Earning an Athletic Scholarship is Much like March Madness for High School Athletes

Earning a college scholarship and March Madness have a lot in common.

Over their high school careers, athletes face recruiting opponents every day.  Many have no clue it’s going on but in fact, on the first day of their freshman year, athletes’ personal recruiting tournaments begin.  See, athletes known to college coaches are in a March Madness-type, compete-and-advance scenario.

The difference?  Earning an athletic scholarship lasts four years instead of four weeks.

College coaches do not wait until prospects are juniors or seniors to initiate the recruiting process.  Coaches hit the “go” button as soon as they get wind of a prospect that potentially fits their programs’ needs.  And then, for those lucky prospects, knowingly or otherwise, it’s tournament time where you win or go home empty-handed.

In the minds of college coaches, every prospect they ID is competing for the scholarship dollars they will have available when that prospect graduates high school.  One wrong move and a prospect faces elimination.  A good performance, say, a prospect reports really good test scores or has a terrific showcase, and he or she advances.

It really is a survival of the fittest, or in recruiting, the most qualified.  Do well, you move to the next round.  Trip up, and you lose out.

Every day counts in a prospect’s recruiting tournament.  Whether in the classroom, during practice or in a game, match or meet, prospects are closely scrutinized by college coaches.  Grades, attitude, work ethic, stats, leadership, they all matter when coaches are choosing to hand over thousands of dollars from their college to a high school senior.

The awarding of scholarships is a value-based system.  Administrators and athletic directors are continuously gauging if their coaches and athletes are bringing value to their campuses?  Scholarships are highly-entrusted money and schools do not dole them out lightly.  Great responsibility comes with presenting final offers to athletes.  Coaches know this and are ever diligent when narrowing down which prospects deserve these “gifts” over others.

Hard choices?  Absolutely.  It’s not just the wins and losses that matter to many colleges anymore.  Coaches’ on-campus reputations and jobs are on the line, too.  Graduation rates, retention of solid students, and producing great alumni are all contributing factors to college coaches’ longevities.

For prospects, holding back is not an option.  And only those individuals that place themselves in the best positions, and take full advantage of their opportunities, are the athletes that have a chance to go through all the rounds and emerge with offers.  It is truly a win-every-day challenge.

Prospects and parents, imagine the hard work and preparation coaches and players must put into their next game during the NCAA basketball tournament.  Imagine, too, what would happen if they sat back and merely let the game start without making a plan and putting in the work to win.  Their probabilities of advancing would be very low, if not non-existent.

High school athletes with the goal to earn athletic scholarships are in the same situation.  Think about it.  Are you in the best position to advance?  If not, do something about it today.  Gain the advantage.  Contact the NSR scout near you and find out how to win your recruiting tournament.