Ring, Ring – Tips for Prospects when Talking to College Coaches
By Michael Wholey 7/23/23 11:00 AM EST Per NCAA rules, starting June 1 NCAA D1 college coaches were allowed to contact class of 2025 prospects directly via phone call and text. Prior to the June 1 date, in order for…
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Continue ReadingBy Michael Wholey 7/23/23 11:00 AM EST
Per NCAA rules, starting June 1 NCAA D1 college coaches were allowed to contact class of 2025 prospects directly via phone call and text. Prior to the June 1 date, in order for college coaches to communicate with this underclassmen, they had to coordinate the prospect calling them through a high school or travel coach. With the phone starting to ring for these young players, I thought I’d take some time to give a couple tips on receiving phone calls and communicating with college coaches. This applies to the class of 2025 who many received calls this weekend for the first time as well as class of 2024 and 2026 and younger.
Tip # 1 – Know the Name of the Coach and College / University they Coach at.
A college coach has taken the time to reach out to you and express their interest in your skills on the court and your ability to get it done in the classroom and has called you to learn more about you and tell you about their college / university. It is important that you know who you are talking to and where they coach. When have a conversation with a coach, ask them their name and what school they coach at. You should then save this coaches contact info in your phone and look up where this school is located after the phone call. There are too many situations where prospects are talking and texting with college coaches and they have no idea who they are talking to, what school they coach at, and where that school is located.
Tip # 2 – Communicate in a Quiet Setting
Whether a phone call is arranged and set up with a date and time they are going to call you or they just reach out unplanned, treat these calls like a business professional. Whatever setting you are in, step away and find a quiet place. If you are alone, turn down the TV or music and close your laptop. If with family and friends, excuse yourself and find a room that has very little background noise and you can have a professional conversation. If you are not able to do this, then let the coach know where you are and what the situation is and arrange for another time to talk with the coach.
Tip # 3 – Take Notes
When you are in class, you should take notes when the teacher is presenting you information, you should do the same with college coaches. Get a recruiting notebook and put all your notes in one place. The goal of the notebook is to retain information when talking with coaches so you can progress the relationship and what you learn about that college / university and their basketball program. It is also great to review before a follow up conversation with that coach so you can ask questions on some things that you were unclear with or follow up on something you were discussing before the call was ended.
Tip # 4 – Engagement Should be a Two-Way Street
Engagement should be a two-way street – what does this mean? No college coach wants to do all the talking, ask all the questions, or be the only one communicating. College coaches want to know if you are interested, the same way you want to know if they are interested. I would recommend coming up with a standard set of questions that you ask all coaches on your initial conversation. This will help you compare apples to apples. Then take the responses of those questions and do your own research after the call and before you speak again. Some examples of questions could be:
- Where is the school located?
- What are some of your strongest academic programs?
- What style of play do you play on offense and defense?
- How long has the head coach been there and how long have you worked as an assistant coach for them?
- How do you like working at the school and for the head coach?
- Where do the players live? Is it the same as a Freshman / Sophomore as it is for Junior / Seniors?
- Where did you see me play, what do you like about my game, and what do I need to work on?
- How many players are you recruiting in my class and how many roster spots do you have open?
Tip # 5 – Do research before follow up communication
The goal of the recruiting process and phone calls between coaches and prospect is to identify if the school is a good fit. If the only information you learn as a prospect is when you speak on the phone, then the recruiting process will not progress at the rate it should. It is important as the prospect to research the colleges/universities that you are communicating with outside of your phone calls. Review your notes from the call, the answers to the questions that you asked, anything that coach spoke to you about that caught your attention and do your own research. A couple simple things to research:
- Go to google maps and find out where the school is located
- What academic majors do they offer?
- Look up the head coach and assistant coach bio – study where they have worked and what their track record is
- Look at the roster – any players that you know or are familiar with? Are they a young team or a veteran team? Are they guard heavy or well balanced?
- How did the team do last season? What was their record? Did you play in post season play?
The recruiting process is not the same for everyone. It is important to be proactive in the process and do your homework. The decision making at the end of the process is much easier if you are addressing it along the way. The players that seem to be the most stressed at the end of the process when it is time to make a decision are often the ones that have the least amount of information. It is exciting to be recruited, I hope these tips help you in your process.
Michael Wholey is the lead scout for Florida Prep Girls Hoop Florida and a former division one Assistant Coach at American University, University of Memphis, and Georgia Tech. Wholey and the rest of the Prep Girls Hoop staff, seek to cover the entire state of player, keeping subscribers up to date with player evaluations, recruiting info, and statewide news. Our audience often supplies us with some of our best information. If you have any information on players, teams, or statewide news in the state of Florida, emailing Michael Wholey at WholeyPrepHoops@gmail.com or DM him through Twitter or Instagram @WholeyPrepHoops.