Physicality in Volleyball Recruiting: Why It Still Wins

I enjoy going to the State Tournament at the end of each high school season. It's usually fantastic volleyball. It's great to see some of our individual athletes as well as several of our club athletes compete for a State title. The crowds for both teams are usually pretty big which make the whole environment more fun and intense.

I wasn't really familiar with any one team at the Championship. I don't get to follow teams match for match throughout the season like I would really want to, so I'm usually going into the weekend maybe watching some of the teams compete once or twice prior. It's usually a pretty clean slate for me. I don't have a ton to compare how they are playing (good or bad) to any other match earlier in the season. These teams obviously are there for a reason, but it's the State Championship, so you still have to prove that you're there for a reason and it's not a fluke. It's definitely a pressure filled environment.

One question that I get asked all the time by families and athletes is the question about height. "My daughter is only 5'9" and so we were thinking D2 schools. She's not tall enough to play D1." This is something I talked about in another blog post 'It's Not All About Height' and I'll stand by all that I said in there. My point, in general, is that height is almost irrelevant as an independent factor. Does it matter? Yes! Do coaches pay attention to it? For sure!! But it's not an exclusive metric. College coaches are also looking at speed, power, skillset, mental toughness...overall physicality is what college coaches are looking for. This is true even at the D2 and D3 levels. If I am bigger and stronger than you then I have a better chance of winning.

I think that if you watched the Texas State Championships you might agree with some of this. Talent is important, yes! That's 100% true. But physicality is a huge piece of what makes teams successful at the highest level.

Whether you're a 2A, 6'1" OH that was crushing 47 kills in 4 sets (26 in the first two sets) or if your team (Guyer) has two 6 rotation OHs that can not only CRUSH the ball but pass nails (they combined for 43 kills in 3 sets), when you can play this game at a high level of skill what puts teams over the top is their ability to play physical. Crushing the ball is what wins. I watched several rallies go long with tips and roll shots just waiting for someone to actually swing and put the ball away.

This is something that I think is important for athletes and families to remember - elite level of volleyball skill is fantastic, but what sets athletes apart when it comes to getting recruited, in many instances, is going to be their ability to WIN points physically.

College coaches are asking 1 question and 1 question only when they come watch you play live - "Can she help me win?"