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NCAA Rules – Definition of a Recruited Athlete

Rick Allen — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 20:38:04 +0000

How does the NCAA define whether a prospect is considered a recruited athlete?

A prospect is considered a recruited athlete if the college takes one of the following actions:

If they provide the prospect with an official visit.
If they have an off-campus contact with the prospect or the prospect’s parents or legal guardians.
If they offer the prospect a National Letter of Intent or an athletic scholarship agreement.
If they initiate a telephone conversation with the prospect or his parents or legal guardians more than one time.

Ironically, a coach can have frequent e-mail conversations with a prospect but that athlete will still not be defined as a recruited athlete if the coach does not use any of the four actions above to encourage the prospect to attend the college and join their athletic program.

Junior College Letter of Intent

Rick Allen — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 20:59:28 +0000

January 15th is the first day that athletes in selected sports can sign a Letter of Intent Scholarship Agreement with a junior college. Those sports are baseball, men’s & women’s golf, ice hockey, softball and men’s & women’s tennis.

The National Letter of Intent and the NJCAA Letter of Intent/Scholarship agreement are separate documents, so it is possible to sign both. The athlete can then decide later which school is a better fit for them.

If you have any questions, please send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

When should you take the ACT and SAT tests?

Rick Allen — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 12:01:41 +0000

I recently had lunch with a friend who provides private baseball instruction. During our visit, he told me about one of his athletes who is a senior and hoping to play at the NCAA level. The player told him he was taking the ACT test on December 11.

When my friend asked him how many times he had taken it so far, the player said “This will be my first time.” (He has not taken the SAT either.)

If you are a subscriber to our monthly newsletter, I’m confident that most of you know how important it is to take the ACT or SAT test during the junior year.

It not only provides a baseline score so the athlete knows how much, if any, they need to improve their score for freshman eligibility to compete, but also how much they need to improve their score for academic scholarships.

Keep in mind that an ACT Sum Score of 105 or an SAT score of 1200 (in critical reading and math) could mean an additional academic scholarship (100 or 1050 for NCAA Division II).

In addition, it also is required before athletes can make official visits to campus or be offered a National Letter of Intent.

So make sure you get an ACT or SAT test scheduled at least once during your junior year.

If you are new to our website, you can access our up-to-date recruiting calendar with upcoming ACT & SAT test dates by clicking on the “Current Recruiting Calendars” button on our home page at www.informedathlete.com. For additional assistance, please call us at 918-994-7272 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

What is Informed Athlete?

Rick Allen — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 19:27:45 +0000

Informed Athlete LLC provides guidance and answers questions that high school and college athletes, parents, and coaches have about college athletic recruiting, eligibility, transfers, and scholarships.

Rick & Julie Allen founded Informed Athlete in 2008 to help families of student athletes who have the athletic skills to compete at the collegiate level, but often struggle through the recruiting or transfer process and make mistakes that cost a lot of money or result in an athlete quitting their sport before they have reached their full potential.

Informed Athlete is NOT a recruting service – our prime concern is the family we work with. We also offer assistance following college enrollment, for example in situations involving a transfer from one college to another. We deliver our services in several ways including our website: InformedAthlete.com, monthly newsletters, teleseminars, live presentations and individual consultations/coaching sessions with the student-athlete and his/her family.

Rick Allen is uniquely qualified in this field. He has worked on college campuses since 1980, and has over 20 years experience working directly with the NCAA compliance rules and procedures on two college campuses: the University of Illinois and Oklahoma State University. In addition, he also understands what it’s like to be in the parents’ shoes as his son went through the recruiting process and signed to play baseball at University of Missouri 4 years ago.

Athletic Scholarships & Transfer Issues

Rick Allen — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 21:28:43 +0000

“You need to transfer if you want to get more playing time.”

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

National Letter of Intent & Athletic Scholarships

Rick Allen — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 23:13:25 +0000

November is an exciting time for those high school seniors (or junior college athletes) who have been recruited by an NCAA Division I or II athletic program and have been offered an athletic scholarship to continue participating in their sport in college.

These athletes will have an opportunity to sign a National Letter of Intent with an NCAA Division I or II institution during the early signing period that begins on Wednesday, November 11. The signing period continues through Wednesday, November 18 and is available for athletes in most sports.

High school football seniors will not sign a National Letter of Intent until February 3, 2010. Other sports that do not sign until February 3 are cross country, track and field, soccer, field hockey and water polo.

Do you have questions about the National Letter of Intent?

Questions about scholarship offers that accompany the National Letter of Intent?

Join Informed Athlete for our next teleseminar when we discuss the rules and processes regarding the National Letter of Intent and scholarship agreements.

This topic will be especially helpful to any high school athletes and parents who are planning to sign a National Letter of Intent during the November signing period, or during a future signing period.

Date: Wednesday, October 28th
Time: 7 PM CST

Rick Allen, Founder of Informed Athlete will discuss:

The NCAA rules regarding the National Letter of Intent

Institutional athletic scholarship agreements.

Recruiting rules during this signing period.

“Double signing.”

Publicity about letter of intent signings

To register for this FREE teleseminar, go to National Letter of Intent.

If you would like to submit a question before the teleseminar begins, you can send it to rick@informedathlete.com.

