Is it too late?

I had always thought of running track and field in college (at the D3 level). I was looking at a few liberal arts colleges that are D3. They have a questionnaire that I would fill out. The thing is, I am a rising senior. My junior track season was taken away (of course, due to quarantine), but I can post my times with videos for proof on Athletic.net for the coaches to see. My times are at the standard of the athletes that compete for these D3 colleges. I’m just wondering, is it too late?

It’s not too late. Track is a late recruiting sport.

Fill out the questionnaires and follow up with an email to the coaches letting them know you’re interested in learning about the program. Include your PBs, grades, test scores (not every coach uses the questionnaire database well). Ask if there’s a good time to chat by phone.

Some of the very selective D3s are finalizing their recruiting lists right now. But they’ll adjust if a good prospect comes along.

@politeperson awesome, thank you so much! The thing is, I havent taken the SAT yet because of the effects from COVID-19. My PSAT was in the 98th percentile though, and my GPA is pretty good. I was looking at schools like Pomona, Vassar, Claremont McKenna, etc. I will definitely take the SAT in the fall (assuming we are allowed to). I looked at the times of the athletes on those rosters, and my times fall somewhere in the middle, maybe a bit on the above average side.

@ncelotto I’d just let the coach know your PSAT score, and that you’re planning to get an SAT or ACT when/if it’s possible. They know the situation.

If you’re hoping for a coach to help with admissions, I’d take a look at the conference results for the last few years. They want to use their limited support on athletes that they project will score at the conference meet. That doesn’t mean you need to have those marks now, of course. You can check out athletic.net or milesplit to see what current athletes ran in HS.

Keep in mind that some D3s will let a lot of athletes walk on so at some of those schools the average runners might not have received coach support.

But talking with the coaches is the best way to learn what they’re looking for and a good chance to learn more about the school.

@ncelotto - Go for it and follow the advice of @politeperson - let the coaches know your PSAT score and when you are scheduled to take the SAT. Does your PSAT score put you as a National Merit Commended Scholar?

You should not delay - if you can attach a school profile for your high school and provide a list of classes for your senior year that is just another good piece of info along with your grade report or unofficial transcript. The schools listed want strong academics and strong athletes.

Good luck!

@politeperson @coffeeat3 thank you guys so much! I will send them all that I can without oversending. My PSAT score, unfortunately, was 30 points off of National Merit Scholarship. Thank you for all the advice, I will reach out to a bunch of coaches in the following days.

For what it’s worth, I understand that this past year’s PSAT scores overall were significantly lower than previous years. So if your score would have hit commended last year, there is still possibility that this year it could possibly be NMSF, depending on your state.

@PBAMom thank you! I’ll double check with my state’s standards