During my recruiting process in high school, my initial belief was that the only schools that I could play for were the ones that sent me the camp pamphlets and season game invites. Being from a small school in northern Michigan, not many schools besides the local ones even looked that far north for athletic talent. It was a steep learning curve to figure out where I stood athletic-wise and what schools I could actually play at.
Looking back, I was late to the game in getting things started with my recruiting. During my junior spring I was armed with my ACT score and junior stats, so I began researching schools across the country and picked out a few that peaked my interest that were also hosting specialist camps over the summer. Long road trips and some emails, I heard little news regarding the potential of my football career continuing past high school. Heading into my senior, I was soon confronted with a bit of panic and worry that I was too late to be recruited by schools for the sport that I loved.
When Does Recruiting Happen?
Now, as I help many high school athletes that find themselves in a similar position with the recruiting process, I find myself reminding most that a lot of recruiting process will happen during the senior fall and carry into the spring. Each year, only a handful of the big-name schools will offer specialist over the summer prior to their senior year. Most D1 schools will have a few recruits on their board and will wait to see how they perform and develop over the first half of their senior seasons. For the smaller schools in D2 and D3, they follow the pecking order and begin recruiting heavier in the senior and into the winter/spring as well. It’s important to keep in mind that many schools will still be recruiting specialists all the way up until National Signing Day.
The name of the recruiting game is to get your information in front of the right coaches at the right time. That could be anytime from April of your junior year to January/February of your senior year. There is no rhyme or reason to the madness, but there are some things that will drastically improve your recruiting experience.
· Be Realistic
· Persistence is Key
· Keep Searching
Working with Underdog for your college football recruiting, we will identify those best-fit schools based on all the school factors that are most important to you and develop a recruiting strategy unique for you. Understanding the best way to get all your information (academic, athletic and extracurricular) in front of the right people at each school of interest is what Underdog focuses on. If you have questions or feel that Underdog can be of help in your recruiting process, email us today at jacobdombrowski@underdogconsultant.com.