We would like to congratulate Jack Pharies on his commitment to Centre College! Here are Jack’s recruiting story and interview after his commitment. Good luck as a Colonel!

1. Please share your recruiting story and status

I was actively recruited by over 20 colleges to play lacrosse. I narrowed down my choices to 3 colleges by the beginning of the summer before my senior year, and I committed to a college in July before my senior year.

2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them?

I chose Centre College, which competes at the NCAA Division III level in the Southern Athletic Association. Centre is a national liberal arts college located in Danville, Kentucky. It was founded in 1819, has a national reputation for the quality of its academics, and is the number 1 school in the nation of any size for its travel abroad programs. I realized from the beginning that I would not make a living playing lacrosse, so my main focus has been choosing a college I would want to attend even if I did not play lacrosse. I have been interested in Centre from the beginning because of its size, the relationship between the faculty and students, and its travel abroad opportunities. Centre is among many schools that do not actively recruit in California. I contacted Centre through Sportsforce, and luckily the coach liked my video and asked me to campus. I already had offers from other colleges by the time I visited Centre, but I was just blown away by Coach Sharbaugh and Centre. Everything seemed to fit perfectly with what I wanted. The academics are great, the campus is beautiful, and the lacrosse coach is terrific and has a clear vision for the program and my role in realizing that vision.

4. How did SportsForce help in the process?

Sportsforce played a critical role in my recruiting journey. The best way to put it is that Sportsforce allowed me to control the recruiting process rather than the recruiting process controlling me. Without Sportsforce, I would have to rely on being seen at a showcase as my primary recruiting tool. While showcases are important, and I was recruited by coaches who saw me at showcases, it limits the universe of potential colleges to those that attend particular showcases. Sportsforce allowed me to introduce myself to the colleges I wanted to attend, not just the ones that happened to be at this weekend’s showcase. I could target a school, use Sportsforce as a way to get noticed by the coach, and then drive the recruiting process from there. It also allowed me to get ahead of the recruiting cycle so that, at each school that gave me an offer, I was one of the first offers they gave to players in my class. This proved to be an unexpected benefit because nothing makes a coach want a player more than knowing that a competing school wants that same player. This gave me a big advantage in recruiting because it put me in the driver’s seat. Not only did Sportsforce give me the tools to control my own destiny, it guided me every step of the way. From producing my initial video to the first e-mail campaign, to campus visits, and ultimately to making my commitment, Coach Hadlock and Sportsforce have advised me, supported me, and encouraged me.

4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process?

First, recruiting begins with grades. One of the first question every college coach asked me was my GPA and test scores. To keep your options open, you need to keep the grades up and do well on standardized tests.

Second, choose a college that you would want to attend even if you couldn’t play lacrosse. After all, every player is only one injury away from becoming a spectator.

Third, get to know the coach and the lacrosse program well and make sure you share the same goals. Find out how the coach recruits – is he selective in who he recruits or does he recruit huge classes and let the Freshman fight it out when fall ball starts. What is the lacrosse team’s reputation on campus – both among other athletes and the student body at large? Do the coach and the athletic department support your academic goals? Does the team have an academic adviser who travels with the team? Will the coach support your academic goals even if they require an absence from some training (such as for study abroad if that’s important to you).

Fourth, do an overnight visit. It is important to meet the team, see what it’s really like on campus, and understand the issues the current players face.

5. How excited are you on your future in college?

It is the perfect school and team for me. The academic environment, with small class sizes and an exclusive focus on undergraduate education, will challenge me and allow me to reach my goal of going to law school. The lacrosse team is always competitive in its conference and I’m going to travel throughout the South during conference play. I can’t wait to experience a different part of the country. In short, I am very excited. Go, Colonels!!

6. How much money do you anticipate your family saving in college expenses?

My school is NCAA Division III, so there are no athletic scholarships. However, I have been told that I will receive nearly $20,000 per year in academic scholarships.

7. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes? Why?

