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How to Navigate the Current NCAA Recruiting Restrictions

Last week, NCAA Division I leaders extended the recruiting Dead Period for all Division I coaches through the end of July due to continued COVID-19 concerns.

Division I coaches are limited to recruiting by phone, text, email, and other messaging, as well as looking at film and by speaking with high school, junior college and/or club coaches.

Meanwhile, Division II coaches entered a recruiting Quiet Period on June 1.

This means that although the Division II coaches are still restricted from conducting any off-campus recruiting activities, they can conduct sports camps and clinics, invite recruits to campus and have in-person recruiting conversations, as long as those interactions take place on campus.

As the parent of a high school or junior college recruit, how should you or your athlete approach this situation?

Some suggestions:

  • Check out opportunities in your state or region to participate in recruiting camps or showcase events this summer. Because coaches can’t leave campus to conduct recruiting, they will be relying more than ever on the word of event organizers and junior college or smaller college coaches on who were the top players at each event.
  • Attend recruiting/skills camps that may be offered at junior colleges or small colleges in your area. Don’t discount the information that junior college coaches may share with NCAA coaches. Also, don’t discount the possibility of starting off your college career at a junior college to improve your skill level, or to gain strength and speed, so that you can then be recruited by NCAA programs from a junior college.
  • Create a recruiting video that you can send out to coaches.
  • Prepare an athletic resume that you can send to coaches along with a recruiting video. Highlight not only your athletic skills and abilities, but also your academic performance and any leadership or other extra-curricular activities you’ve been involved in.
  • Set up a page for your athlete on one of the recruiting websites that permit you to create your own page and profile.

Here are some of the ways that we can provide objective guidance and information to help you and your athlete navigate through this current challenging environment.

  • We can explain the academic requirements that your athlete will need to satisfy to be eligible to compete at the college level, as well as the transfer academic requirements if they want to start off at the junior college level, or just take part-time courses at the beginning of their enrollment.
  • We can explain the differences in the rules regarding athletic scholarships at the various college levels so that you are prepared if an offer of a scholarship is made to your athlete.
  • For a spring sport recruit who may be faced with overcrowded college rosters this next year, we can also explain the rules and implications of taking a gap year after high school graduation. That option may provide some benefits both athletically to gain size and strength and improve skill level, as well as academically to take part-time course work while postponing the start of the athlete’s eligibility clock.

If you have questions, concerns, or are confused about what to do and how to navigate the recruiting process, we can help you understand and provide scenarios and options for what is in the best interest of your athlete. Schedule a private and confidential Scholarship Strategies Consultation online or by calling us at 913-766-1235 or sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA Division II Recruiting Will Enter a Quiet Period Starting June 1st

In a recent post, I shared that NCAA Division I has extended their recruiting Dead Period for all sports through June 30.

In contrast, NCAA Division II has announced that they will enter a Quiet Period starting June 1 and continuing until June 30.

During the Quiet Period, Division II coaches:

  • Can invite recruits to visit campus
  • Can have face-to-face interaction with recruits and their family members on campus.
  • Can host camps and clinics on their campuses.

However:

  • Coaches are still prohibited from conducting off-campus recruiting activities.
  • Keep in mind that decisions by colleges regarding whether and when to permit these activities will be guided by campus policies and state and local health authorities.
  • Certain Division II conferences may also choose to impose more restrictions on campus activities than are permitted during a Quiet Period.

Schedule a confidential Recruiting Rules consultation online to make sure you’re up to date on what activities are permissible. You can also call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA Division I Extends Recruiting Dead Period

The NCAA has announced that the Division I recruiting Dead Period for all sports that has been imposed in the wake of COVID-19 has now been extended through June 30.

As a reminder, this means that Division I coaches are not allowed to have any in-person interaction with high school or junior college recruits, or with athletes who are in the process of transferring from one university to another. Phone calls, emails, text messages, or other direct messaging formats remain permissible, however.

If you’ve got any questions on how this could affect your athlete, schedule a Recruiting Rules Consult online, or by calling 913-766-1235.

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Impact of Online Instruction on NCAA Freshman Eligibility Requirements

High school athletes must satisfy the NCAA academic requirements to be certified as a Qualifier and be eligible to compete and receive an athletic scholarship in their freshman year at an NCAA Division I or Division II university.

High schools shifting to online instruction or taking other action due to COVID-19 could have a negative impact on a recruit’s opportunity to satisfy the academic requirements for Division I and Division II eligibility.

As of the date of this post,  the NCAA Eligibility Center has not yet issued any official changes or adjustments to these academic requirements. However, the Eligibility Center will be conferring with NCAA Division I and II governing committees and is expected to release information on possible changes soon.

High school recruits and families should be aware that the NCAA freshman academic requirements to be certified as a Qualifier are also important if your athlete is planning to attend a two-year college before transferring to an NCAA university.

