Fall volleyball recruiting can be really difficult for many athletes when it comes to connecting with college coaches. Not only are athletes in the middle of their very competitive high school season, but they have to deal with academics, standardized testing, homecoming, relationships and everything else. On top of all that, athletes need to be sending emails to schools to try and get in front of college coaches; learn if their position is getting recruited; build relation

Over the summer, the NCAA made a decision that has gone mostly unnoticed on this side. I won't talk too much about the "why" behind the decision because that will more than likely take me down a giant rabbit hole that is not really beneficial at this point. The NCAA decided to change the rules surrounding the volleyball recruiting questionnaire. It went unnoticed because we had just moved to the other side of June 15th for 2026 class, so the impact for that class was nonexis

Following up is one of the most overlooked keys to success in volleyball recruiting. If sending one more email or text could land you the offer you want, would you take that step? Too many athletes give up after a single attempt, assuming silence from a college coach means “no.” But in reality, consistent and proactive communication is what keeps you on a coach’s radar—and can set you apart from the thousands of other athletes hoping for that same opportunity.

Should you reach out to college coaches first at this stage in the recruiting process?

One of the hardest things to do is take schools OFF your list. We typically make two mistakes in this category when when it comes to your list of schools as an athlete:

*Originally Posted December 8th, 2023 I'm not great at remembering peoples names. Athletes I can almost always remember. Several times I would be texting my assistant during a visit, asking her the names of the parents that were on the visit with the athlete. Conversations really help. Interactions really help. Connecting the parents to the athlete always helped me: Jim and Pam = Suzie I could work backwards sometimes. Regardless, it was something I really had to focus

Triple Crown is such a great tournament. I know that there is a qualifier prior to this weekend now, but I don't think that changes anything. With TC being opening weekend for D1 coaches and because it combines most of the talent from across the country, it really is a top notch event. It's a crazy three days for me but I enjoy going each year.

I'm a big fan of honesty. I think it's important. You have to be able to trust people. If you can't trust someone then they can't really help you. That trust goes both ways for athletes and college coaches.

I forget regularly that not every club has someone like me working for them. Many clubs have "recruiting coordinators" that help with recruiting, but usually these people have full-time jobs somewhere else; they have administrative duties at the club; or they also coach 2 teams for the club. Not that any of that is wrong, but it's different when I can spend 12 hours in the gym talking to college coaches, parents and athletes vs. other recruiting coordinators that aren't tra

"Why didn't Nora play volleyball at 12s and 13s?"

*Originally posted 3/1/2022 I wish it was that simple. I wish different variables didn't constantly come up during the recruiting process. If you're expecting one article, blog post, phone call or meeting to be sufficient in helping you get through your recruiting process till the end, you're probably going to miss out or be lost at some point.

*Originally posted 11/10/2022 Here is the podcast episode on this same topic - give it a listen! Be sure to "Follow" the PRI Talk podcast as well!

Want to stand out in the recruiting process? Try asking these questions and HELP your recruiting process!

*Originally posted 7/13/2020 I personally hate the little red dots that appear in the corner of each app. I basically do whatever I need to do to get rid of them. I don't know how some can have a number like "1,499" above their email app, that would drive me insane. Actually, when I came back to ACU as the head coach I had the same email address. I had a years worth of emails that I went through, filed away, watched film and responded to if needed; all so I wouldn't have

*Originally posted 10/14/2021 To start, it definitely depends on WHEN you are in the recruiting process. If you are sending out emails to coaches while you are a sophomore, then this isn't a big deal. But for those athletes past the June 15th contact date (prior to the start of their junior year) this is one of the bigger issues I see in emails...still.

*Originally posted 5/15/2023 I think one of the false-premises we start with in our recruiting journey, is that college coaches aren't watching your film. The idea is that you might be reaching out to them, they might be getting your email, but they aren't clicking that video link in your email. I want to push back on this premise a little bit and try to answer the question,

I hear this all the time - "It seems that recruiting has gotten really quiet lately" "Recruiting has gotten quiet" "Coaches seem to have gone quiet"

I have this conversation multiple times a year with families and athletes. They are going through the recruiting process, have a couple of offers and are close to making a decision. One of the things that is holding the athlete back from making a decision is that they are worried about how their decision is going to affect the coaching staff they are telling "no". They are worried about hurting the feelings of a college coach.

High school volleyball season brings a bunch of extra things onto your plate when it comes to recruiting. One of the more frequent...

One thing that makes June 15th a smoother process for everyone is having the correct contact information available for college coaches.