I strongly recommend Sportsforce. It provides the tools to allow the player to control the recruiting process. Most players and parents go into the recruiting process with no idea of what it entails or what to expect. All of the coaches, however, do this every year and know exactly what they are doing. This necessarily puts players at a disadvantage. Sportsforce helps to not only level the playing field with their knowledge and guidance, but they help put the player in control of that process by giving the player the tools to target schools, get noticed by the coaches, and to get ahead of the recruiting cycle.

 

Over the last five years, SportsForce has helped over 1,000 student-athletes and families successfully navigate the college recruiting and athletic scholarship process while saving families on average $50,000 in college expenses.

…and just what are you showing to college coaches?

Now that many of the club teams and tournaments are winding down until October, it’s important to capitalize on your summer experience. While many parents elect to purchase professional videos from the various events, the quality of the video is only one component of what makes an effective and attention-grabbing highlight reel.

In this installment of our College Game Plan Education series, we’ll provide some basic tips for creating and editing your game film to make the best impression on potential college lacrosse recruiters.

What you want to show
The goal with any highlight reel is to give college coaches an idea of how you can play the game and the special talents you believe set you apart. Whether it’s 1-on-1 defense, shooting, open-field speed, or FOGO skills, you want the reel to have a definite theme. Don’t get us wrong, you absolutely need to show more than one skill set, but you want your highlights to be a representation of your strongest attributes, allowing coaches to evaluate how you play and where you might fit in their program.

What you don’t want to show
Lacrosse is a flow sport, meaning that the action never really stops. Unlike football or baseball, where a “play” has a beginning and an end, lacrosse can thrust a player from offense to a loose ball to defense in a very short time. This makes editing clips very important. Factors like the quality of your competition, your demonstrated lacrosse IQ, and how you interact with your team may not jump out to a young player, but college coaches can take a lot from the fringes of your video. Typical examples of no-nos would be dodging through several defenders to score a goal despite open teammates, taunting the opposition, performing a solo celebration that is only about you, or passing up a good shot to go for a BTB or other “fancy” shot. If you drop the ball three times on your way to the goal or miss a pass before picking it up to score, the clip should only include the ground ball and the shot. And just as an FYI, coaches usually aren’t terribly impressed that you are good enough to try an advanced move in a game…if it didn’t work, don’t include it.

Sequencing your clips
The first 45 seconds of your video will likely dictate whether a coach watches the whole thing, so don’t bury your best clips or try to crescendo at the end. After you show your personal information, take the three most impressive examples of how you play and lead with them.

After these initial clips, start to mix in the other aspects of your game to show you have more than one dimension. Continue to pepper in the clips that support your general video theme, whether you’re presenting yourself as a scorer, feeder, ground ball specialist, or defender. Again, the best of these clips should be toward the front as well. For the remainder of the 3-4 minute highlight reel, simply mix in the various clips you have, but with the understanding that sometimes less is more, so don’t add extra clips to get to a certain video length if they don’t truly show your skill level or what you can do.

Guidelines for your highlight reel:

1. Start with your name, class, school name, and club team (include GPA if 3.5+)
2. The first few clips are your best…the “wow” clips that grab attention
3. Scour your clips and edit to ensure you’re not showing anything undesirable
4. Don’t exceed 3-4 minutes of clips
5. Include your contact info and your coaches’ contact info

Most college coaches will request a video before they take the time to talk to you, so it’s very important to make sure you’re truly aware of what you’re presenting. Ask your coach to look at it and provide feedback before sending it out to college programs, make any suggested edits, and good luck!!

We would like to congratulate Delanie Sheehan on her commitment to UCLA! Here are Delanie’s recruiting story and interview after her commitment. Good luck as a Bruin!

1. Share your recruiting story and status

The process of getting recruited was really stressful and overwhelming for me. I felt lost, especially at first when I didn’t have professionals helping me. However, into my junior year, my options started opening up and I became more excited than stressed! It was fun to learn about all the different programs and hear their philosophies and learn about the schools. I ended up signing May of my junior year.

2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them?

