Recruiting Tips for Parents Just Starting the Process

Just phone calls/emails/letters from coaches expressing interest and asking her to come by visit with girls on team and see the program. DD not looking for athletic $; just top tier academic school and a chance to play soccer in college. I spent 4 yrs in New York during graduate school; considered it California appreciation time :)
 
Paddingtonsoccer said:
Can anyone comment if NCSA is worth using (and possibly paying for the premium memberships/services) for building an athlete’s profile and being guided/filtered in the process of being seen by and communicating with coaches? http://www.ncsasports.org/
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We contemplated using the NCSA service at the beginning of the recruiting process. I also have a good friend who did pay for the service for his daughter. They were happy with the outcome and felt there was a benefit. She found a great D2 school that was the perfect fit for her, and she is graduating this year after 4 years of starting, inbetween injuries. They probably would not have found this school without NCSA assistance.

We elected not to use the service, but we planned on using them by the end of sophomore year, if we weren't getting the results we wanted by doing it ourselves (with constructive assistance from the club). We did 2 conference calls with them, and felt they could contribute to the process, but still wanted to see what would happen without them. She received considerable interest during her freshman year from a number of institutions, which led us to believe we didn't need any outside assistance. She committed in Dec of her sophomore year to her dream school, so we were happy with the outcome as well.

It all just depends on the situation...I do recall thinking that it was a better value the earlier you signed up. Unless they have changed the payment system, it was a fixed fee no matter when the player signs up.
 
CaliKlines said:
We contemplated using the NCSA service at the beginning of the recruiting process. I also have a good friend who did pay for the service for his daughter. They were happy with the outcome and felt there was a benefit. She found a great D2 school that was the perfect fit for her, and she is graduating this year after 4 years of starting, inbetween injuries. They probably would not have found this school without NCSA assistance.

We elected not to use the service, but we planned on using them by the end of sophomore year, if we weren't getting the results we wanted by doing it ourselves (with constructive assistance from the club). We did 2 conference calls with them, and felt they could contribute to the process, but still wanted to see what would happen without them. She received considerable interest during her freshman year from a number of institutions, which led us to believe we didn't need any outside assistance. She committed in Dec of her sophomore year to her dream school, so we were happy with the outcome as well.

It all just depends on the situation...I do recall thinking that it was a better value the earlier you signed up. Unless they have changed the payment system, it was a fixed fee no matter when the player signs up.
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I thought that Oregon was her dream school or was NC State the dream school among schools that were actually interested?
 
PitchMom20 said:
The average lifespan of a college player is 1.5 years?? Where did you get this stat? That seems hard to believe. Very interesting though. Thanks for a follow-up with resource, Overlap. I'm sending my dd away to a college for 4 years...no complaining, no quitting (as it's in out region and I still want to see her play) :)
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I'm not sure if you have an older that went through this transition. If not, be aware. There are so many variables your player will face while away from home. You can't prepare yourself or her for all of it. You just gotta walk through it. Best of luck. I can promise you there will be some complaining, maybe a lot. It's natural. I would guess that Overlap's info, as it pertains to college player's lifespans, is accurate when a player goes out of state.

Your player will be figuring everything out on their own: Time, class, soccer, the roommate, teammates, friendships, relationships with coaches, playing time, pecking order on the roster, success and failure on the field, GPA pressures, possible injuries, when and what to eat, sleep, parties, boys, alcohol (it's everywhere, some places will even have other substances), hosting recruits, community service, whether or not they have their car. All of that stuff will be part of your new reality, and most of the time you can only be an ear on the phone. For some it's too much to take. My daughter's roommate for example, flamed out after one semester. Still going to school, but is no longer on the soccer team....... For some, if they've chosen right, do the work, and have some good forutne, they have the time of their lives.
 
goldentoe said:
I'm not sure if you have an older that went through this transition. If not, be aware. There are so many variables your player will face while away from home. You can't prepare yourself or her for all of it. You just gotta walk through it. Best of luck. I can promise you there will be some complaining, maybe a lot. It's natural. I would guess that Overlap's info, as it pertains to college player's lifespans, is accurate when a player goes out of state.

Your player will be figuring everything out on their own: Time, class, soccer, the roommate, teammates, friendships, relationships with coaches, playing time, pecking order on the roster, success and failure on the field, GPA pressures, possible injuries, when and what to eat, sleep, parties, boys, alcohol (it's everywhere, some places will even have other substances), hosting recruits, community service, whether or not they have their car. All of that stuff will be part of your new reality, and most of the time you can only be an ear on the phone. For some it's too much to take. My daughter's roommate for example, flamed out after one semester. Still going to school, but is no longer on the soccer team....... For some, if they've chosen right, do the work, and have some good forutne, they have the time of their lives.
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It is amazing when it works out like they envisioned it. All it takes is a realistic assessment of what they want, a plan, a support system and LOTS OF HARD WORK!!
 
