<p>My daughter is a senior this year that plays volleyball and basketball. We started the recruiting process through an online profile and have actually been very successful. She has several very good D2 and D3 schools looking at her going into her last year of high school. </p>
<p>My question is this though for those volleyball parents out there. During her senior year what is the typical timeframe for a college to make a written offer, and what is the typical time frame for her to commit to a college? </p>
<p>My daughter is discovering new schools to approach who dont even know who she is and I am leery of starting the whole process again potentially missing out on the opportunities she has in front of her already. Am I being too cautious? Is it too early to be thinking in this manner?</p>
<p>NCAA rules prohibit a coach from making a written offer prior to nli signing period (early signing period is 1st week of November). Scholarship offers are made verbally starting now through end of October-ish so I wouldn’t be cautious now. There is a late signing period in April, however, so don’t give up if your timing is a bit later.</p>
<p>Volleyball recruitment starts earlier and earlier each year. We know players who have verbally committed as early as 8th grade, but that’s the extreme. As imafan says, all offers are verbal until the early signing period senior year. My daughter (rising senior) verbally committed a few weeks before her junior year started. Of her team mates, one committed early summer just after sophomore year, one during the summer before junior year, and then pretty regularly starting Fall of junior year. 6 of 10 were committed before the end of junior year and at this point, all girls have verbal offers and plan to decide by September 1. All plan to sign in the early period in November. (8 D1, 2 D2) There is a big push in vb to commit before your senior year, because just about all recruiting activity takes place during club season, which is Spring/Summer, so waiting til your senior club season can be very risky. You are definitely not too early, I would say you are some what late to vb recruiting, BUT that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of great opportunities out there! Make a list of schools she is interested in right now and reach out to them immediately. Have your D call the coaches directly and ask where they are in their 2013 recruiting cycle. Coaches are very straight forward and are not interested in wasting your time or theirs. She needs to be making these call RIGHT NOW - college games begin a few weeks and it will be tough to reach them. Talking to other schools will not cause her to miss out on opportunities she has now, but assuming she will want to narrow down her list and visit her top choices, you need to be knee deep in the process as quickly as possible. Feel free to private message me if you have any specific questions. We learned a lot helping our D through the process as well as watching all her team mates.</p>
<p>The players recruited each year will vary with a number of factors. Most specifically, how many they lost through graduation (or other attrition). D’s school for example - for 2012 they recruited 3, for 2013 they are looking to fill 6-7 spots, because they lost a number of seniors and a transfer. Beyond just the number of spots they are looking to fill, they are looking to fill specific positions. So, just as an example, most schools will take setters every other year. If your D is a phenomenal setter but school X doesn’t need one this year, you need to find that out quickly and move on to school Y.</p>
<p>A girl under 5’10" can absolutely get recruited. It depends on her position and the level she is looking to play. Even at top D1, defensive players are often below 5’10". Setters as well, although these days you won’t see many at the top level. There are also some stud OH’s at about 5’10" - the really athletic girls that jump out of the gym. Mid major D1 and top D2/D3, you will see some hitters in 5’10" range, plenty of setters and DS/L. How far below 5’10" are we talking. 5’9" is very different that 5’7". And it’s all about touch - which is her height combined with her arm length and vertical jump. Middles and RS are the most height-dependent roles and will typically be taller than 5’10" in most decent programs.</p>
<p>Figure out some schools you are interested in and take a look at their rosters. You will very quickly see the heights of their players by position.</p>
<p>@myluckydog The amount of players recruited each year really depends on the number of seniors that left the previous year, how many players a coach wants to/can hold on his team, available scholarships, and the needed positions.
Players that are under 5’10" absolutely can be recruited for college. It all really depends on the division and position. 5’10" is short for a middle blocker at a D1 school, but perfectly ookay for a D3 school.</p>
<p>Squidge - Thanks for your help. I shared your thoughts with my D and it has helped move us both in the right direction. I was sort of aware but my D thought she didn’t have to decide until spring 2013. </p>
<p>I may have mislead a little, but we started contacting schools just after her junior season, so she does have at least three schools that have her major who want her and several who dont have her major. We are in the process of gettnig all her applications into admissions so they can make an “official” offer. We have visited two of the three and go the third in a few weeks.</p>
<p>I think my D was waiting for UCLA to come out of the woodwork. Not happenning so I hope she is prepared to make a choice soon. What I have tried to explain is if she waits too long she may miss out and your input helped.</p>