Recruiting

[spidey44]

USF has three kids portal to High Point and Ohio State. I think there is two more that left who was a 2023 commit, anyone know where they went? Also it looks like the number is now 5 2024s no longer with USF. Mindy is getting rid of kids left and right it seems.

I believe the four players are joining High Point, Holy Cross, Ohio State, and Virginia Tech.

The one at VT is not playing lacrosse.

[TBD]

With the Senior games tonight it is interesting to use the earlier posting about the current status of the 2022 top 100 players to assess how the 2022 Senior game selection reflects college success to date at least as a snapshot of one class.

Of the 46 players selected for the senior game all were in the original top 50 list but only 32 are on the list of 67 2022 players who are currently All American through contributors. Breakdown is:

1 of 3 AA players'
5 of 12 All Conference players
2 0f 5 multi year starters
7 of 17 starters
17 of 29 contributors

[MolonLaxe]

With the Senior games tonight it is interesting to use the earlier posting about the current status of the 2022 top 100 players to assess how the 2022 Senior game selection reflects college success to date at least as a snapshot of one class.

Of the 46 players selected for the senior game all were in the original top 50 list but only 32 are on the list of 67 2022 players who are currently All American through contributors. Breakdown is:

1 of 3 AA players'
5 of 12 All Conference players
2 0f 5 multi year starters
7 of 17 starters
17 of 29 contributors

Interesting numbers.

The women’s game didn’t look all that competitive or great to me. I suspect they will have nailed some of the top players, but a good portion playing earlier tonight will not be huge college stars.

[TBD]

Again only one year snapshot but having roughly one third of the top 50 ranked players/Senior game honorees from 2022 having solid first two year college careers, one third contributors and one third not yet panning out is likely not what is expected going into the college career. No idea how this compares with 2021 or 2023.

[Kleizaster]

it goes in cycles. some classes are stronger than others and produce a stronger crop of collegiate players. But generally speaking, yes the further away you are from the top 25, the less likely you are of being a star level collegiate player. not to say it doesn't happen. But chances are low. and by star player i mean a 1st or 2nd team all America type player

i listed some examples of my tier system and players who were in that group recruiting wise coming out of high school to illustrate my point

The way i see it,

Top 5 players in a class: Equivalent to franchise players. Low bust potential. The floor is a contributing starter at a top 5 or 6 program. or somewhere in between. The ceiling is a program changing, multi year all 1st team all american wherever they go.

high ceiling examples: Taylor cummings, Kayla treanor, Marie McCool

floor examples: Elizabeth Hillman, Leah Holmes
considered "bust": Mallory Hasselbeck, Dema Hall, Summer Agostino

6-15: All kind of in the same tier. really good players. Will be the number 1 option at a top 25 program. few will have top 5 talent and become program changers. most will be average to good players. some will disappear entirely.

high end example: Charlotte North
normal example: Megan Tyrell
low end example: Amanda Ignacio (formerly of stanford and loyola)

16-30: most players here will be solid starters at a top 25 program. alot of 2nd and 3rd team all america level players.

high end example: Izzy Scane
normal examples: Ella Hazar, Caroline Steele, Courtney Weeks

31-50: these are mostly backups or third string players at a top 5 or 6 program. Everywhere else, they are your average D1 starters at a top 40 or so program. Not elite, not terrible, very average. Few will break out to become top players at their positions

high end examples: Emily Nalls, Emma Ward

beyond 50: you start getting into mainly mid-level to low tier D1 players. probably still the #1 option on a mid to low tier program. some diamonds in the rough. some high level late bloomers hidden among them simply because this is the largest sample size and biggest make up of college lacrosse players.

high end examples: Madison Epke, Isabella Peterson

of course, this isn't to say this is law. My point is, the percent chance and likelihood and confidence levels of collegiate success at top D1 schools is higher with higher ranked players. because they are just more talented. as a result, those programs are just better. recruiting matters. a player who was ranked high and fizzled out in college and a player who wasn't ranked and ended up being a star are not some final judgement on talent evaluation or recruiting. Some people here need to understand that. You have to look at the bigger picture and overall trends for a more accurate understanding of the landscape and how things works, not individual, isolated cases to try and argue that recruiting rankings are useless or some political ploy. We are ranked and compared to others in life the moment we are born. it's no different in lacrosse or any other sport.

