More than one million student-athletes participate in varsity football at over 16,000 high schools across the country. What are the odds that even a fraction of these athletes will make it to the college level? “The funnel just closes so quickly: it’s not even 1% from across the board,” says Mr. Bates, head of RCDS college admissions.

The only thing more competitive than the college admissions process, is the college athletic recruiting process. Athletes from across the country vie for extremely limited slots to play the sport they love. For some, the dream of playing on the gridiron at the collegiate level is even more challenging because of the complicated recruiting process. Luca Strazzini ’24 said “I wish early on that I had someone to guide me through this process because it can be a little daunting.” Cole Denson ’24 added: “I have been given a little bit of guidance mainly from social media, but I have just been figuring it out on the fly, and focusing on having a strong season.” But having a strong season is just the beginning. Strazzini says that guidance is key and that he hopes to get the best advice from “current athletes already deep within the recruitment process, athletes already playing at a collegiate level who have gone through the process, and coaches who consistently do their best to help their athletes play at the highest level.” 

What should a student athlete with aspirations to play in college do? The first step: early is on time. If an athlete starts the conversation early, and identifies themself as a candidate who wants to take part in college athletics, they’re already ahead of the game. “There are instances where we’ve got students that we’ve identified in eighth grade that might have the opportunity to play at the next level. So, we want to get to know students and figure out what their goals are, and how we can best serve them. Oftentimes, that involves working very closely with the coaches here,” said Mr. Bates. Coaches prioritize supporting students who have potential to get to the next level, but more importantly they need to motivate the student-athlete. Head coach of varsity football John Calandros said that athletes who lay out their goals early in the process have a better chance of succeeding; “if somebody’s interested, and really wants to pursue their passion, then we meet and we come up together with a game plan on how to achieve those dreams.” 

Once an athlete has set their mind on the idea of pursuing this goal, the next step is to get on the radar of college coaches. The key to athletic recruiting success is this connection between athlete and college coach. Isabel Slippen ’23, who recently committed to Colgate for track and field said that coaches will often seek out potential recruits via email or social media, but that doesn’t mean athletes shouldn’t be proactive by filling out recruiting questionnaires and reaching out to coaches on their own.

  However, the process is far more complex; in the case of Cameron Song ’24, the NCAA recruiting standards make life very difficult for young, determined athletes. Song noted that even when being proactive in an attempt to be noticed,  “I just felt like I was sending emails into space.” The competition is so fierce that getting the assistance from a high school or club coach can be a needed edge. Coaches have existing relationships with college teams and can advocate on an athlete’s behalf. Calandros explained that “a typical phone call to start out would be a coach asking what level I feel that this potential recruitable athlete can play, and hopefully the coach agrees.” William and Mary College baseball recruit Kevin Francella ‘23 received help from outside sources as well. “Most of the recruiting process was through my hitting coach outside of school. He was the one who would get me in touch with numerous schools.”

Also factoring into the process is how hard a student-athlete will work to get recruited.

Slippen expressed that one needs to take an active role in the process by putting in the work, in order to get the best result: “Throughout the process your expectations are going to need to adjust and you are going to need to make sacrifices.” However, these sacrifices go beyond the status quo. Song describes she spends a majority of her free time “traveling everywhere to camps and showcases, and making sure academics are in line with the schools you are aiming for.” College counselor Bates agreed: “you can be as talented as you want, but if you don’t make the academic index, they literally cannot admit you; even if you could have played at a powerhouse school like Michigan or Kentucky.” 

Sacrifice is a common theme for all the student athletes interviewed for this story. The time invested in becoming an elite athlete comes at the expense of a social life. “When I’m spending so much time going to lift, playing lacrosse, and trying to get my GPA up, there isn’t a lot of time to hang out with friends. ‘FOMO’ kinda sucks sometimes, but I just have to keep reminding myself that I have a different timeline for the college process than a lot of the people,” said Song. 

However, Rye Country Day Track coach Charles Ogbonna believes that this will only cause burnout, and student athletes will actually benefit from variety. “Athletes should still enjoy all that high school has to offer, do multiple sports, and always keep things open,” Ogbonna said.

One more level of complexity that potential recruits have found is the checkered timeline. All colleges do not inform their prospects at the same time. Song said she noticed her other team members getting recruited to elite schools like UVA, Georgetown, and Stanford, while she hopes to get the same recognition. “It is a little difficult to feel happy for your teammate committing when you were also aiming for that school and maybe haven’t gotten an offer yet.” 

The college recruiting process is complicated, and some have even compared securing a spot in the 1% to the lottery. However, there are ways to increase your odds to secure a spot in the 1%. Advice from former RCDS Track and Field competitor Alex Nichols ‘22, now competing for  the University of Amherst, advised athletes that “Coaches want to hear from you why they should take you. Coaches live with recruits for the next four years. They know the influence each kid has on the team culture. These athletes are an extension of the coach and his [or] her decision making. [The coaches look for] a mix of hard work, self-advocacy, and great character.”