Overlap said:
Hartwick College in Oneonta, NY, it's smaller than her HS was but, she loves it and she's doing really well academically. I give her all the credit, she put herself out there prior to the Las Vegas Player's Showcase in her Junior year. She sent invites to her school's of interest, (about 7-8 schools), she did her research online about each of the school's and then started to visit the one's close by. I think almost all were there to see her play and the invites and offers happened right after LV. I personally think a lot of her decision was because it was something different, cold weather and they were test optional :rolleyes: We had her going on her 3rd ACT test to get a better score and she was pretty much over it. It's pretty hard to be a parent during this process, we want what's best, we just need to keep in mind that it's their journey and that's very hard at times. She really did take control and we just went along for the ride, pretty crazy looking back at this last year. The thing that starts to set in after they leave is, it really does end at some point (soccer) so, hopefully they pick a school that will give them the best opportunity to excel. I don't think I could have scripted a better first year, they won their first Conference title in the schools history, 10 of her team mates are still playing, 4 made it to the first round of NCAA D3 Conference finals, she was asked to intern as a freshman for the DA and she's loving it, pretty awesome for their first year......as our youngest who is now a Junior, has no clue what she wants to do, insert emoji pulling out their own hair! :eek:
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Bless your daughter, having grown up next door to Oneonta in Cooperstown I could not wait to get out. Love visiting in the summer, but man those winters in upstate are brutal.

Don't get me wrong, it is a picturesque town, with two colleges, and a great lifestyle, but talk about remote. In comparison to Southern California that had to be a big change!!

I remember in the mid 70's to 80's they had a very strong Men's program that made the NCAA final 4 a few times. Bringing back memories of before my HS even had a soccer team.
 
Sons of Pitches said:
Bless your daughter, having grown up next door to Oneonta in Cooperstown I could not wait to get out. Love visiting in the summer, but man those winters in upstate are brutal.

Don't get me wrong, it is a picturesque town, with two colleges, and a great lifestyle, but talk about remote. In comparison to Southern California that had to be a big change!!

I remember in the mid 70's to 80's they had a very strong Men's program that made the NCAA final 4 a few times. Bringing back memories of before my HS even had a soccer team.
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I'm still surprised that was the school she picked. I think a lot had to do with her visit in August, it was absolutely beautiful, they treated her like a rock star during the session and she really hit it off with several of the player's. I was shocked it was a 7 hour flight and when I got to Albany, another 1.5 hour car drive! :eek: One of the guys that was on that 80's team has a daughter on the team, they have tailgate parties at every game and they had a celebration this year for the men's team player's this year. I love the fact that it's such a big soccer school and they actually won their first ever women's conference title this year. It really has been a great experience so far.
 
The visit was always the key. We did multiple visits but my kid felt it the second we entered town. Everything was all about the school. Great experience. Your kid will know where home is when she gets there
 
surfrider said:
The visit was always the key. We did multiple visits but my kid felt it the second we entered town. Everything was all about the school. Great experience. Your kid will know where home is when she gets there
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So true,... funny how we think "we" know what's going to happen and what really happens along the way :D as I always told everyone else, we're just along for the ride, it's their journey and it really does work the way it's supposed to, it really has been an incredible journey...and sure goes way too fast!
 
Looking for some feedback on my DD's current scenario and not sure what/if we should be doing anything differently... She has interest from a good 8-10 D1 programs, with 3 that are actively recruiting her (no offers yet). One of the 3 that is actively recruiting her is in her top 5 schools and they have made a significant impression on her. We are doing what we can to get her exposure to other schools in order to provide her with some experience and also give her something to weigh against this specific school so she can make informed decisions when the time comes. I guess my question is... What should we be doing to leverage the current recruiting situation in order to push the process along outside of our scheduled showcases this Spring and Summer? Appreciate any words of wisdom...
 
Dubs said:
Looking for some feedback on my DD's current scenario and not sure what/if we should be doing anything differently... She has interest from a good 8-10 D1 programs, with 3 that are actively recruiting her (no offers yet). One of the 3 that is actively recruiting her is in her top 5 schools and they have made a significant impression on her. We are doing what we can to get her exposure to other schools in order to provide her with some experience and also give her something to weigh against this specific school so she can make informed decisions when the time comes. I guess my question is... What should we be doing to leverage the current recruiting situation in order to push the process along outside of our scheduled showcases this Spring and Summer? Appreciate any words of wisdom...
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Fairly opened ended question: Don't know what year your daughter is which is fairly important. The top tier players (national pool players)will be recruited and offered and verbally committed generally 8th grade through 10th grade. The rest will be recruited and offered from 10th grade to senior year with the bulk committing their junior year. So a lot depends on where your DD is currently.
If she is in the first tier, they will start making offers and at some point they will set a timeframe. That time frame will depend on what stage in the process that your are and they are. It will not be open ended as they need to move on to other recruits so they don't lose them. If she is in the second tier you should probably set a timeframe if they haven't already asked that question. Time frame needs to be realistic based on ability and offer expectations. That should help push the offers toward that time frame. Once one offer comes through that generally helps to push the others to make offers if they are truly interested. FYI, don't ever lie about offers as the coaches and clubs talk and will find out. Once and offer comes you can let the others know that she has an offer, be honest but not specific. Hopefully that helps some.
 
