Fall 2020 | Page 21

Don’t waste the time on overproduced videos. If you’re sending a video, it doesn’t need to be professionally shot or needlessly lengthy; coaches simply need to be able to quickly see what your athlete can do. Keep it short (two or three minutes is probably sufficient), post it to YouTube and send the coach a link. Emphasize the importance of academics and character. It won’t matter how great an athlete a student is if an athlete can’t also compete in the classroom or can’t stay out of trouble. A coach wants to see effort being made in all aspects of your teen’s life, so decisions made off the field are every bit as important as performance on the field. Keep perspective. Throughout this process, remember that the odds of getting a significant scholarship are fairly miniscule. Only about 2% of student athletes are fortunate enough to obtain an athletic scholarship, and full-ride scholarships are scarce. Football, men and women's basketball, and women's gymnastics, volleyball, and tennis are the only “head count” sports that give full rides; all other sports are “equivalency sports” where scholarships are often small. RECRUITING TERMS: Contact - Any time a college coach says more than hello during a face-to-face meeting with a college-bound student-athlete or his/her parents off the college’s campus. Evaluation - When a college coach observes a student-athlete practicing or competing. Verbal Commitment - When a college-bound student-athlete verbally agrees to play sports for a college before he or she signs or is eligible to sign a National Letter of Intent. The commitment is not binding on the student-athlete or the school and can be made at any time. Officially Commit - To attend a Division I or II college, he/she signs a National Letter of Intent, agreeing to attend that school for one academic year. source: http://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/future/recruiting www.potentialmagazine.com Fall 2020 | 21