NCAA Recruiting Terms 101

It’s that time of year again!

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, frustrated or anxious about the college recruiting process, trust me, you’re not alone.

College application deadlines are approaching, the early signing period for the National Letter of Intent is looming, and Coaching staffs are on their recruiting games. Players are taking visits, building relationships, and committing to schools. Whether you’re a Senior who’s a late-bloomer or a Freshman who’s just getting started, it would be advisable to take any advantage you can get in the recruiting process. To do this takes a unique understanding of what coaches are looking for, how to build relationships and a clear understanding of what coaches can and cannot do in terms of recruiting you.

Many dependent factors such as grad year, academic standing, and past performance will determine if a coach can or cannot recruit you.

Over the years, the NCAA has implemented strict guidelines which prohibit coaches from sending emails, making telephone calls, contacting you off-campus, or evaluating you on the golf course.

Note: the rules and regulations are different at all levels; NCAA D1, D2, D3, and even NAIA & NJCAA.

Here are a few recruiting definitions that you can utilize during the college recruiting process:

• PSA: (Prospective Student-Athlete) You are considered a PSA at the start of 9th Grade classes

• Contact: A contact happens any time a college coach says more than hello during a face-to-face meeting with you or your parents off the college’s campus.

• Dead Period: A college coach may not have any face-to-face contact with a recruit/player or his/her parents on or off the college campus at any time during a dead period. However, a coach may write and call a recruit/player during a dead period.

• Evaluation: An evaluation takes place when a college coach observes you practicing or competing.

• Official visit: During an official campus visit, the college can pay for transportation to and from the college for you, lodging and meals (Division I allows for up to three meals per day) for you and your parents or guardians, as well as reasonable entertainment expenses including three tickets to a Division I home sports event or five tickets to a Division II home sports event. Before a college may invite you on an official visit, you must provide the college with a copy of your high school transcript and ACT, SAT or PLAN score (test scores are required for Division I only) and register with the NCAA Eligibility Center.

• Unofficial visit: An unofficial campus visit is a “trip” taken by the recruit/player and his/her parents to a college campus. All unofficial visits are funded by the recruit/player. The college and/or coach may not pay for any expenses (except athletic games). We encourage ForeCollegeGolf clients/players to make as many unofficial visits as they can and to take those visits at any time during the recruiting process.

• Recruited: If a college coach calls a player/recruit more than once, contacts them off campus, pays their expenses to visit the campus, or in Divisions I and II, issues a National Letter of Intent or a written offer of financial aid, then the player/recruit is considered to be recruited.

• Verbal commitment: A verbal commitment takes place when a player verbally agrees to play for a college/university before he/she is eligible to sign a National Letter of Intent. The commitment is not binding on the player or the college/university and can be made at any time during the recruiting process.

• Walk-on: A recruit who does not receive a scholarship, but who is placed on the team roster as a full-time student-athlete just like the scholarship athletes.

Dates to Remember:

• Starting June 15th AFTER sophomore year: Coaches can begin to initiate contact with PSA’s. ***Players can initiate communication with Coaches at any time.

• Prior to June 15th: Coaches can’t initiate contact with PSA’s but they can send/email/mail/message PSA’s about athletic information at the school or send them a questionnaire.

• Starting August 1st BEFORE Junior Year: PSA’s can begin to take Official Visits to Campus.

• Anytime: College coaches can send recruits general materials, such as questionnaires, camp information, non-athletic information about the school, and materials published by the NCAA. 

The NCAA rules/regulations place restrictions on Coaches, as a prospective student-athlete you need to be aware of them but NCAA recruiting rules are primarily to hold Coaches accountable for their recruiting actions! So keep in mind, PSA’s are free to communicate with college coaches/players/athletic department heads anytime they wish! Calls, emails, texts, Facebook posts… anything and everything is permitted for players,

Remember, although coaches may not be responding or actively recruiting you, it doesn’t mean you aren’t on their radar or they aren’t noticing you. 

“Stay patiently proactive!”                 

Mike Smith is the Founder & CEO of ForeCollegeGolf and specializes in assisting junior golfers & their families through the college recruiting process. Email him @ mike.smith@forecollegegolf.com

“We’re talkin’ about PRACTICE…”

Not a game …. “We’re talkin’ bout practice” were the iconic words from Allen Iverson during his post-game interview in 2002. Allen was adamant about inferring the difference between practice and competition, and he was right! In football, players practice on the football field. In baseball, players practice on the baseball field. In tennis, players practice on the tennis court. Golf is the only sport where our playing environment is profoundly different and more challenging than our practice environment.

