High School Jr QB of losing team; Transfer?

Athletic Recruits
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Our Junior is starting QB of a HS team. Ranked dead last in state by Maxpreps.

He trains a lot with QB trainers and has been told he is definitely D2 or lower D1 material. His o-line isn’t very experienced, so he, the RB, and the receivers have to scramble a lot.

Lost a lot of good players to schools that poach in the area when the old coach was transitioned out a couple of years ago.

He likes the school itself, but something has to change. The AD and principal aren’t really supportive and are very passive on making improvements.

For recruiting, they say all college recruiting talks should be done by the parents. My kid is a great student and does his thing on X. He has attended college camps, too.

Since his team isn’t doing well, we aren’t sure if he should transfer for his senior year or not.

We don’t even know if any schools would want or start him.

He really wants to play in college and he has the talent. Any advice is appreciated.

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Absolutely not!

Your S has to be reaching out to coaches, sending video as well as relevant athletic and academic stats (I recommend creating an athletic resume.) Parents should only be involved if the coach invites them. Parents can also get involved towards the end of the process and/or for financial aid discussions.

Many students from ‘bad’ teams get recruited. With that said, the transfer portal has really negatively impacted HS recruiting at all levels/from all types of HSs. Like you said, the biggest risk in transferring to a different school is that there is no guarantee he would play. He might consider doing a PG gap year, but first make sure he wouldn’t lose a year of NCAA eligibility per the new 5 for 5 rule.

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Lots to unpack here. First, figuring out what level recruit your kid actually is may be the hardest part of recruiting. I would want more than a trainer’s a trainer or private coach’s assessment before making a transfer decision. What feedback has he received from college coaches at camps, and what interest has his film generated? A bad offensive line can make evaluating a QB difficult, but you still need an honest assessment of his college potential.

Second, your kid should be handling the interactions with college coaches, with you helping behind the scenes. It can feel uncomfortable having a teenager handle what seem like adult conversations, but that was an important part of the process for us. My direct conversations with coaches were during visits.

Third, I would explore actual transfer options before deciding he needs to leave. My son’s program wasn’t great either, and several private high schools approached him after his sophomore and junior years. But transferring only helps if the situation is better for him. Would he have a realistic chance to start, better coaching and protection, and a school he likes? I wouldn’t give up a school he enjoys solely because the team is losing, especially without a clear alternative.

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Who is the “they” you are referring to? This certainly isn’t accurate as your child should be the one to drive the process.

Regarding a possible transfer, be sure to check your state’s athletic governing body before making any decisions. Some states do not allow transfers to compete at a Varsity level until a certain number of calendar days have passed. And some states do not allow a post-grad year for athletes.

I’m not convinced a better HS team is the most obvious path to recruitment success. I happen to know two football players who did not even play for their high schools. One plays in the SEC and the other in the Big Ten. If he’s got the goods, it will show up in film and at showcases and camps.

Good luck to your son.

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Make sure you thoroughly understand the transfer rules in your district. A transferring student is ineligible for a year when transferring in our district. There can be waivers for moving, but they do not allow transfers for athletic purposes here without a year of sitting out.

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Yes, in our Southern California school district which has frequent recruited athletes, a student must sit out for a year. Transfers usually occurred in sophomore year.

Our son was always approached by team coaches for football because of his height, build and physicality, but he was a phenomenal tennis and swim athlete and those are the sports he wanted to stick to. He didn’t plan on playing them in college. He wanted to focus on his studies and stay healthy.

If the school provides decent academics, and he’s earning strong grades, then he’s 90% into being a candidate for a college education.

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I think the main question is whether your son needs to move schools to improve his chances of being recruited to play QB. The process and transfer eligibility matter, but neither answers that question.

A QB’s team needs to function well enough for him to demonstrate processing, athleticism, accuracy, and other game specific skills on film. It doesn’t necessarily need to win many games, but he needs opportunities to show what he can do. Camps can help coaches verify his measurements and evaluate traits such as arm talent, speed, and agility that might not be apparent on tape.

