Concentrate on the Now

When college soccer comes into sight it can be an exciting and stressful occurrence. Your dreams of playing at a high level become imminent, and your parents may feel some pressure to get you committed to a school. The fact is whatever team you play on, that must remain your primary focus. Many players panic and switch focus to improving their statistics or begin to play a more selfish style hoping to impress. In truth this will have the reverse effect. If a college coach speaks to your club coach and gets feedback that you are not a team player is that the first impression you want to give? If you have a “me first” attitude with your club high school team, this will likely not change in the college game. Play the system and do your best to succeed.

Be Proactive

Many players hold out hope of a dream school sending a letter one day asking for you to go play for them. That is not the reality! Millions of players throughout the country will have similar goals to you and you must be proactive to get yourself noticed. Develop a list of schools you would be interested in attending. Ensure the school offers an academic and life situation you want as well as just soccer. Email coaches and give them information on yourself. Things that will interest college coaches are;

• Your team and what level they play.
• Your GPA.
• Your SAT score.
• Fitness levels (40 yard dash time, bleep test score).
• Your game schedule and any showcase tournaments you are set to play in.

Sell yourself in an honest fashion and do not limit your options to only one or two schools. If your team is going to play in college showcase tournaments, log on to the tournament website and find what schools will be attending. Email any you will be interested in, college coaches usually attend these tournaments with a preset list of players to watch.

Be Persistent

You may receive rejection during your college search and you should not take it personally or let it dent your confidence. Factors come into play during a college search that will be outside of your control. If you play goalkeeper and the coach has 3 returning goalkeepers they feel good about it is unlikely you will ever become a high recruiting priority for them. Spread your search wide and keep your focus on the end goal.

Show Humility

While you may rate your ability it is easy to become selfish and focus on only your performance. This is not the kind of character a college coach will place a high value on, regardless of how good you are. Take responsibility as a team member and look to show leadership, trust the system you play in and ensure your coach will give a glowing reference to any college coach who calls. The opinion of your current coach will carry more weight than your parents, who will always be bias towards your ability.

Keep Your Focus

When a college coach does come to watch you play you will likely want to put in your best performance. The only way to do your best is to concentrate on the task in front of you. If you spend the game worrying about who is on the sideline rather than the task at hand you can become stressed and will not give your best performance. Also take into account what a coach wants to see, if you argue with the referee or teammates this is a sign you lose focus during games. College coaches will also watch you warm up and interact with your teammates, take into account how you want to be perceived, and the type of player you want to be.

Action Plan

• Select a list of target schools, ranging from 5 to 30 schools. Choose schools you think may be above your level slightly, as well as safer targets.
• Email all coaches on your list. Tell them the factors listed above and give any information you think they may be interested in.
• Complete your schedule with current team. Games may be watched to evaluate you, and a college coach may ask about your attendance to practice.
• Remain persistent and upbeat.
• If a college coach asks for any information, be it your grades or paperwork, complete in a prompt fashion as this will be a reflection on how reliable you are.