That can happen before NCAA rules allow coaches to contact student-athletes directly. There is quite a bit of recruiting done that way thru HS and/or club coaches. But IME, once the recruit is a junior or senior that’s less likely to happen.
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It’s possible but not very common. Where I’ve seen it happen is with programs that are more local to the recruit and maybe have an ongoing relationship with the coach.
I don’t think it’s really necessary to prep the HS coach but I wouldn’t be surprised if the HS coach asks about college plans at some point.
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Thank you @politeperson . Yours’ and others’ inputs are very helpful, as always. How important is it for S to be honest/ transparent with his HS Coach about his college list?
[assume not a great relationship between HS Coach and S]
Whatever he’s comfortable with is fine. It depends a lot on the relationship and the coach.
If it comes up, It’s fine to say “I’m talking to some schools on the East coast but still figuring out where I might want to visit,” and leave it at that (or list a few schools that might be in the picture). If it’s a close relationship and the coach is trusted/discreet then I think sharing more is fine too, especially if it’s an experienced coach and they might be able to help work through some questions. (That’s pretty rare in my experience though).
Now, come official visit time I think he’ll want to let the coach know when he’s going, and usually by that point coach and teammates know a recruit is visiting schools a, b, c, d. I wouldn’t really be sharing ranked preferences at that point, just that he’s decided to visit this set of schools and will make decisions after the visits.
Again, a lot depends on the coach. There’s no particular need to share anything except what’s needed to plan for visits (if missing practices or meets, needing an independent workout for the trip, etc.).
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Now that official visits are being scheduled, what are best practices for parents? what are the rules for transportation? Who pays for taxi from home to home airport, flight from home airport to college airport? Assume everything else is managed / paid for by the college.
On the visits, our experience was that the school booked and paid for the flights, planned and paid for transportation between airport and school (usually the coach drove), booked and paid for a hotel stay if that was necessary (to comply with 48 hour rule). Then once on campus everything was planned and handled by the program. In my experience getting from home to the airport was on the parents but that’s usually because the parents wanted to do that part.
Typically they’ll get you an itinerary before the trip that lists contact info for your host and a timeline of what you’ll be doing.
I don’t think parents are typically part of the official visit. At least, none of the other runner parents we know went along on flights. It can be a really great independent experience for the recruits. So I usually tell people I know going through this to peek at the itinerary before they leave so you have a sense of how their day is structured, be ready to listen to their thoughts when they come home, and don’t forget to help them enjoy the process.
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I think its essential to discuss the visits with the high school coach, at least for sceduling purposes. Regardless, you have to assume that official visits will become public knowledge once they are taken. My son’s first OV wound up reported on milesplit. He wasnt at an invitational, and the reporter asked his coach where he was. Coach told him he was on an OV, but wouldn’t say the school. Reporter then went and asked the girls coach where he was, and the girls coach told him. We were all glad he had been very up front with all the college coaches he had spoken to.
I recommend to try as hard as possible to not rank schools prior to visits. The schools you will visit are your list of 3 to 5 you are visiting, there is no need to sort them any more than you already have. When you leave for each visit, go in with the attitude that school might be your number one.
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My S talked to a Coach last week. This is how my S described what the coach told him.
“You make a decision to apply ED to us by mid-September. You come to us for OV. I attach my recommendation to your app. You get a LL from us . You get a decision by Dec-15.”
I am not sure I understand what is going on here. Can someone help decipher what is the coach trying to communicate here? Did my S understand it right?
I read this as your child has an offer and only if something happens at the OV (bad behavior, drinking, etc) and grades, rigor and sport skill stay up - they are in. The timing of all pieces maps to our child’s timeline last year.
The only thing that would be nice to hear from the coach, is if your child should now decline other OV’s or if the coach is presuming your child will go on others and won’t make official offer until
after OV. Did your child tell the coach this is their #1 ?
Some coaches offer more OV’s vs spots - but sounds good from my limited experience 
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Also, are you set financially or do you need financial aid? Have seen posters on here not doing due diligence and not be able to afford the school after applying ED.