I will be attending UCLA in the fall of 2017. UCLA has been my dream school for as long as I can remember, so when they contacted me back it was like a dream come true and I was determined to play there, no matter what! I wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip away from me. Their amazing soccer program, along with the academics, has always been what I dreamed of when considering what college I wanted to attend. I want to be pushed in every aspect of my life and this is the perfect fit for it. I feel UCLA will not only help me academically and athletically, but it will help me grow as a person as well. The school’s standards and beliefs are inspiring to me.

3. How did SportsForce help in the process?

SportsForce was a huge help in this process. Schools get hundreds of emails every week and sometimes don’t even open them. SportsForce helps you stand out from the rest and give you a professional look. It allowed me to focus more on choosing a school, rather than getting in contact with the school. I would tell them which schools I was interested in and they would find a way to make it happen. I wouldn’t have had the opportunities I had without it.

4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process?

I would say it’s never too early to start. I started really focusing on the recruiting process at the beginning of my junior year, and even this was late. Top programs are ahead of the game and you must be aware of that. Also, highlight videos are important. I caught UCLA’s attention with my highlight video and then they came out to watch me play. When contacting coaches you need something to separate yourself from the rest and a video usually does the trick. My last piece of advice would be not to be scared to contact the coaches. I struggled with this and was always nervous to call, but all the coaches I met were awesome and always willing to give me the time of day.

5. How excited are you for your future in college?

I am so excited to attend UCLA; it feels unreal to me sometimes! I’m proud to say I accomplished my goal of attending my dream school and can’t wait to be repping the Bruins on and off the field!!

6. How much money do you anticipate your family saving in college expenses because of you being recruited?

I anticipate my family saving about half the cost of college because of me being recruited.

7. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes?

Yes, I would recommend SportsForce to other student-athletes because for most families the recruiting process is new and confusing. It is important to have professionals who know what they are doing on your side. You may miss out on opportunities that you could’ve had. SportsForce gives you an organized plan of action and is willing to help you reach your goals.

 

Over the last five years, SportsForce has helped over 1,000 student-athletes and families successfully navigate the college recruiting and athletic scholarship process while saving families on average $50,000 in college expenses.

