PENFIELD
PATRIOTS
FOOTBALL
Intro. To The Recruiting
Process
THE FACTS
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?
Recruiting by the Numbers
Getting a recruiting letter in the mail and
actually playing in college are two very
different things. When you factor in the
amount of over-recruiting, transfers, and
programs with JV or developmental
teams…actually playing your sport for four
years in college is pretty rare!
High School vs. College
Colleges get to pick the best prospects from a larger pool
Sport
High School Teams
College Programs
%
Baseball
15,863
1,618
10.2%
Basketball (M)
18,150
1,844
10.2%
Basketball (W)
17,767
1,824
10.3%
Cross Country (M)
14,097
1,284
9.1%
Cross Country (W)
13,839
1,386
10.0%
Football
14,279
859
6.0%
Golf (M)
13,681
1,187
8.7%
Golf (W)
9,609
775
8.1%
Lacrosse (M)
2,192
290
13.2%
Lacrosse (W)
1,999
335
16.8%
Softball
15,338
1,617
10.5%
Soccer (M)
11,503
1,277
11.1%
Soccer (W)
11,047
1,144
10.4%
Tennis (M)
9,839
950
9.7%
Tennis (W)
10,181
1,443
14.2%
Track & Field (M)
15,954
971
6.1%
Track & Field (W)
16,030
1,032
6.4%
Volleyball
15,479
1,667
10.8%
Wrestling
10,407
304
2.9%
MORE NUMBERS TO HELP TELL THE STORY
654
Total number of athletes
from the US who will
receive NCAA D1 Men’s
Basketball scholarships
each year
The competition for scholarship dollars
and positions on teams is fierce. Being
realistic about your ability is essential!
1.2%
Percentage of athletes
playing high school
Football who will play
NCAA D1 College Football
.8%
Number of Division I
athletes who will have a
fully funded scholarship
for 4 years
COMMON MISTAKES
Made by Student Athletes
Target Schools Above Your Athletic Ability
Contact Too Few Schools
Have a False Sense of Security
Wait Until It’s Too Late for Something to Happen
Expect Someone Else to get You Recruited
Not Understand the Scholarship and Financial Aid
Process
Made by Parents
Think They Understand the Process
Think They can Evaluate Your Talent
Loose Track of the Importance of a College
Education and Degree
Believe “If a College Wants my Child, They will
Find a Way to get Him/Her Into School.”
Think a Letter from a Coach Means a Scholarship
Expecting the High School Coach to Guide the
Process
THE PROCESS
Freshman Year
Get settled in. Concentrate on
schoolwork
Set-up workout schedule
If you think you are interested in
attending college for a sport:
– Create a list of potential schools
– Send a letter of introduction
– Send an update at the end of your
season with your club schedule
– Register with the NCAA
Sophomore Year
 Strive for Academic success
 Begin to research NCAA requirements
and make sure you are on target for all
core requirements
 Go to the career center. Start
investigating colleges and their
admission requirements
 Prepare your initial contact letters with
resume:
 Include all schedules
 Include a 10-15 minute video of basic
skills and game footage
 Update your academics with the NCAA
 Summer after Sophomore Year - Send
contact letters with resume
Junior Year
 Register with the NCAA
 Keep up with studies and any changing NCAA
requirements
 Continue to investigate colleges and send
additional, updated resumes with schedules
 Enhance your skills and game tape so you are
prepared when requested
 Visit some of the campuses you are interested in
 Try to watch the schools you are interested in
play
 In July after your Junior Year
 Begin heavy contact with schools you are
interested in
 Update your academics with the NCAA
 Ensure your SAT/ACT scores have been sent to the
NCAA
 Continue to send resumes and videos to additional
colleges of interest
 Send your Summer schedule ASAP
 Make more UNOFFICIAL visits
Senior Year
Do not let up on academics
Review core requirements with
your guidance counselor
Send senior team schedule asap
Send updated resumes, stats,
videos
Find out Letter of Intent Date for
your sport
Take advantage of OFFICIAL visits
if offered
STUDY HARD, PLAY HARD
WHERE AM I NOW?
10 Reasons Good Athletes Are Not Recruited
They start their recruiting process to late.
1. They start by looking at too few schools.
2. They start by looking at schools that are out of their
reach, athletically and/or academically.
3. They think it’s their coach’s job to get them a college
scholarship.
4. They think that because they are a good athlete,
college coaches will discover them.
5. They don’t have video of their games.
6. They don’t have a professional quality highlight video.
7. They think that being on a premier, club or AAU team
will automatically get them noticed.
8. They think that college coaches will randomly discover
them at high level tournaments.
9. They think that by registering with NCAA Initial
Eligibility Center that college coaches will recruit
them.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
NCAA Eligibility Center
Official Sites
OFFICIAL SITES:,
National Collegiate Athletic Association
PO Box 6222, Indianapolis, IN 46206 (888) 388-9748
www.ncaa.org
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
1200 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, MO 64106 (816) 595 8000
www.naia.org
National Junior College Athletic Association
1755 Telstar Drive, #103, Colorado Springs, CO (719) 590 9788
www.njcaa.org
VIRTUAL COLLEGE TOUR:
www.youniversitytv.com
COLLEGE RECRUITING SITES
NCSA Athletic Recruiting - www.ncsasports.org/high-school-coaches-recruiting
Recruiting Realities – www.recruitingrealities.com
Student Athlete World – www.studentathleteworld.com
COLLEGE PLANNING RESOURCES:
US News – www.usnews.com
The Sallie Mae Fund – www.collegeanswer.com
The College Board – www.collegeboard.com
CollegeNET – www.collegenet.com
Petersons Student-Edge – www.studentedge.com
NCAA Student – www.ncaastudent.org
Campus Advisors – www.campusadvisors.com/joomla
SCHOLARSHIP & FINANCIAL AID SEARCH:
Free Application for Federal Student Aid – www.fasfa.ed.gov
FastWeb – Scholarship and College Search – www.fastweb.com
FinAid – Student Guide to Financial Aid – www.finaid.org
Free Education Guide – www.freeeducationguide.com
Financial planning for college – www.studentloannetwork.com
On YouTube
Some clips from “Recruiting Realities”
YouTube Channel by expert Jack Renkens
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2Mm5a1tHh4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuvI8p-LC1U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMiUyCIMQSc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OReusJANskk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KV0vd4aodlM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O82oFQwjatc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PZUKCA4hds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plbADpECRRo
Making Contact
Introducing Yourself to Coaches
You can’t expect college coaches to know who you are and want to give you an athletic scholarship
simply because of your athletic success. There are thousands of other student-athletes out there
that you are competing against. You have to set yourself apart and get in contact with the coaches
you may want to play for. Email can be a quick way to reach out to coaches, but taking the time to
send written letters may get you noticed as well.
Guidelines for Letters and Emails
Get your name out there. Contact at least one coach each week, or around 50 a year. That may
sound like a lot, but building relationships with multiple coaches might just result in several
scholarship options when it’s time to choose a college.
Research each school and coach. Find out specific information about the athletic program you’re
contacting. Mention important wins or other recent success the coach has had. This kind of personal
touch shows that you’re interested in the coach and the college.
Avoid using a form letter. Coaches can tell when you do. Take the time to personalize each letter or
email.
Include some essential aspects. There are several basic things that every letter or email should
include.
 A personalized salutation including the coach’s name. Never start with, “To Whom it May
Concern.”

