Summer: An Important Time For High School Athletes
When we hear summer vacation our minds quickly slip to thoughts of beaches and barbecues.
As a high school athlete seeking a scholarship, summer can be the most important time of the year for you.
What can you do to increase your chances of getting a scholarship?
Take Time to Reach Out to Coaches 
There are no collegiate sports that take place over the summer. This means coaches are more available to check their email and voice-mail.
By reaching out to coaches and taking the initiative you can not only get on coaches’ recruiting maps, but you can jump ahead of other athletes who aren’t willing to take the time to contact coaches.
Developing a relationship with a coach is one of the most important aspects of the recruiting process. You could spend the next four to five years of your life playing for a particular coach.
Both you and your potential coach should get to know each other very well during the process. Coaches will always offer a scholarship to an athlete that they know and have developed a relationship with over an athlete with similar skill that they know nothing about.
Go to Camps
Camps are a great way to gain exposure. Coaches love to see athletes perform in person.
Narrow down a list of your top schools and figure out which ones you interested enough in to attend a camp.
But just going to a camp isn’t enough by itself to get recruited. You need to make contact with coaches to introduce yourself and get on their recruiting list. Ideally you should do this before you sign up for a camp, especially if you are unsure of what division level you can play.
However, you should still notify a coach if you are set on going to a particular camp. Coaches only scout athletes that they already know at camps. They very rarely use camps to scout for new athletes.
Use Your Free Time to Train
During the summer you have extra time to work out and focus on your sport. For an athlete summer is all about getting better. Plan out a training regimen that will help you build muscle, endurance, flexibility, and speed.
You will also want to carve out time to work on your skills or technique depending on what sport you play. Since you probably only have a summer reading list to worry about academically, it is important that you devote your summer to getting in the best shape possible.
Make a Highlight Video
Highlight videos are a great way to gain exposure. Summer is a great time to make a highlight video because you will have extra time to sit down and go through all of your game footage.
Highlight films should be a compilation of your best plays in order, starting with your top plays.
By putting together a good highlight, you can set yourself apart from other athletes. If a coach is interested in you after watching your highlight video, that coach will most
likely want to see full game footage. While you spend time going through your footage make sure you set aside your best full-games to show coaches.
Fill Out Recruiting Questionnaires
Almost every school has online recruiting questionnaires available somewhere on their athletic site. Filling out recruiting questionnaires is a great way to introduce yourself to a coach and show interest in a school. It can be a long and tedious process though. Summer is a great time to sit down and fill out recruiting forms.
If you have questions or comments about how your summer can impact your recruiting please use the comments section below or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.