1 Recruiting 101 Acers Fastpitch 2012

2 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Recruiting Process Realities o Full Ride scholarships are very limited (< 1%) o Schools & Coaches get literally 100 s a day o The Head Coach rarely looks at the s themselves o Recruiting Service communications are almost always ignored and often trashed immediately o 2014 and 2015 players… Now is your time to get on the Radar for the college coaches

3 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Finding the Right Fit College o Research, Research, Research o Academics o Financials o School Size o Coach o Location (Far away / Close by, Cold / Hot) o Softball time commitments o Unofficial Visits o The higher the level of softball o The earlier you should start o The farther away from home o The earlier you should start

4 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Have a Recruiting Plan o Be Proactive & Market / Sell yourselves o Don’t wait to be discovered o Create a Profile of your type of college o Create a list of schools that fit your college profile o Start getting correspondence out to them o Make a Skills Video to send to these colleges o Participate in recruiting camps & college camps o Play games at strong showcase tournaments where college coaches like to go

5 Acers Fastpitch 2012 The NCAA Options o NCAA D-1 o Can offer up to 12 Full Scholarships o NCAA D-2 o Can offer up to 7.5 Full Scholarships o NCAA D-3 o No Athletic Scholarships o NAIA o Mostly offer Academic $$ but some have Athletic $$ o NJCAA o Can offer unlimited Athletic Scholarships

6 Acers Fastpitch 2012 NCAA Recruiting Rules o NCAA D-1 and D-2 o Cannot talk to players during a tournament o Cannot call a player until July 1 st prior to their Senior year o Cannot a player until after Sept 1 st of their Junior year o Limited to the number of off campus contacts that they can have with a player and/or family member at tournaments o NCAA D-3 o No restrictions on phone calls o Can have contact with you after your Junior year o Acceptance by the admissions dept must happen prior to anything happening with the softball coach o NAIA & NJCAA o Can talk to you anytime but they always wait to see if you are interested in a D-1, D-2, or D-3 school first

7 Acers Fastpitch 2012 NCAA Eligibility Info o Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center no later than the start of your Junior year (Clearinghouse #) o Graduate High School o Attain the minimum GPA for the college of interest o Attain the minimum SAT / ACT scores o Take these tests early (no later than Fall of Junior year) o Recommend that you get the “NCAA Guide for the College Bound Athlete” that’s available at

8 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Tournament Etiquette o Do not approach college coaches at a tournament o They are there to evaluate your skills and not to hold a bunch of random conversations o If a coach wants to talk to you then they will initiate or arrange contact with you o and/or Call a coach before a tournament to let them know of your interest & your game schedule o Follow up s after a tournament within 2 days after the end of the tournament is a must o Thank them for coming out to watch us play

9 Acers Fastpitch Correspondence o Do not mass coaches o once a week during our summer tournaments (Tues) o Sell yourself & tell them what makes you special & standout o Big hitter, fast, strikeout totals, pitching speed, etc o Avoid false statements or stretching the truth o Send skills video & player profile links in all of your s o Subject line of your s should always include o Name / Team Name / Jersey # o Live game video links are great options too

10 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Recruiting Timelines o Freshman Year o Prepare your list of schools o Visit local schools o Watch college games at the various levels o Sophomore Year o Let the marketing campaign begin o Refine your list of schools (research / gather more info) o Unofficial Visits are very important & start now o 20 schools is a manageable list to keep up with o If you can manage more then that would be even better

11 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Recruiting Timelines o Junior Year o Sept 1 st is the key date that you can start to receive direct correspondence via and regular mail o You should significantly intensify your marketing efforts o Your video link distributions, s, phone calls, & campus visits should be a high level commitment o Senior Year o Fall of your Senior year is a very important time to play in front of your interested colleges o It is still possible to be recruited in the Spring / Summer of your Senior Year but the chances are diminished o Most D-3, NAIA, & JUCO don’t start looking at you until your Senior year o You should consider looking more at your Plan “B” too

12 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Good Advice o Have a Plan & don’t wait for coaches to come to you o Showing up at a tournament having never contacted a coachor very many coaches is a poor approach o Don’t expect to just show up at a tournament and expect to have a coach see you and say “Wow… That girl is exactly what I need & everything that we have been looking for” because that hardly ever happens o Don’t get hung up on the “Full Ride” mentality o Plan to see some athletic scholarship $$ supplemented by academic $$, financial aid, and student loans

13 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Key Notes o You never know who is watching o Your Level of Hustle can work for you or against you o Reactions to success & failure are very important o Recruiting is not fair & never will be o Coaching your daughter through the fences is not an acceptable practice or habit o Approaching coaches unless designated as the team’s recruiting focal is not permitted

14 Acers Fastpitch 2012 Recruiting Clinic / Guide o Vegas Clinic o Hosted by Cathy Aradi o o $ 15 per person (in advance) or $20 at the door o $ 25 per family (in advance) or $30 at the door o Recruiting Guide o Written by Cathy Aradi o Preparing to Play Softball at the Collegiate Level