2.2.22…. February 2, 2022…. One of the best days of my life aka National Signing Day. No. 1 did it, mamas! He signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his academic and football career at the next level. I HAVE A COLLEGIATE ATHLETE!!!
No. 1’s been playing the Quarterback position since he was 8 years old. In fact, he was only 12 when I started this blog, crazy! We didn’t really begin the recruitment process until his Junior year. He is our oldest and the first collegiate athlete on both sides of the family, so we really had no guidance. If we did, we would have known to begin much sooner.
I don’t want you all to make the same mistakes we did, which is why I decided to write this blog post. Now I am by no means claiming to be an expert in this area, however, I did learn a lot along the ride. And thankfully, it all worked out. No. 1 achieved his goal of receiving an athletic scholarship at the Division 1 level!
Here are my 10 tips to help you navigate the recruitment process:
GRADES. This is my MOST important tip. Get that GPA as high as you possibly can. One of the first things that a college coach will ask you is what your GPA is. Don’t wait until your Junior and Senior year to start. It will be very hard to do at that point. A’s and B’s, little to no C’s! People are often misinformed when they read the NCAA eligibility guidelines. They see that they only need a 2.3 for D1 and a 2.0 for D2. That is the bare minimum to be eligible to play yes, but you still have to be accepted to the college. It doesn’t matter how good you are!
Visit the NCAA Eligibility Center. Create a free account. There is no need to upgrade to the paid account until you are sure that your athlete will be playing at the Division 1 or 2 level. Be sure that you are on track to meet all of the requirements to be eligible; including GPA, core courses, and test scores.
Film. Make sure your athlete has film. This is one of the biggest ways that your athlete will be evaluated. If your high school or club team doesn’t record games, you do it. Film is your best marketing tool. You don’t need a fancy camera, you can even record on your iPhone. Don’t wait until they’re on Varsity to start. Your kid is on the Freshman or JV team? Get film! You want to be on coaches radars sooner, rather than later.
Social Media. Social media is huge! Almost all of my son’s contact with coaches came via Twitter. Have your athlete follow schools they’re interested in, as well as the coaches. Make sure your athlete’s handle is professional; it should be their name not something like “Flashy Dude 21”. List their position, measurements, and GPA in the bio. Have them toot their own horn. Upload your film and share your accomplishments. Get chosen as a team captain? Share it! Earned a scholar athlete award? Share it! Broke a school record? Share it! Share, share, SHARE!
Camps. From our personal experience camps at specific colleges you are interested in are the way to go, not combines. Combines turned out to be more of money grabs. College coaches are rarely at combines. Focus your time and energy where it can potentially pay off.
Do NOT pay for a recruiting service. I repeat, DO NOT PAY FOR A RECRUITING SERVICE! It is totally not needed. Google is your best friend, mama. Use it. Google the colleges you are interested in, find the contact info for the coaches (head and position) and send them your film. Film is what will draw them in.
Be realistic. Not everyone is a Division 1 athlete, and that is ok. Only 7% of high school athletes go on to a play a sport in college, with less than 2% going on to play at the D1 level. Do not discredit Division 2 and 3 schools, or even JUCOs. Playing in college, at any level, is a huge accomplishment!
Respond to all coaches. This ties in with number 7. No. 1 had contact with coaches from all 3 divisions and responded to each and every one of them. You never know where they can end up. My neighbor played Division 1 soccer. She was originally recruited to play Division 2 soccer, however that Coach ended up moving up to Division 1 and took her with him. The athletic world is very small. Don’t burn your bridges!
Let your kid lead the way. This is their future, not yours. Coaches want to hear from them, not you. The purpose of calls and visits is for the college coach to get to know the athlete better. They want to see/hear how they conduct themselves; their maturity level, their plans for the future, if they will be the right fit for their program. You can definitely help them, just take a backseat. Help them come up with a list of colleges, proofread their emails before sending out, remind them to check and respond to their messages.
Enjoy the ride. No one said it would be easy, but they did say it would be worth it. Everyone’s ride is different. Some kids have 20+ offers, some have 1. Some have full rides, some have PWOs. Try not to stress too much. The process will be over before you know it and you will be wishing for the time back. I promise.
I hope you found this post helpful! For daily #sportsmomlife inspiration, be sure to join the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group and connect with thousands and thousands of REAL Sports Mamas, just like yourself!
No. 1 and his teammates made the PLAYOFFS!!! It’s the first time the school has been in the post-season since 2015, so it’s kind of a big deal. And the game is HOME! So you know me and my fellow football mama BFFs just had to do something special.
