Are kids who are recruited athletes guaranteed spots on a team when they show up for school?
An offer from a coach to an athlete has two parts: 1. You have a spot on the team and 2. I will support your application with admissions.
If the coach says that, then yes, barring some extraordinary circumstance, the athlete has a spot on the team.
Be aware, though, that at some schools, in some sports, that spot on the team isn’t guaranteed all 4 years. (Though I suspect getting cut is fairly rare).
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It is possible they start on JV and not Varsity freshman year, and that they were recruited with how they may develop as an athlete in mind and not for immediate Varsity impact. For example, they could be very talented, but lacking in size or strength as a freshman.
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Even if the coach supports during admissions, the kid will need to try out for the team and qualify.
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And even if/when making the team, playing time may be limited.
In our experience coaches were fairly transparent about this while talking to my kids.
“So and so will make a strong and immediate impact on our team” is saying that your kid will make varsity and likely start.
“So and so will not be a starter but will get significant minutes and learning experiences”
etc.
The coaches we talked to had little interest in being obscure. If you have questions, just ask.
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We were told the role that school expected our freshman to play, but it was also implied that nothing was guaranteed and effort/commitment and performance as part of the team would also be taken into consideration.
Quantitative individual sports like swimming, track, XC, tennis, are easier to rank a student’s ability, and you have a higher likelihood of being able to predict how your teen will fit in to the existing team. It’s harder to determine how your student will change the dynamic in more qualitative team sports.
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Depends on Division, Team, Coaching philosophy etc. But usually, a coach will not support a recruit, either with aid or in the admissions process, if they don’t plan on having the student-athlete make the team with the potential to be a contributor sometime during their college career.