This teleseminar is one of our regular series in which we discuss topics of interest to athletes, parents, and coaches, and interview coaches, scouts and other from the world of baseball. It is provided as a complimentary service of www.informedathlete.com, but registration is required.

Campus Visits 101

Rick Allen — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 02:14:32 +0000

One of the most important decisions that a college athlete recruit will make is which college scholarship offer to accept. The best way to learn about a college or university and the baseball program, that you are interested in or that that is recruiting you, is to visit campus. From the standpoint of NCAA rules, there are two types of visits: “official” and “unofficial”. This article will discuss both, the differences and the rules for each.

Unofficial Visits
Any time an athlete visits campus with parents or other family members, or with some of their friends, at their own expense, this is an “unofficial” visit. Some facts about unofficial visits:

Must be made at prospect’s expense

University can provide up to 3 complimentary admissions to campus athletic event

No limit on number of unofficial visits

Cannot visit campus during a dead period – a period of time in which the NCAA will not allow any contact between the coach and a recruit.

Cannot participate in tryout during official visit (Division I)

Official Visits

Official visits are highly regulated by NCAA rules. During an official visit to an NCAA institution, it is permissible for the institution to provide a prospect with transportation to visit the campus, and with meals and lodging during a visit to campus that cannot exceed 48 hours from the time that the prospect (and parents or legal guardians, if they accompany the prospect) arrives on campus.

Large universities with ample recruiting budgets may provide all of the permissible expenses that they are permitted to provide. However, some institutions, especially smaller colleges or universities with limited recruiting budgets, may only provide meals while on campus, or meals and lodging for just one night instead of two.

Some important points to know about official visits include:

Cannot be made prior to first day of classes for senior year of HS

Limit of 5 official visits, only one per school (even if 2-sport athlete)

Cannot visit campus during a dead period

Must be registered with Eligibility Center

Must provide HS transcript and ACT or SAT test score to university

University can provide transportation, meals, lodging for prospect

University can provide meals and lodging to parents, also transportation if traveling together in car with prospect

Phone call rules prior to visit (unlimited during 5 days prior to visit)

48-hr. rule from time of arrival on campus

Will visit interfere with competition?

Can combine two visits into one trip with assistance of schools.

Cannot participate in tryout during official visit (Division I)

This article has addressed the difference between official and unofficial visits and outlined the rules for each. However, knowing the rules is only the starting point.

Many parents and athletes are so excited and happy about being noticed and recruited, that they often forget the ONE THING that is vital to their future success and happiness playing the sport they love at the level they aspire. That one thing is proper preparation for the visit!

Making the decision on which college to attend is extremely important and can have major financial and emotional implications for many years.

The visit, whether official or unofficial, is extremely important and should be treated as you would a job interview. Proper preparation is essential for you to make sure you have the information to help your son or daughter make the very best decision for them.

If you have questions about this topic or any other issues related to recruiting, eligibility, financial aid or transfer issues, please go to register for our free newsletter, or contact Rick Allen at 918-994-7272 or rick@informedathlete.com. Rick has over 20 years of experience in NCAA rules at the college level and is also the parent of a college baseball player who was recruited at the Division I level.

Does your nutritional supplement contain banned substances?

Rick Allen — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 22:10:41 +0000

It was recently reported by the New York Times that two dietary supplements that are popular with high school football players, Mass Xtreme and Tren Xtreme, contain steroids, according to court documents filed by federal authorities. Search warrants executed by authorities on July 23 allege that the products, manufactured by American Cellular Labs, contain illegal man-made steroids.

This news should serve as a reminder to high school athletes, parents, and coaches to be careful about nutritional supplements that are purchased over-the-counter.

In addition, high school athletes who will be starting their college careers at NCAA colleges and universities within the next month are reminded that they will be subject to NCAA drug tests, and in many cases, additional drug tests administered by their school or conference. These athletes should have received a list of the NCAA’s banned substances from their college or university. If you did not receive such a list, be sure to contact your coaches and request a copy of the list.

Many universities, especially at the Division I level, have their own drug-testing policies, which in most cases are “help-based” programs. This means that if an athlete tests positive in a university drug test, they will be referred for counseling and/or drug education classes, and may serve a penalty determined by the coach or school, but will not necessarily be subject to restrictions by the NCAA.

NCAA athletes will also be subject to drug tests administered by the NCAA. The NCAA drug-testing program is a “punitive” program. Student-athletes who test positive for NCAA banned substances will be ineligible for one calendar year from the date of a positive drug test. There have been cases in which freshmen athletes tested positive for a substance that they began taking while involved in high school sports because they were not aware that the product contained an NCAA banned substance.

Athletes and parents are reminded that a product as common as caffeine is on the list of NCAA banned substances. Most athletes would have to drink a large quantity of caffeine to test positive in a NCAA drug test, but due to different body compositions and metabolic rates, there is no sure way to know how much caffeine may be consumed before being in danger of a positive NCAA test.

For more information about matters regarding NCAA rules, or any other issues that athletes and parents have questions about, go to www.informedathlete.com to sign up for our free newsletter, or contact Rick Allen at 918-994-7272 or rick@informedathlete.com.