Sports recruitment plays an important role in the sports world. It helps athletic departments find the next generation of athletes equipped to take up the mantle and lead their team to victory.

Recruiters have a huge impact on the success and notoriety of teams. They must carefully balance building a strong, elite team while still maintaining fairness and ethicality. Finding those players with the right combination of talent and drive is essential for any sports team who wishes to succeed. Here’s everything you need to know about sports recruitment, before you start your college application process.

What is the college recruiting process?

The college sports recruitment process is detailed and highly organized. Coaches will select prospective athletes who may match their program's needs, then begin with contact efforts that give the athletes chances to get their names and accomplishments seen. Prospective athletes also have ample opportunity to evaluate the coaches, their team, and how they all fit into their future as well. Evaluations, video reviews of performances, interviews, conversations, and visits are just some of the ways coaches seek to narrow down who they feel fits best with their program and aligns with what they need for success. Ultimately, this comes down to decision-making by both parties - ensuring an optimal outcome for all involved.

What are college coaches looking for when recruiting athletes?

When recruiting for college, college coaches take into account many factors. On the physical side, coaches look at a player’s size, speed, skill, and coordination. Academic standards are also a major factor in the recruiting process due to NCAA eligibility requirements. Coaches also consider the athlete's attitude, work ethic, and commitment when selecting new teammates. Ultimately, they need to find athletes who can perform their best individually and cohesively as part of a team - academic success is just as important as on-field excellence. With these criteria in mind, it is no wonder why so much effort goes into finding and signing the most talented prospects.

Here are three of the most important factors colleges coaches takes into consideration when recruiting:

Athletic ability

College coaches actively search for athletes to recruit to their programs. Unsurprisingly, athletic ability is often one of their major criteria when choosing potential recruits. Athletic ability can ensure that a player will fit into their system and contribute to the team’s success on the field or court. College coaches will carefully analyze the talent, skills, and physical traits of an athlete to assess whether they have what it takes to compete in college sports; as such, having great athletic ability can be what catapults an athlete from being chosen to being heavily recruited as they navigate through their high school sporting career.

Academics

College recruiting is a competitive process, and this makes academics especially important when it comes to college coaches recruiting athletes. Quality athletics are of course, necessary for any college coach's search for potential recruits, yet having good grades and a high educational foundation will give potential athletes an edge over others vying for the same position. Recruiting coaches also look favorably upon student-athletes with strong leadership capabilities, as demonstrated by their academic records. Potential college athletes should strive to achieve their highest level of academic excellence, as this is often seen as a reflection of the commitment they bring to their chosen sport. Being a top academic performer is thus essential for those looking to shine in the college recruitment process.

Character

Character is also a huge factor for college coaches when recruiting athletes. In addition to the impressive physical and technical conditioning these athletes possess, coaches must also be assured that they are reliable and have good judgment. Coaches understand that athletes will represent their university on and off the playing field, and they must ensure that the recruits reflect positively on their school. College coaches will often get feedback from former teammates, current teachers, high school counselors, etc., to ensure a recruit has good character and is suitable for joining their team. The character can make or break an athlete's chances of being recruited, as there are always many applicants during the recruiting process.

How do colleges recruit for their sports teams?

The recruitment process for collegiate sports teams is often complicated and often contentious. Colleges will utilize every means available to seek out talented athletes and get them to join their teams. In some cases, coaches may travel far and wide to attend tournaments or other events in person to evaluate talent and make an offer on the spot. Schools may also advertise their programs heavily on social media or host open try-outs to find students with the right combination of skills and talents. Many top-tier sports programs have their dedicated recruiters who will contact potential recruits directly, while others actively pursue and solicit letters of interest from eager prospective players.

When does the college recruiting process begin?