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Thanks @coffeeat3. I think my S did communicate to the coach (in question) that his college is his top choice. He says he is not 100% sure what he said exactly. S communicated to the second coach that they are in his top 5. The third Coach did not ask; so S did not say anything. I am now confused at what point does he start saying “no” to OV offers. Or shall he undertake 2-3 OVs before making up his mind?
I don’t think we will qualify for any FA. Cost Calculator returns zero aid for us so have not gone much beyond that. Is there something else to do to explore more from FA standpoint?
I think taking a few visits can be helpful. You don’t need to take all 5. But 2 or 3 can help find the best fit. To me, the ideal scenario is to have 3 visits planned to schools that you’d be excited about, keep an open mind during the visits, then decide after all the visits which is the best fit. But everyone is different. Some kids might feel they need 4-5 visits to get it right; others might be confident 1 is enough.
I’m a little unclear if the coach is telling your son he must commit to that school before the OV? I do know of one school that has done it that way in the past. I thought they had changed that but perhaps not. Personally I don’t like it. I think it’s better for kids to see multiple programs. But it’s really up to the recruit and how confident they are of fit.
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@politeperson - I am not very clear what the coach is really asking for. S’s conversation with coach was short, sweet and pleasant [per him]. No element of any pressure; at least that’s what my S felt. My S mentioned that the coach asked him to turn in the application before coming for the OV. My S did not ask any follow up questions as he was not sure whether coach was stating the obvious or making a specific demand.
I will ask my S to ask.
Any thoughts on FA? Is there a magic W2 $$ where the FA becomes zero and all efforts to look for something becomes futile?
On the FA you can have them do a FA pre read if you think you might be in range. The coach will know how to deal with it. But I’d say the NPCs are usually pretty accurate. If you’re getting zero at HYP NPCs the pre read will probably end up the same unless you have some very unusual situation.
If it’s not a deciding factor for you, you could always just wait and apply for FA when you submit the application.
Be aware that they will match—if your son wants to go to Cornell but was recruited by Yale, Cornell will apply Yale formulas. The coaches know how to deal with that.
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Adding to my comments about not liking committing prior to a visit: I know of a program that has used that approach in the past. I don’t have personal experience with recruits that had that program high on their lists to start with (different distance coach back then though). I know a few recruits over the years who had initial discussions but preferred other schools/programs.
So, for all I know it’s a model that works great for the right recruits. I just don’t have personal experience with those types of recruits. I don’t think they’re doing anything shady or anything like that. It’s just that for my kids and most of the recruits I know, visiting a few places worked great and revealed some things they wouldn’t have known without visiting.
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No magic for FA - we are full pay and the NPC’s made it very clear. Coaches never asked with all the schools being need blind (except 2 D1 programs not Ivy offered up sports $). Yet so many people tell us how lucky we are to have a recruited athlete and free ride - then we have to explain it doesn’t work that way
I had a kid that was recruited and received a LL to a top Ivy. They had the academics to match the athleticism. I had several people tell me, especially at the sports fields, gyms, etc. that my D/S was getting a full ride…which I would usually correct them on how Ivy’s work for athletics. Some would dispute me and go on to tell me no, I heard or know that so and so got a full ride, if they want you at a HYP they find money and don’t call it an athletic scholarship…
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That may be a bit basic but it sounds pretty much correct for the Ivy recruitment process. The LL usually comes after the ED application and before the official admittance on Dec-15th. Even with coaches support, we didn’t feel ok until the LL and then not really ok until the acceptance.
For what it is worth, we never posted any commitment on line, and I am not a fan of all this early commitment announcing before applying.
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My son was asked by multiple people how covid would affect his Ivy League track scholarship. Somehow, the incorrect word gets out…
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Save emails and texts from coaches. If you can show a certain amount of intereaction with a coach from a different Ivy League school, they will apply the other school’s FA formula. Schools will tell you exactly what they need to see to demonstrate interest.
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