Ask the Experts
What coaches look for during official visits
by TennisRecruiting.net, July 8, 2014
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One of the most exciting parts of the recruiting process is the official visit. During official visits, prospective athletes – and often their parents – are invited by coaches to campuses for up to two days. Coaches can provide transportation, meals and accommodation for the tour.
The official visit is usually very important in the recruiting process on both sides. Coaches and recruits use these visits to establish in-depth contact with each other, and experiences often play an important role in the decision-making process.
We recently asked our panel of college coaches about official visits:
Q) What do you look for in recruits during official visits? What impresses you the most?
Eric Tothhead coach, Xavier Men And Women
Inviting potential student-athletes to your campus for official visits is very important to see if the recruit is someone you will ultimately want to be a part of your program. Coaches who provide official visits to prospects have already determined – from scouting, monitoring tournament results and interactions – that the prospects would fit well into their respective programs from a tennis perspective and could make a contribution to the team. The coaches also believe these recruits will be good academically and will perform well in the classroom.
By bringing a prospect to your campus for an official visit, you are undoubtedly confirming that they have the personal qualities you are looking for to also be the right fit for your program. You want to maintain a good relationship with the prospect and their family during the visit. I always give higher marks to a prospect who comes prepared and asks the important questions about your program and school – and who doesn’t let the conversation be dominated by one parent. I also observe how the prospect interacts with his parents, who often accompany him during our visits. I make sure the prospect is always respectful in my interactions with them.
What is probably most important is how the prospect interacts with the existing team while on campus. I always go back and ask our existing players shortly after a visit if the prospect we just hosted is someone they would want as a teammate and part of our program. It’s hard for me to offer a position to someone your existing team just didn’t click with. It’s important to only make offers to those who fit the existing culture of the program.
Gregory Wyzkowskithe head coach, Seton Hall Women
Official visits provide an opportunity for students and coaches to learn more about each other. The student can see for themselves what a typical day can look like once they are enrolled on campus. Do they consider themselves students of this school? Or is this a campus that’s not right for you? They can see the type of facilities they will use as athletes. Students should be sure to ask about transportation issues to use these facilities. Are they within walking distance? Or do you have to use a means of transport? Who provides transportation? Don’t forget to look behind the curtain. Is the campus experience during an official visit similar to daily life on campus or was the visit taken at a special time? Depending on the time of the official visit, the student must be able to meet the members of the team. Knowing more about your future teammates can sometimes be more important than facilities. Team victories and championships are great experiences as well as memories. Many students, several years after graduation, have fondest memories of team experiences such as spring break trips, participating in community service events, and similar off-the-field events. Most of the time, the difference between unofficial and official visits is the opportunity for the student to spend an evening with their future teammates sleeping in the dorms. This is another chance to see a potential connection with future teammates. How many team members sacrificed their personal time to make the visit enjoyable?
As a coach, the official visit is a way to see the maturity and level of responsibility of the students. Do they ask questions to learn more about our school and program? Or are they quiet and just rely on their parents to talk? Time management skills are important for all athletes, especially at the Division I level. I hope that during the visit we can gain insight into the student’s character to help us make an informed decision before award a full scholarship.
Keep in mind that official visits may vary by each school. Some larger schools with larger budgets can provide transportation to campus for many students without reducing the budget for other team activities. Some coaches have to choose between spending money to cover a recruit’s transportation costs or spending the same money to travel to see recruits play in tournaments. All official visits do not incur travel costs. That doesn’t mean the coach isn’t interested. This could simply mean the school has a smaller budget. Many schools that offer full athletic scholarships award students between $40,000 and $50,000 per year. Asking a student to pay $200-$500 for a plane ticket in exchange for strong consideration to receive this much larger reward for four years is good trade.
Adam Herendeenthe head coach, Presbyterian men
There’s so much going on in the recruiting process that it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. It’s often the case that recruits go through the entire recruiting process without even knowing what they’re looking for. Far too many kids are too concerned with the past status of a program, as opposed to the direction it’s going and the team culture already in place. It is the job of parents and coaches to help the athlete examine the decision from all angles, including years later. Additionally, prospective students simply don’t ask enough questions. For many high school students, this is the first truly important decision of their lives, and I encourage them to ask as many questions as possible. They must have the mindset that no question is off-limits or too unimportant to ask.
Often, recruits are rushed to make a decision before they really know what a school is like. It’s important for recruits to keep their options open until they visit several schools and are able to find out what’s really going on. For me, the number one criterion for the decision should be based on how you interact with the players on the team – and on how you think spending four years with them is going to affect your character for years afterward. university.
