How to be Recruited

1. How to be Recruited David Granato Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Adams State University

2. What Schools are you Interested in? • Big School/Small School • Div I/Div II/ Div III • Majors • Rural Area/City • In State/Out of State • Close to home/As far away as possible • State/Private/Religious • Make a list • When coaches reach out, especially early in the process, keep an open mind and take the opportunity to learn about the program

3. Contact Information for Coaches • Email Address • Phone number • Mailing address • Your event Group Coach • Recruiting Coordinator

4. When to Contact • Junior year, after the cross country season • Div II schools can start calling you June 15th before your junior year • Div I schools can start calling you June 15th before your senior year • If you call them before that time, they can talk to you, but they can’t initiate

5. What to Include in Initial Contact • First AND last name • High School, AND city and state • Graduation Year • Personal Bests • GPA/Test scores

6. What Not to Include • Don’t email other sports unless you want to play that sport • Don’t demand to know what scholarship they can offer you in the initial email • Don’t try to write the next great American novel telling them your life story • Misspelled name, coach of a different schools name, or different school • Spelling/grammar mistakes

7. Making Initial Contact • Email or mail event group coach/recruiting coordinator at every school on your list • If you don’t hear back in two weeks, it’s ok to follow up once • Respond to every coach that responds to you, in a timely manner

8. First Phone Call • Have a list of questions prepared • Figure out what is important to you, and find out if they have it • You are interviewing them, they are interviewing you • Location with good service, and quiet so you can hear

9. Eligibility • REGISTER WITH NCAA ELIGIBILITY CENTER • ALL prospective NCAA D1 & D2 student-athletes must register with the NCAA Eligibility Center • SUBMIT TEST SCORES AND OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS • Test Scores must be sent from either ACT or SAT directly • Official Transcripts from all high schools attended must be sent to Eligibility Center. Final Transcript must contain Proof of Graduation.

10. Eligibility • NCAA DIVISION I MINIMUM ACADEMIC STANDARDS • Complete the 16 core-course requirement in eight semesters: • 4 years of English • 3 years of math (Algebra 1 or higher) • 2 years of natural or physical science (including one year of lab science) • 1 extra year of English, math or natural or physical science • 2 years of social science • 4 years of extra core courses (from any category above, or foreign language, nondoctrinal religion or philosophy) • Earn a minimum required grade-point average in core courses • Earn a combined SAT or ACT sum score that matches the core course grade-point average and test-score sliding scale

12. Eligibility • NCAA DIVISION II MINIMUM ACADEMIC STANDARDS • 16 Hours of Core Courses taken prior to high school graduation • 2.0 GPA or better in core • 3 years of English • 2 years of math (Algebra 1 or higher) • 2 years of natural or physical science (including one year of lab science) • 3 additional years of English, math, or natural or physical science • 2 years of social science • 4 years of additional core courses (from any category above, or foreign language, comparative religion or philosophy) • Test Scores from National Testing Date • ACT: 68 sum (Math, Science, English and Reading subsections) • SAT: 820 (Math and Verbal subsections)

13. Eligibility • FULL QUALIFIER: Meets BOTH minimum Test Score AND Core Course requirements. • Qualifiers are eligible for the following during their initial year of collegiate enrollment; • Receive Athletic Aid • Practice • Compete • PARTIAL-QUALIFIER: Meets EITHER minimum Test Score OR Core Course requirements. • Partial-Qualifiers are eligible for the following during their initial year of collegiate enrollment; • Receive Athletic Aid • Practice • NON-QUALIFIER: Meets NEITHER minimum Test Score NOR Core Course requirements. • Non-Qualifiers are not eligible to receive athletic aid, practice or compete during their initial year of collegiate enrollment.

14. Visiting • Official Visit • Partially or fully paid for by the school • Need to be registered with the NCAA Eligibility Center • Provide Institution with transcripts and test scores • 5 Div I Schools, Once per school • Unlimited Div II/Div III visits • Limited to 48 hours • Unofficial Visit • All costs paid for by you and your parents • You can still arrange to meet with Coach • Because of budgetary constraints, some schools only do unofficial visits, or very few official visits • Don’t be insulted if you are invited on an unofficial visit

15. Visiting • Things you might not think to see/do; • See the Housing • Go to the library • Meet athletic trainers and other support staff • Meet with professors • Talk to athletes on the team

16. Difference in Divisions • Div I • Offers Athletic Scholarships • Usually (but not always) big schools • Div II • Offers Athletic Scholarships • Usually (but not always) medium/small schools • Div III • Does not offer athletic scholarships • Usually (but not always) small schools

17. “I want Div I academics” - Recruit who shall not be named

18. Difference in Divisions • Harvard and Stanford are Div I • Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins University are Div III • Athletic Division has nothing to do with academic quality, and everything to do with how much money a school wants to spend on Football and/or basketball

19. Scholarship Rules XC/Track & Field • Div I • 12.6 Men • 18.0 Women • DivII • 12.6 Men and Women • Div III • 0 • These are maximum amounts allowed, many schools don’t have this many to offer

20. Scholarship Rules Football • DivI- FBS • 85 • Div I- FCS • 63 • DivII • 36 • Div III • 0

21. National Letter of Intent • If you are offered a scholarship, you will be sent a national letter of intent • Two signing periods your senior year • Early • One week in Nov • Regular • Mid April-August 1 • National Letter of Intent is a contract between you and the Institution • A prospective student-athlete agrees to attend the institution full-time for one academic year (two semesters or three quarters). • The institution agrees to provide athletics financial aid for one academic year (two semesters or three quarters). • Other schools are not allowed to contact you after you have signed an NLI • If you sign an NLI with one school, and attend another school in the first year, you have to serve one year in residence, and lose 1 season of competition in each sport • Only sign an NLI with a school you are 100% sure you want to attend

22. Recruiting Services • Pro • Help Increase visibility • Make it easier for coaches to contact you • Help you navigate the complicated rules • Con • Price • Many different services • Coaches can’t keep up with them all • Everything they do for you, you can do for yourself, if you are willing to spend the time

23. Miscellaneous Do’s and Don’ts • DO • Keep notes of the process, take pictures on tours • Research schools on your own so you can ask good questions • Look at Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS) • Everyone can make claims, this is cut and dry results for teams and individuals, and you can see how athletes progress at a particular program

24. Miscellaneous Do’s and Don’ts • DON’T • Ask a Coach if they are planning on staying • They will say yes no matter what, they have to • Look at their history, how many times they have moved in the past • Post things on social media you don’t want coaches to see • Let your parents do everything for you, and all the talking on visits • Be passive and expect the coach at your dream school to reach out to you • Use text speak or poor spelling and grammar in any written communication • Should be formal