Run-Down Forums

[Guest]

im only a sophmore runner. im pretty good at both hurdle races and the 200 but im not unbeliavable good. i run a 16.0 in 110's and 44 flat for the 300 and a 23.9 in the 200. ive made finals for districts the last two years. i didnt no that i could make a college team. i found out on the internet that i could make it on a small college team. How can i start to get track coaches to look at me and get a possible scholarship. when do they recruit. your junior year or senior yr. THANKS

[Dan]

Most recruiting starts during Junior year, but the actual contact doesn't occur until Senior year. As far as schools and scholarships, keep in mind that NCAA DIII (which comprises a lot of what's thought of as "small schools") does not allow athletic scholarships. DI and DII obviously do, but there tends to be a lot of competition for those. NAIA schools can also give scholarships, and there's a rather wide range of competitive opportunities there.

Also, separate the scholarship and recruiting aspects in your mind. They have virtually nothing to do with each other. Your coach should be a good resource for finding what's available.

Dan

[Micah Ward]

Go to a large bookstore and in the reference section where the books on colleges are look for a book entitled, "How To Win A College Scholarship." I don't remember the name of the author but I bought it when my daughter was a soph in high school and it gave us some great tips on how to contact college coaches and how to realisticly evaluate your talent and the type of program you might fit into. We sent letters to coaches during her junior year and received a lot of replies. She kept in touch with several of the coaches and finally narrowed it down to the school of her choice. Unfortunately for my bank account she chose one of the schools that did not offer her a scholarship.

Keep in touch if you have anymore questions and be sure and include your parents in this endeavor. Also, look at the possibility of community colleges.

[Micah Ward]

One other thing. Feel free to have your parents e-mail me if they have any specific questions. Or I can answer them here on the forum. I'm sure Dan would be able to elaborate on my ideas.

[Distance_Guru]

Also don't be afraid to contact a college coach, as a Junior you can meet with college coaches on campus and talk to them, they however can't contact you. While you're a sophmore you can write them and your coach can talk to them about you, but generally coaches won't get to serious until you become a senior.
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Time is the fire in which we burn

[Conway]

I'm going to give a little different advise .. And that is to simply work hard and run well ... Do that (and get good grades and test scores) and the coaches will find you ...

A 23.9 soph should be a 22.xx senior all things going well ... There are a lot of small schools that would like you at that point ... Study hard and train hard .. That will show as well .. Coaches look for good students and young people with good attitudes as much as they do for those that run fast ..

[Distance_Guru]

I still advise you to contact coaches. Especially if you don't run really well at the state meet, even good runners can fall through the cracks. In the last week I've gotten emails from two different athletes that I'd never heard of who have times that are good enough to get my attention the only problem is that they ran them at small meets, so nobody heard about them. Coaches are always looking for good athletes but it's a lot easier to find them if they let you know they are out there with a letter email or phone call. Plus if you contact several colleges you'll get interest from more colleges than if you don't and that will give you some choices when it comes time to select where you are going to go to school.
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Time is the fire in which we burn

[Conway]

Let me clarify ... Never said not to contact .. But all the contact in the world will do no good if you don't have the right goods to offer ...

But if your times are fairly good coaches will see/hear about them .. Many coaches look at meets other than the state meet - like regionals, conferences and such .. Especially those within their own states ... If you are looking ot go to a division II school (div II does not offer scholarships) these coaches are used to looking for athletes that were not at the highest levels in high school ... And good coaches have developed networks that assist them in recruiting ..

[Distance_Guru]

Small school coaches do look at meets other than state, but don't leave it to chance.
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Time is the fire in which we burn

[Hammer]

Some small school coaches don't do a good job of finding athletes. Every once in a while a College XC or Track job is given to someone (grad assistant) who doesn't really want it (concentrating on another sport maybe). Some of these schools have scholarship money (usually not much.) Usually if an athlete looks hard enough they can find the school that fits them. And remember there are always "diamonds in the rough" so if you think you are good enough for a team and you can "walk-on" I say, "Go for it.!!" I know a few people who regret not walking-on to a larger school.

[Dan]

On the other hand, many people who are in a position to regret not having walked on at a bigger school are there precisely because they attended a smaller school that was able to provide them the attention they needed in order to develop to a level that a big school would be interested in. The big school most likely would not have given them the time of day unless they showed immediate potential... Nice little catch-22.

Dan

[Conway]

Another thing to ponder - depending upon where you are from - is junior/community college ... Here in California, for example, there are many community colleges with excelent reuptations that develop ahtletes as well as many 4 year schools ... Development in this environment can then lead to scholarships at the next level ...

[Distance_Guru]

JC's are often the best way to go, especially if an athlete is having grade problems or is simply not sure what they want to do right away. JC's are also an excellent option if an athlete isn't getting attention from the 4 year schools they would like and want to showcase his/her talent. The only real problem with JC's is that some 4 year schools tend to avoid them because they like to have an athlete for four years as oppossed to two. Although that is the exception rather than the rule.
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Time is the fire in which we burn

[Hammer]

One thing to keep in mind is that some of the credits earned @ a JC or CC don't transfer to a 4 year school. Or the 4 year school requires more classes to complete the core curriculum. Remember graduation should be one of a runners top priorities.

[Dan]

Consdering how many students (athletes or otherwise) end up transferring or changing majors, I think that's looking way too far down the line to be of relevence to the discussion.

Dan