Athletic recruiting 101 for parents

College sports recruiting can be a very complex process, and at times anxiety producing, but with the right information and a little patience, your child will have a successful experience.

Grades are very important

The better they are, the more options you (the player) has. Good grades means that more schools  can recruit you and possibly offer more money  in the form of merit scholarships.  Grades can keep you from being recruited in some instances.

The word "prospective" in the term Prospective Student-Athlete is important

Regardless of how many letters you get from college coaches, until someone decides that you are the right fit in terms of athletic ability, grades, position and personal character, you are simply a prospect being evaluated.

College coaches mail out thousands of letters each year as part of their initial college sports recruiting effort.

Mostly from that batch, the small recruiting classes enrolled each year are formed.  Sometimes an athlete not in that mailing list find their way to the coaches radar screen and is recruited. The point is, there are a lot of people out there and the right ones are hard to find.

College coaches will not “find” you because you are a good player.

If you don’t hear from a college coach, assuming they are not interested in you because they have not contacted you is false. There is one coach and thousands of athletes, do the math. Learn the meaning of the word "proactive."

It is OK for a student athlete to call, write or e-mail a college coach.

In fact, coaches prefer to hear from the student, not the parent. Overzealous parents can ruin their child’s recruiting chances.

Treat your college search like a job search.

Visit college Web sites, study the background of the coaches and the team’s recent history.  Send thank-you notes. Create a professional player profile with your athletic and academic history. Craft a custom cover letter for each coach you mail information to. Good letters of reference from your coaches are very valuable.  Find out if you have the right skills for the position.  Six-foot-three forwards are common at Division III, but rare to nonexistent at Division I. Know your target as well as you can.

Not every college offers athletic scholarships.

Most scholarships are only partial, usually less than half the cost of attending. NCAA Division I and II schools, NAIA schools, and some Junior Colleges can offer athletic scholarship aid.    

Parents tend to freak out the first time a college sports team mails their child a form letter.

Keep it in perspective, mail back the questionnaire and then go research the school.  If you do not hear back from the coach, it is likely because they looked at your information and made a decision to not pursue you.  It could have been for a lot of reasons, some of them surprisingly arbitrary, but if you feel you are a legitimate fit and want to attend the school, call the coach and find out if they are interested.  If they say no, ask why, and offer to send game film.

A college sports recruiting video should be clearly marked.

Be sure to include the student’s name, phone number, jersey color and number, and school or club team name. Put about two to four minutes of highlights and then a couple of running half/quarters for extended play viewing.  A tape is meant to spark enough interest to continue in the recruiting process, to get a coach to call your references, request more tape, try to see you play in person, etc.

While it might seem, after watching BCS football and March Madness television and Internet hype, that college sports is all big business. The fact is, most college athletes toil in relative anonymity, playing hard, earning a degree, and learning a lot about what it takes to succeed in life. The spotlight shines on only a select few.

We’ll stop at 10. We could have gone to 100! Arm yourself with facts, ask lots of questions and focus on the fit. Where does your child fit socially, academically and athletically? Don't forget to enjoy the ride.

By Dave Galehouse, varsityedge.com and Ray Lauenstein, athletesadvisor.com, authors of The Making of a Student Athlete: Succeeding in the College Selection and Recruiting Process.