Teenage Athletes Should First Understand the Myths of Playing College Sports
Young student-athletes across America dream of playing sports at their favorite college. For the chosen few, this will happen. For the chosen, coaches will call them and coaches will write to them. They will see their names in papers, magazines, and on TV and on some of America's websites such as scout.com, rivals.com and other new sites that have popped up in recent years to highlight the best of the best. But what about the rest of the best?
What could an average or better than average but not yet superstar athlete do to have a chance to continue competing at the next level? For the rest of American's teenage athletes they must first realize that getting recruited may not be as hard as it seems.
Understand the Myths
MYTH
If no college coaches have called or written, I must not be good enough to play on a college team.
REALITY
The reality is that NCAA rules often prevent recruiters – or coaches from calling or writing recruits – (officially called prospective student athletes) until after a certain date –depending on the sport and NCAA Division.
MYTH
Secondly, many young athletes watch the major college teams on TV and concoct a story about how they will fall short of having the talent or size to play in college.
REALITY
Actually, college sports come in all sizes and shapes. The NCAA has three different divisions and over 1000 schools that offer college athletic opportunities.
Then there is the NAIA with two divisions and also junior colleges and community colleges – some of whom offer athletic scholarships.
Most varsity athletes can find a place to play somewhere. It may not be the Southeastern Conference School, Pac-10 or Big 10 School of their dreams, but that is a decision to make after seeking many opportunities and exploring all the possibilities.
MYTH
Recruiting services will get me a scholarship.
REALITY
What they do - you can do all by yourself - and better. College coach after college coach will tell you that they don't like or use recruiting services. They overcharge - and make you think they are doing great things because they offer free services to the top athletes in your area - and then use their names to make you think they got the scholarship. If you have talent and perserverance you can get a scholarship whether or not you use a recruiting service. Visit the site listed at the bottom of the article for more information about how to make your dream of playing college sports come true.
MYTH
Finally --- some athletes and their parents fall into the danger zone of thinking their high school coach’s job is to find them a scholarship and make connections for them.
REALITY
America's high school coaches are influential people in the lives of teenagers.
However, high school coaches are rarely well connected in the world of college sports – and often they don’t have the time to pursue these opportunities for an entire team of people. Job descriptions for high coaches are highly unlikely to include: find a college scholarship for the team superstars and average players.
Getting past these myths and taking actions of your own are a sure way to find a successful college sports experience for your future.
Author