We decorated the fence closest to the field with footballs and balloons. Every player on the team, all 47 of them, had a football with their name and number on it.
Look how nice they turned out!
Did we buy them you ask? Nope, we made them! Want to learn how to make them yourself? Then just keep on reading!
Begin by designing your template. We used PowerPoint but you can use whatever software you prefer. You could even draw them out by hand, if you’d like.
Then add the players’ names, numbers, and team name. Be sure to double
triple check for any typos before printing!
After printing, cut them out.
Then it’s time to work on the foam board. Take one of your footballs and trace as needed; if you have 20 footballs, you will need to trace it 20 times, etc.
When you are done tracing, it’s time to cut again. We used X-ACTO Knives for this part.
Once they are all cut out, you can begin gluing the footballs on.
The final step (if you plan on hanging them) is to make a hole at the top. Depending on how thick your foam board is, you may be able to get away with using a hole puncher. Ours was too thick, so we had to improvise…
Yep, my girl broke out the power tools! Ha. A Sports Mama’s gotta do what a Sports Mama’s gotta do! Am I right?!?
That’s it! Grab a few of your favorite friends and I promise, you can knock it out in no time.
Go get ’em, boys!!!
For more fun ideas and to connect with hundreds of REAL sports moms, just like yourself, be sure to join the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group today!
confessionsofasportsmamaFebruary 25, 2021 at 9:56 PMHi there! I’m having trouble figuring out how to share it to this post as it’s in Power Point. Please email me at confessionsofasportsmama@gmail.com and I will share it with you that way! Thanks!!
UnknownOctober 16, 2021 at 7:21 PMIs there anyway I can get someone to emailed me the pattern please!! chellewade08@gmail.com Thank you so much
AnonymousSeptember 8, 2023 at 3:01 PMI was wondering if I could please get a copy of your template for our boys football team for this year this is such a great idea. Please and thank you in advance.
Jennifer PraetAugust 9, 2021 at 11:13 PMJust found out tonight I am Senior Mom in charge for this season. I would appreciate the template. Reading all your posts with ideas and taking notes. Thank you for the inspiration!ReplyReplies
confessionsofasportsmamaAugust 10, 2021 at 11:39 AMHow fun! My oldest is a Senior this year too and I’m Team Mom as well 🙂 Please email me at confessionsofasportsmama@gmail.com and I’d be happy to forward it!
Cvaldez83August 14, 2021 at 1:19 AMMy son is a Senior this year and we are have a senior night this year for first time. I would love to do this for the team. Can you please email me the template. Thank you! Valdezcrystal00@gmail.comReplyReplies
UnknownAugust 19, 2021 at 1:07 PMMe, Me, Me! Please share template. I found another football and made them but I like yours much better. Please share. Simsshawn@yahoo.com Thanks!!!Reply
UnknownAugust 20, 2021 at 11:38 AMThese are amazing. Could you email me the template? Jordainrachelle@gmail.com My kids first game is next week. Thank you!Reply
AnonymousSeptember 12, 2021 at 12:14 PMI am helping with team nights and would love the template!! Sdellamas@hotmail.com Thank you these are amazing!!Reply
TenishaSeptember 19, 2021 at 9:16 PMHello – I am planning our youth football team homecoming and these would be perfect for the stadium decor. Can you please email the template to me as well?