[Relax77]

it goes in cycles. some classes are stronger than others and produce a stronger crop of collegiate players. But generally speaking, yes the further away you are from the top 25, the less likely you are of being a star level collegiate player. not to say it doesn't happen. But chances are low. and by star player i mean a 1st or 2nd team all america type player

Good example of this is Abby Hormes. Played for High Point set a record for goals in a season (103 ) and she got AA honorable mention. Took a lot of heat because she broke North’s record playing on a weak conference. The truth is though if she played in a better conference, I believe she still would have been dominant.

[VAMomGlax2019]

USF has three kids portal to High Point and Ohio State. I think there is two more that left who was a 2023 commit, anyone know where they went? Also it looks like the number is now 5 2024s no longer with USF. Mindy is getting rid of kids left and right it seems.

I believe the four players are joining High Point, Holy Cross, Ohio State, and Virginia Tech.

The one at VT is not playing lacrosse.

Confirmed, playing.

[MolonLaxe]

Let’s not act like lacrosse is some sort of island when it comes to recruiting. Analysis of players can be off and with Women’s lacrosse, it’s easy to pick out the top 3-5 players, but from there IL Women is terrible at the job. It’s a niche area and we do not have as many eyes on the process as college football.

Even there you’ll see a fair amount of variation from the different sources, with players rising and falling.

Also, we haven’t even addressed how female athletic development is so much different from what you see with males.

[Relax77]

Let’s not act like lacrosse is some sort of island when it comes to recruiting. Analysis of players can be off and with Women’s lacrosse, it’s easy to pick out the top 3-5 players, but from there IL Women is terrible at the job. It’s a niche area and we do not have as many eyes on the process as college football.

Even there you’ll see a fair amount of variation from the different sources, with players rising and falling.

Also, we haven’t even addressed how female athletic development is so much different from what you see with males.

Yeah I’ll agree with that. It’s largely name and club driven. There’s many kids not ranked that do well in college. I would love to see the amount of AA’s not ranked and to see how large that either supports or hurts that theory. But I’m not looking that up.

[jff97]

Let’s not act like lacrosse is some sort of island when it comes to recruiting. Analysis of players can be off and with Women’s lacrosse, it’s easy to pick out the top 3-5 players, but from there IL Women is terrible at the job. It’s a niche area and we do not have as many eyes on the process as college football.

Even there you’ll see a fair amount of variation from the different sources, with players rising and falling.

Also, we haven’t even addressed how female athletic development is so much different from what you see with males.

Yeah I’ll agree with that. It’s largely name and club driven. There’s many kids not ranked that do well in college. I would love to see the amount of AA’s not ranked and to see how large that either supports or hurts that theory. But I’m not looking that up.

I can't tell about unranked players because like you said it's too much work, but here's how many in the top 100 were All-Americans through the years of eligibility they were given (5 for 2017-19, 4 for 2020)
2017: 25 AAs, 21 in top 50
2018: 11 AAs, 10 in top 50
2019: 22 AAs, 16 in top 50
2020: 20 AAs, 17 in top 50
Maybe there are more unranked kids total, but the likelihood of a top 100 player being an All-American is much higher than one who is not. You see the same thing with 5-star recruits compared to lower ranked players in college football. We all love the story of the kid who only had one offer and became a star, but it doesn't happen very often.

[ultravisitor]

beyond 50: you start getting into mainly mid-level to low tier D1 players. probably still the #1 option on a mid to low tier program. some diamonds in the rough. some high level late bloomers hidden among them simply because this is the largest sample size and biggest make up of college lacrosse players.

high end examples: Madison Epke, Isabella Peterson

Madison Taylor is prob the best recent high-end example from the beyond 50 range.

