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Recruiting Guides

The Making of a
Student- Athlete: Your key to successful athletic recruiting.

 

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6.24 - For every bad story or scandal your hear about college sports there are at least 20 good ones that go unnoticed on the. national scale. Here is an example of student athletes making a difference. Read Story.

High School Hero to College Zero.  I thought of this on my run today. Why do some athletes fail to make the adjustment in college?  Any thoughts on this would be welcome. I'll ponder this, dig back into old interviews and see if I can bring some things to light that might help next years College Bound!

6.22 - To be honest, a lot of what the NCAA does I don't agree with. But the move to take many of the  Division II NCAA Fall Championships and run in one location as a Championship Festival is a good one. Pensacola Florida will host the event November 15-19th. Read article.

TXT Messaging Recommendations are in!   Time of day restrictions and nothing until after Sept 1 of your junior year. Please note - emails are exempt from this legislation.

Transportation Safety - I guess with all the traveling college teams do, it makes sense to take a close look at transit policy and safety. Read Article

Facility news from NCAA.org
  the University of Northern Colorado has secured $16 million dollars to improve facilities at the Butler-Hancock Athletic Sports Complex...University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, officials selected HOK Sport of Kansas City, Missouri, to design its new TCF Bank Stadium on campus...University of Detroit Mercy announced it will add an Olympic sports office complex in Calihan Hall, the school’s basketball arena. A The suite will feature reception and work room areas, a conference room, four offices and a video editing room for women’s basketball, and seven other offices for track, fencing, golf and softball. Completion of the project is expected by mid-October.

Conference News from NCAA.org
: Great Northeast Athletic Conference announced that Lasell College, Mount Ida College and Saint Joseph’s College (Maine) have accepted invitations to join the league beginning with the 2007-08 academic year...Seven Division III institutions that announced plans last winter to form a new conference have settled on a name. The Landmark Conference will include Catholic University of America, Drew University, Goucher College, Juniata College, Moravian College, Susquehanna University and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

6.21 - Friendly reminders to all you athletes about to hit the summer camp, combine, showcase, tournament, state Olympic, invitational, etc. circuit in hopes of being discovered and subsequently courted to play in college:

  - Help coaches out - look around you? Do you see a lot of other athletes with the same hopes as you do? There are a lot more of you than there are coaches and positions available. Express your interest in a school/program proactively so that the coach has at least qualified that fact about you.  Not every player a coach contacts about his or her school is interested - too big, too small, too far away, too close, does not have my major, etc.  If you at least do a little background work on the school and have a feeling it could be a fit, what do you have to lose by telling that coach you've done your homework?  Let the coach know you  think the school is a fit and provide a summer schedule and references so they can evaluate your fit on their team.

   - Attitude and Temper - There are good attitudes and bad ones, which one do you have on display? Regardless of talent, coaches evaluate the whole person on coachability, ability to blend with the team, work ethic, mental toughness and a lot of other subtle variables.  They judge this by watching you before and after a game as much as during. How do you warm up? How do you speak with parents or friends after a loss?
  Same for temper - if you can't control it, it will cost your team and perhaps a chance with a college coach. Simple.

  - Voice Mail - give coaches the best number to reach you at when leaving them a message. If that happens to be your cell phone I suggest that your voice mail message be courteous and simple. "Hi this is Ray, please leave a message and I will call you back. Thank and have a good one!"  is better than "...aaaaggh, you know what to do..YO! DO IT NOW!"  Being a unique person is great - but in this instance I say control what you can. Coach's use everything to make a decision.

 - Play it Safe - there is a fine line between playing in too many showcases or tournaments and mitigating risk of injury that is more damaging than missing the 6th showcase of the summer which caused the injury.  If you don't feel up to something, do risk going full bore and doing real damage. Sure you might not get hurt, but how well will you show if you don't have a clean head or truly can't play at your best?

