I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, I’m saying unless the coach explicitly says that to an athlete, it’s not an automatic. It was worded as if an athlete can just apply on their own and bingo, they’re on the team. Unless a coach specifically states that, it’s highly unlikely.
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I know how frustrating this process can be. At this time of year you never know what might be happening in the background. Our athlete experienced apparent ghosting from several schools where he was likely the top recruit. In hindsight the ghosting predominantly showed that the schools had a single coach, rather than a group of coaches, handling the recruiting process. So, when that coach went on vacation, had a medical procedure, or was in the process of moving to a new school (yes, we saw all of those), there wasn’t someone who immediately continued the recruiting. In other cases there were things happening in admissions/administration that meant the coach didn’t have anything they could report (and, wisely, didn’t want to show how the sausage was made). I know you can only proceed with the information you have available, but don’t assume the worst, and continue to communicate professionally with more than one coach at each school.
Best of luck, and don’t forget that as frustrating as the recruiting process can be, it is sooo much better than the normal “spray and pray” application process. By the way, my athlete ended up at one of the “ghosting” schools and couldn’t be happier.
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Agreed, my comment was regarding being told “you have a spot if you get in but I have supported everyone that I can.”
Has anyone received offers for girls tennis or heard of any NESCAC commitments so far? Thanks.
Agreed that NESCAC prereads are binary, and that coaches use the traffic light analogy. Red light means a no go, yellow light means conditional passing – i.e., bring that 32 ACT up to a 33, and green light means that in all likelihood the recruit will be admitted. I suspect that “outstanding” was the coach’s description, hoping that flattery will get him/her everywhere.
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I’d call the D1 coach. Be ready to leave a VM. “Just following up my text, have an offer, wondering about your timeline, etc.”
It’s not unusual for recruits to be ghosted but sometimes it’s a pretty simple explanation like the coach is on vacation, has changed jobs, or just happened to miss a text.
But it might just be the case that the coach isn’t ready to move forward with a decision right now and feels she has plenty of other recruits in the pool to choose from.
There could probably be a very long thread about coaches ghosting recruits but it really is true that they get a lot of inquiries and they aren’t perfect.
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D25 has talked with a NESCAC coach for a while now, and we visited the school. Preread came back positive, and on July 10 coach called her to tell her she has a spot on the team. She’s thrilled. About a week later, he texted asking if she’s ready to be a [school mascot]? She said yes, it’s her first choice. A recruiting visit is planned for September.
This is all new to her Mom and me. Are there any pitfalls or risks we need to watch for? I’m ecstatic but I want to ensure things go as we expect this fall.
Congratulations! Keep up the school effort, don’t phone in the application/essay and make good choices during the school visit. That’s it!
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So, the coach offered her a supported roster spot and she’ll apply ED? Did she formally accept the offer? I can’t tell for sure based on what you shared, but assuming that’s true, she should ask if anyone with similar stats that the coach has made offers to has not gotten in. The answer should be no/none. If financial aid is needed, is the coach aware? If financial aid is needed, run the NPC and confirm with financial aid.
As stated above, she should put in the same amount of effort to her application as she would if she did not have this offer. Also, if given the option, take the optional school/alumni interviews, etc. Nothing is a guarantee until acceptance is in hand.
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You ask good, sharp questions. I’ll clarify the exact wording of the offer. Financial aid is not needed. I’m planning to talk with the coach myself, once the recruiting visit plans firm up. I’ll ask about recruits who did not get in.
If the offer is not clear you need to do that sooner. IME details for that trip won’t firm up until much closer to the date. It would not be good form for your D to string other coaches along at this point. She should confirm her position and thank other coaches for getting to know her while letting them know she has decided to go in a different direction.
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Adding to the above comments, your D should be leading these calls…certainly ok for parents to join and ask clarifying questions. Parents should not talk to the coach without the student on the call.
You want to hear the coach is offering full coach support thru the admission process, not that they’ll put in a word with admissions, or she has a spot on the team if they get in. Full support typically requires an ED app.
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Yes, D25 has indeed led the calls. Honestly, I haven’t been part of a single one. Which is why I don’t know the exact words he used. I queried D25 today, and she said his words were, “You have a spot on the team.” This was after saying the preread came back positive.
Good to know about staying on it for the actual admission process itself. And yes, if I’m talking to the coach, D25 will be on the call as well.
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Your daughter may have misheard in the excitement. “You have a spot on the team” by itself is not an offer. The coach needs to say two things: 1. That your daughter has a spot on the team AND 2. That they will fully support your daughter’s application with admissions.
She probably DID get an offer, but of course it’s important to clarify.
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Thank you! That helps me understand the nature of the question I’ll need to ask.
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Again, to clarify, your daughter should request another call (ASAP) telling the coach that before formally accepting the offer, her parents have a few additional questions. Then, on the call with her, your daughter needs to specifically ask if she has a fully supported roster spot on the team. Has anyone with her stats and a supported slot not been admitted? I’m assuming she’s been told to apply ED because that’s how this works, but you haven’t mentioned it. She needs to clarify this. Then, you/your partner need to clarify with any additional questions. I think some of our concern is that this sounds a little loosey-goosey.
Maybe it’s not, but there really is very specific wording your daughter/you as her parents need to listen for and explicitly hear. “We’d love to have you” or “You have a spot” are not offers. The visit in the fall is not the time to clarify/solidify things- the time is now. Hopefully it’s all fine, but nothing should be left to chance.
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Are people getting their NESCAC “coach offer of support” in writing? Our kid did, and it was comforting. No need for us as parents to listen in on the call or make sure we interpret the coach correctly. Not sure how predominant it is, and perhaps it would be helpful to this thread if people could add their experience of getting verbal vs. written offers from NESCAC or (similar D3) coaches.
(To clarify - we had multiple verbal NESCAC offers, but when kid committed, the coach put the exact nature of the offer in writing).
My son had 3 NESCAC offers and 2 from other conferences, and none were in writing.
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My kids never received anything in writing, nor did any of my students. Generally coaches won’t do that, and although on a piece of paper, it would not guarantee admission. NESCAC recruiting guidelines are very clear that admission offers only come from admissions.
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I agree with you that it doesn’t guarantee admission. But it eliminates concerns that have been expressed by some parents as to what is exactly being offered by the coach - “full support” or “some support” or “roster spot vs. admissions support” etc.
Adding: I am not trying to stir any concerns here that a verbal offer isn’t completely valid - in NESCAC it is usually only verbal and that is usually the way it has been done. I think it is starting to change, so I would encourage parents to politely ask for an email confirmation from a coach - it can’t hurt, and they can always say “we don’t normally do that”.
Some NESCAC schools/sports have been changing their recruitment practices - earlier timelines, earlier offers (yes, a bunch coming in in Spring despite the so-called “July rule”). Coaches have told us they are becoming more aggressive in how they recruit to compete with non-NESCACs.
I think it is a matter of time until NESCAC evolves from strictly verbal offers to more in writing.