D3 Recruiting

Started by Another Mom, August 10, 2019, 04:41:59 PM

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Another Mom

I may be the only parent with a high school player starting the recruiting process . . . but in case I'm not, I thought a thread where we could ask questions,  share info etc might be helpful.

I have a question: on an unofficial visit to a d3 school, can my son participate in a team practice? (My son wrote to a coach, who replied that "at the very least" they would meet with him -- what more could they do??) (Yes, my son can/will clarify with the coach, but I'm impatient,  and want to have an idea of what to possibly expect.  Thanks!

nescacfan94

There really is no 'official' or 'unofficial' visit to a D3 school. Generally that is D1 terminology referring to who pays for the visit. A coach asking a kid to visit campus is as official as it gets.

No he most likely cannot participate in a coach run practice. If it is an 'unofficial' captain run practice I suppose the answer is yes but without the coaches there the value is questionable. Of course coaches do get current player input on the quality of players that attend camps, etc. The best way to practice for real with much of a team is to go to a camp at that school. Usually there are many current players and/or incoming recruits at these camps.

truenorth

Unless anything has changed significantly in the last 10 years, D3 coaches actively recruit high school players and invite players of interest to visit during the season.  Typically an invited recruit spends the night with a team member, meets with the coach, and observes a practice.  I believe it is against D3 rules for a recruit to participate in a coach-run practice.  As nescacfan94 indicates, the recruit pays his own way to and from the visit, but will typically receive a voucher to eat at the dining hall with the player(s) he's staying with.

Skipper

there are official visits in D3 that involve the player spending about 24 hours with the team on campus. players can practice with the team in an environment where the coaches are not present, and have not directed the team to train.

OP should not be shy to ask these kinds of questions to the coaching staff, or better yet, have your son take the initiative to communicate and get that conversation going with the staff.

SlideTackle

Quote from: Another Mom on August 10, 2019, 04:41:59 PM
I may be the only parent with a high school player starting the recruiting process . . . but in case I'm not, I thought a thread where we could ask questions,  share info etc might be helpful.

I have a question: on an unofficial visit to a d3 school, can my son participate in a team practice? (My son wrote to a coach, who replied that "at the very least" they would meet with him -- what more could they do??) (Yes, my son can/will clarify with the coach, but I'm impatient,  and want to have an idea of what to possibly expect.  Thanks!

I can't point you to a specific rule, but I suspect a practice with the team during the trip would not be permitted.  Simple answer: liability.  If your son should get injured at an official team event the university will be on the hook, unless I guess you're asked to sign a waiver beforehand.  Without a waiver there is virtually 0 chance that he will be permitted to get on the field. 

nescacfan94

Good points by all above.

Some coaches have been known to invite a recruit to a game, which might involve sitting in on pre-game meetings, watching warmups from the bench, and the game from the stands (not the bench!).

Coaches sometimes invite kids to campus and gauge player interest in the school by the response. Does the player jump at the chance to visit? Coaches have big lists of kids. They want good players, but they also want players that want to come to their school and play for their program. And players than can get in to the school without a tip are especially helpful.

Similarly, players can ask the coach if they can visit, and based upon the response of the coach, the player might be able to determine whether s/he is on the coaches' short list.

Some coaches give out offers quite early, like winter/spring of Junior year. Others wait for D1 players to decide to go D3. Lots of D3 schools already have many players committed for the class of 2024. Maybe even 2025!

Finally, consider this.... 200-20-5. General rule of thumb for D3 recruiting. Coaches keep a list of 200 players, 20 they want (obviously ranked in some order), and they hope to get 5 from that list of 20. This is just a general rule. Different programs will have different realities. Perennial D3 contenders vs programs on the rise or those with a new coach vs highly selective schools. There are lots of schools and coaches and they all have different realities, so there is no one size fits all here. Other than the fact that coaches do not want to ever hear from a parent. :)

Another Mom

Quote from: nescacfan94 on August 12, 2019, 10:16:52 AM


Finally, consider this.... 200-20-5. General rule of thumb for D3 recruiting. Coaches keep a list of 200 players, 20 they want (obviously ranked in some order), and they hope to get 5 from that list of 20. This is just a general rule. Different programs will have different realities. Perennial D3 contenders vs programs on the rise or those with a new coach vs highly selective schools. There are lots of schools and coaches and they all have different realities, so there is no one size fits all here. Other than the fact that coaches do not want to ever hear from a parent. :)

Huh, that's interesting.  I would have thought the initial pool of players would be larger than 200, but what do I know.

My son is a rising junior, so college class of 2025. I can confidently say that there are basically no d3 commits at this age group.

I would think the better d3s would be on the later side, waiting for d1/borderline d1 players to figure out they preferred d3 to their d1 options.

truenorth

The reality is that, at least among the more academically demanding liberal arts colleges, there is no such thing as a commitment from a D3 coach to a high school junior.  The schools' admissions offices simply don't allow coaches to make that kind of early commitment on behalf of the school.

Ejay

D3 coach I spoke with last week said he's just about done with the '20 kids and will start looking at '21 kids after the fall season.

nescacfan94

Quote from: truenorth on August 13, 2019, 07:55:19 AM
The reality is that, at least among the more academically demanding liberal arts colleges, there is no such thing as a commitment from a D3 coach to a high school junior.  The schools' admissions offices simply don't allow coaches to make that kind of early commitment on behalf of the school.

So you are technically right. The admissions office will not sign off on a rising high school senior until July 1st at the earliest. Some schools might need an extra week or two depending on the process at the particular school. But I know for a fact that high school juniors receive NESCAC offers many months before the July 1st deadline, and the coach will know based upon his/her experience and the grades/scores of the recruit whether that recruit will get 'sign off' from admissions once they walk the prospect info into Admissions on or after July 1st.


Another Mom

There's a big difference in admissions difficulty within the NESCAC. Trinity has a very different profile than Williams. Perhaps that's why some coaches can be more confident about admissions?

nescacfan94

Quote from: Another Mom on August 13, 2019, 02:51:15 PM
There's a big difference in admissions difficulty within the NESCAC. Trinity has a very different profile than Williams. Perhaps that's why some coaches can be more confident about admissions?

Very true.  But I think it is fair to say that the profiles remain roughly the same from year to year at a given school.  That's where the confidence comes from. Doesn't matter if it is Williams or Trinity or Bowdoin or Conn College or ....

blooter442

It sounds like there is a difference between being informally "offered a spot" (based on a high level of coach interest and a high level of likelihood that the player will get through admissions) versus being told, "yup, you're officially in, bring out the red carpet" before the July 1st deadline. It may be semantics, but they seem to be distinct.

Another Mom

I'm bumping this up, now that the season is over. Since my son is a junior recruiting activity has started to ramp up. My mantra is "Enjoy The Process"!

At this point, some schools are way ahead of others -- some just now turning to 2021s, others have been focused/courting them for months. I notice a correlation with strength of program.  Highly ranked schools focused on the juniors earlier.  My opinion is that's one reason these programs are more highly ranked,  they are more likely to get stronger players this way.

Ejay

Quote from: Another Mom on January 17, 2020, 08:08:42 AM
I'm bumping this up, now that the season is over. Since my son is a junior recruiting activity has started to ramp up. My mantra is "Enjoy The Process"!

So, how's it going?