Recruits who are not certified as an NCAA Qualifier by the Eligibility Center will have more extensive academic requirements to satisfy while attending a two-year college in order to be eligible when they transfer to an NCAA university.

Do You Have Questions?

If you are concerned about the impact of online instruction on your academic eligibility, we offer confidential phone consultations. We’ll answer all your questions, discuss the possible impact on your athlete’s eligibility due to COVID-19, and suggest options for your athlete to consider. Schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues consult online here, call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA National Letter of Intent Signing Period Has Re-opened

As of April 15, 2020, the NCAA National Letter of Intent signing period has now re-opened after being closed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

It will be permissible for all NCAA Division I & II sports programs – including Division I basketball and football – to offer a National Letter of Intent and an official scholarship agreement at any time from April 15 through August 1.

If you have questions about your NLI and scholarship agreement and what it means, want an explanation of the difference between Division I and Division II scholarships or have other questions in general, we can provide a confidential phone consultation to discuss.

Schedule a Scholarship Strategies Consult online, contact us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA Recruiting & Scholarship Update

On April 1st, the NCAA announced that they are extending the recruiting “Dead Period” for all Division I and II sports programs through May 31.

As a reminder, that means:

  • There can be no face-to-face personal recruiting activity between coaches and recruits or families.
  • Coaches can’t leave campus for any recruiting observations.
  • Coaches cannot invite recruits to visit campus.

However, It is still permissible for recruiting to be conducted by phone, text, email or through social media.

National Letter of Intent

NLI Signing opportunities will resume on April 15th for NCAA Division I and II programs.

All NCAA sports programs – including Division I basketball and football – will be allowed to offer a National Letter of Intent and an official scholarship agreement at any time from April 15 through August 1.

(In a normal year, Division I football can only offer a National Letter of Intent until April 1, while Division I basketball must cease offering an NLI in mid-May.)

Do You Need Help?

Contact us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com to arrange a consultation session if you’d like to discuss your athlete’s options, or schedule a Scholarship Strategies Consult online.

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NJCAA Reminder About “Recruitable” Status

Even though all NJCAA spring sports have been cancelled, and winter sports were either cancelled or had already concluded, student-athletes in those sports are still not “recruitable” by other NJCAA member colleges until the spring academic term has ended at the athlete’s current college.

A spring sport athlete currently attending an NJCAA college who plans to possibly transfer should be told by a coach at another NJCAA program that they can’t discuss a transfer until the conclusion of this term at the athlete’s current college.

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HS Athletes – What to Know BEFORE taking an Online Course

If you are a parent of a high school athlete who is taking online courses of any kind, we advise you to make sure that those courses will be accepted as “Core Courses” by the NCAA Eligibility Center so that the athlete can be classified as a Qualifier.

We were recently contacted by the parent of a high school senior who just learned that nearly all of the courses that his daughter took online will not be accepted by the NCAA Eligibility Center.

Do you Have Questions?

For questions about NCAA core course requirements, schedule a confidential Eligibility Consult online, contact us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

We can also provide our Freshman Transcript Review Service to provide a written report on your athlete’s progress toward becoming a Qualifier to be eligible for a scholarship, practice, and competition as a freshman.

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NCAA National Letter of Intent – When is it Valid and When is it NOT?

A signed National Letter of Intent is valid ONLY for high school recruits OR for junior college athletes who are going to an NCAA DI or DII program. The National Letter of Intent must be accompanied by an Athletic Scholarship Offer to be valid.

There is no such thing as an NCAA National Letter of Intent for an athlete who is enrolling as a transfer directly from another four-year college.

If an NCAA Division I or II program offers a National Letter of Intent to an athlete transferring directly to that university from another four-year college, there’s a mistake somewhere – either intentionally or unintentionally.

A National Letter of Intent signed in this situation is not valid.

We’ve recently become aware of at least two situations where an athlete transferring to an NCAA Division I or II program from another four-year university was sent a National Letter of Intent. We strongly believe that in at least one of those instances, the coaching staff was purposely trying to trick the athlete into thinking that he had no other option.

Do you Have Questions?

If you have questions about either the NCAA National Letter of Intent and how it affects your athlete or if you would like us to review your scholarship offer and National Letter of Intent before you sign, schedule a confidential scholarship strategies consult online or contact us by calling 913-766-1235 or sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA Football National Letter of Intent Signing Period

Wednesday, February 5th is the first day of the National Letter of Intent signing period for NCAA Division I and II football recruits.

Although NCAA Division I football programs had an “early” signing period in December, this upcoming period will be the first opportunity for Division II football programs to sign recruits to a scholarship for next year.

This signing period is open through April 1 for Division I football programs, but continues through August 1 for Division II programs.

If you have questions about either the NCAA National Letter of Intent and how it affects your athlete or if you would like us to review your scholarship offer and National Letter of Intent before you sign, schedule a confidential scholarship strategies consult online or contact us by calling 913-766-1235 or sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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