Just a few tips from the Advisor. Go have fun!

6.18 - Happy Father's Day. Now that I am a Dad myself, I can understand why Dad's like to do very little on Father's Day. In fact, as the father of a 6 month old, my only wish was to be able to finish my coffee and read the Sunday Times and Boston Globe.

As is usually the case, I read a very interesting article in the NY Times about the Rice Owls pitching staff from 2003-04. All three pitchers were drafted in the Top 10, Rice won the national title and one of the big three actually went 17-0.  Of course the fall from grace is swift and in this case painful as all three have had surgery since 2004 and only one of the three is at AA ball level. It brought up the debate about what causes arm injuries in pitchers - something that is either so elusive that we will never know for certain what the major risk factors are or like many diseases, no one has thrown enough money at the issue to find the answer.

Speaking of the New York times articles , is it any surprise that professional players are scouting their opponents by watching video via iPods?  I can almost guarantee you that in professional and college football next year, instead of "cut ups" being given on DVD's. Each player will be given an iPod with the video preloaded and the battery charged. No way a player can say my DVD player broke, or I lost the DVD. Plus they can travel with it, watch it during class, bring it to the strip clubs, hey wherever whenever. Think the $399 per iPod Video Player is steep? Well go visit the locker rooms at Ohio State, Texas and Oregon and you tell me if some alum won't foot the bill?

6.16 -  on June 1 I commented on my trip to the NCAA Division I Women's lacrosse finals. I noted how Northwestern won for the second time in a row and that they had only been playing varsity lax since 2002. Well, with this announcement by the University of Florida about fielding a women's lax team in 2010, I wonder how long it will take this sports titan to contend and really put the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic power centered sport into a frenzy!

Vanderbilt is the only other SEC school to field a lax team so the Gators will be playing an independent schedule until the rest of these schools follow.

Don't think your college diploma and degree are important. Ask NC State men's basketball coach Sidney Lowe about that!  Turns out that most colleges require their employees to actually be a college graduate!

Found this sports injury message board forum powered by the  American Sports Medicine Institute. Looks to be a number of actual doctors and trainers posting advice.

BADJOCKS.com - going hard after the Iowa Hawkeye Athletic Department for classifying a baseball team incident as "not hazing".  This is going so far as to invoke the Freedom of Information Act.

6.15 - Did you ever notice how many former pro players have children now doing well in college?
 - Doug Drabek - former All Star Pitcher - his son was the 18th pick in the MLB draft.
 - Don Mattingly - Yankee great, border line Hall of Famer,  son was 31st pick.
 - Chet Lemon - Chicago White Sox All Star - son was picked this draft.
-  Mike Conley - US Triple Jump Star- his son is going to Ohio State for hoops.
- Anthony Munoz -NFL  Hall of Fame Tackle his daughter went to Tennessee to play basketball for legend Pat Summit.
- Yannick Noah - former tennis stars son Yoakim is considered an NBA lottery pick.

This list could go on.  Why is it that so many children of great athletes do so well themselves.  A few ideas:
 1) Genetics - this plays a major role in providing the baseline requirements for athletic greatness. But there are hundreds of players out there with equal athletic tools that fail to reach the high level.

2) Perception of Potential - "the apple does not fall far from the tree" school of thought that these kids are worth a chance due to pedigree.

3) Exposure to the process of being great - This is a big one and the one that those of us not fortunate to be Archie Manning's sons can look into. Ken Griffey, who in my opinion would be the one chasing Aaron if he had any luck health wise, grew on on major league fields surrounded by future Big Red Machine Hall of Famers.

The way in which the Joe Morgans, Johnny Benches, Dave Concepcions, George Fosters, Pete Roses and Tom Seavers approached the game was the way in which Jr. learned it. Technique, preparation, emotional control, work ethic, anticipation - he absorbed it all at the highest of levels.

