College Athletic Recruiting Resources: Books
The following are books about the college athletic recruiting
process that I've actually read. Just because I
didn't particularly like a book doesn't mean that it wouldn't work for
someone else. I think the whole process is hit or miss--getting the
first book is the important part. Once you have the book, you start to
realize what you don't know and can go from there. I think it's also
why most of these books are highly rated on Amazon. The reviewers went
from knowing nothing to being able to manage the recruiting
process--how can that not be a good thing?
The High School Athlete's Guide to College Sports: How to Market Yourself to the School of Your Dreams
by College Bound Sports
This
book provides everything you need to start the recruiting process. It
includes sample letters and profiles along with check lists and "real
stories." I like the example of a player researching two college teams
to see which one would be a better fit. While the book discusses how
to use the web to research teams it is still a bit dated since it
suggests a personal web page and talks about making a VHS highlight
video. Overall, this is a good choice for starting the process.
How To Win A Sports Scholarship
by
Penny Hastings & Todd Caven
This book provides a good overview of
the recruiting process along with checklists and self-assessments. The
"hook" for this book is The Sports Resume Kit TM which is
essentially an athletic profile. You need one and it gives you
examples. While I think some of the approaches are dated (even though
the book was reprinted in 2003, the last copyright was 1999) we found
the examples of letters and questions to ask very useful. The numerous
quotes from college coaches were also interesting. The basic ideas of
college recruiting are covered but a lot of the suggested tools are
dated because of all of the opportunities on the web.
Put Me In, Coach: A Parent's Guide to Winning the Game of College Recruiting
by Laurie A. Richter
Okay, the first thing to know about this book is that you can buy
it in ebook format. This may be good or bad
depending on how many impulsive ebook purchases you make. This book is
a little different because it spends more time upfront talking about
if you should play college athletics and where before it starts into
the how. It is also much more up to date in terms of technology--coaches
will be calling your student on his cell phone, make sure you have a
camcorder, etc. Like the other books, it gives you an example of a
cover letter and a student profile. This book has a different feel
than the others, more personal, and definitely directed at the parent.
The author also goes more into the possibilities at D3 schools. Of the
books that I have read, if you are only going to buy one book, this is
the one I recommend.
The Sports Scholarships Insider's Guide: Getting Money for College at Any Division (Sport Scholarships Insider's Guide)
by Dion Wheeler
I have the 2005 version of this
book. There is now a 2009 edition but I don't know to what extent the
information has been updated. I found the 2005 version of limited use.
Over half the book is a listing of general contact information for
universities and a listing of all schools sports offered. Like the
others, it has a sample profile. However, it has only one sample
letter. In many ways, it is an abridged form of the other books. Yet
there are three things that I found in this book that weren't in the
others. It lists expected statistics for athletes by sport--for
example average speed of pitchers by division. This book also goes
into more detail of recruiting and non-athletic scholarships for D3
schools. Finally, the author gives you the number of schools that you
should target, the minimum being 30, and explains why. This is
probably a book that you would want to peruse through first before
buying.
The Student Athlete's Guide to Getting Recruited: How to Win Scholarships, Attract Colleges and Excel as an Athlete
by Stewart Brown
I got this book as an ebook and it probably falls into the
impulsive purchase I shouldn't have made. I think that if I had had a
chance to flip through the book before buying it, I wouldn't have.
It's not that the book doesn't have good information, it does, a lot
even. I'm just not sure who the book is targeted to. All the chapters
are based on several (I assume fictional) athlete's story of the
process being discussed. The first chapter uses the three examples of
high school students and managing the process of communicating with
the coaches. It's fairly interesting and lots of information about
rules but never explicitly outlines the recruiting process. One player
initiates contacts, one is seen by coaches at a game but it has the
feel of these are the rules once the process has started. The chapter
on what college coaches want is great if you happen to interested in
playing and attending the specific sport/college combination
presented. Different coaches want different things. Of course, the
variety of coaches in the chapter suggests such a conclusion but I
think it would be just as easy for the reader to assume these are
representative coaches for their sport. Two of the chapters are on
being prepared physically for college sports that seems to have a lot
to do with what happens after you are recruited. Another two chapters
warn of the dangers of not following up once you have been accepted
and not being prepared for college life. Again, useful information but
not something I found immediately useful especially since I had
already read a number of other books on the subject. The format may work for some
people, but I didn't find it very effective.
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