We would like to congratulate James Percival on his commitment to Hill College! Here are James’ recruiting story and interview after his commitment. Good luck as a Rebel! 1. Share your recruiting story and status My recruiting story is probably very different when compared to the norm. Being from Australia, not too many people have the opportunity to play college baseball and this story somewhat exemplifies the “different path” that many Australians have to take to progress in the baseball world. My process began around February/March 2016 and I had officially signed in June 2016. Obviously, the process was fast-tracked in order to ensure that I would be attending college in the fall of 2016. SportsForce were very diligent in creating a process that would allow me to realize my dream. They were very hands-on via Skype calls and constant messaging which allowed both parties to bounce information of each other in order to expedite the process. All in all, the process was very full, a bit of a blur, and somewhat disjointed but at the end of the day, I will be leaving to pursue a dream next month. 2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them? I have committed to Hill College in Texas. I ultimately chose this school because I felt as though it was the right fit for me. Knowing that there would be fellow Australians attending my school certainly aided in my choice. I also felt that Texas has a climate which is similar to that of Australia’s and this will certainly help me feel comfortable in my new home. Another reason for choosing this college was knowing that there have been Australians, both past, and present, who have been in the program which testified that the program was excellent and that I would certainly enjoy my experiences playing in another country. 3. How did SportsForce help in the process? SportsForce were very helpful in the process. They put in a lot of hard work and many hours into helping me make this commitment. SportsForce were involved the whole way from the initial emails to finalizing my highlight video and player profile. Their network of knowing and speaking to coaches all over the country allowed me to ultimately achieve the best deal for me and my family. 4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process? I would say that it is never too late to begin the recruiting process and that if this is something you are serious about, then there are no boundaries. Obviously starting the process much earlier than I did would’ve made the whole timeline a lot easier, but in saying that, anything can result from whenever you begin. Also, having a very good quality highlight video is crucial. This is the main way that a coach can form an opinion on you and what you can bring to their team. Diversifying your footage from both offensive and defensive aspects is also key. 5. How excited are you for your future in college? I am very excited to be beginning my college career next month. It was only a few months ago when I was wondering if it was all too hard and that I should just begin university in Australia. Now, I have my short-term future settled and not everyone has the opportunity to move to a foreign country, study whilst there, and have the opportunity to play a sport which they thoroughly enjoy. I can’t wait to get over there and see what the future holds for me. 6. How much money do you anticipate your family saving in college expenses because of you being recruited? Based on my scholarship, I am expecting my family to save around $20 000 – $30 000. Having to pay this out of our own pockets wouldn’t have been an option ad saving this amount of money has allowed me to have one of the great life experiences. 7. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes? I certainly would recommend SportsForce to others based on the positive outcomes that have resulted for me. I only heard about SportsForce through a fellow teammate and they raved about this company, and so do I. Their vast networking potential and skills in creating highlight videos, etc. have allowed me the opportunity to travel to the USA and play college baseball. I’ve already told many Australian baseballers who are aspiring to play college baseball about SportsForce and I will continue to do so.   Our Mission at SportsForce Baseball: We are on a mission to help our select number of qualified and evaluated players maximize their recruiting offers and make the best college decision. Started by CEO & founder Andrew Beinbrink, SportsForce Baseball is a nationally recognized college recruiting advisory group with over 40 former college coaches, players, and MLB scouts in 10 different states. During the last 11+ years, we’ve helped over 1,000 players make their college commitments. Read below, why we are different from every recruiting group in the country. Why SportsForce is Different: * View our Home Page Video Unlike most recruiting companies, we do not just partner with anyone for our hands-on recruiting programs. Instead, we only partner with qualified players who meet our Five academic, athletic, and coachability selection factors. We evaluate between 10,000-12,000 players each summer and fall at top showcases and selectively advise, and advocate for only a limited number of players each year by directly contacting college coaches to help them maximize recruiting offers. Each of our expert college recruiters is limited to how many players they will advise so there is the best combination of hands-on guidance and personal recruiting outreach to college coaches. Social Media Exposure: We also utilize our growing Twitter following at @SportsForceBB which is followed by over 500 NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC coaches nationwide and growing fast. To Get Evaluated by Our Expert College Recruiting Staff: Option 1: Complete our Recruiting Questionnaire Option 2: Email us at scouting@sportsforceonline.com Options 3: DM us on Instagram @SportsForceBB or Twitter @SportsForceBB and share recent video, stats, or measurables (velocity, 60, exit speed, pop time, etc…) for our scouts to evaluate. Find out if Your Son’s Qualifies for One of Our Hands-On Recruiting Programs? Twitter Recruiting Education & College Needs Posts: We post ongoing recruiting education and post NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC needs year around. Follow us on Twitter @SportsForceBB account and join over 500 hundred NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC coaches nationwide that follow us and growing fast. Tagging us: If you have some good video to share with us, make sure to tag us @SportsForceBB or DM us and we will review it.

We would like to congratulate Caroline Goudy on her commitment to Elon University! Here are Caroline’s recruiting story and interview after her commitment. Good luck as a Phoenix!

1. Share your recruiting story and status

I started my recruiting process the summer going into my junior year of high school. Truthfully, the process was pretty stressful, but with the help from the SportsForce team, the burden of emails and profile/video links was lifted. Once I found the right fit for me the process was pretty easy. I committed in March of my junior year and am looking forward to signing next year!

2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them?

I will be attending Elon University in the fall of 2017. I chose this university because of the great academics, close relationships between the teachers and students, small classes, Division I athletics, and the beautiful campus.

3. How did SportsForce help in the process?

SportsForce helped me narrow down my options and pick the schools that fit my needs as a student-athlete. After zoning in on a handful of schools, the SportsForce team assisted me with emailing coaches before games, tournaments, ID Camps, etc., configuring my recruiting profile, and forming a video with a medley of game film highlights.

4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process?

I would advise any player looking to be recruited to definitely start as early as you can by going to ID camps, sending out emails, and configuring recruiting profiles and game film videos. The highlight video that was located on my profile was very helpful for coaches who were viewing my profile. The coaches were able to view my video and decide whether or not I would be a good fit for their program. Lastly, I would advise players to keep sending college coaches emails with their most recent schedules or just to say hello and update them on your game. Try to build relationships with the coaches and make them know you for your consistency and persistence.

