Spilling Scouters’ Secrets

Just under eight million high school students participate in athletics, and from that, only 495,000 continue to play at National Collegiate Athletic Association schools, partially because of their late start to the recruiting process.

Coaches, and coach’s assistants usually send multiple questionnaires to hopeful high school athletes via email in order to assess the athlete’s potential and work ethic “What work ethic do they offer a team”, is a common question a scout asks before ensuring their spot on a team. 

“They look for freshmen who have varsity or elite club film experience, were ranked as a top-tier recruit at a tournament or showcase or received prestigious awards, such as All-State awards. In most cases, we advise that athletes start the recruiting process before their junior year,” NCSA said. This gives athletes enough time to access top schools they would like to attend, while also checking price range, availability, and passion for their sport. Three things that play a major role in an athlete’s commitment to a school.

 Jermey McCormick is the Athletic Director and Assistant Principal at Delta High School. McCormick said he didn’t have much to do with the recruiting process besides his role in facilitating a visit between an athlete and coach when necessary.

  McCormick said a common difficulty athletes face when starting their recruiting process isn’t typically the athlete’s lack of passion and love for the game, more so the commitment piece. High school and college sports are a lot different. College sports differentiate in the amount of time, dedication, and consistence being far more demanding in contrast to the High school level.

“Just the amount of work and time commitment that it takes. Being fully committed to it, it’s a whole different level. High school athletes think, ‘Well, I’m totally committed to this High School sport. But over time realize that this time commitment is nothing compared to what’s expected of them in college” said McCormick. 

Erik Baier, a sophomore at Delta High, has already begun his recruiting process. From a young age, he knew from older siblings how demanding it can be. 

Baier said, “It’s a good way to get exposure, especially if you’re a winning team.” Athletes should be more educated on this topic, being that it’s such a lengthy process. Some athletes capable of going to the next level may be disappointed when realizing it’s not a simple request to attend college sports.