Each year, parents spend thousands of dollars on lessons, equipment, competitive sports teams, and travel in the hopes that their child will be noticed by college athletic recruiters and offered a scholarship. 

Their journey is often complicated by making costly mistakes due, in many cases, to not knowing or understanding the NCAA rules. 

If you are going through the recruiting process or plan to be soon, this book could save you hours of time and THOUSANDS of dollars. 

Decisions made during the recruiting process can have HUGE and lasting impact both emotionally and financially later on. This book provides real-life advice and experiences that are typical of the many situations you will encounter if you are actively pursuing an athletic scholarship. 

In this book, you will learn how soon you should get started in the recruiting process, what you should do if you’re not getting recruiting interest, what to look for and questions to ask on your campus visits, what academic requirements are needed to be eligible for an athletic scholarship, what to do if things don’t work out and you need to transfer to another school, and what you should know BEFORE you go through the recruiting process.

For over 20 years, I was Director of NCAA Compliance at 2 major universities: The University of Illinois and Oklahoma State University. In addition, I have walked in parents’ shoes when our son was recruited and accepted a college baseball scholarship at a Division I school. 

Some of the stories I share are based on situations I’ve encountered throughout my years on campus. Some of these stories include mistakes that were made in our own son’s recruitment process despite my years of NCAA experience and expertise.

Note:  Price includes shipping.

Josh is a nationally recognized assistant coach, one of the most sought-after recruiters in college baseball, and he’s been to the College World Series multiple times as both a player and a coach.  

During this discussion, he shares valuable insights into the recruiting process from a coaches’ perspective including what they look for in an athlete and how they make their decisions. 

Josh also talks about what an athlete needs to do to be seen, which events the coaches & scouts attend, and what an athlete should look for in a college. 

If you are currently being recruited or hope to be, the information in this transcript will be very helpful to understanding the process.

Please note:  This product bundle includes the actual audio file plus a PDF transcript.  After payment is processed, you’ll receive an email with the download link for both items.  If you have any questions, please call Informed Athlete at 918-994-7272. 

Well it’s finally that time of year where the weather has made a turn for the better and college baseball conference play gets into full swing.  As a fan, this becomes one of the most fun times of the year.

But for some players, this can be the time of year
that will put you in an emotional rollercoaster.

All season long, college teams have worked to establish that tight bond of team chemistry in preparation for late May and early June.

After all that work, now is when it is tested most as playing time and even travel time, become unequal for various team members.

While some enjoy the thrill of playing on a daily basis, others must wait and hope for a chance to show what they can do.  While it is a difficult and frustrating time, it is something all of us baseball players have had, or will have to go through at some point.

My pitching coach at Mizzou, Tony Vitello,
used to always stress to us players that we needed to
know, accept, perfect, improve.

1.  First, we must know and understand what our role on this team is.

2.  Second, we needed to accept and embrace that role.  We didn’t need to necessarily be happy or satisfied with it, but we needed to come to terms with the fact that that’s where we were at as a member of that team.

3.  After that we needed to perfect our role on that team. Baseball is a team game that is formed through many individual efforts, and each one of us is needed to be the very best we could to make for the best overall team possible.

4.  Once we had figured out those 3 phases, we needed to work to improve our role on that team.

One of the best ways to make your teammates better is to constantly push them to be at their best.  By seeking to improve your role and competing with teammates to earn each role, you are making yourself, your teammates, and your TEAM better.

The constant mental battles amongst your opponent, your team, your coach and yourself can be a rigorous grind….

But, focusing on yourself being the best TEAMMATE first,
while seeking to improve daily as a player
will increase your chances of success.

That’s the last thing that a college athlete wants to hear from his or her coach.  Sometimes transfers are initiated by the athlete, but many times they are initiated by the coach.

Throughout the years, I have encountered many different reasons for athlete transfers including coaches moving to another school, athletes’ wanting to move closer to home, athletes’ desire to switch schools, or because their scholarship has been reduced or cancelled.

You may be wondering why I am writing about the topic of NCAA transfers when most athletes and parents are just thinking about the NCAA recruiting process.  The transfer rules may be the last thing on your mind.  I understand that – I’ve been there.  However, I believe that you should at least be aware of some of the basic transfer rules.

The sport of baseball is a bit unique in that it is the only sport in which most athletes receive partial scholarships, yet they cannot transfer directly from one NCAA Division I school to another and be immediately eligible, even if their athletic scholarship is reduced or cancelled.

Of special note is the fact that in many transfer situations the first college can still control whether a player will play at another Division I or II school.

An NCAA Division I or II college must receive the written permission of the four-year school that a player is currently attending before they are permitted to speak with that player about the possibility of a transfer.  This can become an issue of conflict between athletes and coaches, and we have worked with a number of athletes and their families to help reduce this conflict and accomplish the transfer in a positive manner.

Players also need to remember that academic eligibility will be a very important factor in order to be immediately eligible at the next college, whether transferring from a four-year college or from a junior college.  Registering with the NCAA Eligibility Center and being classified as a Qualifier – even if you know you will be starting out at the junior college level – is an important factor and will make the transfer process much easier and less stressful when that time comes.

Contact us for further information if you need help with transferring.  Through the years, we have assisted many athletes through tough transfer situations.  To schedule an appointment with Rick Allen, please call us at 918-994-7272 or email rick@informedathlete.com