What has been your experience after a Soccer ID camp for a rising Senior? If the Coach responds that they are looking forward to seeing you play again at an event. What’s the level of interest?
Hard to answer your question without more information.
Has there been any previous contact(phone calls, email exchanges, text messages) prior to the ID camp? Was the ID camp a small invite only type or a large one open to all?
Did the response seem personalized or generic?
What level of school is this for? Is it a high academic school?
Please provide more info.
What are the best Soccer ID camps my son should consider attending this summer? Are they actually helpful?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
It’s encouraging- have you had previous communication with the coach? Are they already familiar with you? Did you share your grades/transcript/schedule ahead of the ID camp identifying yourself? If it’s a school you’re really interested in (assuming you’ve researched it and academically it’s a good fit), I would ask the coach for a phone call. Suggest some times/days and share you have some questions about the program. As a rising senior, time is of the essence. Whether or not the coach is willing to talk on the phone with you provides some valuable information. If the coach agrees, really prepare with questions about the school/program (that are specific and not easy to google) and why you feel you’d be a good fit. Ask what the next step is in the process; this should be also be asked if you’ve communicated previously with the coach.
Keep providing regular updated video and academic updates in emails, along with genuine comments on your interest in their program.
It isn’t a bad sign, but it is wording that lots of coaches use for lots of kids and doesn’t necessarily mean anything.
As a rising senior I would only think there is genuine interest if there has been ongoing, personal communication like phone calls, texts and/or zoom calls, offers to meet players, and personalized tours during campus visits. But the best thing to do is email the coach and ask for a phone call. During the call ask the coach where the player is on their list. We found the VAST majority of coaches were very honest with my daughter regarding where she stood on their recruiting list.
As a rising senior, if this is a high academic or d1 school I would think that an offer should be coming soon if there is real interest. if they get asked for an academic pre read then you know the interest is real, but as always the best thing is to just ask the coach.
we only attended camps at schools where my daughter was actually interested in playing and had some contact wiht the coaching staff - they reached out to her coaches, emails/phone calls with my daughter, they attended her games and reached out to coach/manager after, etc. we found that all coaches wanted to see her play in person before any decissions were made so she had to attend camps if they didn’t see her play at showcases or league games. they were also great opportunities for her to get on campus, meet current players and interact with coaches.
we did not attend any multi school camp.
If the coach reached out on his or her own, yes, absolutely that is a good sign.
As for the next time, for us, the interest increased most when coaches saw my D play with her team (or with one of her coach’s older teams) in ID tournaments. School sponsored ID camps were more of a mixed bag for us, and we never felt compelled to attend most of them as there was sufficient interest in her from the ID tournaments in which she played out west. Some players show better in one format over the other. My kid showed best in games.
Good luck.
With a lot of info that’s missing, my guess would be lukewarm interest. Worth keeping in touch with the coach though as things can change.
Yes, there was email communication with the coach before a showcase. The coach then reached out after the showcase stating that they like what they see and would like to see him at camp. The coach has been very response to emails, responding within 24 hours. There has only been email communication. Some went to the camp, thanked him and the response was we look forward to seeing you play again. They do have transcripts DS sent it in the first communication. Recently sent HS planned courses on his own and was told he is in track as far as the school what the school needs.
Can’t gauge the interest.
It was a personalized invite. Upon sending game film, Coach always responded saying he was looking forward to seeing him at camp.
It’s hard to know for certain, but it sounds like the camp is the preferred format for this particular coach to evaluate potential recruits, and given the date in the recruiting cycle, if your athlete is interested in this program, I would endeavor to make it work. Good luck!
If the camp is local and doesn’t involve travel, I’d probably have my kid do it and then immediately follow up and ask the coach for a phone call after. If this camp involves travel but your child cannot “gauge the interest” of the coach, I would personally not allow my child to go before they asked the coach for a phone call first, to better determine how serious the coach’s interest is. If the coach is not willing to get on the phone, or tell your child how interested they are (where they are on list of potential recruits), I think it’s really hard to justify the cost and travel, and I think doesn’t bode well for just how interested the coach actually is. Time is of the essence for rising seniors.
Does this school do prereads?
Also, when you wrote “some went to camp”, did you mean “son went to camp”?
If the latter, did you see how your son played? Was he one of the top 2-3 players there?
Yes sorry for the typo. He did go to the camp. After the camp, the coach responded with we look forward to seeing you play at one of the events. Seems lukewarm? Or is that the norm for a highly academic D3?
That seems lukewarm, but you’re leaving out a lot of info.
High academic D3s will want a pre-read. Has the coach told him that he will submit your son for one? Has your son ASKED to get on the phone with this coach? He really needs to do that and ask:
-What is the next step in the process for me?
-Will you be submitting me for a pre-read? (If the answer is yes, he should ask what info. they’ll want and when, and gauge whether coach feels that his stats are in line with positive pre-reads)
-Where do I fall on your list of recruits?
*If the coach is not responding or hesitant to get on the phone, I don’t think your son should put much stock in this school panning out. At this point as a rising senior, it’s pedal to the metal.
Thanks! This is very helpful. Just wasn’t sure how long to wait before asking some of those questions as the coach did express interest in seeing him play again.
Choose schools that your son is truly interested in.
So based on what we know, the pre-reads don’t happen till later in the Summer. Is it appropriate to ask about it now without the Coach able to see him play again? I would think wait?
How soon is the “event” the coach is going to see him play at? If it’s not until this summer, I think that’s not soon enough. The coach likely has an idea now who they’re taking through the pre-read. If the event is very soon, your son could send a quick email before the event saying they’re looking forward to the coach seeing him play and how _____ school is a top choice of his (if it is). Then your son can immediately follow up and ask to get on the phone. At that point he should ask the questions I mentioned above.
If the event is not until summer, I do think the above conversations and a phone call need to happen before then. If your son is REALLY serious about this school and feels it’s a good fit academically and athletically, I suggest he put a lot of effort into attempting to build this relationship- regular emails with updated video, any grades/academic changes/updated info. etc.
I am sorry but I think at the moment the interest is lukewarm. The top academic d3s – guessing they are NESCAC, because other leagues can do prereads now – already know the first set of kids they are going to submit for prereads, and they are clear about this with the athletes. They are asking for the materials needed to submit now; they are not saying “we still need to see you play”. Some have “Junior Days” where they invite their top recruits; probably 100 get invited. (E.g. Amherst, pre-covid, don’t know if Coach Serpone is still doing them). Other coaches may invite athletes to visit campus, sit in on some classes, hang out with the team.
I know the Middlebury men’s coach was blunt – they do not need to see kids multiple times. Once they’ve formed an opinion, that’s their opinion.
Now for the positive news – there’s a lot of shuffling around that’s going to happen between now and September, so coaches that aren’t so interested today, may be more so in September. So definitely stay in touch, update the coach with any awards, tournament schedules, new academic info etc.
Just like with regular admissions, it’s critical to target appropriately. So yes, reach out to “reach” soccer programs like Amherst’s, but also include some programs that aren’t so highly ranked. For example, Vassar, Skidmore, Macalester, etc.(You can look at the Massey rankings to get a sense of the strength of the soccer program at a particular school.).
Good luck, it is a long and anxiety inducing process, at least it was for me! But with hindsight, a great experience for my son and I.