As an athlete do you truly study what the best athletes do, how they prepare? You read all these articles in ESPN and Sports Illustrated about how hard somebody worked in the off season yet do you emulate it?  Why is it that I go to games to watch the supposedly good baseball players and it takes 1 at bat to know that if they don't change how the hit, success will be limited (FYI - way too many hitters swing with their first movement going forward thus making it next to impossible to hit an 85 MPH + fastball or adjust to a good curve).

I see athletes who are "working out all summer" but come to camp 15 lbs over weight?! Call it a rant but future college players have to get out there and see how the good ones do it, how they train, what they eat, how they think, you name it.  Sit back and think for a moment 'Do I prepare this way? Am I on the right track the way I prepare?" If not change your behavior!

6.13 - The NCAA announced list of invalid prep schools. Double check before you send the tuition check or accept the scholarship! I Have a feeling this impacts more basketball players than any other sport. No proof however.


6.12 - 2006 Rosters for College World Series. 
   UNC Chapel Hill - ACC
   Georgia Tech - ACC
   Clemson - ACC
   Oregon State - PAC 10
   Cal State Fullerton - Pac 10
   Georgia - SEC
   Miami - ACC
   Rice - Conference USA

6.11 - took a few days off as I was on the road at meetings. Came home in time for the start of the College World Series Super Regional's. Again, the web site www.ncaasports.com does a great job keeping everyone up to date...the usual suspects are on the verge of Omaha, save Missouri and College Of Charleston who both fell in the super regional finals.  So far the ACC has 3 teams in with all others being from major conferences like the SEC, Big 12 or the Pac 10 in contention.

Congrats to Northeastern University's pitching coach and recruiting coordinator Greg DiCenzio for his first pitcher being taken in the first round, Adam Ottovino. I've seen Otto pitch since his first year at NU and he has made great strides each year.  For all your pitchers out there worried that you have to play in the south or west to be seen, look no further than this New York native. It does not hurt that scouts had once season after the break out Cape summer Otto had to follow him in the very competitive Colonial conference which NU jumped to this year, but he was the same pitcher when they played in the A-10 conference. Also when you begin the year with 6 innings of no-hit ball and 12K's against the #1 team, as he did against GA Tech, heads turn.   Funny article about the 30th round pick.

Birmingham Southern University is dropping from Division I to Division III athletics, a move that impacts 193 student athletes. According to this article in Baseball American the baseball team is the most disappointed.

Any Volleyball fans out there?  Check out this site http://www.prepvolleyball.com/

Football players - Faulkner University (AL) to start an NAIA football program.

Speaking of NAIA, the 2006 Spring National Champions...

Baseball - Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)
Softball - Mobile (Ala.)
Men's Tennis - Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)
Women's Tennis - Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)
Men's Golf - Oklahoma City
Women's Golf - Oklahoma City
Men's Outdoor Track - Dickinson State (N.D.)
Women's Outdoor Track - Missouri Baptist

One more thing...the 2006 MLB baseball draft had 24 NAIA level players picked.

6.3 - now that I am working full time for a baseball and softball training company (Frozen Ropes) the NCAA Softball Championships are more interesting to me as I have a greater working knowledge of the game. My greatest interest is hitting style. I am not a big believer in the softball swing versus the baseball swing. To me, the should be very similar.  Too many of these girls stand like statues and have no chance at a 65+ MPH fastball - the same way you see baseball players with no movement in their set-up who can't touch 85 MPH unless the guess 100% right. I digress...

Check out the rosters of the 2006 College World Series Teams. See any trends?
  Alabama - 14 players out of state, mostly FL, GA, TX
  Arizona  - 8 out of state players, all Cali!
  Arizona State - 13 of 14 out of state players from Cali.
  Northwestern - heavy into AZ and CA - mostly out of state players.
  Oregon State - 12 out of state, all CA or far west.
  Tennessee - 10 out of state, 7 CA.
  Texas - 6 out of state, 3 CA, 2 AZ, 1 IL
  UCLA - 3 out of state, AZ and WA

6.2  Had an interesting conversation with a well connected soccer coach today. He was talking about the various "soccer training academies" that have taken to telling players that they are "division I" caliber, in an effort to keep their training money coming in. In reality, a lot of these kids are being lied to and have no shot at playing competitive college soccer. 