In golf, the average practice environment has little, if any variables. Whereas the course provides many obstacles and extreme challenges. Fundamentally, golf courses take on a different degree of challenge due to course set-up, the nature of each hole, the shots needed to navigate those holes, and then there are the environmental variables such as grass, rough, sand, wind, bushes, trees, houses, water hazards, out of bounds, … you get the point. There is an unlimited number of environmental variables that make the golf course more difficult than the practice range.

 What we can’t do is build a “practice course” but we can find subtle ways to emulate the course environment. By incorporating a few diverse, unusual, yet effective training regimens, we can be on our way to playing better golf.

First, let’s talk about the ideal practice environment. Note to reader, everyone will have a different ideal practice environment. Factors like skill level, competitive tournament schedule, strengths and weaknesses, and practice environments are just a few things that will shape and alter your practice.

So let’s break it down. Practice can be categorized in many different ways. However, for the purposes of this article, let’s explain the three main ways golfers practice.

• Technical – Acquiring the proper technique by changing your motor pattern(s)

• Skill Development – Measuring how well you retain your technical changes in practice with drills/games

• Performance 101 & Competition – Practicing with pressure and simulating a competitive environment

We also encourage our players to set long-term and short-term practice “plans” or schedules in advance….

·      Long(er) Term Schedule: 6-weeks in advance, plan out which phase of practice you plan to be in during that given week. (Technical, Skill or Performance)

·      Short Term Schedule: a weekly running practice calendar

The best players in golf are also the best at reflecting and assessing their past practices or competitions. I commonly see this displayed by the best players in our sport.

Here are some additional questions you can ask yourself for practice…

The 3 C’s

·      Context

o   Why? Why am I practicing today? (Technique, skills, performance, prep?)

·      Content

o   What am I training today?

o   What kind of drills am I doing today?

o   What are you doing today to prepare you for your next tournament?

§  For example, “I’m playing a tournament with small greens so I’ll be working on hitting lots of chips and short putts as well as to smaller targets while holding myself accountable to PGA Tour wedge proximities.”

·      Conclusion –

o   If I could do that practice session over again, what would I do differently?

o   What did I do well today in that practice session?

At ForeCollegeGolf, we encourage our players to use all three types of practice by creating a practice schedule with technical, skill, and performance practice distinctions. We hold our players accountable to not only keeping a regular practice schedule but also, make sure they are assessing and reflecting on their past practices and performances. Gaining feedback in order to learn, grow, and ultimately perform better is paramount to a player’s game!

 Mike Smith is the Founder & CEO of ForeCollegeGolf and specializes in assisting junior golfers & their families through the college recruiting process. Email him @ mike.smith@forecollegegolf.com

Characteristics of Great College Coaches

For most players, your college coach is someone who will make a significant impact on your athletic experience and someone who you will spend a significant amount of time with.

How much time? Well, about 4 hours/day, 6days/week, which adds up to 200+ hours each semester!

However, prospects should NOT base their entire college decision on who their coach is because many head coaching contracts in college golf range from 3-6 years, but your head coach can still be a big piece of your final decision!

Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with college coaches at every level in college golf. From my conversations and interactions, one thing is obvious – the best college coaches share many of the same characteristics.

Great College Golf Coaches …

· Are noble mentors, leaders, and motivators

· Aren’t caught “off guard” or flustered easily

· Know when/how to motivate their players & are trusted by their team.

· Have faith and passion in their players

· Have faith and passion in their plan

· Demand perfection (or near perfection) in their players, on & off the course.

· Understand that winning is the only thing that they will be judged on

· Create realistic goals & expectations for themselves, their coaching staff, and their players

· Successfully balance team activities, travel, recruiting, fundraising, and much more

· Learn from past experiences and take on traits of the best coaches they’ve worked for

· Expect to host tough and demanding team practices.

· Have strong relationships with other coaches across the country at every level

· Enjoy the process of Coaching, even the early mornings and long 36-hole days in college golf.

· Are open, honest, and completely transparent with their players

· Operate their program with clear-cut and precise team rules

· Verbalize everything that is expected of them, their coaching staff, and their players, regularly

· Expect their players to hold each other accountable

· Take time to listen and understand each of their players

· Put the “big-picture” in perspective, always

Please consider these characteristics when speaking or meeting with college coaches and don’t be afraid to ask questions.

