NCAA Athletics - Eligibility & Recruitment
College Athletics - Eligibility & Recruitment
Athletes who desire to play sports in college must do a lot of preparation and be aware of many things to put themselves in position to be a college athlete. They must:
1. Maintain Quality Academics - In addition to being a talented athlete students must be able to meet the academic requirements of the schools that may be considering them and in the case of Division I and Division II level athletics they also must meed Core Course GPA and Test Score Eligibility Requirements.
2. Separate Themselve Athletically from the Rest - There are so many students from across the nation (even the world) who desire to play athletics in college. Only approximately 3% of high school athletes play sports in college, and only about 1% of athletes are able to play at the Division I level in their sport. Being a part of a high school sports program alone is not enough to ensure that a student will be able to play sports at the next level. Students must be at the top of their sport, usually playing multiple years at the Varsity level and starting or being a featured athlete in their sport.
3. Get Noticed - Very few student athletes are at such a high level that they do not have to promote themselves to colleges to gain interest. It is rare that a student is so talented that they get publicity and recognition that college coaches take note of without some effort from the student. Students can increase their potential for being noticed by attending camps at colleges or general recruiting camps, filming games or competition and sending them to college coaches, or taking college visits and seeking to meet with coaches or a representative from a program. Due to guidelines surrounding visitation and contact periods, sometimes this can be a challenging road, but colleges can always receive information/videos that you send to them, even if they cannot always make contact with the student.
4. Put in the Work - Finally, students must put in the necessary work to be the best that they can be. They should train frequently, practicing the fundamentals as well as advanced skills, be physically in the best shape possible, and maintain great relationships with teammates and their coaches. College coaches look at talent as the beginning point when recruiting a player, but shortly behind that are the intangibles: is the player a good student, will they be academically eligible to play if they come to my school? do they get along with their coaches and teammates, will they add to my team's chemistry or make it worse? do they have good work habits, do they push themselves or will I have to constantly be pushing them?
Here are a few great websites to help parents and students make sense of it all and to plan accordingly:
Free Recruiting Webinar - This website is a great guide for parents and students, coming equipped with approximately a 26 minute webinar with they breakdown what it takes to be a college athlete and how to understand all the ins and outs of NCAA Eligibility and Recruiting.
One Minute Recruiting Webinars - Not sure you want to sit through the comprehensive 26 minuter recruiting webinar, or you know a bit about NCAA recruiting, but want more information on a specific topic? Then check out these one-minute webinars covering the following topics: Core GPA vs. Cumulative, D1 Initial Eligibility, D2 Initial Eligibility, The Myth of the 'Full Ride', Scholarship Facts, When Should I start preparing for college eligibility, Who Should Track My Eligibility, What is the NCAA Eligibility Center, The National Letter of Intent, Social Media, 3 Rules of Being a Parent of a Student-Athlete, Are Recruiting Services Necessary, Covid-19 Impact on Graduating Classes of 21-23, Does the NCAA Accept Online Classes, What is the NAIA Eligibility Center, CoreCourseGPA.com Text Messaging.
Core Course GPA - LHS has partnered with the Core Course GPA company to provide families access to a NCAA GPA Calculator and many of the same tips provided by Free Recruting Webinar which include - Recrutiing tips, Visit information by sport and grade level, how to market yourself to get noticed.
Easily access the Core Course GPA Website and login and create an account as an LHS Student by opening this letter and getting started ... LHS Core Course GPA Student/Parent Letter
If you have any additional questions, contact the LHS Counseling Office.