Are you not getting the recruiting engagement you want from your schools-of-choice? Many aspects go into a coaches’ recruiting methods. If you aren’t optimizing your positioning within the parameters of these coaches’ methods, you are far less likely to see success in the recruiting scene. Let’s dive into some key volleyball recruiting mistakes…
Unrealistic Goals
As nice as it would be to play for a title contending NCAA D1 or USPORTS program; there’s only so many roster spots that are open each season. The most straight-forward explanation for your lack of recruitment is you are marketing yourself in a highly competitive market. It’s always smart to evaluate yourself compared to the people whose shoes you’d like to be in.
For example, a 5’8” (female) outside hitter who touches 9’4” who hopes to get recruited to a Power 5 NCAA D1 school where outside hitters are 6’1”+ and touching 10’0”+ is setting an unrealistic goal to fill the role of someone who plays on a different physical level than them. This isn’t to go without saying that many other aspects could play a role into the recruitability of the smaller athlete (i.e. other playing skills, academics, etc.). So for the given example, assume that all other aspects which concern a coach are even, between the shorter and taller athlete.
Where do you go from here?
Go back to the drawing board and set realistic and attainable goals that align with your skill level and school choices. At Six Pack Recruiting Sports, we have some serious conversations about your goals and the schools that align with your dream.
Subpar Academics
It’s important to remain aware of the fact that you are not just going to school to play volleyball. If you are unable to get accepted into a program at your schools-of-choice, there is rarely much a coach can do to help you overcome what you lack in the academic realm. This issue can generally be identified on your own as you may notice a trend of recruiting conversations ending as the academic discussion comes up.
The only thing you control in the recruiting process is the academic piece. Push yourself academically so that these recruiting conversations continue beyond just your grades.
Untimely Communication
Coaches want to sign athletes who are sure of their commitment to the school. A super easy way to lose a coach’s confidence in you is by taking too long to respond to emails, texts, and any other inquiries.
How long is too long? This is left to subjective opinion but a general rule of thumb is no more than 1.5 business days. A business day being Monday-Friday (excluding holidays). 1.5 days should be interpreted as follows; A coach writes to you Tuesday at 8:00am, that leaves you until no later than lunch time on Wednesday to ensure a timely response. Alternatively, if a coach writes to you on Tuesday at 5:00pm, you would have until Thursday at lunch time to respond.
With this being said, it is impossible to seem too eager to a coach. The earlier you reply, the better.
BONUS… 1 MORE REASON YOU’RE NOT BEING RECRUITED.
Poor Self-Representation
Some athletes struggle with selling themselves. As strange as it may feel at first; talking yourself up and highlighting your desirable qualities is an essential part of your recruitability. There are a lot of avenues which you can increase and decrease your athletic identity. Here is a list of aspects to consider:
- Quality of media (videos and photos) on your socials
- Bad selection of clips in highlight videos
- Bad body language on the court
- Talking openly about conflicts/issues you were faced with people in your sports world
- Failing to engage in self-serving topics when in conversation with coaches
- Failing to research the coach/school you are in the midst of talking to
Ultimately, if your recruiting process isn’t serving you, something has to change. Sometimes what it takes is a shift in your goals, academics and coach communication. Sometimes it’s a massive leap further by working with a recruiter who knows the in’s and out’s of what coaches want and the connections to get you there. Your recruiting isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon.
