Sports marketing 101

From Scott Richardson, Broken Arrow, OK

While Ed in Tolar has addressed some of the issues in this area, the reality of athletic scholarships vary with division level, sport and even specific schools. The most valuable scholarships offered (NCAA D1, with real athletic department money) typically are the result of the college coach doing their own leg work in searching for upcoming talent. Sure, they get tips on some small town athlete whose not been seen outide their rural county. But most coaches want to "see" the athlete perform in a game. Even if during that event the athlete doesn't have a superior performance, they see things we don't. Like "how" the athlete responds in certain situations. And the coach is the decision maker on "what" they need for their program for the next four years. Square pegs in square holes, round ones in round holes, etc.
Regardless, the coach has a Program (and their career) to protect. I doubt very many D1/2/3 or NAIA coaches would offer a legitimate and meaningful scholarship to a prospect based on infomation from a web site.

The percentage of truly "star" athletes at the college level is pretty small. They are usually being "shopped" pretty heavily from the premiere programs within a given sport. So, for that next level of athletes (those good enough to play successfully at the college level but are not as heavily recruited) an equal amount of the "match-making" burden falls on the athlete and their family to research potential schools (degrees, academic eligibility, etc.) and effectively communicate their desire to play at a given school, for a specific coach while pursuing that specific degree.

Finally, there are things that the athlete and thier family "should" be doing to market their talented son or daughter. Like the athlete (not the parents) sending "personal" letters, addressing specific things unique to that programs recent performance, acknowledging recent successes, etc., etc. etc. Even visiting the team while at home and introducing themselves to the coach go farther than most folks realize. Remember, there are NCAA reg's for contact between players and coaches. An open letter, initiated by the athlete, is NOT a violation. And don't be disappointed if there's no response. The coaches have limitations on when and how they respond to inquiries. Just keep knocking on the door. Sometimes it opens, sometimes it doesn't. But there's a place to play (D1/2/3 NAIA) for everyone at the college level if they are truly talented in their sport.

But in the end, it boils down to matching specific athletic talent to specific vacancies on a team: I doubt Notre Dame recuits 20 quarterbacks a year. The two or three that do get recuited were examined from all areas of their life: academically, athletically, morally, family support, etc., etc., etc.

In conclusion, it's great when parents get involved in "aiding" the process, but parents should also recognize when to step back into the shadows. Afterall, it's the student athlete who'll playing on the field of competition: not the parents.

From Ed, Tolar, Tx

Victor – forget the families and students at this point and focus on establishing a national database of College coaches and High School coaches. This database can be a web based system of data gathering with intuitive questions regarding the College coaches preference and needs to fill for their teams for a given season and the high school coaches student/athlete profile for a potential match. This makes everyone involved happy, College coaches – reduces the scounting process to eligible participants in their program, High School coaches – assisting their programs in attracting future student/athletes by placing athletes in appropriate college programs, Families – saving them time and potential disappointment (embarassment if student does not meet the criteria college of choice is after, Student – placement in a program they are most likely to succeed.