[TBD]

Absolutely on Madison Taylor and she is part of a group of 21 players that have had the most success so far in that class (AA, All Conference and multi year starters) from which 3 are top 10 players and 8 are top 50.

[LaxDadMax]

beyond 50: you start getting into mainly mid-level to low tier D1 players. probably still the #1 option on a mid to low tier program. some diamonds in the rough. some high level late bloomers hidden among them simply because this is the largest sample size and biggest make up of college lacrosse players.

high end examples: Madison Epke, Isabella Peterson

Madison Taylor is prob the best recent high-end example from the beyond 50 range.

She definitely should have been ranked higher. But she got caught up in club politics and didn't even start for most of her club career at Top Guns since she didn't go to a "preferred" high school

[laxguy516]

With roster caps in place, it will be interesting to see the size of the 2026 recruiting classes compared to previous years for each program. Do we see a lot more programs with 6-8 instead of 10-12 recruits?

[SweeptheLeg]

With roster caps in place, it will be interesting to see the size of the 2026 recruiting classes compared to previous years for each program. Do we see a lot more programs with 6-8 instead of 10-12 recruits?

Probably depends on how well the coaches did with their previous recruiting classes. If the upperclass players can contribute I think we will see a smaller class. If not, I think coaches will be more apt to cut players, making room to take chances with more 2026s. Either way, players will be impacts across classes.

[LaxDadMax]

As a parent of someone who has gone through the process 3 times and has a 27 about to formally start it, I wanted to share some tips I’ve picked up along the way. I posted something similar last August and it was well received so I thought I would add a bit and repost
I am only writing this as a way to help those who are going through this for the first time. This is by no means exhaustive, but some notes I jotted down which I think could help. Please keep in mind that these are my opinions and several folks who have been through the process may have other thoughts.

If you want anything further, my DMs are always open.

For 2026s

In no particular order, except for the first one

1) Before 9/1, get with your recruiting director and level set expectations. They should not know most, but not all, colleges with a high level of interest. Some interested may not reach out, and you will likely get some who were completely off your radar

2) Before 9/1, make sure to email out and update on recruiting intake forms, yours latest grades and if you have taken them SAT and PSAT scores. Also grade reports and transcripts are different things. Make sure to upload your transcript to sportsrecruits and individual college questionaires. If possible, load one with your junior year classes.

3) Don't stay up till midnight on 8/31 waiting to see who reaches out. Not worth it. Also, the first emails you get will likely be big form letters from schools who are reaching out to almost everyone.

4) Not all schools who indicate interest, will follow up with a phone call. It happens. Most schools are reaching out to 80-120 kids on 9/1. They will have phone calls with 35-45 and end up offering around 15-20 over time to fill 8-10 spots

5) Don't read much into who reaches out to you, whether it is the head coach or a coordinator, every school works their own process. Some schools want their DC reaches out to all defensive recruits. Doesn't mean they love you less.

6) PREP for your first call. Before you talk to a coach, you should know
a) what you would major in in that school (its ok to have a couple different ideas, its not ok to say "huhhh... I don't know")
b) what type of offense/defense that school runs
c) their level of success from past season
d) where the school is located.
e) their home football schedule (more on this for #7)
If possible go to ESPN+ and watch film of the school. Even if it means pushing the call back a day or two

7) Most schools schedule recruiting visits to align with football weekends. In case you get invited for a visit, you should know these dates. It also means chat with your top schools first so don't fill up your calendar.

8) Many schools don't do official visits until you commit. This means you will be paying for everyone for a fall visit.

9) If you get an offer, 1) Congrats, not many people get to this level. 2) Make sure to ask when the coach needs an answer by 3) Make sure to know academic expectations for maintaining the offer post commit and most importantly 4) understand that timelines are fluid. A coach may give you 5 weeks, but then press for decision at 3 weeks if one of their "backup" prospects is ready to commit elsewhere

10). I've never had a goalie, but I understand their process is crazy. Not unheard of to get less than a week to decide on an offer since they are only recruiting one and don't want backups to go elsewhere.

