For many students, committing or signing to a college for sports purposes may seem rather simple. In some cases this may prove to be true, however in many cases it is actually quite the opposite, and many students are currently in this very process of recruitment for their sport right now with signing day around the corner.
Junior and varsity volleyball outside hitter Avery Stones recently made her commitment to play division one volleyball at Kansas State University, and there was plenty of thought that went into the decision of where to commit to. Stones noted this, saying that when looking into Kansas State, she, “really liked the attention to detail from the coaches, and they really focused on the well-being of their players.” For all athletes committing to a university, the decision can be very difficult to make depending on what the university has to offer.
There are also students that have been through and completed this process already, including senior Rylee Hatcher who is committed to Heidelberg University to play soccer. The recruitment process was complicated, and had many steps to it for Hatcher, as she said, “I emailed coaches, and whoever replied to me we would email back and forth. Then after that, we would do a Zoom call or FaceTime, and if I was interested I would continue communication.” This process took about four months in total for Hatcher, though times may vary from person to person.
There are heavy amounts of work that goes into signing to a college, which can be perceived as difficult. However, just the opposite was true for Hatcher. Hatcher went on to continue, “We wrote down notes from every Zoom call, wrote down how much everything cost.” Another common belief is that there are excessive loads of paperwork that go into recruitment, but that did not hold true for Hatcher either, as most of the paperwork she completed was optional. All in all, Hatcher said recruitment did not take up much free time, though, as she said, “It was more of a side thing, I still had time for everything else.”
When it is time to choose where to actually attend or sign, there are more deciding factors that go into those decisions. Girls volleyball coach Fred Mann touched on this topic, saying, “I think part of it is my ability to play, part of it is what is the coach and culture like at that school, and a huge part of it is what is the location?” Arizona is wildly different from many places in the country, and the transition can be difficult.
Another thing that is to be considered when a student athlete is signing to a college is their overall career path. Student athletes still have a long way to go before being able to play their sport at the highest level for a living, so selecting a university or college that not only suits one’s athletic needs, but also their academics as one may see fit.
Overall, there are many cracks and crevasses that are traversed when it is time for a student to commit to a college or university. It is important for students to find what they need most in a university, and there are factors that go into these decisions that are set apart from simply athletics such as academics, campus, and location.
