What do college recruiters look for? (2024)

What do college recruiters look for?

Every college coach in the country wants a roster full of players who are mentally and physically tough. They want focused, aggressive competitors. College coaches notice attributes like effort, fearlessness, and confidence. They also want players who don't let a mistake affect them.

The best way to make sure you impress rather than depress a coach is to be prepared. Anticipate the questions he or she might ask, know a little bit about their program and be ready with your answers. College coaches want outgoing, confident players who will represent their program in a positive light.

College coaches want to hear everything they can about you and your athletic and academic abilities. With the recruiting process being so short, coaches want to learn as much about you as they can and as quickly as possible.

For most Division I and Division II sports, coaches can start proactively reaching out to recruits June 15 after sophom*ore year or September 1 of junior year. However, many coaches—think: Division I and some top-tier DII schools—will make scholarship offers to athletes as young as 7th and 8th grade.

D1 athletes are more competitive, and typically have a better chance of receiving scholarships and going pro in their sport. That being said, D2 athletes have more time to focus on their studies and pursue other interests.

Coaches are spending money to show off their school and give you the best impression of their campus. Being personally invited for an unofficial visit, or a campus visit financed by your family, is also a definite sign the coach is interested in you as a recruit.

College coaches love to recruit players who have participated in ID or skill camps. The coaches already know those athletes' talent, work ethic, and how well they get along with those athletes. You will pay for the camps, but you will quickly see the pay-off.

What happens on unofficial visits?

An unofficial visit requires a recruit to pay for their own transportation, food, and accommodations during a college campus visit, while an official visit allows the college to pay for part or all of those expenses. Both visits allow the school to purchase tickets to a home sporting event for the recruit.

Contacting coaches is essential to the recruiting process and being proactive and reaching out first could help set a potential recruit apart from their competition. To help athletes in this regard, parents can work on understanding regulations, including the NCAA recruiting rules and calendar.

Questions College Coaches May Ask. When talking to potential student athletes, college coaches often ask questions that will help them understand not only how you play, but also how you think, your sport culture, and your self-assessment as a player, to help the coach determine how you might fit into their program.

College coaches are looking for specific needs. Stats likely have little to do with finding this unique fit. Your high home run total might not fit the need for a speedy leadoff man. All college coaches have different preferences and things that they like.

The best way to avoid miscommunication is to call the coach and verbally commit, and then send a follow-up email stating your enthusiasm to be a part of the program so the coach has the commitment confirmation in writing.

Let the coach know what you really enjoy about your sport. Make them feel your excitement. Ask the coach about the school and the team and about their goals for the team. Ask the coach questions about where they grew up, about their family and what they like about where they live now.

“We're looking for technical skill and speed of play, but we're also looking for other things like how you're interacting with your teammates, what's your work rate like after you turn the ball over, things like that,” one coach told me.

Every prestigious college looks for well-rounded student-athletes who show exemplary academic performance, including a high GPA, outstanding test scores, and challenging high school courses on their transcripts.