One of the things that has always rubbed me the wrong way with recruiting is that while it is without a doubt an inherently personal decision for the athlete, we as coaches tend to turn it into essentially a sales and marketing effort. That’s not necessarily a good thing or a bad thing; it’s just one of the harsh, cold realities of the process itself. Many of those inhabiting the recruiting environment tend to generalize what they feel is and is not important in the decision efforts of prospects. The fact remains that in the end it’s still an individual choice best determined on the needs and the wants of that specific athlete alone.
Nobody, especially college coaches, evaluators or media, should be trying to tell an athlete or her family what is important to or should be a basis for her ultimate decision. Recruits should fear nothing more than some individual or entity with their own agenda utilizing any phrase involving the words “you need”. Even Mom and Dad are limited to “advisory” status and limited input in the criteria department simply because…let’s face it…there’s only one person who will be packing her bags and heading to school when the time comes.
I bring up the concern because of all of the campus visits (official and unofficial) that are taking place right now and throughout the fall. Having scheduled, planned and hosted 25 years’ worth of these overvalued sneak peeks I know firsthand the inflated influence they tend to have on the ultimate decisions of prospects. It’s always been disappointing that so much weight is given to such a choreographed and tremendously limited span of time. Again and again you hear the athletes; their parents or even their coaches offer up the nugget of wisdom that “it’ll come down to the visit”. Seriously? With so much on the line impacting an individual’s academic, athletic and personal future the deciding factor is going to be an event often scripted down to the very last second by the very people with most to gain?
Campus visits have their place in the process, and there’s no question that it’s a very prominent one. There’s no better way to confirm your impression of a program and university than to see things first hand. However the perspective of “who’s” visit it actually is needs to return to that of the recruit and her family rather than one of the gracious and welcoming coaches hosting them. Coaching staffs are control freaks and with so much on the line with each and every recruit, who can blame them? In that light it’s understandable that they want to program, manipulate and capitalize on every moment of a prospect’s time on their campus.
Making things even more challenging for the recruit and her family to extract the absolute most from their time on any visit is the tendency of college programs to have groups of athletes visit at the same time. In a literal sense recruiting may be sales, but the reality is that the product itself is hardly a “one size fits all” scenario. Obviously there’s a strategy behind the Sam’s Club approach to bulk recruiting and it does have its degree of validity. At times there will be committed athletes on that visit with an assignment of helping convince the undecided visitors to join the party with them. On other visits it’s the concept of selling an entire group of prospects on what they can do “together” if they were all to make a commitment to their hosts.
Often the “group” effort revolves around the grossly overblown value of a football weekend. Again, not entirely a bad thing and certainly a staple of which visits have been built around for years. However, in reality, they’re not exactly an indicator of what “real” campus life will be like on those other 46 weekends each year. And should a school not have much of a football program or a weak home schedule, they’re going to try to lump every visit together on those one or two weekends that might provide the most impressive setting. Tailgating, touchdowns and a lively and bustling campus are fun but not exactly revealing for an athlete looking at the bigger picture of her future in the classroom and on the court.
Strength in numbers serves recruiters not recruits. The challenge of the group visit lies with the ability of an individual prospect to get one on one time with the head coach. Oh sure, there will be some time blocked off for your “personal” meeting, but a lot of the other activities become a collective effort in turn limiting the opportunity for the less formal but immensely more insightful casual conversation. It’s difficult to really get to know a coach or their staff when you’re constantly surrounded by others prospects and their families.
When on a campus visit, official or unofficial, an athlete should feel as if she’s the only one there. Regardless of the number of individuals a program is recruiting or the number they have on campus at the same time, they’re the ones who invited themselves into the decision making process that will determine an integral part of a young person’s future. A recruit and her family have the right to expect a visit that is personalized and focused on their interests and concerns rather than a prepackaged presentation that serves the masses.
