One of the most agonizing parts of recruiting is ambiguity and not knowing exactly what a coach means by what they are saying.
You might be a guy for us!
We really like your film! Send more!
We need to see how a few other things play out before we can make a call but we’re always open to you!
Insert random fire emojis and fist bump emojis on X DM’s.
Recruiting shows us starkly that two people can hear the same thing and come to totally different conclusions.
If you have to wonder what a coach meant by what they said, they didn’t really mean it.
If they are not the one reaching out to, engaging and doing the bulk of the recruiting then you are actually the one who is recruiting them. Sometimes successful recruiting outcomes start like this, but most of the time, the level of engagement and initiation you receive from a coach is correlated loosely to your ultimate outcome.
If you feel like you’re pulling teeth just to get a DM reply, then you’re not being recruited by that coach. You are probably Plan G, not Plan A.
A fundamental truth of recruiting is this: it incentivizes coaches to keep maximum options open for as long as possible which is usually achieved through ambiguity.
This puts the onus on families and players to be the deciders for when to move on from a coach that isn’t proving fruitful. This is also agonizing for families because for many anything short of an offer from Stanford or FBS D1 feels like failure in the On3Recruiting ecosystem we find ourselves in.
They feel like they’re limiting their potential, or their kid’s potential.
College coaches aren’t evil. They’re, most of the time, just trying to make sense of an ever-changing recruiting landscape just like you are you, reading this. Most empathize with the plight of kids they never reply to in their DMs - they just don’t have the ability to reply to everyone, and most don’t want the drama of telling a kid Hey sorry Johnny, you are not a D1 talent you need to be D3 in your goals.
If you move on, know that you are not limiting your potential if the school you are moving on from was never a realistic goal - be it academically, athletically or personally - to begin with.
It’s not settling it’s accepting reality.
Key Takeaways
Follow coaches’ behaviors, not always their words.
Are you doing the recruiting or is the coach doing the recruiting? Who is the initiator? Who ever is the more proactive party is the one doing the work.
Recruiting incentivizes maximum ambiguity for long periods of time, you will need to decide when to move on as most coaches don’t have the time, or stomach for potential drama to tell every kid that.
Brendan
PS When you’re ready, schedule a free consultation call with me here calendly.com/brendancahill