11) End everyone call with, "what are the next steps in the process"?

12) Some coaches will ghost you. it happens. Its not you, its them

13) Try to keep an open mind and don't have your heart set on any one school -- this may end up having your pass on good opportunities.

14) Everyone's process is a bit different. remember the goal is to find your best fit, not get committed faster than others.

15) When a coach asked you who else is recruiting you, be honest. Coaches talk. Remember the goal of this question for them is to understand if they have a chance with you. For instance, if you are talking to Lehigh and you mention that the other schools you are talking to are UVA, Duke, Northwestern and BC, they will likely think they have no chance and probably stop the recruitment.

16) Some offers will give you a range of $$, but not an exact amount until recruiting class is full. Others will have exact amount. Everyone works differently

17) Make sure your parents have a recent FAFSA or other financial info from parents. Most schools, especially well-endowed ones, will try to get your merit or need based money before athletic $$.

18) Don't go to any fall prospect days if you aren't actively speaking to coach. Otherwise, just a waste of $$

19) Most of the girls who commit in the first 2 or 3 weeks of September are either 1) legacies 2) aren't getting any athletic $$ or 3) Both. Don't let seeing who else is committing impact you too much. (The exception is goalies-- you need to monitor every commit since there are so few spots available).

20) If you aren't getting a clear indication of level of interest or where you stand from a coach, get your recruiting director involved. Quite frankly, this is what you have paid tens of thousands of $$ of club dues for over the past 3-8 years.
21) Recruiting visits are job interviews for both the player and the parents. Parents, don’t say anything about pretty much anyone. Stay in the back and don’t ask questions except in the 1:1 meeting if/when an offer is made. For athletes, you are being evaluated on fit as much as anything else. Getting along with existing players and future teammates is as important as lax skills at this point. If you have a former girl from your club at the school, this is a big advantage.
22) If you have trouble fitting in multiple visits, don’t be afraid to ask for a mid-week visit. This is also a good way to see how serious a school is about you. If they don’t want you on a mid-week visit, you aren’t a top target.
23) Coaches love talking Xs and Os. Watch their game film and ask detailed questions. This is also a way to segue into where you may fit within their scheme.

For 2027s and younger
1) Before October of your sophomore year, get with your club director and develop a realistic target list of schools. This will evolve over time, but you need a solid list to start with. The girls who don’t find a spot tend to be ones who don’t target the right level of play. Lots of club directors will tell girls what they want to hear to keep them on their club.
2) Reach out to targeted schools, but don’t do it during August and September. Coaches are focused on 2026s at this point. Send a note in early October before fall showcases showing your interest and including last summer’s film
3) Club games and showcases in the fall are VERY important, especially if you aren’t on a top 40 club. If the first time a coach sees you play is in June, it could be too late. (There are exceptions here, but coaches especially top 50 want to see consistency)
4) Presidents Cup in the fall is critical if you don’t play in the other top tourneys (NE Showcase, Fall Draw, Lax For the Cure, Chesapeake). If you play in those, you will likely have fewer coaches at Presidents Cup than some team who don’t play in any major fall tourneys
5) Focus on showcases/prospect days for school on your list. This list will evolve over time but prevents you from waste $$ blindly.
6) If you are on a top 40 club, don’t go to more than 1 of the following – Juniors Open, BIC, UA 150. You will already have enough good film out there. Save $$
7) After November, don’t go to a prospect day until your recruiting director has talked to a college coach. Doesn’t make sense if you aren’t on their list.
8) Showing interest via email is most important for schools outside of the top 25. Each of my girls had top 25 schools who they never reached out to reach out to them in early September, but few schools will serious interest outside of the top 25.
9) During club games, coaches are watching more attitude and composure than technical skills. They can tell if you can play in 5 minutes, they need to watch you 5 times to see if you are someone they want on their team.
10) If you are targeting high-academic schools (esp Pat League/Ivies), make sure to share PSAT scores. Very few schools are test-blind anymore. Scores matter. If you kid didn’t get a good score on PSAT 8/9, consider taking a prep class.
11) If you aren’t strong on both ends of the field, don’t go to prospect days/showcases as a midfielder. Your bad plays on one field of the field likely outweight good ones on the other. There are VERY FEW two-way players in the modern game. Most middies are recruiting on attack or D.

