College Recruiting Process: How Do Colleges Recruit Athletes?

How does college recruiting work? For many families, the most difficult part of the recruiting process is understanding how colleges recruit, evaluate and show interest in student-athletes. To better explain the college recruiting process, let’s look at it from a coach’s perspective.

What is the college recruiting process?

Many coaches begin the college recruiting process by contacting a large group of athletes that they think would be a good fit for their program. For bigger programs, this number can be in the hundreds or even thousands. 

Through evaluations, reviewing highlight video and contact with recruits, they slowly start to whittle that number down until they’ve filled their open roster spots. 

The college recruiting process resembles a funnel, starting out with a large group of recruits and narrowing down to a select few. That’s why NCSA’s athletic recruiting services can help recruits at different stages of the process. 

The steps of the college recruiting process

College coaches generally follow specific steps through their collegiate athletic recruiting process. Knowing these steps will help potential recruits understand where they are in the recruiting process and what still needs to occur going forward. These steps include: 

1. Gather a list of prospective athletes
2. Send out recruiting letters, questionnaires, and camp invites
3. Conduct evaluations
4. Extend verbal offers and scholarships
5. Sign athletes

College coaches gather a list of prospective athletes who meet basic requirements

To start out, coaches need to gather a large group of recruits. They will identify recruits who meet basic criteria like athletic stats, position, grad year, academics, location and more. To do so, college coaches will use the following tools and methods: 

• Recruiting media sites like Rivals.com or 247Sports
• Third-party recruiting services like NCSA (we have the largest network of student-athlete recruiting profiles)
• Recommendations from high school or club coaches
• Emails and messages from recruits
• Camps and showcases where they can see many potential recruits in one place

What this means for you: As a recruit, you need to look at the college recruiting process like a funnel, too.  

• Start out with a list of programs that would be a good athletic, academic, financial and social fit for you, and then pare that list down based on your preferences and the interest of college coaches.
• Consider attending camps and showcases held by coaches at schools you’re interested in.
• Create your free NCSA Recruiting Profile so college coaches can easily find your information online and increase your likelihood of getting a camp invite.
• Get your name in front of college coaches as much as possible through emails, social media and other ways to contact college coaches.  

College coaches send out recruiting letters, recruiting questionnaires and camp invites to prospects

The next step for most coaches is to begin sending out messages to a large group of athletes to get an idea of how many might be interested in their program. Athletes who pass the initial evaluation will likely receive one or more of the following: 

• Requests to complete a recruiting questionnaire
• Invitations to a camp
• General interest letters from the school

Recruiting questionnaires

How do college athletic recruiting questionnaires work? They are forms with fields for basic information that coaches want to see about any potential recruit and are very common in college sports recruitment. After coaches send these communications, they will see who responds—and consider how genuinely interested each athlete sounds—and narrow their list of prospects down to between 500–3,000 athletes, depending on the size of the program. 

College coaches conduct in-depth athletic, academic and character evaluations of recruits

Where do college coaches evaluate athletes they are looking to recruit? At this stage in the college recruiting process, coaches really need to get to know recruits in order to create a ranked list of top prospects. This often means they will get in touch with athletes and start calling their high school and club coaches for an evaluation or recommendation. 

They may also travel to large tournaments or showcases where many of their recruits will be competing, or they will send athletes personalized invites to their own camps. Official and unofficial visits can also happen at this time, as coaches aim to create a solid list of top recruits. 

What this means for you: Don’t wait for college coaches to start contacting you! Instead, take the initiative to show them why you deserve to make it to the next round of the college recruiting process.  

• Send them updated athletic and academic stats and highlight videos with your best and most recent footage.  
• Ask your high school and club coach to reach out to college coaches on your behalf.  
• Let coaches know you’re coming to their school for an unofficial visit and that you’d like to arrange a time to meet with them while you’re there.

College coaches extend scholarship offers and lock down commitments

At this point, coaches will have a ranked list of their top prospects and will look to lock down commitments.  

When can college coaches make you an offer? That depends on the type of offer. Verbal offers—non-binding, handshake agreements between a recruit and a college coach—can happen at any time and age. However, one of the biggest problems with early offers is that both the recruit and the coach can back out of them at any time.

For example, if an athlete was given a verbal scholarship offer their freshman year of high school, that offer can still be rescinded by the athlete’s senior year of high school. This leaves the recruit in a tough spot if they haven’t been communicating with any other schools.  

Offers usually become official when the athlete signs their financial aid agreement, which typically occurs their senior year of high school. 

Read more about how verbal commitments and offers work. 

College coaches sign athletes and ensure academic eligibility

The last step for college coaches is ensuring that each recruit signs with their program and meets eligibility requirements. Here’s how the committing and signing timeline works in most cases: 

• The athlete verbally commits to the school. 

• The college coach extends an official offer. 

• The athlete signs the official offer. 

