DD is ’00 and recently committed to college of her choice as a result of “it’s who you know.” She played ECNL & Premier with common showcase exposure and a few ID camps thrown in. Reality = she is more of a D2 player than D1. She followed the process of reaching out to many schools prior to showcases via email and calls, which resulted in about 25% of them responding and 10% actually showing up to the games they said they would watch. This resulted in lots of love from NAIA and D3 schools, and moderate interest from targeted D1/D2 schools, which was more than “come to our ID camp” but not the same as the “I want you, you’ll be an immediate impact player” from the NAIA/D3 programs.
Then, a colleague found out my DD was a soccer player, said he was good friends with HC at D2 school on her list. He sent coach her profile and made introduction. DD had a conversation with coach prior to Las Vegas showcase. I talked to him as well. He shows up to Vegas, watches 3 of her games, invites her to visit. On the visit 3 other girls were there for same purpose and from what I know, only makes offer to DD. Strong offer with academic/athletic package. She was excited to commit.
My point – I don’t know that it would have happened if my colleague hadn’t made the introduction. Our ability to make a connection and build rapport prior to the showcase was critical in both the commitment to watch her, and then follow up with us afterwards. He was looking for a specific player in terms of play and character and put in the time/effort to evaluate her. I also believe this “established connection” helped her on the visit as the other prospects were very strong players as well.
My advice – Leverage your network and find a way to connect with coaches outside of the normal process of showcase emails and ID camps. Your club coach is the best resource but only if they are willing to be proactive for you. In the business world this equals success. The same applies to college recruiting.
Then, a colleague found out my DD was a soccer player, said he was good friends with HC at D2 school on her list. He sent coach her profile and made introduction. DD had a conversation with coach prior to Las Vegas showcase. I talked to him as well. He shows up to Vegas, watches 3 of her games, invites her to visit. On the visit 3 other girls were there for same purpose and from what I know, only makes offer to DD. Strong offer with academic/athletic package. She was excited to commit.
My point – I don’t know that it would have happened if my colleague hadn’t made the introduction. Our ability to make a connection and build rapport prior to the showcase was critical in both the commitment to watch her, and then follow up with us afterwards. He was looking for a specific player in terms of play and character and put in the time/effort to evaluate her. I also believe this “established connection” helped her on the visit as the other prospects were very strong players as well.
My advice – Leverage your network and find a way to connect with coaches outside of the normal process of showcase emails and ID camps. Your club coach is the best resource but only if they are willing to be proactive for you. In the business world this equals success. The same applies to college recruiting.
Interesting story.