CardinalSpiritSeptember 23, 2021 at 12:41 AMThis idea is fantastic! I was going to cut out wood templates and paint. This would be so much easier & faster. I look forward to checking out other ideas on your blog. If you don’t mind sharing the template, I would appreciate it! Thank you Mkberger5@gmail.comReply
Marissa M.January 3, 2022 at 3:14 PMLove it. I’m on FB Boosters and we are planning our banquet. Would love to add these to our decor. Could I get the template please? Marissahaas@cox.netReply
Marissa M.January 3, 2022 at 3:42 PMLove it! I’m in FB Boosters and would love to add this to our banquet decor! Can you please send me the template? Marissahaas@cox.netReply
AnonymousJune 3, 2022 at 2:18 AMHello, I would love the template as well! Trying to get a head start on team gifts. Here is my email ajsmommy1028@yahoo.comReply
AnonymousAugust 12, 2022 at 12:12 AMWould you please send me the template to me that you used as well for the footballs. My son is a Sr. this year and we would love to do this. Thank you. Pioneerfootballboosters@yahoo.com thank you!Reply
AnonymousSeptember 12, 2022 at 8:25 PMHi… love your idea!! I am a Senior parent & organizing a few football events. Would love you to email this template if you would be so kind. Thanks for sharing!! kim.crowley1@comcast.net
AnonymousSeptember 7, 2022 at 11:40 AMHello. Would you please email me the template. These are super cute for homecoming. Selinaapf@gmail.com. Thank you!Reply
AnonymousSeptember 10, 2022 at 9:51 AMI’d love it if you could email the football template to me please. It would be greatly appreciated! Thank you mchllewin@yahoo.comReply
Missy BassettSeptember 11, 2022 at 8:18 PMHi! I am making a poster for homecoming this year. Would you care to email me the template you used? This is a great idea! Thank you in advance for sharing. missybassett@yahoo.comReply
AnonymousSeptember 13, 2022 at 9:11 AMOh this is perfect!!! We have parents on our team who can’t do anything to help decorate their child’s lockers. I would like to help in any way to make this easier. Your football is perfect!! Thanks for the tutorial!! Would you please send me the template as well, I would appreciate it!!! Thank you!! Kellyclinton@hotmail.comReply
AnonymousSeptember 27, 2022 at 10:15 AMCan you send template to dana@huntingtonquarterly.com? I am in charge of homecoming Saturday and need something in a hurry.Reply
AnonymousOctober 3, 2022 at 11:49 PMI would love to get this done for my sons senior night this friday for him and his team. Can I ask how would i be able to get a copy of this template? Reply
AnonymousOctober 6, 2022 at 6:02 PMHello! I love this idea! If you wouldn’t mind…could send this template to rmbecker@kent.edu?Reply
AnonymousOctober 13, 2022 at 9:19 AMCould you please email my the football template. Would love to use it to decorate lockers before the season is over. melissag.makeup@gmail.comReply
AnonymousOctober 16, 2022 at 1:20 PMIf you wouldn’t mind I would also love a template, if you could send it to Patty.67@live.com thank you so much!Reply
AnonymousOctober 21, 2022 at 2:13 AMHoly moly! You got a lot of requests for the powerpoint football template. Would love as well… our senior night is the 28th and I have 2 seniors this year. Getting extra creative to make it extra special! elhsbooster@yahoo.com. Thank you!!!Reply
AnonymousOctober 29, 2022 at 4:42 PMHello, if could you send the template to me too pretty please! We’re in round 2 of playoffs and love this idea! Thank you! wickless06@gmail.comReply
AnonymousNovember 4, 2022 at 2:28 PMHi, I would love to make these for our team this weekend, could I get the Template for this?😊 tpebenito@icloud.comReply
AnonymousOctober 2, 2023 at 12:32 AMCould you email me the template as well please and thank you! It is exactly what we were looking for, for our senior night. jajones8@yahoo.comReply
AnonymousNovember 5, 2023 at 3:54 PMI couldn’t find the template either . Would someone mind emailing it to me mommyhuff4@gmail.com!? Thanks in advance 🙂Reply
AnonymousNovember 6, 2023 at 8:22 PMHey, I would like to know if you can send me the template for this great idea. Thanks in advance. Melstar0818@gmail.com.Reply
AnonymousAugust 18, 2024 at 12:37 AMHi, I know this post is a few years old, but if you’re still sharing the template, I’d love to have a copy. How generous you are to have shared it with so many. I imagine you had no idea you’d have so many requests! I’m happy to pay for it too! organizedhomeschooler@gmail.com. Thank you so much!Reply
AnonymousOctober 6, 2024 at 1:08 PMHi, is there anyway I possibly could get the template you used my email is kimberly6391@yahoo.com it would greatly be appreciated.Reply
AnonymousOctober 8, 2024 at 12:58 PMHello. I love this idea! Are you still sharing the template? If so could you please send to me at jenniferglass12@yahoo.com? Thank you!ReplyReplies
AnonymousOctober 11, 2024 at 1:43 PMPlanning a pep rally next week would really love this template would you mind sending it please jvjhjvjh4@gmail.com thank you so muchReply
AnonymousApril 9, 2025 at 9:24 AMIs the template still available? I’d love to use it. My email is maggiemartin76@gmail.comReply
AnonymousJune 30, 2025 at 11:12 PMIs this football template still available?! I would love a copy. Email is breighr@yahoo.com.Reply
AnonymousJuly 28, 2025 at 1:36 PMHello, is this available? Can you email me the template? valandryan1@gmail.com. Thanks!Reply
AnonymousSeptember 23, 2025 at 1:18 PMI would love this template! I emailed you, but if anyone else sees this message, can you please email it to me! mallorygrandpre@yahoo.comReply
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