What college attention has he received so far? Has he been invited to games, had direct conversations with coaches, or received specific feedback after camps? Those answers would tell me more than a trainer’s assessment alone.

Personally, I would be selective about college camps and look for specific feedback from the QB coach before attending. I would want to know whether the staff has reviewed his film and is interested in evaluating him. A general camp invitation alone wouldn’t tell me much.

The hardest part is determining what level recruit your son actually is and whether a different high school program would help him develop and better showcase his skills. That’s the assessment I’d want before transferring from a school he likes. My current senior (different position) considered moving schools and even reclassing at a prep school for similar reasons. Ultimately recruiting from his HS was good enough and he wanted to stay with his friends. However, we did have enough recruiting traction after his sophomore season to feel that he would at least get recruited out of his high school even though it probably wasn’t optimal from the recruiting standpoint.

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Thank you so much. Do you have any specifics on the camps? You would recommend that these two players you’re referring to went to?

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I appreciate your advice. He has been invited to a couple different games for colleges in the state. He has reached out to coaches through X & doesn’t hear back.

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He is currently right at 6 feet and almost 200 pounds. He is a straight a student. Would love any feedback on camps and advice..

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Would love some advice on who can help me get him evaluated and help us through this next year and a half to get recruited. His coach and AD don’t really help with college recruiting and say that they don’t reach out to colleges. :tired_face:

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I’m sorry, I don’t have any specific information on football camps. My kid was recruited in a different sport. Perhaps others here could give you some camp info.

Regarding this, it is not your HS coach’s job to market their players. Some do help with recruiting, but this is a student athlete led process. Your son needs to be reaching out via email to coaches and filling out recruiting questionnaires at prospective schools. He needs to follow up with film and relevant updates. Posting on X is not enough.

Feel free to keep asking questions here. There are many of us with recruiting advice, including some with football experience.

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Does he have a highlight video pinned to his X account? It should be one to two mins (2 mins max) with best highlights first. He should also follow the coaches and programs he is interested in.

It’s ok he is reaching out to coaches on X, but he should email the relevant staff…head coach, QB coach, recruiting coordinator. The email should have a compelling subject line highlighting his best qualities…academics, test score, 40 yard dash time, bench press lbs, etc. The body of the email should be short and sweet. Something about why the program, his perceived fit there, as well as highlight video attachment or link.

Lastly, remember parents should not be reaching out to coaches.

This is normal. He has to get a realistic evaluation of what level school he should be looking at…you mention he has QB trainers. Are they former college and/or pro players? Has he done any showcases or participated in any college programs? If so, which ones?

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You should ask the coaches at the colleges he thinks he can play at (D2? D1- non power conference?) which camps he should go to. Can he get into a Manning camp? Probably not if he hasn’t been contacted yet but they should know the camps they recruit from.

Another option might be to do a post grad year.

I wouldn’t transfer. I’d bet it is unlikely he’d get to start as a senior transferring to the school. My brother, a football player, did transfer his senior year (my parents moved) and because of football he had an instant group of friends. He went to an all boys Catholic school so that was different too, and he was a tight end, not a QB. His prior hs football team was just average. His new hs did get him a lot of coverage but that was mostly because of an alum network and the way Baltimore hs football worked.

A lot has changed in college football. MANY athlete transfer colleges. Josh Allen played in jr college before transferring to Wyoming and look at him now. Sam Darnold went to the same hs as my kids and they weren’t winning state championships. I think your son should figure out his path and aim for it not all in one senior year season but maybe by getting into a jr college or D2 and plan on transferring once he proves himself in college. Not everyone is Arch Manning, getting to pick his college right out of high school and stay there.

