Kids scroll through social media every day, but little do they know how others are using it to set up their own future. Social media has become a normal thing in a lot of people’s day to day life, but student athletes have found a new way to use social media and get their names out to college coaches. Student athletes have now found a new way to help their chances to get an athletic scholarship to play their favorite sport in college.
The way colleges have recruited in the past was very different to how it is done today, and it has heavily evolved since student athletes began using social media. In 1951, the NCAA allowed athletic scholarships and recruiting for the first time ever. In the mid 1990’s, online recruiting websites began to offer fans information about players including player profiles, photos, statistics, and videos. These websites began helping college coaches scout potential players and it changed the way coaches would recruit forever.
Today, social media has a big impact on helping young and upcoming student athletes gain attention from colleges and college coaches. According to the NCSA College Recruiting, they recommend using social media platforms such as X, Instagram, and TikTok to set up an athlete profile. Once the account is set up begin following the schools that the athlete is most interested in. After you are done following the schools, begin posting highlights, academic achievements, and show your personality. Once you are ready, send a DM to a coach of a team that you may be interested in; keep it short and get straight to the point. Colleges have now adapted and invested in their own social media and branding to attract top talent, this is your sign to hop on the trend and show off your skills.
Many players and coaches have come out and publicly stated that social media is a key factor in getting recruited. According to St. Leo University basketball player, “Brady Corso” he said, “posting highlights on his personal social media channels was more effective than using recruiting websites.” Brady used his social media to get noticed by St. Leo University and is now a player for them. St. Norbert College men’s basketball coach “Gary Grzesk” has stated that he will scan a player’s social media to see if he can find any potential red flags. Coaches do take advantage of looking at a player’s social media to figure out certain things about a specific player such as play style, personality, and actions off the field or court.
So many student athletes have the dream to play in college and most players have the skill to be able to play in college, but they just don’t know how to get recognition. Social media can be the key to getting recognition you might need to get into a college by playing your favorite sport. It has been proven that using social media can be successful and that college coaches do use social media to look for potential talent. Using social media can be very beneficial and if you are a student athlete, I would 100% take advantage of this opportunity especially knowing the opportunity is right in the palm of your hands.
Works Cited:
“How to Use Social Media in Your Recruiting.” Ncsasports.org, 2019, www.ncsasports.org/recruiting/contacting-college-coaches/social-media.
Staples, Andy. “Andy Staples: A History of Recruiting; How Coaches Have Stayed a Step Ahead.” Sports Illustrated, 23 June 2008, www.si.com/more-sports/2008/06/23/recruiting-main.
Teamworks. “The Evolution of Collegiate Recruiting.” Teamworks, 14 Dec. 2023, teamworks.com/blog/the-evolution-of-collegiate-recruiting/.
Winter, Karl. “Are They Worth It? Recruiting Websites and the Online Era of College Sports Recruiting.” WGBA NBC 26 in Green Bay, 12 June 2024, www.nbc26.com/news/local-news/in-your-neighborhood/de-pere/are-they-worth-it-recruiting-websites-and-the-online-era-of-college-sports-recruiting.
Wikipedia Contributors. “College Recruiting.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Dec. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_recruiting.
