There are many things that make recruiting very very hard for athletes. Luckily one thing that has made it easier is the use of social media. But now high school athletes have to contend with the "transfer portal". So among many other struggles athletes in high school now have to deal with athletes already playing at the college level.

For anyone that does not know what the transfer portal is I will give the exact definition of it and then explain what it is. The NCAA transfer portal is a NCAA application, database, and compliance tool launched on October 15, 2018, to manage and facilitate the process for student athletes seeking to transfer between member institutions. So what this is saying is that if the transfer portal allows students athletes to ask for a transfer after playing for one school so that they can go to a different school due to sports or educational reasons.
This makes it hard for high school athletes that are trying to find a place in the collegiate level because not only do they have to compete with other high school students, but they now have to compete with college students that have already proven they can play at the college level. Now, competition is not a bad thing at all. It makes athletes "step up" their game. but when colleges are looking at the portal first, it makes it hard for high school students to be seen, which leads to disappointment in the recruiting process. One thing I want to tell new athletes trying to get recruited out of high school, is do not let it disappoint you if a transfer is selected over you. That just means that was not the right fit for you. Keep grinding and you will find your place.
With that said, you can not slack on recruiting. You need to be on social media every day promoting yourself. If you slack on your recruiting then it will be extremely difficult to get to a school. With more competition due to transfer portal, that means you have to work even harder to sell yourself. You need to understand that you can not take time away from trying to sell yourself. You need to be actively posting film, following coaches/schools, and reaching out to coaches everyday! This is how you will get recruited.
Now the transfer portal does not come without risk. The player entering the transfer portal does not know if they will be picked up. They could enter the transfer portal and not be picked up at all. There are a lot of athletes that enter the portal and never get picked up. So they are taking a risk also.
To finish this off, do not be fooled into thinking that the recruiting process will be easy. Just keep grinding and never give up on yourself. Put the work in and you will find the place that fits you.
Catch DeBree on our next blog as we talk more about recruiting.
Comments