The Recruit Visit: Photo Shoot

Right now if college coaches aren't doing a photo shoot with an athlete when they come on campus, they are probably missing out on a huge opportunity. I see more and more athletes posting their typical "commitment" picture of them in the school tshirt or sweatshirt in their backyard and then a couple days later they are posting pictures in that same school's jersey with a backdrop and logos. It's safe to say that the photo shoot is making quite the impression at this stage in the recruiting process.

It's always been a thing. We used to just hang a jersey in the locker room for the athlete to "show" them what their locker might look like. Then you just ask the question and see if they want to try on the jersey and get mom or dad to take a couple pictures. You were able to create a cool experience and show the athlete you were really interested in them. Now coaches have pulled out all the stops and made it feel really similar to the "hype" videos and media day experiences that college athletes will experience. It's a really cool notion thing they are able to do with recruits.

The impact of this is interesting. On the one side it's a really cool experience for the athlete and shows how interested the school is in them. On the other side it's certainly a situation that is separating the #1 recruit from even the #2 and #3 recruit. The prevalence of social media is now putting people in that awkward situation where one athlete gets the photo shoot and another athlete does not; they know because they see the pictures on instagram. So, in some instances, athletes can tell whether or not a school is interested in them just by looking at their visit itinerary. Some schools probably have a compliance department that won't let them do a photo shoot with a PSA.

Look for these to become a part of every recruits visit to campus in the near future. But if every school is doing it, is it really having the impact it is meant to have? Is this something that becomes as normalized as eating at the school dining hall or even visiting with the team? We shall see. But for right now, it seems like it's a pretty big deal and it's certainly having the desired impact on athletes when they visit.

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