[spidey44]

Tell anyone that tells you to "enjoy the process" to f off It's stressful and miserable. Looking back we were done in mid September but man it seemed like it took forever.

As far as staying up on 8/31... It was fun. My kid got a bunch of emails as you said, but a bunch of texts too and had calls setup for during the day on 9/1 before she went to sleep. *Your mileage may vary!

[Womenslaxxfan]

As a parent of someone who has gone through the process 3 times and has a 27 about to formally start it, I wanted to share some tips I’ve picked up along the way. I posted something similar last August and it was well received so I thought I would add a bit and repost
I am only writing this as a way to help those who are going through this for the first time. This is by no means exhaustive, but some notes I jotted down which I think could help. Please keep in mind that these are my opinions and several folks who have been through the process may have other thoughts.

If you want anything further, my DMs are always open.

For 2026s

In no particular order, except for the first one

1) Before 9/1, get with your recruiting director and level set expectations. They should not know most, but not all, colleges with a high level of interest. Some interested may not reach out, and you will likely get some who were completely off your radar

2) Before 9/1, make sure to email out and update on recruiting intake forms, yours latest grades and if you have taken them SAT and PSAT scores. Also grade reports and transcripts are different things. Make sure to upload your transcript to sportsrecruits and individual college questionaires. If possible, load one with your junior year classes.

3) Don't stay up till midnight on 8/31 waiting to see who reaches out. Not worth it. Also, the first emails you get will likely be big form letters from schools who are reaching out to almost everyone.

4) Not all schools who indicate interest, will follow up with a phone call. It happens. Most schools are reaching out to 80-120 kids on 9/1. They will have phone calls with 35-45 and end up offering around 15-20 over time to fill 8-10 spots

5) Don't read much into who reaches out to you, whether it is the head coach or a coordinator, every school works their own process. Some schools want their DC reaches out to all defensive recruits. Doesn't mean they love you less.

6) PREP for your first call. Before you talk to a coach, you should know
a) what you would major in in that school (its ok to have a couple different ideas, its not ok to say "huhhh... I don't know")
b) what type of offense/defense that school runs
c) their level of success from past season
d) where the school is located.
e) their home football schedule (more on this for #7)
If possible go to ESPN+ and watch film of the school. Even if it means pushing the call back a day or two

7) Most schools schedule recruiting visits to align with football weekends. In case you get invited for a visit, you should know these dates. It also means chat with your top schools first so don't fill up your calendar.

8) Many schools don't do official visits until you commit. This means you will be paying for everyone for a fall visit.

9) If you get an offer, 1) Congrats, not many people get to this level. 2) Make sure to ask when the coach needs an answer by 3) Make sure to know academic expectations for maintaining the offer post commit and most importantly 4) understand that timelines are fluid. A coach may give you 5 weeks, but then press for decision at 3 weeks if one of their "backup" prospects is ready to commit elsewhere

10). I've never had a goalie, but I understand their process is crazy. Not unheard of to get less than a week to decide on an offer since they are only recruiting one and don't want backups to go elsewhere.

11) End everyone call with, "what are the next steps in the process"?

12) Some coaches will ghost you. it happens. Its not you, its them

13) Try to keep an open mind and don't have your heart set on any one school -- this may end up having your pass on good opportunities.

14) Everyone's process is a bit different. remember the goal is to find your best fit, not get committed faster than others.

