TE R MS TO K NOW
Now that we’ve covered the different levels and divisions, it might
be helpful to brush up on some commonly used recruitment
vocab.
Contact Period:
This is the time during which a college coach is able to have face-
to-face contact with a college-bound athlete and their parents, as
well as visit their school and watch them compete.
Evaluation Period:
During this period, a college coach may watch the athlete com-
pete. They cannot make face-to-face contact with the athlete or
their parents off the college’s campus.
Quiet Period:
A college coach can only have face-to-face contact with the
athlete on the college’s campus during this period. They cannot
watch the athlete compete or visit their high school.
Dead Period:
This is the time during which a college coach cannot make face-
to-face contact with the athlete, visit the athlete’s school, or watch
them compete.
Official Visit / Unofficial Visit:
If the college pays for anything of yours during a visit, it’s consid-
ered an official visit. If you or your parents pay for everything, it’s
unofficial. The only things a college is permitted to pay for during
an unofficial visit are three tickets (for you and your parents) to a
home sporting event.
Verbal Commitment:
This is a phrase used when an athlete announces which school
they are going to attend. It is not in any way a binding contract.
Only signing a National Letter of Intent will bind you to a school.
National Letter of Intent:
A National Letter of Intent is signed by a student athlete when
they agree to attend a Division I or II school. This is an agreement
stating the university will provide financial aid to the student
athlete for one academic year, as long as they are admitted to the
school and are eligible under the NCAA’s rules. This step is volun-
tary- you are not required to sign a Letter of Intent.
Once you sign, the recruitment process is over, and no other
institutions are allowed to contact you. You can request a release
from your contract if you choose to attend a different school.
However, if you attend another school without being released,
you’ll lose one full year of NCAA eligibility.
www.potentialmagazine.com
Winter 2018 |
19