During the holiday season, the most common question I am asked is, what should I be sending coaches during the holiday season? Many families see this as an opportunity to sit back and enjoy the little time they have together as a family, before the tournaments get going in January. If you have already begun the recruiting process, then it’s imperative you remain in touch! Send an email wishing the coaching staff a Happy Thanksgiving! Share what you are doing to stay in shape before club practice begins. This is also a prime time to do a skills video. Although college coaches do not rely on skills videos to make a decision on a player, it’s a great way to show how you are progressing on your individual skills.
Throughout the month of December there are some creative ways to remain in touch. Are you traveling at all? Send a post card to the coaching staff wishing them a Happy Holiday. Make sure you email your schedule for the upcoming club season. This is important, as many coaching staff’s are meeting to discuss their game plan for evaluating prospects through the season. College coaches have strict budgets. Some are very large, and many are small. You want to give the coaches a good reason to travel to your area. They need to know you are very interested in their program. Take this time to review your own schedule, and find some time to travel to the prospective colleges. By investing your own money to travel to the college campus, a college coach will take you seriously as an athlete who is truly interested in their program.
Do not travel to see college programs during the winter break. The campuses are empty, and it doesn’t give your student athlete a realistic view of what the college has to offer. I have noticed in the past, athletes have crossed schools off their list when it is empty, even though the school could be a perfect fit. It just won’t feel like the perfect fit when there is no life on campus.
If you have not begun the recruiting process, and you are a sophomore in high school or older, you need to begin NOW. The first thing I would recommend is doing a skills video. You cannot send an email without video. You need to spend some time researching schools on resources like College Board. To understand the recruiting timeline, over the course of the club season, click here. Schedule a free consultation, and I’d be happy to walk you through the process. You can email me at Kara@myrecruitingsolutions.com.