15) When a coach asked you who else is recruiting you, be honest. Coaches talk. Remember the goal of this question for them is to understand if they have a chance with you. For instance, if you are talking to Lehigh and you mention that the other schools you are talking to are UVA, Duke, Northwestern and BC, they will likely think they have no chance and probably stop the recruitment.

16) Some offers will give you a range of $$, but not an exact amount until recruiting class is full. Others will have exact amount. Everyone works differently

17) Make sure your parents have a recent FAFSA or other financial info from parents. Most schools, especially well-endowed ones, will try to get your merit or need based money before athletic $$.

18) Don't go to any fall prospect days if you aren't actively speaking to coach. Otherwise, just a waste of $$

19) Most of the girls who commit in the first 2 or 3 weeks of September are either 1) legacies 2) aren't getting any athletic $$ or 3) Both. Don't let seeing who else is committing impact you too much. (The exception is goalies-- you need to monitor every commit since there are so few spots available).

20) If you aren't getting a clear indication of level of interest or where you stand from a coach, get your recruiting director involved. Quite frankly, this is what you have paid tens of thousands of $$ of club dues for over the past 3-8 years.
21) Recruiting visits are job interviews for both the player and the parents. Parents, don’t say anything about pretty much anyone. Stay in the back and don’t ask questions except in the 1:1 meeting if/when an offer is made. For athletes, you are being evaluated on fit as much as anything else. Getting along with existing players and future teammates is as important as lax skills at this point. If you have a former girl from your club at the school, this is a big advantage.
22) If you have trouble fitting in multiple visits, don’t be afraid to ask for a mid-week visit. This is also a good way to see how serious a school is about you. If they don’t want you on a mid-week visit, you aren’t a top target.
23) Coaches love talking Xs and Os. Watch their game film and ask detailed questions. This is also a way to segue into where you may fit within their scheme.

For 2027s and younger
1) Before October of your sophomore year, get with your club director and develop a realistic target list of schools. This will evolve over time, but you need a solid list to start with. The girls who don’t find a spot tend to be ones who don’t target the right level of play. Lots of club directors will tell girls what they want to hear to keep them on their club.
2) Reach out to targeted schools, but don’t do it during August and September. Coaches are focused on 2026s at this point. Send a note in early October before fall showcases showing your interest and including last summer’s film
3) Club games and showcases in the fall are VERY important, especially if you aren’t on a top 40 club. If the first time a coach sees you play is in June, it could be too late. (There are exceptions here, but coaches especially top 50 want to see consistency)
4) Presidents Cup in the fall is critical if you don’t play in the other top tourneys (NE Showcase, Fall Draw, Lax For the Cure, Chesapeake). If you play in those, you will likely have fewer coaches at Presidents Cup than some team who don’t play in any major fall tourneys
5) Focus on showcases/prospect days for school on your list. This list will evolve over time but prevents you from waste $$ blindly.
6) If you are on a top 40 club, don’t go to more than 1 of the following – Juniors Open, BIC, UA 150. You will already have enough good film out there. Save $$
7) After November, don’t go to a prospect day until your recruiting director has talked to a college coach. Doesn’t make sense if you aren’t on their list.
8) Showing interest via email is most important for schools outside of the top 25. Each of my girls had top 25 schools who they never reached out to reach out to them in early September, but few schools will serious interest outside of the top 25.
9) During club games, coaches are watching more attitude and composure than technical skills. They can tell if you can play in 5 minutes, they need to watch you 5 times to see if you are someone they want on their team.
10) If you are targeting high-academic schools (esp Pat League/Ivies), make sure to share PSAT scores. Very few schools are test-blind anymore. Scores matter. If you kid didn’t get a good score on PSAT 8/9, consider taking a prep class.
11) If you aren’t strong on both ends of the field, don’t go to prospect days/showcases as a midfielder. Your bad plays on one field of the field likely outweight good ones on the other. There are VERY FEW two-way players in the modern game. Most middies are recruiting on attack or D.

GREAT post. Your note on understanding academic expectations post-commit is very important. The commit is only useful if you actually get into the school!!!!!

