With no tournaments expected this spring and still a question mark for the fall on how early we can return, how has recruiting changed from the college side? Obviously this is prime time for this year's Juniors so what would be your advice as to how to market yourself for a potential offer. I am assuming HS Soccer will play a bigger role in the fall but will require much more travel on the colleges part. Most Division 1 schools have their board set but I'm sure the D2 and D3's are being impacted significantly.
I am just glad my daughter, a '21, is verbally committed. TBD how this crisis impacts her school and the program (Mid Major) long term but for now we are hopeful things will be long back to normal by then. That being said, I was talking to a dad from our team who's daughter, a very solid player, is still looking and they are focusing on the schools that already saw her play, keeping in contact through email, texts, phone calls, and through social media. They are trying to "close the deal" by showing the coaches what kind of person she is. Many of those coaches want to see her play this Fall before making any final decisions one way or the other. If there is no Fall soccer? I have to believe the programs will rely on what they saw before March, and this time building relationships with their recruits will weigh heavily on their decisions. I once told my daughter that the different in skill between her and the next player being recruited by any particular school is in reality pretty small. It's how she manages the recruiting process and how she connects with them on a personal level is what will make the difference in the end. I think that is even more true now. What I am telling my son, who is a 2023, is to stay proactive continue to reach out, make contact, and try to let coaches know he is interested. He doesn't have any video to share (we had a service lined up this weekend for the now canceled Crossroads Showcase), but if we did have video he would be casting a much wider net trying to expand his "pool" of schools and setting the stage for game invites and camps whenever we get back to normal.
The above is very good advice in my view. I would also suggest this is the time to work on school and skills in the presumption that some kids will do the opposite and impact their marketability. Imagine a case where the NCAA allows camps or other events to occur as soon as it is safe. Some kids will show up out of shape and some may have to explain why their gpa dropped. Given the above example of two closely matched players prior to the virus, coaches will learn a lot about players based on how they handle months of remote training and school. What HS and club players are experiencing now is more like holiday or summer training in college. It won’t make slow players fast or short players tall but this period should be looked at as an opportunity, not a barrier.
This isn't what you're asking, but is experience from right now. My DS was redshirted last year and is in the transfer portal. The coaches that are contacting him want video---lots and lots of video. So I would say that now would be the time to put together highlight reels and select good whole games of halves to share.