Football scholarships are the most abundant in the NCAA. There are 85 full-rides in Division 1A, 63 in Division IAA and 36 in DII. There are certain steps you must take in order to get a sports scholarship. In order for the recruiting system to work, you must have some talent and raw athletic ability. You don’t have to be the best in the country, state or even on your team, but you must have potential and some talent for college coaches to work with.
- Do a personal assessment. Evaluate your abilities, talents and reasons for wanting to play in college. Also what type of college are you searching for athletically and academically.
- What level can you play at? Put your ego aside and do a real evaluation of your talent and what you want out of a college athletic career. Do you want to play at the biggest college possible and risk sitting the bench? Or are you happy with a smaller school where you can play all four years?
- Develop a personal recruiting packet. This should contain a athletic cover letter, athletic resume and video highlight and game films. You can do this better and cheaper than any company or service that charges you money to post an online profile or make a highlight tape for you.
- Initiate contact with colleges. Follow a system that will maximize your exposure to colleges and play the recruiting game on the college coach’s level. This will put you above the thousands of other recruits fighting for the same spots.
- Communicate and follow through. It is often difficult for high school students to communicate with college coaches. You must mature quickly during this process and ask the right questions and have the correct answers to show the coaches you are the player for them. It is also difficult to keep the drive and determination to get an offer late into the recruiting season if you have already been turned down multiple times.
High school athletes who are able to follow a game plan throughout the entire recruiting season are the ones who ultimately end up with a scholarship. It takes a lot of work but if you are willing to be mature and keep your dream alive, you will be able to earn a football scholarship and play in college.
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