<p>I will add that if you live in a small population state, off the beaten path, self-recruiting becomes key. </p>
<p>College coaches from outside out state NEVER come here to recruit or observe athletes. If their plane is rerouted due to bad weather in January, they may stop over by accident :)</p>
<p>This means the student/athlete must work hard to get to national competitions, and communicate with coaches they are interested in to see if they can connect. This can work pretty well for kids in individual sports like running, swimming, tennis, skiing, etc.</p>
<p>Alternatively, most top athletes from our state who play team sports try to guest play for elite travel teams based in larger states, so that they can attend showcase tournaments and be on a team that will have some success and make it into final rounds coaches may be watching.</p>
<p>So step one for our athletes is not so much a college coach noticing them, as it is drawing attention to themselves, and taking sometimes extreme efforts to be seen. The rest of the steps follow as you outline.</p>
<p>And here’s a sidenote about this forum. THANK YOU CC!!! It is so pleasant this year to visit the Athletic Recruit section, have a civilized exchange, and not be flamed by athlete-haters. A year ago, some great conversations were completely shut down by a few people with a different take on things, and no hesitation in telling us how worthless the pursuit of sport is, in their opinion. Having our own little corner has been wonderful!</p>