The responsibility for that still lies on both sides of the fence. Good recruiters who put their prospects first are going to ask about what those concerns might be and find out specifically what should be on the itinerary to provide further insight and comfort with someone’s understanding of their program. A red flag comes with any coach who tells you that they have a great weekend set up without having asked for input into the planning and scheduling. What they “always do” and their efforts to coordinate multiple visits at one time should always take a backseat to the kind of visit that will allow an individual prospect to leave with the answers she may have been looking for coming in.
At the same time, it’s essential that a recruit and her family let the coaching staff know what they want to see firsthand and learn more about. It’s fine to trust a staff to coordinate the given aspects of a visit that virtually every athlete in every sport wants and needs to see. However, there should be no hesitation about asking for anything that the prospect or her parents don’t feel is being addressed adequately or even at all. If it’s on your mind or you’ve been impressed with a particular situation at another school recruiting you, let them know so they can get it on the weekend’s agenda. Any request from an athlete or parents should be met with enthusiasm rather than with a “we’ll try to fit it in” effort to stick to their script.
Here are a few tips that might personalize or offer some additional efficiency to any visit to campus whether it’s by yourself or among a group.
*On unofficial visits, show up early or stick around after the visit ends to see campus without the filter of the staff or team members. It’s a great way to see if they’re shooting you straight and possibly take in a few parts of campus that aren’t included in their well-planned tour. You can do the same on an official visit if you happen to be drive rather than fly.
*Be willing or even ask to come on a non-football weekend. Avoid the group invite and illusion that football often creates. Sure they’re fun but come back another time for football, men’s basketball or other campus events and focus on the things that would truly impact your future should you come their way.
*If you end up being part of a group weekend, get an assurance that you’ll have a meal with the head coach without the other recruits and their families or that the boss will give you a personal tour of campus without other staff or players. Either of these would be in addition to a one on one sit down that they almost assuredly would have already scheduled for you. This is the person you’ll be playing for and the one asking for your commitment. You need to be exposed to them without their assistants, players or a desk between the two of you.
*Most recruiters will do this anyway but be sure any academic meeting, within the athletic department or with a professor on campus, is just the prospect, her parents and a single staff member and never a group. Also, don’t forget that anyone you meet with on a visit has been briefed and will know more details about you than the CIA, FBI and NSA could ever discover.
*Be sure that the immediate off campus tour is provided beyond just the local highlights. If this is going to be home the next four or five years you want to see the area closely surrounding campus, what it has to offer and figure out if you would be comfortable pitching your tent.
*Find the time to visit and talk with the players in the program that are involved the least in your itinerary. Rest assured that every “host” is chosen with great care and are most likely going to toe the company line. It’s never a coincidence that a recruit hits it off with them. Ask your toughest questions of the quietest kid at the tailgate, catered team meal or even grab a player after practice that hasn’t been at any of the team functions during your visit.
*Take the “cute” and “staged” marketing efforts with a grain of salt. They’re fun, they’re original and they do absolutely nothing to make any school a better setting than another. I was guilty of a lot of this myself over 25 years and often was more focused on what I wanted recruits to see rather than what the needed to see.
Before my sisters and brethren of the bench dub me a traitor or shout blasphemy, I want to acknowledge that most coaches are focused on getting a prospect her answers and making them comfortable with their program and what it has to offer. Unfortunately coaches are also creatures of habit and tend to consistently rely on an established structure and outline to all campus visits be they official or unofficial or hosting one or six players. What’s right for player A may not even be remotely important to the decision of player B. Assume ownership of any visit to campus to get confirmation of all information the staff has previously shared with you as well as resolution to any questions you may have.
Getting back to the marketing and sales I mentioned in the opening paragraph, the biggest risk that comes with visits is the “impulse buy”. Leaving the itinerary solely in the hands of recruiters often leads to a weekend long infomercial and a lot of bad purchases come when you take a sales pitch at face value. Avoid overreacting to the experience of a great visit to any campus. Go home, let things set in and see if you still feel the same way once the immediate euphoria has passed. Never forget that a lot of women and men have had great dates with folks they absolutely should not marry!
