What is an OV?
NCAA Official Visit
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thanks!
It just dawned on me, lol. I am confused with the “deadline”… if it’s a D3 school offering a supported ED spot, how can that be locked down? it’s not like a D1 commit right?
The best you can do is tell the coach that you accept the supported slot and that you will apply early in exchange for coach support. Then have the college accept the applicant ED.
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In addition to the above, DI commits are verbal only too…at least until the NLI is signed, or in the case of Ivy League schools, when a likely letter or acceptance letter are received.
And really, no commitment is really binding. They can’t MAKE you go to that school.
If you sign a NLI and decide to go to another school, the penalty is that you may not be able to play or accept athletic money for one year. Now with the transfer portal, even that may not be a problem. There are so many exceptions and releases applied for and granted that the NLI doesn’t carry the same punch as it used to.
In the chance any of you has been through this unlikely experience, have you faced a situation where a NESCAC coach resigns late in the spring, whilst you/son/daughter is seeking to get recruited?
Besides attempting to contact the Athletics Director/Associate Director, updating online recruiting forms, is there anything else one can do?
This isn’t actually all that unusual…turnover among college coaches is pretty high.
I did say your D should reach out to the AD but that’s more to understand the timing of a new coach hire. It shows persistence and interest too, which can’t hurt. But the AD isn’t going to make any recruiting decisions, only the new coach is. So, you need to wait until there’s a coach…and that timing might not work out with your D’s other timelines.
My D was far down the recruiting path when a coach left summer before senior year, and the new coach didn’t make recruiting decisions until mid October (high academic D3).
I have worked with students who faced similar situations, as well as a number of verbally committed students who lost that commitment upon a coaching change. There’s a lot that happens outside of the athlete’s control.
Don’t do this…send updates directly to the coach/coaches via emails (unless they tell you to use the questionnaires for updates). At the school where there’s no coach just wait at this point until the coach is appointed, unless the AD gave other direction.
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I would also add to this excellent advice that you may be able to and want to consider contacting an assistant coach. Particularly at division 3 schools a head coaching change doesn’t necessarily result in a complete coaching staff turnover.
By doing this you are showing continued interest, potentially fostering a relationship and might get information otherwise unavailable.
I would tread lightly via a cordial email and if not responded to let it go. It very likely has nothing to do with you.
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Went through this with my own kids and kids of friends of ours. Mostly D1 but a few D3s. I’m guessing most recruits have at least a bit of turnover in coaches at their group of 5-10 target schools. It’s pretty common.
All I’d add to the good advice so far is that, in addition to being one of those things recruits can’t control, it’s also not as big a concern to ADs and coaches as recruits and parents might think. For most ADs, especially at the D3 level, missing a recruiting cycle in a sport like swimming does not keep them awake at night and is pretty far down the list of concerns.
I say that only to emphasize that, even though it seems to recruits and their parents that recruiting is top of mind for everyone, it usually isn’t. Some schools might take their time with a hire, especially for a winter sport, even if that means a subpar recruiting cycle. All the more reason to cast a wide net.
So I’d adjust expectations for those programs while staying persistent. I do think updating the recruiting forms can be helpful in measured sports like track and swimming. A new coach or recruiting coordinator will have access to that data pretty quickly and sometimes might dive in and sort by event and marks to see if they can build a recruiting pool quickly. Some don’t use the database at all, but some do. So it might help in some cases.
Obviously, once a hire is announced a direct email should be sent.
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Thanks for your collective advice. we’re attentively watching the coach recruiting cycle for those couple schools, staying in active dialogue and visits with assistant coach where there is one, and politely seeking further clarification from AD in the other case
One more question, and I understand there probably isn’t a general answer that applies to all cases: if there is an assistant coach, and the head coach doesn’t get hired until sat Sept/Oct, would the AD ask the Assistant Coach to make recruiting decision so the team/college doesn’t completely miss the recruiting cycle and/or loses recruits to other schools?
I have not seen this happen, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t….something to ask the asst coach, if your D is in contact with them (she should be).
More likely the assistant coach is out of a job when the new coach comes in, although that’s more often the case in D1/2 than D3, but still happens in D3.
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that’s probably a question to ask when meeting the assistant coach in person, which will happen very soon . somehow, are hoping that by then, the head coach has been hired. maybe wishful thinking.
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It’s possible but unlikely. More likely they redistribute slots to other sports and backfill next recruiting cycle. That way the new coach can hit the ground running with their first recruiting class. And the net negative effect on team performance is minimal.
Keep in mind D3 assistants usually have other primary jobs and don’t really have the bandwidth or desire to get into the administrative aspects of head coaching. Could happen in the right situation but would be unusual.
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Then best D24 can do is hope head coaches are named asap…after an already long journey, now facing uncertainty completely outside of her control
Successful athletic recruits generally started much earlier in the process and have faced uncertainly outside of their control for years.
Even my D’s teammates who are at an extremely high athletic level and among the best in the country in their generation (U.S. national youth team training camp/pool players) had lots of uncertainty all along the way in their commitment to top-ranked D1 programs, including one having to rearrange senior year schedule at the last minute with adequate number and type of AP classes to satisfy the AO at a very academically-selective school, even after an earlier successful pre-read.
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I’m sorry @NiVo, but as the parent of a student-athlete, you seem far too involved in this recruiting process. It should be student driven, with some periodic and helpful guidance from a parent/adult. However, this particular recruitment situation seems entirely reversed.
Yes, the process can at times be a bit complicated, but you are making it sound like a NASA Mars landing. Consider easing off a bit, let D24 dialogue with coaches, and allow things and time to play out.
I certainly empathize with you - it can be an uncertain and stressful time - but this just seems way over the top.
Pulling for you and D24 - I’m just suggesting that recruitment and the attendant anxiety shouldn’t be this hard.
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I’d say that an assistant coach (or the AD) would go ahead with the recruiting if there is no coach named by September or October. But remember, the swim coach may only be recruiting 3 swimmers (and maybe a few tips).
If the school waits past ED deadline, it is really going to change the recruiting group.
There are also the coaches who leave in the summer. My daughter’s coach announced she was leaving in July (after D graduated) and IIRC, the next one wasn’t named until Oct. I think that new coach was thrilled to have the recruiting done so she could get to know the team and what she had to work with. There just wasn’t a large pool to recruit from before Nov (it was an NLI school and several were signing in Nov).
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Luckily she will meet with one assistant coach, who has confirmed they normally give strong support to 6 swimmers/year, and have had a 100% record of admission for those in the past several years. D24 will confirm if he’s going to be doing the recruit selection with AD signoff if the head coach isn’t a coach hired by Aug/Sep. fingers crossed
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Looks like the question is now answered, with new head coach appointed at Wesleyan, removing one big unknown.
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