This happens in most sports - some on a grand scale, others on a local mom and pop level.  The issue is that the real evaluation comes from the college coaches doing the recruiting, at least the one that counts.  Families regularly butt heads with high school coaches after coming from a fee for service situation where the player is rated or touted much higher than is realistic. I hear this frequently. It is natural to want to agree with the best evaluation possible - but when the evaluation is done in the name of creating false hope and deceptive need to spend huge dollars then it is a problem to watch out for.

 Interesting read  in the NCAA News about early verbal commitments - Read Story

The USA Today ran a story this month about PLUS loans and the increasing interest rates that are expected to be announced. If you have an outstanding PLUS loan currently, you can lock in a rate of 6.125% if you consolidate by July 1, 2006. At that time the rates go to about 8%. Before you consolidate consider how much you have to pay off on the current loan. Consolidating can extend the term of you loan for up to 30 years.  The longer you take to pay, the more interest you will pay over the life of the loan regardless of the rate.  Do the math, for a short term savings you might end up paying more in the long term.  New to PLUS loans? Click Here.

With Myspace.com being blamed as the root of all evil, I thought it would be good to point out to our student readers that the ease in which the "net" enables you to do research on-line for school reports and papers could land you in trouble if you are not careful. Your high school might not have millions to spend on anti-plagiarism software, but a lot of colleges do.  www.mydropbox.com and Turn It In are lurking on the frontier.

What is it with Myspace anyhow? 40 years ago, it was the Beatles that were ruining Western Civilization. The difference, as my wife pointed out, is that the Beatles were not sex offenders pretending to be rock stars.  I see her point - but talk about a Tipping Point.

6.1 - I attended the NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championships between Northwestern and Dartmouth at Boston University's Nickerson Field. NW won the close game 7-4 for their second consecutive title (only 1 loss in two years.) The team has a decidedly Boston area influence.
   The rules of women's lacrosse are vague to me as they differ from men quite a bit in terms of contact and action in front of the goalie.  In this game, if you are faster and quicker than your opponent, even if slightly less skilled technically, I think you might come out the victor. Interestingly, Northwestern has only played varsity lax since 2002. Their first class of recruits won a title as seniors and a few of the girls never played lax in high school.  In ten years, I doubt that type of success story will happen as the sport will mature and more and more players pick up the game, get better, play year round etc. It is also a very "homogenous" sport. There is an entire population of athletes from many walks of life that have yet to be introduced to the sport. Once that happens, the game will become even more competitive.
   Northwestern has four players from the Boston area and their coach is a native to the state of MA.  The current national player of the year Kristen Kjellman (Westwood, MA) was in high school by current teammate Melissa Franks mother Leslie. You can see the pipeline back to MA - and it is a good one.  Player often wonder how coaches find players? They go where they know good players are for one - in this case the Westwood/Dedham area is home to the Elite Lacrosse Club team which is one of the top programs in the country.  If you find a player of the year caliber player, good chance you will keeping asking if any others are around.
  When you hometowns from Colorado on these rosters, then you know that pockets of exceptional talent are surfacing outside of MD, PA, MA, CT, NY. Just give FLA, TX, AZ and CA a few years and see what happens.

Ray Lauenstein is the author of College Bound: The Official Guide to Playing College Baseball and The Making of a Student Athlete.  He also holds a Masters Degree in Sport Psychology and gives seminars on Mental Skills Training and the Recruiting Process.  If you would like him to speak to your team, booster club or other group please contact him via the online form or call 1-617-835-1836.