The increased importance on National Signing Day has put an almost full-year focus on high school and college football and that means recruiting has become a big business. Players who are looking to extend their athletic careers into college and beyond have to start thinking about recruiting as early as possible these days if they are to get a jump on the competition.
Mike Gilliam helps high school athletes through the complex process of recruiting with the company Opportunities Through Athletics. Gilliam, a former college coach, urges athletes to start thinking about college as early as freshman year.

“There are two myths that need to be dispelled right away,” Gilliam said. “Myth one is that if you are good enough, they will find you, and myth two is that you can’t start the recruiting process until your junior year.”

Freshmen in high school certainly aren’t ready to play in college and many may not even be on the varsity squads, but they can start to do research on schools where they may want to play and what the needs of the program might be when they graduate.

“It’s important to talk to coaches and college players about what skills are needed to play that position in college and what types of things college coaches are looking for from athletes in those positions,” said Gilliam, adding that the first thing they look for is grades.

“Talent means nothing without eligibility. You have to have the grades,” Gilliam stated. “It is critical to separate yourself from the pack, and if one puts the same effort in the classroom as one puts on the athletic field, there won’t be a problem.” Gilliam added that SAT and or ACT scores sometimes are more important than grade point averages.

An athletic scholarship to a college can be worth anywhere from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars and nearly every high school athlete goes searching for their piece of the pie. Many athletes and their parents try to draw attention to themselves with video highlight reels, press packets and more, but Gilliam believes that a lot of the material sent to a college coach rarely, if ever, gets looked at if they haven’t asked for it.

“A video package featuring two to three minutes of individual highlights, followed by two or three full games, is important to have, but don’t send it unless a coach asks for it,” Gilliam said. “Unsolicited videos often sit in a box somewhere and are rarely, if ever, get looked at.”

Gilliam also urges a lot of athletes to have realistic expectations and consider going outside of Division I schools.

“It is important to find the right fit and the one regret I hear the most from people who played sports in high school is that they regret not playing in college,” Gilliam said. “Sometimes playing outside of D-I is the way to continue your playing career.”

Opportunities Through Athletics typically works with student-athletes who are not on national radars, though Gilliam said that blue-chip athletes often benefit from the guidance of people who are experienced with the recruiting process.

According to Gilliam, recruiting comes down to relationship building.

“Talk to people, find out what a team’s needs are and get your name out there,” Gilliam said. “They have to know you exist.”
In addition to having the grades and the relationships, it is equally as important to have the athletic skill.

“Figure out what it takes to be the best and have a steady diet of that in your daily routine,” Gilliam recommended. “A lot of kids have it backwards. They put 90 percent of their energy into their strengths, when they should put 90 percent of their energy into their weaknesses.”

Student-athletes also need to have the desire, something that will fuel them through the process.

“If you want it, commit to it early and work for it every day,” Gilliam said. “There is a place for all level of athletes out there and you will find a fit. One of the greatest honors in your life is when a school says it will pay you to play a sport and get a college degree at their school. It is worth fighting for every day.”
For more information on Opportunities Through Athletics, visit www.athleticopportunities.com.

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