[Relax77]

Tell anyone that tells you to "enjoy the process" to f off It's stressful and miserable. Looking back we were done in mid September but man it seemed like it took forever.

As far as staying up on 8/31... It was fun. My kid got a bunch of emails as you said, but a bunch of texts too and had calls setup for during the day on 9/1 before she went to sleep. *Your mileage may vary!

My 2025 had the same experience. Staying up was fun. September 1 was fun. The next three weeks sucked.

[Deacon022]

As a parent of someone who has gone through the process 3 times and has a 27 about to formally start it, I wanted to share some tips I’ve picked up along the way. I posted something similar last August and it was well received so I thought I would add a bit and repost
I am only writing this as a way to help those who are going through this for the first time. This is by no means exhaustive, but some notes I jotted down which I think could help. Please keep in mind that these are my opinions and several folks who have been through the process may have other thoughts.

If you want anything further, my DMs are always open.

For 2026s

In no particular order, except for the first one

1) Before 9/1, get with your recruiting director and level set expectations. They should not know most, but not all, colleges with a high level of interest. Some interested may not reach out, and you will likely get some who were completely off your radar

2) Before 9/1, make sure to email out and update on recruiting intake forms, yours latest grades and if you have taken them SAT and PSAT scores. Also grade reports and transcripts are different things. Make sure to upload your transcript to sportsrecruits and individual college questionaires. If possible, load one with your junior year classes.

3) Don't stay up till midnight on 8/31 waiting to see who reaches out. Not worth it. Also, the first emails you get will likely be big form letters from schools who are reaching out to almost everyone.

4) Not all schools who indicate interest, will follow up with a phone call. It happens. Most schools are reaching out to 80-120 kids on 9/1. They will have phone calls with 35-45 and end up offering around 15-20 over time to fill 8-10 spots

5) Don't read much into who reaches out to you, whether it is the head coach or a coordinator, every school works their own process. Some schools want their DC reaches out to all defensive recruits. Doesn't mean they love you less.

6) PREP for your first call. Before you talk to a coach, you should know
a) what you would major in in that school (its ok to have a couple different ideas, its not ok to say "huhhh... I don't know")
b) what type of offense/defense that school runs
c) their level of success from past season
d) where the school is located.
e) their home football schedule (more on this for #7)
If possible go to ESPN+ and watch film of the school. Even if it means pushing the call back a day or two

7) Most schools schedule recruiting visits to align with football weekends. In case you get invited for a visit, you should know these dates. It also means chat with your top schools first so don't fill up your calendar.

8) Many schools don't do official visits until you commit. This means you will be paying for everyone for a fall visit.

9) If you get an offer, 1) Congrats, not many people get to this level. 2) Make sure to ask when the coach needs an answer by 3) Make sure to know academic expectations for maintaining the offer post commit and most importantly 4) understand that timelines are fluid. A coach may give you 5 weeks, but then press for decision at 3 weeks if one of their "backup" prospects is ready to commit elsewhere

10). I've never had a goalie, but I understand their process is crazy. Not unheard of to get less than a week to decide on an offer since they are only recruiting one and don't want backups to go elsewhere.

11) End everyone call with, "what are the next steps in the process"?

12) Some coaches will ghost you. it happens. Its not you, its them

13) Try to keep an open mind and don't have your heart set on any one school -- this may end up having your pass on good opportunities.

14) Everyone's process is a bit different. remember the goal is to find your best fit, not get committed faster than others.

15) When a coach asked you who else is recruiting you, be honest. Coaches talk. Remember the goal of this question for them is to understand if they have a chance with you. For instance, if you are talking to Lehigh and you mention that the other schools you are talking to are UVA, Duke, Northwestern and BC, they will likely think they have no chance and probably stop the recruitment.

16) Some offers will give you a range of $$, but not an exact amount until recruiting class is full. Others will have exact amount. Everyone works differently

17) Make sure your parents have a recent FAFSA or other financial info from parents. Most schools, especially well-endowed ones, will try to get your merit or need based money before athletic $$.

