Embed from Getty Images

Recruiting, from a coach’s point of view, is an evaluation process. There are a few things coaches have to find out about a prospect before they actually get in the trenches and spend valuable time on them.

Academics

Coaches talk to prospects’ guidance counselors and teachers to see if they have the grades to attend college. Each college has its own academic requirements, and if prospects don’t have the grades to get into schools, they will go to a junior college to get their grades where they need to be.

Character

When allowed, college coaches will go to a prospect’s school and get as much information they can about the athlete. They will talk the prospect’s high school coaches, teachers, guidance counselors and even weightlifting coach to find out if this kid is the right fit for the program. They will ask questions about class attendance, the way the prospect shows his emotion, and whether or not he is a team guy.

Physical Talent

By watching film on a prospect, coaches get a good feel of what kind of athlete they are looking at. Coaches will look at footwork, shooting, speed, vertical jump, physicality on the court and a number of other attributes. Certain coaches in certain schemes look at different things in this part of the evaluation process.

Smaller schools might take a gamble on a kid that has questionable character or academics to get a player that fits their system and has all the talent in the world. Recruiting can be an ugly business, and taking chances could lead your team to a championship or could destroy your team from the inside out. This evaluation process is taken very seriously, and in-depth information that coaches gather will help the staff figure out if the kids the right fit for their program.

Recruiting is a year-round job. Some college programs have multiple staff members to assist in recruiting, while smaller programs might not have the money to hire any help and the coaching staff has to do all the work on the recruiting front. With all the social media outlets, there are numerous ways to reach out to recruits, which makes it a constant battle in the crazy world of recruiting.