“Why do I need to go to Camps?”
“My kid plays on a great showcase team.”
“College coaches are at the showcases tournaments and events.”

These are common questions and statements made by recruits and their parents during the recruiting process.  The reality is that the recruiting process is more than just about “Being seen”.

Showcases/tournaments give the coaches the opportunity to “see” players, but camps give the coaches the opportunity to get to know and work with their recruits. College coaches are not just looking for top players, they are looking for players that still have room to grow and improve.  A top player who has hit their max in high school, will not continue to grow and produce the top results in college.  A top athlete who has room for growth and the drive to want to be the next all-American is the athlete coaches are looking for.

“Coachability” is a common tag word in the recruiting word. Most people define it as “open to being taught and trained in order to improve”, but there is another key component.  When trying a new drill, or new way of approaching a situation, recruits typically will fail multiple times, before beginning to slowly develop the new skill or technique.  That process of failure is so important for college coaches to see of a potential recruit.  We are not perfect and how we as athletes battle thru failure shows college coaches the true personality and heart of an athlete.

College coaches organize their camps to allow them to focus on what matters most to that coaching staff and program.  Some coach’s camps are the same year to year while others will dramatically change the to focus in on the new needs of the program.  No matter which structure the coaching staff selects they are targeting to answer 3 key items:

1. What athletes are the best at the event and still have potential to grow?
2. What athletes are “coachable” based on my coaching staff coaching philosophy and style?
3. What athletes have the ability to work thru failure and come out a better athlete?

These three questions get wrapped into one final question for coaching staffs to answer:

“Is this recruit a “Great Fit” for my program?”

When the answer to this question is “YES” that is when coaches start the process of working to an official offer for the recruit and the family to join the program.