The timeline of when coaches begin their recruiting processes varies widely by sport. While the NCAA dictates that coaches can only receive recruiting information from athletes and reach out to them starting June 15 after the athlete’s sophomore year or September 1 of their junior year for most Division 1 and Division 2 sports, many coaches begin laying the groundwork for recruitment before then. Track and field and cross country allow coaches to wait until closer to the senior year before they begin actively pursuing athletes, while women’s gymnastics is a sport in which coaches start reaching out as early as freshman or sophomore year since athletes develop so quickly. Student-athletes need to be aware of these different timelines if they hope to compete at the collegiate level.

5 tips on how to best prepare for a sports recruitment process

Many athletes dream of the day when they are recruited for their chosen sport. The sports recruitment process is a highly competitive and challenging endeavor, however. From showcasing talent to submitting strong applications, athletes must do what it takes to be noticed by coaches and scouts.

1. Gather necessary athletic information

Crafting an athletic resume is an important part of the recruitment process for a student-athlete. While the resume's formatting is up to the athlete, several key components should be included. This includes contact information for high school, club, AAU, and travel team coaches, as well as the date of birth, positions played, height and weight, among any other helpful personal details. With this information in hand, along with academic records, coaches can get all they need to do a proper evaluation of you as a recruit. There are plenty of templates available online to help with formatting if needed, but ultimately there is no right or wrong way to go about creating your resume. In any case, it’s important to ensure all necessary information is presented clearly and effectively so you can make the best impression possible in the eyes of college coaches.

2. Improve academic performance

Taking your academics seriously is essential to make it through the sports recruitment process. Strong performance in the classroom is often seen as a sign of discipline, commitment, and work ethic, all of which may be desirable traits for any aspiring athlete. Take AP classes or dual-enrollment classes to give yourself an edge, along with joining study groups or after-school programs – like peer tutoring – whenever possible. Challenging yourself academically by excelling on tests you take will also help keep recruiters interested in your profile and will greatly improve your possibilities of being chosen for participation. Taking this preparatory step will go a long way toward helping someone stand out and be noticed by those who decide which athletes are offered scholarships or other opportunities.

3. Get into a coach's recruitment database

One of the best ways to prepare for college recruitment is to ensure that you get into a coach's recruitment database. This allows coaches to see your strengths and qualifications, as well as request your attendance at events or contact you when openings present themselves. It also helps coaches quickly evaluate prospective players and weigh their qualifications against contestants. Additionally, it provides a larger, more concentrated pool of schools to consider and approach during the recruitment process. By preparing yourself to be noticed by entering various recruitment databases, you will increase your chances of being noticed by the right coaches at the right time. It can be challenging to get into these databases since they are competitive and often exclusive, but with hard work and dedication, it is within reach. Taking the initiative and networking with key stakeholders will put you in a good position for success.

4. Get educated on the process

If you're an athlete aiming to play college-level sports, you must familiarize yourself with the recruitment process. The journey to getting recruited by a college team is long and arduous, and the competition is fierce. As such, proper preparation is essential to give you the best chance at success. Some of the things you can do to prepare yourself include reaching out to coaches and scouts, attending camps or showcases for them to watch you perform, applying for any available academic scholarships, and researching different teams and programs. Information can be overwhelming, so you must find reliable sources to gather your facts. Doing your research will allow you to know who all is recruiting athletes like yourself in your specific sport of choice so that you can stay on top of newly posted opportunities, as well as determine which colleges have the best chances of providing what you're looking for in terms of a successful career in sports.

5. Showcase your best moments

Recruiting for college sports is about more than simply showing your talent - you must also know how to get recruiters' attention and showcase which attributes make you stand out from the competition. Traditionally doing this can be difficult, as you must invest time in gathering clips and videos of your performance, as well as having a camera operator to record them. That is where Veo comes in. It gives players an easy way to record matches and upload them to their own player profile - with all their highlights showcased. You can effortlessly send out the link to the page to scouts and recruiters or download those highlights onto your device instantly. Having this convenience allows athletes more leisure time between games during their recruitment process so they can focus on their performance where it matters most - on the court.