<p>As this board has been so helpful to me, I thought I would share some info. Yesterday we were with my D's private coach, who also coaches a DI team. He was sharing examples of the film submissions he receives. He opened one up and it was addressed to "Dear Coach." Those go straight into the recycle bin! Take some time and personalize your recruiting letters. I was surprised to learn that this happens frequently.</p>
<p>In talking to college coaches, this happens more often than not. The majority of the e-mails they receive are from people who have no clue about the recruiting process. One soccer coach we talked to said he won’t even look at a first time email if it does not include a highlight video or link to one. When my son was going thru this process, his team held several recruiting sessions to help the kids prepare for the whole thing, and even included mock coach interviews to help them feel more at ease when talking to coaches over the phone. Everyone really did their homework and it paid off big time. </p>
<p>To add to the previous posts, it helps to mention something about the particular team so the coach knows you are doing your homework.
Also, keep in mind that the coaching community in the smaller sports is small and often times, a closely knit one. Don’t tell one coach you are being actively recruited by another unless its true! And don’t “gossip” about another coach or team.</p>
<p>It’s nice when a team has so many good players it can hold a recruiting seminar or when kids have film or stats or someone putting in a good word for them. But some don’t. My daughter had me, and I wasn’t very good. We did our best, sent links to showcase tournament footage, but really just lucked into a situation that worked for DD. I think there are coaches who realize that many of us don’t know what we’re doing and try to be helpful. I do agree that we had an obligation to not waste the coaches’ time, to do the homework on the team, to practice interview questions.</p>
<p>For the lost athlete or parent, I say don’t give up. Keep emailing, sell yourself. At least in my daughter’s sport (a spring sport), there are a lot of coaching changes over the summer, so an email directed to Dear Coach might be all that’s possible in the summer, and it may be going to a department email.</p>
<p>With two D3 athletes in my house, it seems to me that it would be to the school’s advantage if they posted information for prospective athletes on the school’s website. Simple instructions about how best to express interest in the school/team, what information the coach needs and when, showcases or tournaments the coach plans to attend, details about visiting and scheduling meetings with the coach, etc. The coaches have all this so shrouded in mystery, just not sure why that is. Not every family of a qualified athlete has the resources to wade into this and figure it out. I think the process should be more transparent, and thus more open and fair to all involved.</p>