If I sign up with RecruitLink, am I guaranteed to be recruited or be offered a scholarship?
RecruitLink cannot guarantee athletes will be recruited or receive a scholarship. It is against NCAA rules to do so. We guarantee that you will be seen by coaches who would not have noticed you otherwise. Our goal is for all athletes to get some type of funding for a college education and to play their sport at the same time.

When should I start the recruiting process?
In most cases, your sophomore year in high school. Most colleges prefer to evaluate players over the course of a few years. If you are a junior or senior, it isn’t too late. Coaches are always looking for players no matter what year they are in school. However, the more time a coach has to evaluate you, the better your chances are of being offered a scholarship.

Would coaches rather have DVDs, VHS tapes, and faxes sent to them?
DVDs and videos take time to create, their reach is limited, and they can’t be updated once sent out. Coaches want something that is quick and easy to evaluate. That’s why the ORB is so important. College coaches can view hundreds of athletes in the time it takes them to put in a VHS tape. It makes the recruiting process more efficient and streamlined for coaches.

Do all colleges offer scholarships?
Of the seven collegiate associations we work with, most of the schools offer scholarships. Those that don’t offer athletic scholarships can assist athletes with other incentives that can offset costs such as tuition, books, or living expenses. Smaller schools can offer very rewarding programs totaling thousands of dollars that rival some of the scholarships from large universities.

How does RecruitLink match the right athletes with the right schools?
Coaches have certain needs every year. Recruitlink communicates through phone conversations and emails with college coaches at every level, over 27,000 in fact, to find out their wants and needs. When athletes sign up with RecruitLink, we speak with their high school coach to find out where they would fit in and at what level they most likely will compete. Based on that information, we deliver the athletes’ ORB through our permission-based email system to the college coach for instant evaluation.

How many coaches are in the RecruitLink database?
There are over 27, 633 head and assistant coaches in our database. It is all handpicked one-by-one and constantly updated. Let’s just say there are no emails being bounced back to us. We spent years putting it together and when coaches change schools or jobs, we are right on top of it.

What are the chances of playing college sports?
Here is the reality. There are roughly 7,000,000 high school athletes in the United States. There are only a few hundred thousand positions available for those athletes at the collegiate level. If you want a spot, you have got to put yourself out there and make yourself known. The ORB is the perfect tool that allows you to publish your skills to coaches across the country. Unless you’re a superstar, don’t count on coaches finding you.

How do you know how good I am?
We don’t. But we will learn more about you through a number of steps. Prior to sending out your ORB, we speak directly with your high school coach. Through speaking with coaches and other criteria, athletes will know where they fit in. Anyone can estimate an athletes talent level based on information and stats, but there is no one formula for determining potential. Many things go into being a collegiate student athlete including academics, talent, attitude, natural ability, attendance, test scores, and experience. We match athletes with schools that fit their abilities and attributes.

Why should I sign up with RecruitLink? My coach will help me get recruited.
Yes, your coach may help you get recruited. Unfortunately most coaches don’t have time to get envelopes, put together DVDs, make phone calls and so forth. And they definitely don’t have time to contact all the schools that we will. Don’t rely on your coach if you really want to play, you must make the effort.

I am already getting questionnaires from colleges, so why do I need RecruitLink?
A questionnaire is only an information form sent out by colleges. It does not mean that you are being recruited by a college. Colleges send out questionnaires to thousands of athletes each year, but it does not necessarily mean they are being recruited. If you're interested in a school that has sent you one, fill it out and send it back because any contact is beneficial, but don’t count on a scholarship through that.

What is the NCAA Clearinghouse?
To participate in NCAA Division I and II athletics as a freshman, athletes must meet minimum academic requirements and register with the NCAA Clearinghouse. For further information visit the clearinghouse website, www.ncaaclearinghouse.net.

Profile Manager Help

Below are more complete descriptions on how to fill out your profile.

Personal Information
In this section, try to fill in all the fields. The more contact options you provide for a coach, the better of you will be. In the Bio section, you can write a short paragraph about yourself. Write about your athletic career and what you have accomplished.

Player Academics
Enter in all your academic information. Fields that receive no information will just be left blank. If you haven’t taken either the ACT or SAT, leave it blank. List any academic awards you have received in the bottom box.

Athletic Stats
You can select up to two positions. Select the main positions you play. They can be both on offense, defense, or one of each. Then enter in the stats that apply to only those positions. Any stats that you don’t enter will be left blank. Enter in and continue adding on to your stats after every game. For example, if you are quarterback and you threw 1 touchdown in your first game, you would enter a 1 for the passing touchdowns stat field. If you threw for 4 touchdowns in your second game, you would then change your passing touchdowns stat field to 5. In other words, keeping adding your stats up over the duration of your season.

Upload Video
This is the most important section. Remember, coaches want to watch you in action. Your ORB shows four different videos. Upload the following content for each video:

• Game Film – Upload your 5 best minutes of game film each week. It doesn’t have to be edited. Just show coaches what you did. Update this with new video every week after your game.
• Physical Skills – Film your entire 40 yard dash, testing your vertical jump, and any weight lifts that you want like bench press, squat, power clean, etc.
• Athletic Skills – These are videos of your mechanics. For example, if you are quarterback, show your drop back footwork and throwing different patterns and passes. Show the mechanics of your main position like blocking, catching, or kicking.
• Interview– Answer the following questions into a video camera:
  • You should recruit me because…
  • My best skill is…
  • I will bring to a team…
  Videos must be under 4MB and less than 2 minutes long. Game film must be under 5 minutes and under 4MB as well. They can be updated any time.

Press and Awards
In this section, you can show coaches any press or awards you have received. If you are mentioned in any online article, select the date it was published, the title or description of the article, then paste the complete URL of the article. Most local newspapers load their articles online.

To list any awards you have received, simply select the date you received the award (must be in the past) and write in the award you received in the description box. For example, select the date when you received the award, and then write in “2007 All-State First Team or 2007 All-Area” or whatever award you received. Make sure to press save after each individual award you enter.

Coaches

Why use RecruitLink?
RecruitLink has been designed to make the recruiting process more streamlined for college coaches. RecruitLink screens and qualifies each athlete that signs up so that information is accurate. Through communication with us, we will find out what you are looking for. From there, we will only send you athletes that match your specific criteria. For example, if you need someone who is at least 6’6” tall, you won’t receive an athlete under that height.

We have developed our database so that coaches can search by any criteria to find exactly what they are looking for. When you do find someone of interest, you will be able to view them through the ORB. Rather than reading dry stats, you will see them in action through video. Our goal is to show you an athlete, not read about them. Just give it a 30 second test run and you’ll be surprised how effective it is.

If I sign up with RecruitLink, will I receive emails of athletes that don’t fit at my school?
RecruitLink will only send you athletes that meet your criteria. You will never receive an athlete who has no chance of competing at your school. Let us know what type of athlete you are interested in and we will connect you with athletes that meet those requirements.

How do I know the information I’m looking at in an ORB is credible?
Prior to sending out an athlete’s ORB, we personally contact the athlete’s coach to make sure the information that has been uploaded is accurate. We do the filtering work for you. We understand if you receive false information, our credibility falls so we make sure what you are seeing is verified and accurate.

How much does it cost coaches to use the service?
It is free for college coaches.

Will athletes have access to my email address and other information?
We have spent large amounts of time to get information on every coach in the country. We wouldn’t dream of sharing it with anyone. We will never supply anyone with your email address unless you tell us to do so. Even then, we still won’t do it.