• The athlete continues to meet eligibility requirements by taking all the necessary core courses and receiving the required GPA in those courses. 

Unfortunately, every year, there are athletes who have signed with a college but end their senior year ineligible to compete at the college level. This leaves both the athlete and the coach in a tough spot. The coach will need to go back to their list of top prospects and see if the athlete who ranked number two in that spot is still available, interested and academically eligible. The former recruit will likely need to compete for a year or two at a junior college to gain academic eligibility. 

Even though some sports recruit earlier than others, and there are recruiting rules that restrict activity, it’s never too early for student-athletes to research colleges, maintain their grades, update their recruiting video and prepare themselves to hit the ground running when they’re allowed to freely communicate with college coaches. 

Student-athletes should be ready to get recruited whenever an opportunity presents itself and not scramble to catch up with the rest of their class when recruiting activity is already happening.

What do college coaches look for when recruiting?

College coaches have different needs for their rosters depending on the level of competition, open positions, academic requirements and more. Some may put more emphasis on certain categories than others, but these are usually what’s being considered:   

• Athletic ability is usually the most important factor, even when college coaches won’t admit it. Their job is dependent on the team securing wins and finding success, so college coaches are absolutely looking for the best athletes that they can sign. But this is not the only factor they consider. Learn more about what college coaches look for in athletic ability.
  
• Academics are very important, too. Oftentimes, a college coach will have several recruits to choose from to fill a roster spot and when that happens, they are more likely to pick the one with stronger grades and test scores because they are less likely to experience academic problems in the future and lose their eligibility. At academically rigorous colleges, it can also be difficult for recruits to get admitted. Learn more about what college coaches look for in academics.
  
• Character is more important than most athletes and families think. When coaches are out scouting talent, they like to observe how athletes interact with their teammates, opponents, coaching staff and even parents to get an idea of how the athlete carries themselves. Learn more about what college coaches look for in character.
  
• Location can also play a role in recruiting. Successful programs with big budgets may recruit all over the country and even internationally, but smaller programs may only have the resources to recruit from certain regions where they have relationships with high school coaches and can also cut down on travel expenses. In this case, recruits from a certain region can have a leg up in recruiting. For international athletes, check out our Guide to Athletic Recruiting in the U.S. Learn more about how your location affects your college recruiting process.

College sports recruiting timeline

• Timeline for freshmen
• Timeline for sophomores
• Timeline for juniors
• Timeline for seniors

Different sports, division levels and programs deal with different recruiting timelines, but there are still some similarities across sports. This includes following the NCAA recruiting calendar, which outlines different recruiting dates that college coaches must adhere to. The expectation to know and follow these rules falls on college programs, but it still benefits prospects to know important dates so that they can be prepared for recruiting opportunities. 

With that said, many athletes across a variety of sports do follow a standard recruiting timeline that breaks down certain activities for each academic year. This includes:

• Freshman year: Research different division levels and learn differences in competition, understanding NCAA recruiting rules, knowing measurables for your sport (40-yard dash, vertical jump, etc.), etc.
• Sophomore year: Building your athletic resume and NCSA Recruiting Profile, compiling highlight video, contacting college coaches at levels that can already recruit (D3, NAIA, junior college), etc.
• Junior year: Focus on contacting college coaches, write letters, make calls, compile a target list of colleges, etc.
• Senior year: Most offers are made by D1 college coaches junior year. For those that haven’t received an offer, continue to contact college coaches and be ready to target lower division levels.

College recruiting timeline for freshmen

While recruiting timelines are different across all sports and division levels, it’s never too early for athletic recruits to get a head start on the college recruiting process. Our recruiting experts break down the recruiting timeline activities athletes should follow in their freshman year. 

College recruiting timeline for sophomores

By sophomore year of high school, recruits should be spending a few hours a week on their recruiting.  Our recruiting experts break down the recruiting timeline activities athletes should follow in their sophomore year. 

College recruiting timeline for juniors

While freshman and sophomore years were spent getting familiar with the recruiting process and laying the groundwork, junior year is go-time for recruiting. Our recruiting experts break down the recruiting timeline activities athletes should follow in their junior year. 

College recruiting timeline for seniors 

Senior year is the final leg of the college recruiting process. Our recruiting experts break down the recruiting timeline activities athletes should follow in their senior year. 

The recruiting process: reasons to start now 

No athlete’s recruiting process looks the same. While some athletes verbally commit as young as 7th grade, others wait until their seniors to find last-minute opportunities. Because there’s no true start to the recruiting process, we’ve broken down the reasons why your student-athlete might want to start the recruiting process now, based on their graduation year. 

Freshman year: Why start the recruiting process?