Your basic information including your high school, the position that you play, or events that
you compete in.

Include some of your important athletic stats as well as academic stats like your GPA and
placement test scores.

Tell the coach of any club sports or camps that you’re participating in.

Include any recognition you’ve received like all-conference honors, MVP mentions, and
academic awards.

Explain why you want to play for that college and coach. Be specific.

Link to your athletic profile. Give the coach an option to find out more about you. A good way
to do that is to create an athletic profile at NCSA.

Don’t forget your contact information. Make sure you’ve included your street address, phone
number, and email address.
Sample Letter to Coach
Sample letter to coach:
Dear (Coach's Name),
My name is (Your name) from (City and State) and I am writing to you because of my interest in
playing (sport) at (college name). I play on my high school team and I consider myself (add
something about your athletic ability).
Just to tell you a little bit about myself. I am an (position) on my school and (Now talk about your
high school and club experience, any awards or honors, your work ethic, what you contribute most
to the team).
As a student, I am (about you). I currently have a -- GPA and scored an -- out of 1600 on my
SATs. I plan on retaking the SAT (date). My goal is (score). (Put in some extracurricular activities
if applicable). (Your academic strengths). (Say something about the college/University’s academic
record and your interest there)
(Include some upcoming plans and goals in this paragraph). I hope that you are able to see me
play. Below I have included a link to my NCSA scouting page for you to view as it includes highlight
videos and my athletic and academic information.
I would love to meet you and talk about the possibility of being a part of your team in (Grad year).
If there is anything I can do to help you decide whether I might be a good fit for your program
please don’t hesitate to ask. I will follow up with you soon by phone and if you have any further
questions I look forward to answering them for you.
Thank you very much for your time and I look forward to hearing back and contacting you via
phone very soon.
Sincerely,
Johnny Student/Athlete
1234 Broadway Drive
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 555-555-5555
Cell: 555-555-5555