preparation for landing a spot on a college roster.
“I attended two sports combines that included the top prospects in the state. I also attended university sport camps to network with coaches and other players. The sport camps gave prospects a view of the experience they would receive if they attend the specific university.”
Even as a senior in college and now preparing to graduate Akisanya can still remember the pressure he felt when performing in front of college recruiters and being a prospect for a scholarship.
“When under the eyes of the recruiters, I just performed as if it were real game. There is a high level of pressure but combine and camps are also used as a learning seminar. When I didn't feel the pressure from coaches, I felt the pressure from other prospects and strategies on how I can showcase my skills above theirs.”
The intensity that is brought on by the potential to be recruited by a college and given a scholarship is something that typically only is given to the athletes who pursue it the hardest. While many athletes are recruited on talent alone, many athletes have been discovered simply by the work that they have individually done on their own.
Websites have now been created that allow high school athletes to promote themselves as opposed to or in addition to the attention they receive by their coaches. Athletes have the ability to build profiles for themselves, upload video footage of their games, and have communication with recruiters in order to be discovered (ScoutMe.com).
In a world of such heavy competition, the true key to success is finding a way to stand out form the rest of the crowd.
Hot off the Press
Recently there has been a new significant trend in publishing books in order to assist athletes but coaches, parents, and recruiters in this process as well.
One of the most popular publications that has been established is The Making of a Student- Athlete. This handbook details the college recruiting process as well as assisting student-athletes in understanding what it takes to play at the next level (Varsityedge.com).
Books like this one allow students to get a detailed look at subjects such as athletic scholarships, recruiting, financial aid, recruiting rules, college applications, visiting schools, life as a college athlete, coaches/player interviews, and NCAA rules. (Varsityedge.com).
Sites such as Recruiting-101 also offer another media aspect of college recruiting to athletes, family members, and coaches. Following multimedia sites such as this one allow athletes to learn more about topics such as where to post their highlight videos or the position you play vs. the position coaches want you to play (Recruiting-101.com).
It is a sign of our times when you consider the amount of media assistance that plays a role in a process such as college sports recruiting for all parties involved.
A Game of Numbers
The statistics don’t lie and by the numbers the outlooks for college athletes are not always that prestigious.
Nearly four times as many private than public college students played college sports (NCSA Athletic Recruiting).
Also impressively an astounding 26.92% of students at colleges with fewer than 2,000 full time students play college sports while only 2.2% of students at colleges with more than 25,000 students do so (NCSA Athletic Recruiting). With that statistic, high school athletes have a higher chance of success at a private institution, rather than a public one.
There are also a substantial amount of very specific NCAA rules and regulations that coaches and college recruiters are required to follow that are not always obvious to the average sports fan. For example a face-to-face encounter between a coach or recruiter from a college and a prospect can be considered any exchange or dialogue, even if it is only a greeting, whether or not any conversation takes place. In addition to that the amount of encounters a representative is allowed to have with a prospect is limited (NCAA.org).
There are also a large amount of specific limitations given to specific sports by the NCAA. For instance, in football, institutional coaching staff members are allowed to make unlimited phone calls to a prospective player during the period of 48 hours before and 48 hours after 7 a.m. on the initial signing date for the National Letter of Intent (NCAA.org).
For athletes who are willing to put in the necessary work a college scholarship may be a reality. About 5,042 football scholarships are given out each year for D1 schools only so the prospects are positive (Varsityedge.com).
For those who excel in high school athletics and are willing to put in the necessary work, being recruited by a college is a very viable option.
While the rest of the world will stand by and watch for the National Signing Day to show their support there is a whole level of behind the scenes work that most fans will never see.
As with most aspects in the world of sports entertainment the prestige and glamour take over and the world is blinded to anything else.
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