Recruiting Roadblocks - Late Bloomers

Not every athlete starts their recruiting process at the same time. That's completely fine. I talk to families that always feel like they are "late" to the process. In many ways that's not really true. Are there athletes that are already done by the time you start? Sure! But it doesn't mean that you are late.

When it comes to "late bloomers" we are in a little bit of a different realm I think.

We aren't talking about athletes that have played since they were 11. We are talking (usually) about athletes that didn't even start playing volleyball until they got to high school. In this situation they probably started on a 3rd team or even a non-travel team. Through practice, training, high school volleyball and time they got better. To the point that they moved up to a top team. Maybe even starting as a sophomore. Now, they start thinking, "Maybe I could play in college."

This is great. Late bloomers I think are easily recruitable. Their growth is extremely apparent from one season to the next. It's easy for college coaches to see that you've improved. In lots of situations they ask, "Where did she come from?" It's not a bad thing. It just means the athlete wasn't on their radar, but they are now.

"Jason, this seems to be a good thing if you're a late bloomer. How is it a roadblock?"

There are a few reasons that this can slow your recruiting process down. If you are a late bloomer, maybe you really don't come into your own until the start of your junior year of high school. That means that a bunch of schools are going to be well along their way in the recruiting process with other athletes. This is going to limit your options. It's not going to erase all of your options though. Just limit.

Scholarships and rosters spots are always limited. Not every school is going to be recruiting every position for each class. This is a variable for all athletes, not just late bloomers. With this group, we will run into schools that just realistically no longer have a spot. That's okay, because you can just look elsewhere.

Now, with the emergence of the transfer portal, plenty of schools have new needs for the junior class. Everything depends on what they get or don't get off the transfer portal. Even for unsigned seniors going into their last season of club, new schools can emerge with new needs.

What these "late bloomers" need to make sure they are doing is getting in front of college coaches. If you're a junior playing club, it's possible that coaches are finished with your class. They only reason they would come and watch your class would be to see their committed athletes. If they don't know you exist, it's going to be hard for them to come find out.

Your film is going to be important. How does it make you stand out? Where are you sending your film? Are you sending your film to schools that have a need or are you just focused on the top 25 that might not really have a need to fill anymore.

There are still going to be plenty of options for "late bloomers". Just be sure you are doing your due diligence and getting college coaches to come see you play volleyball.