beachbum said:
Fairly opened ended question: Don't know what year your daughter is which is fairly important. The top tier players (national pool players)will be recruited and offered and verbally committed generally 8th grade through 10th grade. The rest will be recruited and offered from 10th grade to senior year with the bulk committing their junior year. So a lot depends on where your DD is currently.
If she is in the first tier, they will start making offers and at some point they will set a timeframe. That time frame will depend on what stage in the process that your are and they are. It will not be open ended as they need to move on to other recruits so they don't lose them. If she is in the second tier you should probably set a timeframe if they haven't already asked that question. Time frame needs to be realistic based on ability and offer expectations. That should help push the offers toward that time frame. Once one offer comes through that generally helps to push the others to make offers if they are truly interested. FYI, don't ever lie about offers as the coaches and clubs talk and will find out. Once and offer comes you can let the others know that she has an offer, be honest but not specific. Hopefully that helps some.
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Thank you for the response. DD is an 03 and not in the National team pool yet, but has been invited to just about everything else. Hopefully that changes in the coming months. The one school I'm talking about said as much when we met with them, in terms of an offer. They said that an offer will be coming. However, they weren't specific about exactly when, but said that when it comes we would have roughly 2 weeks to decide. My sense is that it will come toward the end of this season and hence our need to kind of understand what we should be doing between now and then. Hope that makes sense...
 
Dubs said:
Thank you for the response. DD is an 03 and not in the National team pool yet, but has been invited to just about everything else. Hopefully that changes in the coming months. The one school I'm talking about said as much when we met with them, in terms of an offer. They said that an offer will be coming. However, they weren't specific about exactly when, but said that when it comes we would have roughly 2 weeks to decide. My sense is that it will come toward the end of this season and hence our need to kind of understand what we should be doing between now and then. Hope that makes sense...
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So she is a 2021? If you want to have your daughter commit this early you probably need to get in front of this and start letting the other colleges know what your time frame is (after the season is over, before school starts next fall, what ever that time frame is and also let them know that if something knocks her socks off it could be sooner). Ideally, you want all the offers to come in fairly close together so that she has choices. Some kids know where they want to go and if they get that opportunity they jump at it regardless if it is the best offer. Others don't and it becomes a matter of fit for the player and maybe what the offer is. Bottom line, would that school be the choice of the student/player if soccer where taken out of the picture. Every journey is a little different, enjoy the trip. By the end it was a job for my daughter and our family and she was glad to be done by the end. She did commit during here freshman year.
 
beachbum said:
By the end it was a job for my daughter and our family and she was glad to be done by the end. She did commit during here freshman year.
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Good feedback beachbum. Does the above quote refer to the recruitment process, or her soccer career?
 
beachbum said:
So she is a 2021? If you want to have your daughter commit this early you probably need to get in front of this and start letting the other colleges know what your time frame is (after the season is over, before school starts next fall, what ever that time frame is and also let them know that if something knocks her socks off it could be sooner). Ideally, you want all the offers to come in fairly close together so that she has choices. Some kids know where they want to go and if they get that opportunity they jump at it regardless if it is the best offer. Others don't and it becomes a matter of fit for the player and maybe what the offer is. Bottom line, would that school be the choice of the student/player if soccer where taken out of the picture. Every journey is a little different, enjoy the trip. By the end it was a job for my daughter and our family and she was glad to be done by the end. She did commit during here freshman year.
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She is a 2021. What you say makes sense. She seems to know what she wants, but we want her to do the due diligence part, in terms of getting exposed to other schools and that's really where my question is focused. How do we create the situation you described, as far as getting the offers to come during the same timeframe? When we go to showcases, do we need to do something specific with those other schools on her list to make sure they come see her? Ultimately she needs to see the campuses, meet with the coaches and then make an informed decision from there...assuming, of course, they are interested in recruitig her like the other school that's near the top of her list.
 
Dubs said:
She is a 2021. How do we create the situation you described, as far as getting the offers to come during the same timeframe?
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Before junior year, your club coach is her ambassador, advocate and essentially (though without the money talk) your agent. Your coach should let other schools know she has or expects to receive an offer soon, and ask the others coaches what you need to do for them to come to a decision. It may require them seeing her play again at a camp or a showcase, or it may require an informal campus visit. It likely will involve arranging another phone call with each school so the coach can ask your daughter some more questions, and better understand her priorities and desires.

But other than a handful of pretty unique players, the process does not usually involve a lot of offers coming in at the same time, and you having the opportunity to weigh each one, in my experience. Most players are choosing between a couple of schools at most, or deciding if the bird in the hand is worth risking by waiting for a dream school to come to a decision.
 
Thank you for that note. I was thinking her club coach could sort of reach out and create a little ground swell, but I've been reluctant to ask. We have a couple showcases over the next 2 months, so hopefully the coaches my daughter reached out to will come see her play. The getting on campus between now and July is the tough part.
 
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