18) Don't go to any fall prospect days if you aren't actively speaking to coach. Otherwise, just a waste of $$

19) Most of the girls who commit in the first 2 or 3 weeks of September are either 1) legacies 2) aren't getting any athletic $$ or 3) Both. Don't let seeing who else is committing impact you too much. (The exception is goalies-- you need to monitor every commit since there are so few spots available).

20) If you aren't getting a clear indication of level of interest or where you stand from a coach, get your recruiting director involved. Quite frankly, this is what you have paid tens of thousands of $$ of club dues for over the past 3-8 years.
21) Recruiting visits are job interviews for both the player and the parents. Parents, don’t say anything about pretty much anyone. Stay in the back and don’t ask questions except in the 1:1 meeting if/when an offer is made. For athletes, you are being evaluated on fit as much as anything else. Getting along with existing players and future teammates is as important as lax skills at this point. If you have a former girl from your club at the school, this is a big advantage.
22) If you have trouble fitting in multiple visits, don’t be afraid to ask for a mid-week visit. This is also a good way to see how serious a school is about you. If they don’t want you on a mid-week visit, you aren’t a top target.
23) Coaches love talking Xs and Os. Watch their game film and ask detailed questions. This is also a way to segue into where you may fit within their scheme.

For 2027s and younger
1) Before October of your sophomore year, get with your club director and develop a realistic target list of schools. This will evolve over time, but you need a solid list to start with. The girls who don’t find a spot tend to be ones who don’t target the right level of play. Lots of club directors will tell girls what they want to hear to keep them on their club.
2) Reach out to targeted schools, but don’t do it during August and September. Coaches are focused on 2026s at this point. Send a note in early October before fall showcases showing your interest and including last summer’s film
3) Club games and showcases in the fall are VERY important, especially if you aren’t on a top 40 club. If the first time a coach sees you play is in June, it could be too late. (There are exceptions here, but coaches especially top 50 want to see consistency)
4) Presidents Cup in the fall is critical if you don’t play in the other top tourneys (NE Showcase, Fall Draw, Lax For the Cure, Chesapeake). If you play in those, you will likely have fewer coaches at Presidents Cup than some team who don’t play in any major fall tourneys
5) Focus on showcases/prospect days for school on your list. This list will evolve over time but prevents you from waste $$ blindly.
6) If you are on a top 40 club, don’t go to more than 1 of the following – Juniors Open, BIC, UA 150. You will already have enough good film out there. Save $$
7) After November, don’t go to a prospect day until your recruiting director has talked to a college coach. Doesn’t make sense if you aren’t on their list.
8) Showing interest via email is most important for schools outside of the top 25. Each of my girls had top 25 schools who they never reached out to reach out to them in early September, but few schools will serious interest outside of the top 25.
9) During club games, coaches are watching more attitude and composure than technical skills. They can tell if you can play in 5 minutes, they need to watch you 5 times to see if you are someone they want on their team.
10) If you are targeting high-academic schools (esp Pat League/Ivies), make sure to share PSAT scores. Very few schools are test-blind anymore. Scores matter. If you kid didn’t get a good score on PSAT 8/9, consider taking a prep class.
11) If you aren’t strong on both ends of the field, don’t go to prospect days/showcases as a midfielder. Your bad plays on one field of the field likely outweight good ones on the other. There are VERY FEW two-way players in the modern game. Most middies are recruiting on attack or D.

Awesome post. The parents of 2026’s will surely appreciate it.

Pretty much spot on but I don’t agree with 3. That was super exciting for her. But she was told there would be significant interest. If you follow #1, you should know if your getting emails. I also don’t agree with #19 as well. It seemed like last year the cycle was super fast and more girls were committing early. 75% of my daughter’s travel team was pretty much done by the end of September with ten of them going pretty much the middle of Sept. I’m pretty sure they all got significant money as well. I would change that to don’t rush the process. My daughter did because she couldn’t take the stress. Took the money and ran.