5. How excited are you for your future in college?

I am very excited to further my academic and athletic journey at Elon University. I cannot wait to continue playing the game I love at a college that I love! I am also excited to get involved in clubs, Greek life, and form bonds with new friends, coaches, and teachers.

6. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes? Why?

Yes, I would definitely recommend SportsForce to any student-athletes who are looking to be recruited by colleges! This team helps you narrow down your options, assists you with emails, profiles, video highlights, and guides you on how to speak with coaches personally to help promote you as a player and student.

Over the last five years, SportsForce has helped over 1,000 student-athletes and families successfully navigate the college recruiting and athletic scholarship process while saving families on average $50,000 in college expenses.

Congratulations to SportsForce client Saben Lee. Saben is a 2017 Point Guard from Phoenix, AZ. We began introducing Saben to college basketball coaches in his sophomore year of high school. Within about the first year of our working together, Saben received more than 20 Division I offers, including Stanford, Nebraska, Louisville, Utah, Pepperdine, Boise State and many others. His final commitment was made to Coach Bryce Drew at Vanderbilt University of the SEC.

Regardless of your sport, the 5 Critical Elements to Securing Multiple Offers include:

1. Good Communication: top college recruits understand how to effectively communicate with college coaches by asking strategic questions that uncover a coaches’ true interest in them, while also being uniquely prepared for those questions college coaches will ask of them.
2. Appropriate Target-Lists: top college recruits focus on proper target-list schools and sports programs that match their athletic and academic skill-set, instead of wasting valuable time and energy on collegiate opportunities that most likely will never be realized.
3. Take Control: top college recruits avoid the trap of relying solely on external factors to generate offers, such as assistance from high school or club team coaches, and only attending viewing tournaments, or camps in order to be “seen” or evaluated by college coaches.
4. Stay Disciplined: top college recruits prepare for, and are diligent in the use of appropriate follow-up strategies with college coaches, even when some opportunities appear to be going nowhere. They spend time researching best-fit schools and make it easy for coaches to communicate with them.
5. Game Plan Execution: top college recruits learn the importance of creating and then executing a well-thought out plan to beat the competition, and the competition is fierce in order to achieve your college recruiting goals. They know the absence of a well-developed plan creates uncertainty, misdirection and lost recruiting opportunities.

We would like to congratulate Matt Stearns on his commitment to California State University, Dominguez Hills! Here are Matt’s recruiting story and interview after his commitment. Good luck as a Toro! 1. Share your recruiting story and status A few weeks ago. The process was exciting. I had the opportunity to choose from three schools. 2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them? I chose Cal State Dominguez Hills. The fit was the best for me and my family. The coaching staff is really great there and I get to stay in SoCal playing baseball. 3. How did SportsForce help in the process? Ryan and Darrell were super helpful and the insight they gave us was invaluable. Sportsforce helped us get noticed by a lot of schools. Ryan advised us on which showcases and tournaments I should attend to maximize being seen by the schools I was interested in. 4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process? Start early, find the schools that will be the best fit for you and your family. 5. How excited are you for your future in college? I am super excited about taking my game to the next level and playing College Baseball. 6. How much money do you anticipate your family saving in college expenses because of you being recruited? I believe it will be close to $50,000 7. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes? Why? I would recommend Sportsforce to help others with the recruiting process. I learned a lot from Sportsforce on how to communicate with coaches and find the best fit for me.   Our Mission at SportsForce Baseball: We are on a mission to help our select number of qualified and evaluated players maximize their recruiting offers and make the best college decision. Started by CEO & founder Andrew Beinbrink, SportsForce Baseball is a nationally recognized college recruiting advisory group with over 40 former college coaches, players, and MLB scouts in 10 different states. During the last 11+ years, we’ve helped over 1,000 players make their college commitments. Read below, why we are different from every recruiting group in the country. Why SportsForce is Different: * View our Home Page Video Unlike most recruiting companies, we do not just partner with anyone for our hands-on recruiting programs. Instead, we only partner with qualified players who meet our Five academic, athletic, and coachability selection factors. We evaluate between 10,000-12,000 players each summer and fall at top showcases and selectively advise, and advocate for only a limited number of players each year by directly contacting college coaches to help them maximize recruiting offers. Each of our expert college recruiters is limited to how many players they will advise so there is the best combination of hands-on guidance and personal recruiting outreach to college coaches. Social Media Exposure: We also utilize our growing Twitter following at @SportsForceBB which is followed by over 500 NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC coaches nationwide and growing fast. To Get Evaluated by Our Expert College Recruiting Staff: Option 1: Complete our Recruiting Questionnaire Option 2: Email us at scouting@sportsforceonline.com Options 3: DM us on Instagram @SportsForceBB or Twitter @SportsForceBB and share recent video, stats, or measurables (velocity, 60, exit speed, pop time, etc…) for our scouts to evaluate. Find out if Your Son’s Qualifies for One of Our Hands-On Recruiting Programs? Twitter Recruiting Education & College Needs Posts: We post ongoing recruiting education and post NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC needs year around. Follow us on Twitter @SportsForceBB account and join over 500 hundred NCAA D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JC coaches nationwide that follow us and growing fast. Tagging us: If you have some good video to share with us, make sure to tag us @SportsForceBB or DM us and we will review it.

