Parents want the best for their kids. I totally get that. I don’t have kids yet, but I have a French Bulldog with constant flatulence who does the opposite of everything that I say, and I would still go to the ends of the earth for him. If he had opposable thumbs, I would probably have him play wall ball for treats and try to get him recruited too (except at Cornell…anywhere but the Big Red). Anyway, I can only imagine what parents want to do for their kids who love to play the game so much!

However, the recruiting process is one of the first times when parents just have to let go. Every parent out there makes this process more complicated than it really is. The bottom line is that your son has to be a good enough player, athlete, student and person. If he is all those things, than a coach will find him and will ask him to come to his school. Period. Everyone is very confused by the recruiting process, but it’s actually really simple. The reason that we feel it is so complicated is because we as coaches and parents actually try to control it too much. We think if we write great letters to coaches, or use the right recruiting service or put together a great highlight video with cool special effects and great tunes, then that will somehow help. However, it is totally beyond our control. There are two people in control of whether or not a player gets recruited for college. The first person is the player. That person controls how hard he works at the game, how passionate he is about it and how much he makes it a priority in his life. The challenging part about this side of things is that for this player to get recruited, he may actually have to commit to the game from a very young age, which is a lot to ask of a young man.

The second person in control of this situation is the college coach. The coach knows exactly what types of players and people he is looking for in his program, he knows the positional needs that he has to fill on his team, and he knows what he needs in each graduating class of players. Coaches take great pride in recruiting and they know exactly what they are looking for, so most of them will decide for themselves what players they like and what players they are not interested in. Now, with all that being said, what do you have to do to get recruited? 1. You have to be the best player that you can possibly be. You have to be the biggest, strongest, fastest, most agile athlete that you can possibly make yourself. You have to be the best student that you can be in the classroom. You have to be the best person that you can be off the field. This first step is no simple task and takes years of hard work. Ever hear about the idea of 10,000 hours to mastery? If not, read up about it and start logging those hours. Remember, Division I lacrosse takes the top one percent of all lacrosse players, so you have to be an excellent overall athlete and person to have any shot at making it. There are more opportunities than ever at DII, DIII and MCLA schools, but all those places have high standards for who they are looking for, as well. You will have to be the best of the best to get recruited anywhere.

We overemphasize so many other aspects of recruiting and we totally forget about this part. To be great enough to get recruited, it has to be your life and it has to mean everything to you. Don’t get me wrong either. If it’s not this way for you, and you enjoy other things, then there is nothing wrong with that! I have chosen not to be a college lacrosse coach because I do not want it to be my whole life either. But, it has become so competitive, it is kind of like a swimmer training to make the Olympics from the time he is five years old. It is becoming close to taking that type of commitment if you want to make it to the big time in lacrosse. That is a huge decision to make and I would only advise it for the people who are truly passionate about the game. 2. You have to go where the coaches are. Now, this is the tricky part. But, if you align yourself with a good organized club team that goes to reputable tournaments and you go to some good individual recruiting tournaments, then that should give you a chance to be seen by coaches. If you are a great player, the coaches will find you. Do not worry about writing coaches emails before the tournaments. These coaches now are getting hundreds of emails per day and do not have time to even read all of them. Also, do not get concerned about if your club team wins or loses a game or tournament. The coaches barely know who is winning the game. They are just looking for players who they like for their program. This step is a huge point of contention for the parents as they want to know where to spend their money. Find a club team that is run by people who you trust and who takes their teams to great tournaments. Try to get your son recommended to an individual tournament or two where coaches that are appropriate for his level of play will be. And know one thing in all of this (and this is coming from someone who runs a club program in Denver Elite), this is a terrible investment if you think this will pay off with a scholarship. If you are paying for your son to have a great experience in high school, get better at the game and have a fun time, then you are spending your money wisely. If you think you are going to see this money again through a scholarship, you are better off going down to 7 Eleven and buying $5,000 in lottery tickets. Good luck!   Read the next three steps at TrevorTierney.co!