He also may want to consider if he wants to be a backup QB in college or get a lot of playing time. My daughter, not football obviously, picked a school because of the academics but did want to play her sport and NOT as a bench player. She wanted to play. So she picked a school just adding her sport, knowing they were going to lose a lot (and they did), but she got to play. They did lose for 2 years, then they started winning and made the NCAA tournament, and she got to play every game (almost every minute) for 4 years and that’s what she wanted. A hs friend got a scholarship to BC, one of the best programs in the country (was a top hs recruit from a school with state championships) and never played (like a total of 5 minute per SEASON) for two years and then left the team.

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A high school football coach can be a major help with recruiting, even if that involvement isn’t strictly required. Beyond coaching quality and success on the field, a good HS program can serve as a pipeline to college football programs, from D3 to Power 4, depending on its players.

My kid’s school had roughly 40 college football programs visit this spring, with a fairly even mix of D1 and D3 and a couple of D2 programs. The school is hardly a football powerhouse, although having a couple of D1 caliber players certainly helped. Coordinating those visits takes time and requires support from the high school coaching staff.

As for the transfer concerns other posters have raised, I think the question assumes the family would confirm eligibility and assess whether he has a realistic opportunity to start before making a move. Those are things to investigate before transferring, alongside whether the new program would improve his development and recruiting opportunities. Private high schools will recruit just like colleges.

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Sure, a HS coach CAN be a big help, or they might not give any assistance at all. As I mentioned earlier, I know two kids who didn’t play for their high schools and ended up at SEC and Big10 programs. They were both exceptional multi sport athletes who had other primary sports in HS. I’m just letting the OP know that their kid needs to drive the recruiting bus. Simply tagging coaches on X or instagram will not get it done.

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Why not figure out the type of school he would like to attend first? I.e. a LAC vs research university vs something else? Start there. Cast a wide net. I would be reaching out to d3 schools and see what feedback you get from that. Or reach out to a mix of levels.

But the end goal is a good education at a school your son would be happy to attend, so maybe put some effort into figuring that part out first.

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A game invitation suggests he is on the school’s radar, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the staff has evaluated him or considers him a recruiting priority. The most useful information would be specific feedback from a college QB coach, whether during a visit, by text, or by email. As others have said, the outreach process is fairly straightforward, and AI can help organize school lists and draft messages.

I would focus on what he can do over the next two months to move recruiting forward. Make sure his midseason highlights are complete and easy to find, with film, relevant stats, and contact information in a pinned post on X. Put together a list of FCS and D2 schools he would actually consider attending, and start reaching out. After the season, follow up with full junior-season highlights, access to game film, an updated transcript, and a short email with his pertinent information.

The contacts I would identify are the area recruiter, QB coach, and the OC. My son used a combination of X DMs and email but made sure not to spam anyone.

Hopefully, by early January, he will have feedback or interest that helps him better assess his recruiting level. If D1 interest is limited, I would want an honest evaluation of his physical traits and film before assuming a transfer would solve the problem. A good HS program and coach can be very helpful, but the move needs to address what is actually limiting his recruiting. If he gets invitations to junior days or spring practices, ask specific questions about the staff’s interest. An invitation is a starting point, and you can spend a lot of time on visits without knowing where you stand.

I would put much more weight on personalized outreach and ongoing dialogue, particularly with the QB coach, than on invitations alone. Before investing significant time or money in a visit, I’d want to know whether the staff has reviewed his film and is specifically interested in evaluating him.

For some additional context, I just checked the spreadsheet we used to track contacts. My son reached out to 30 FCS programs, mainly in the Ivy and Patriot leagues, and received some level of interest from 22. Another seven or eight FCS and FBS programs came through his high school to meet him. Like your son, he is at the lower end of the height range programs typically look for at his position, which added another challenge to recruiting. It’s a bit of a numbers game and I would reach out to many more schools than my kid did if necessary, but strong film and a wide enough net give him a better chance of finding interested programs.