We would like to congratulate Cameron Parmigiani on his commitment to University of St. Francis! Here are Cameron’s recruiting story and interview after his commitment. Good luck as a Fighting Saint!

1. Share your recruiting story and status

I started working with SportsForce during the summer between my Junior and Senior years of high school. After their evaluation, I was told that I would likely play NAIA or NCAA D3 college basketball. My first introduction to college coaches was on the very first day of my Senior Year of high school. I had about 40 responses from college coaches. I began narrowing down these schools, with SportsForce’s help, of course. They guided me through the process, gave me advice on how to properly communicate with the college coaches who were interested in me. They were there every step of the way. I ultimately narrowed my list down to about 7 schools. It was then when I began making official visits to schools, doing overnights at the campuses with the basketball teams, and having lengthy calls with the coaches to discuss the possibilities for my future as a student-athlete. On March 26, 2016, I signed with the University of St. Francis men’s basketball team, committing to them, reserving my spot on the team, and accepting the athletic scholarship money they offered me. Being a dedicated student, I also received a significant academic scholarship as well…

2. What school are you going to, and why did you choose them?

Next year, I will be attending the University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Illinois. I chose them for their location, school size, feel of the school, athletic prowess, and relation to the coaching staff.

3. How did SportsForce help in the process?

SportsForce helped guide me through the minefield of the college athletic recruiting process by telling me how to handle business, and how to approach the coaches with questions or concerns I may have had.

4. What advice would you give to other players and parents with the recruiting process?

I would definitely recommend that perspective college student athletes get a head start, earlier than I did, in order to get the roster spot they may deserve before it fills up. The highlight video was a notably big part of my recruitment, so I absolutely would recommend that as well. One piece of advice for them, though, would be to choose a school where you could also see yourself attending without playing your sport. Say you get severely injured after your first year, you don’t want to be stuck there; unhappy, and have to transfer and begin the search again. Just something to think about.

5. How excited are you for your future in college?

I am STOKED for my college basketball career, and I know that I have chosen the right school for me!

6. How much money do you anticipate your family saving in college expenses because of you being recruited?

Because of the help from SportsForce, we will be saving over 50% of our college costs through my athletic and academic scholarships.

7. Would you recommend SportsForce to any other student-athletes? Why?

Yes. I would recommend it. I had no idea where I wanted to go to college at the start of my senior year of high school, which was very stressing and intimidating. SportsForce helped me find schools that wanted me, and I went from there! 🙂

Over the last five years, SportsForce has helped over 1,000 student-athletes and families successfully navigate the college recruiting and athletic scholarship process while saving families on average $50,000 in college expenses.