Remember, the best coach for someone else, might not be the best Coach for YOU and just because the school is a great fit for you, doesn’t mean the Coach is, and vice versa. The best coach for YOU is someone who shows endearing confidence in you, is persistent with their communication, and someone who genuinely cares for you, your future, and is open and honest about how they can actively help guide you there.

Best of luck on your journey toward college golf,

Michael J. Smith

Founder, ForeCollegeGolf

ForeCollegeGolf is a college placement and recruiting business where Mike aims to apply his background in competitive golf and recruiting education to help educate players, their families and coaches about the college recruiting process.

If you have any questions about the article above, any feedback, an article idea you would like to provide; you can contact us at mike.smith@forecollegegolf.com or www.ForeCollegeGolf.com.

Is it essential for Junior Golfers to compete during the Winter months?

Is it essential for Juniors to travel and compete in tournaments during the winter months?

My research and experience say – no! 

There seems to be an overwhelming sense of ‘playing paranoia’ with juniors and junior golf families. Many I speak with are under the impression that if they don’t play tournaments year-round they will not be recruited to play college golf. This is an inherent flaw and understanding in junior golf.

However, if you live in a warmer climate and are still planning to play tournaments during the winter months, you’ll want to make sure you’re fully prepared and ready to go.

It’s also important to note, everyone has a different “recipe” they execute in order to successfully prepare for tournaments. In this case, winter preparation depends on your area’s climate and your access to necessary resources.

First, let’s see what’s happening in college golf….

Many college golfers, especially at challenging high-academic colleges, have explained to me that having a little extra time off during the winter is a blessing in disguise, so they can get acclimated to their new class schedule and prepare themselves for the new semester.

Typically, when college players arrive back on campus in January, their training and practice will depend on a few factors: climate, date of their first tournament, and budget/resources. As a generalization, most NCAA programs tend to arrive back on campus the first/second week of January, then go back “in-season” a week or two after arriving back at school, and most will play their first Spring tournament in February. It’s important to point out, most programs will not immediately go back in-season when players arrive back on campus in January. Instead, some schools will rely on indoor facilities for off-season training and practice for a few weeks. Many elite D-1 programs have indoor performance centers, which include hitting bays, strength training studios, recovery rooms, team locker rooms/lounge areas, and adjustable putting/chipping greens! These same facilities often include the luxuries of Trackman, SAM Putt Lab, and state-of-the-art equipment that can be effectively utilized during the winter months for extra in-depth analysis.

While many of the schools in warm-climate regions have enough access to a “winter” facility to continue playing and practicing golf between the fall and spring seasons, the northern-based programs have to get creative. The NCAA’s elite cold-weather programs have adopted their own winter “recipes” to tackle the cold weather each winter.

Here is what’s interesting: the NCAA now allows college golf programs to finance practice outings anywhere (even outside their home state), as long as the student-athletes do not miss class for these practices. With this new rule in place, many of the NCAA’s elite cold-climate golf programs will fly south as many as three to five times during late January, February, and even March to provide an opportunity for their players to train, play rounds of golf and, most importantly, regain their feel for playing the game outdoors under real conditions. If there is one thing I’ve learned being raised in Florida and attending James Madison University in Virginia it’s that there is no substitute to “real” golf in a warm weather climate on green grass! Hitting indoors (even on Trackman) or practicing with 5 layers of clothes on can only be so effective at helping you prepare for tournament play.

So if you are a junior golfer facing geographical and climate challenges, my advice to you is figure out what your main priority is for the offseason, typically a HS freshman’s offseason in the Northeast should look much differently than a HS Senior in Florida.

A good philosophy is to, think of it not as the “off-season” but instead as your very own “player development” training to prepare for your upcoming events. Put together a well-thought-out, written plan or short-term goal sheet so you’ll be prepared and ready to go when the cold weather passes. The winter months should be utilized as your time to expand your Golf IQ, improve your swing technique, get properly fit for golf equipment, and spend extra time in the gym gaining the strength and flexibility necessary to achieve success in the upcoming golf season.

Best of luck on the recruiting trail!

Visit www.ForeCollegeGolf.com to learn more about the recruiting process or reach out to us to learn more.

Michael J. Smith

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