Pitfalls to Avoid in the Recruiting Process

Pitfalls to Avoid in the Recruiting Process

guidingfuturestars | December 15, 2016
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The college recruiting process can be tricky to navigate if you don't have a clear road map to guide you.   As a prospective student-athlete there are things that you must do in order to get recruited.   However, there are also things that you must avoid to be unrecruited.   Be sure to not fall into these pitfalls as you navigate through the college recruiting process. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES PARENTS ARE OVER INVOLVED IN THE RECRUITING PROCESS The recruiting process is similar to teaching your son or daughter how to drive.  They need to be the ones behind the steering wheel driving the car.  You need to provide support and guidance to them as they navigate through this process.  It is their life and they will be the ones spending the time on campus so the choice should ultimately be theirs.  Don't contact college coaches on your childs behalf.     A college coach who receives an introduction letter where it says my son or my daughter will dismiss that email. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES AREN’T MORE OPEN MINDED Too often prospective student-athletes are too narrowly focused early in the recruiting process.  When kids start the process they think that Division I is the only acceptable option and its important they receive an athletic scholarship.  Many schools have great things to offer, from their academic programs, to the athletics program, and campus life. Explore all of the opportunities.  Division I is not the end all be all of playing college sports.  Remember, it is about the overall college experience.  I recommend to prospective student-athletes to express interest in a number of different colleges at all levels and allow coaches to show you what they can offer you academically, athletically, and personally. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES BELIEVE THEY WILL BE MAGICALLY “DISCOVERED” The biggest challenge for college coaches is communication with potential recruits.  It’s happening earlier and earlier, yet the NCAA has set limits on how and when a college coach can contact a recruit.  If you take the initiative to contact the coach through email, phone, and now social media that could really have an impact on that coach.   College coaches need to know you exist.   There is about 1-2% elite athletes in this country who are actively recruited by college coaches, the other 98% need to do the work to be seen and recruited by a college coach.  Be Proactive!  Don’t sit back and waiting for the offers to come rolling in.  Recruiting for the other 98% is a two-way street, coaches need to recruit you but you also need to recruit them. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES DON’T KNOW HOW TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY WITH COLLEGE COACHES One thing that prospective student-athletes lack is effective communication skills with college coaches.  That comes in a variety of forms.   The first being how to write a strong introduction letter that will stand out.  There are things that prospective student-athletes do in their introduction letter that will make them get unrecruited.  The second is usually a lack of communication from the recruit that halts the recruiting process.  There are hundreds of kids looking for the same opportunity you are so what are you going to do to make sure your profile stands out.  If you are a potential recruit who is afraid of speaking to a coach or reluctant to answer emails or phone calls, be prepared for playing opportunities and scholarship offers to slip away. PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES ATTITUDE AND CHARACTER COST THEM PLAYING OPPORTUNITIES When college coaches are identifying and evaluating talent of a prospective student-athlete, they look at four attributes; Academics, Athletics, Attitude, and Character.   When it comes to decision time it is usually the Attitude and Character of a prospective student-athlete that is the deciding factor.    Your attitude is how you carry yourself on and off the field.  How do you interact with coaches, teammates, opponents, referees, and parents?   On the field,  what is your body language like, how do you handle adversity, are you positive and encouraging, are you a leader?   College coaches will pick up on these intricacies in the course of a game.  Character is more important than ever in recruiting especially with the increase in popularity of social media.    Are you using social media to enhance your personal brand?   Don’t let a social media post cost you an opportunity of a life time. Guiding Future Stars has created two avenues for prospective student-athletes to learn about and engage in the college recruiting process on their own, The College Recruiting Playbook and the College Recruiting Academy. The idea behind these two products is to assist with the “self-recruitment” process.  Guiding Future Stars wants to empower prospective student-athletes to navigate through the recruiting process on their own by following our College Recruiting Road Map.  Finding the right college doesn’t have to be complicated.  In fact, with the College Recruiting Playbook, you can navigate through the phases of the recruitment process with surprising ease. The step-by-step guide will walk you through everything you need to know and do in order to find your “College Experience Trifecta.”  The College Recruiting Academy, on the other hand is an on-line interactive college recruiting education platform.  GFS has handpicked resources and tailored an action plan to help reach your goals no matter where you are starting from today.  These are small investments that will help you see your future. There are so many challenges or roadblocks you may encounter in the college recruiting process.  How do you navigate around them?   The answer is simple.  Educate yourself.  If you have a solid foundation of the landscape of intercollegiate athletics, the college recruiting process, and how to be a successful student-athlete it will only benefit you in the long run.  And that’s what GFS does.  We provide all of that information to you so you can navigate through the process on your own in order to make a well informed decision for your future.

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