Tools · Recruiting
College recruiting, honestly.
No services to sell. No D1 fantasies. The recruiting process as it actually works, sport by sport and level by level. Written by a Division III head coach with two decades of recruiting experience.
By sport
The recruiting infrastructure, sport by sport.
Baseball
Baseball Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college baseball recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid is hearing 'next level' from travel coaches and showcase organizers.
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Basketball
Basketball Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college basketball recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid is hearing 'next level' from AAU coaches, high-school assistants, and trainers.
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Football — Tackle
Football Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college football recruiting, by level. Read this if your kid plays high school football and people are starting to talk about 'the next level.'
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Hockey
Hockey Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college hockey recruiting, by level. Why the path runs through juniors, what the USHL and NTDP mean, and the brutal scholarship math at D1.
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Lacrosse — Boys · Lacrosse — Girls
Lacrosse Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college lacrosse recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid plays travel ball and is hearing about NLF, top recruits lists, and verbal commits.
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Soccer
Soccer Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college soccer recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid plays club soccer and is hearing about ID camps and ECNL exposure.
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Softball
Softball Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college softball recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid plays travel ball and is hearing about exposure tournaments and 'the showcase summer.'
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Volleyball
Volleyball Recruiting: What Parents Actually Need to Know
The honest version of college volleyball recruiting, by level. For parents whose kid plays club volleyball and is hearing about national qualifiers and verbal commits.
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Topic
Timeline by grade
When things actually happen, by 8th through 12th grade.
- Recruiting timeline by grade (8th through 12th)
What actually happens when. The grade-by-grade calendar of recruiting milestones for HS athletes pursuing college sports.
Topic
NCAA Eligibility
Eligibility Center registration, core courses, GPA, test scores.
- The NCAA Eligibility Center: what to do, when
Eligibility Center registration, core courses, GPA, test scores. The compliance side of recruiting that breaks athletes who ignore it.
Topic
Talking to coaches
Email, phone, social media. The do's, the don'ts, the cringe stories.
- Social Media for Recruiting: Twitter, Instagram, and What Not to Post
How to use social media to get recruited without making it weird. The bio template, the platform rules, and the cringe stories that will make sure your kid never makes them.
Topic
NIL basics
Name, Image, Likeness for high schoolers. State-by-state reality.
- NIL basics for high schoolers
Name, Image, Likeness for HS athletes. State-by-state legal status, what it actually pays, and the eligibility-killing mistakes to avoid.
Topic
Verbal commits
What "verbal commit" actually means and what it doesn't.
- What verbal commits actually mean (and don't)
Non-binding promise. Either side can break it. Here's the honest read on verbal commits, signing day, and the gap between the two.
Topic
Academics & GPA
The variable that matters more than every showcase combined.
- Sports scholarships: the honest math
What percentage of high school athletes actually get college sports scholarships? The real numbers, by sport, by division. Plus the academic-aid math most families miss.
A note on the byline
These pieces are written by a Division III head coach with two decades of recruiting experience. Published for parents, not for sale. Email [email protected] with corrections, questions, or requests for sport pages we haven't written yet.