IIt’s no secret that top programs recruit early, so if a student-athlete can and wants to compete at a Division 1 school, they need to start the recruiting process early. If an athlete falls into one of these categories as a freshman, they will likely gain recruiting interest earlier than most recruits: 

• Have varsity or elite club video 

• Were ranked as a top-tier recruit at a tournament or showcase, or received prestigious awards.  

Once an athlete begins receiving general recruiting materials, they should begin filling out questionnaires, looping in their high school or club coach and emailing college coaches at schools they are interested in attending. 

Sophomore year: Why start the recruiting process now? 

Athletes who spent their freshman year researching colleges are well positioned to take the next step and talk to coaches. While many Division 1 programs have solidified their recruiting classes by this point, it’s possible to find a few D1 programs with roster openings. Athletes should consider their options at the Division 2 level, which recruits heavily during sophomore year, or start building relationships with Division 3 and NAIA coaches. This is also a great time to plan unofficial visits as a way to meet coaches and see campuses in person. 

Junior year: Why start the recruiting process now? 

If an athlete hasn’t started the recruiting process by this point, they’re losing out on roster spot opportunities. Junior year is when college coaches across all division levels can begin contacting recruits. Coaches can begin sending and responding to emails, texts and social media messages, as they build a relationship with recruits and their families.  

Plus, this is the year most student-athletes are ready to play in front of college coaches and get ranked nationally at showcases and camps. As athletes begin to fine-tune their list of top college, junior year is a good time to plan unofficial visits and official visits.  

Senior year: Why start the recruiting process now? 

While senior year isn’t too late to start the recruiting process, athletes need to be proactive. This means bypassing the introductory email process and going straight to calling college coaches directly to get on their radar. At this point, athletes should focus on Division 3 schools along with NAIA, and NCCAA programs that will likely still have scholarship opportunities available. Another strategy athletes can use is following their favorite programs on Twitter to look out for any recruits who de-commit from a program. 

NCSA works with college coaches across the country to match unsigned seniors with programs that still have roster availability. Learn more about how we help unsigned seniors. 

How the NCAA recruiting rules, recruiting calendar and recruiting periods impact this timeline

The NCAA recruiting calendar and related recruiting rules are meant to mandate the types of communication that athletes and college coaches can have, outline dates for specific communication and protect elite athletes from receiving an overwhelming amount of communication from college coaches.

When these rules and periods are laid out for each sport, they create a recruiting calendar during which different periods allow certain types of recruiting activity.

Learn more about the the major periods here: evaluation period, dead period, quiet period and contact period. 

When do college coaches stop recruiting?

The obvious answer is that college coaches stop recruiting when they have filled their roster. But this depends on when they started recruiting and how long that takes. 

In general, because top athletes go to D1 programs, those schools start recruiting earlier and finish recruiting earlier than D2, D3, NAIA, NCCAA, and junior college programs. 

Colleges at lower levels tend to recruit athletes that have been passed over by colleges at higher levels, so oftentimes colleges at the D3 level will be recruiting later than those at the D1 level. 

Is it too late to get recruited senior year? For some sports and division levels the answer will be yes, but for others it will be no. 

Student-athletes can take advantage of NCSA services for unsigned seniors. But it’s most important to communicate with each coach individually about what their recruiting timeline looks like and when they expect to start and end recruiting. 

How NCSA helps coaches with college athletic recruiting

When recruiting for college sports, college coaches prefer to evaluate prospects in person at games and events such as camps, combines and tournaments. But they can only travel to so many places because of their location, schedule and budget. That’s where NCSA comes in. 

College coaches use NCSA to search the largest database of athletes and evaluate recruiting videos, measurables, references, experience, awards, transcripts and more. Here are some NCSA-related numbers as of 2023: 

• 82% of U.S. college athletic programs have had at least one NCSA athlete on their roster 

• 8,233,809 athlete follows by college coaches 

• 1,152,743 athlete searches by college coaches 

What college coaches have to say about NCSA:

The information from NCSA has been awesome. It’s user-friendly and very informative. We appreciate all your help.”

– D1 Midwest Collegiate Conference football coach

Your service does an excellent job of matching student-athletes to our needs.”

– D2 United States Collegiate Athletic Association women’s soccer coach

We would have never been able to find [student-athlete’s name removed] had it not been for your services. We are looking forward to getting him here next year and are excited to continue working with NCSA!”

– D1 Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball coach

This is by no means an exhaustive guide to the recruiting timeline. For more resources and guidance, reference these NCSA guides for staying ahead of the pack in recruiting:

• Fall recruiting checklists
• Winter recruiting checklists
• Spring recruiting checklists
• Summer recruiting checklists
• NCAA eligibility center checklist

Have more questions?

Your NCSA Recruiting Coach is here to guide you through the college recruiting process. Log in now to schedule a conversation with your coach. 

Not a member yet? Start with a free recruiting profile to connect with an NCSA Recruiting Specialist. We’ll help you and your family plan the next steps in your recruiting journey and achieve your recruiting goals.