What does recruiting look like in 2020?

Student athletes have been worried lately on whether or not athletic scholarships will be handed out, and if so, how will they be given out. It is a fear among many as to if they are good enough to make a college sports team on a scholarship, with the pandemic rising though, things just got harder.

Athletes used to be recruited on what coaches saw in person for the most part, in today’s world however, Division 1 coaches are not allowed to come out to games. This is because, what is known as the recruiting dead period, has been extended until January 1, 2021.

What does this mean for student athletes? Well it means coaches have to rely on video now more than ever before. Some schools will be forced to commit kids just off of video. Keeping up on phone calls and emails with schools is also another big way to build relationships so when they are able to come see you they know who you are.

The extension of the dead period doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t get recruited. It just means that it is harder to get recruited now. If you’re a kid that works hard and wants to be better every day, schools will find you. Although if you’re lazy and don’t care, the schools won’t care either. It’s a sad truth but it’s reality. Being recruited during this time depends on what you make of it.

Recruiting has taken a whole new turn as all of us try to figure out this new way of life. This is all very new to us as well as college coaches. We know about as much as they do at this time. It’s very unlikely that this new change will return to normal anytime soon, so for the time being we must adjust to these new standards.

“I would say the new process affects me and also everyone who plays a sport. A lot of people who play a sport are very limited to the amount of people that can come see them. Camps are also closed so we can’t show off our skills to people.” said Junior Jose Resendiz.

For people like Jose, these people rely on video submissions to coaches for them to be able to see players. It may be odd to think that someone could get recruited off video, but it’s our new reality.