Photoessay #855 - Recruiting talk

I'm supposed to participate in a recruiting talk tomorrow evening for the Washington LadyHawk organization. As a sideline, I've been helping players and families with collegiate softball recruiting. Mainly because there's such an information imbalance between the coaches/universities and the players and families. The coaches know what to do, the families don't. It's a short game for the player, they really only have one chance to figure out how to play out their college eligibility (only 4 years) or not. Very baffling process.

When you finally figure it out, it's over. We bumbled our way through. I wanted to pass on what I had learned, maybe save some of the kids coming up from the same mistakes that I made.

Dennis and I like to encourage the team members to work together, support each other. It can be dicey because there's money and opportunities at stake and every family wants to get the best deal for themselves. You know, that coveted full ride scholarship, to a Division 1 school in a major conference. I like to approach recruiting on a team basis. A project the team does together. Work on it until every player who wants to has an offer or two.

Recruiting involves a lot of secret stuff. You're supposed to be at the right place and the right time doing the right things with the right materials. In the hope that a coach will come watch you. But you can't say anything to them, as a parent, you've just spent a small fortune to have your daughter play on a team with the college coaches watching while you look on terrified and silent. Or you spend a similar small fortune to go to a major recruiting tournament and get stuck out on some remote far away field next to the chicken farm playing your hearts out with no college coaches in sight.

I have a structure I like to use, though I have to admit, it's yet to work well. So many emotions and factors, families get it all mixed up.

1. I want to play ball in college
2. I'm a really good player
3. I hope to get a scholarship

All separate issues! You have to be an excellent athlete, no question but your own personal commitment is almost as important. You want to play ball but at what college? Does it matter? In the long term? Community colleges have great programs Do you really have to play on the intercollegiate team? Be realistic about the money, a fully funded D1 program only has 12.0 scholarships to split up. And most programs are NOT fully funded.

So I can give them some resources, offer to help sort it out.

Maybe it would make sense to go through the process...

a. you write and try to interest a coach in watching you (or your teammates play)
b. the coach puts you on their list
c. they go to the recruiting tournament and watch you
d. maybe you contact them afterward, maybe you do an unofficial visit, you try to figure out it they are interested and if you want to go to that school
e. the coach can contact you at the end of a tournament or after a certain date.
f. if both are interested, you may or may not go on a visit to the school
g. At some point, an offer will be made, numbers written on a piece of paper
h. Coach often sets a deadline, to pressure you and also they need to know if they have to keep looking
h. The player decides if they want to take that offer. There usually is not room to negotioate. Make sure you UNDERSTAND the offer!
i. You tell the coach that you will take the offer. That's a verbal commitment, generally honored by both sides
j. If appropriate, you may sign a letter of intent and scholarship papers
k. you remain a recruit until you show up for school

Many many variations on this. Generally this process is written for an NCAA school.

Remember, the coach's job is to get your to agree to come to their school for the amount they offer.

Susanna's recruiting, like her, was unusual in that I indulged myself in magical thinking. You know the drill, that some major big time coach would just show up, see her on the field and instantly know that she should be on her team. Uh, huh, the recruiter person says, that's highly unlikely. But, in fact, that is what happened, the Pac 10 coach had just been hired, she had to leave her recruits in the SEC, she had seven seniors. She needed recruits and needed them NOW. Susanna had a great tournament at the 18A (not even gold) tournament and, boom, a recruiting contact. But I was ready, knew instantly what it was, had the materials ready, and knew the next step.

At about 5:30 in the afternoon, The LadyHawks Blue had just lost their game in the loser's bracket (huge! approx 150 teams in the tournament), their fourth game of the day. They'd been playing since 8am. One of the travel team coaches decided to take a walk with the uncommitted seniors to see if anythng would shake out. Not that many contacts happen at the end of tournaments. I stayed behind, helping to figure out what to do with all the extra water and gatorade (we gave it to the somewhat startled team from Oregon on the next field). I went off to see if anything was happening. Sure enough, in the center of the complex, the Oregon coaches were talking with Susanna and her coach along with quite a few other players and parents. I hurried on over. Even though a lot of people were there, clearly the coaches were talking to Susanna. A recruiting contact! There it was! Kind of in the middle of town. And though others would like to have been involved and, why not, they all were good players, Susanna had the contact.

Image is the front cover of the media guide for Susanna's senior year. It didn't come out until the last week of the season because of athletic department whatever. But they eventually did publish it.