You’re excited! You’re nervous! You’re on the basketball court, the football field, the baseball diamond, softball field, etc., and you know college coaches and/or scouts are in the stands. What are they looking for? Is playing a great game, enough? What are college coaches looking for when evaluating potential recruits? FYI… your skill set is not enough! Here are 5 things coaches look for when recruiting student-athletes. These are not listed in any particular order.

1. How You Play The Game

It’s not enough to play the game. How you play the game is just as important. Coaches are looking for tough scrappy players. Athletes who are competitive, play hard and go 110% the entire game! As an athlete, you must make that mental decision to compete no matter the score, time left in the game, or how you are playing at any given moment. It is all about effort!

2. Attitude

Your attitude speaks volume about you as a person and as a student-athlete! And, I mean volumes!!! Do you quit when the score on the scoreboard seems insurmountable? How do you react when you make a mistake, or when your teammate does? How do you respond to bad calls from referees, yelling from your coaches, or trash talking from the opposing players and fans? Are you cheering from the bench when you’ve been subbed out? Do you encourage or tear down? Coaches are watching and taking notes. No coach wants a player with a bad attitude; a player who can’t handle adversity.

3. Sport IQ

Each sport has its own unique language. Think high post/low post, setting a screen or zone defense in basketball.  Each sport has its own set of rules, and, each sport has its own unique model when it comes to playing offense and defense. And what about those offensive and defensive plays you must memorize! How well you know your sport determines your sport IQ. And… how well you know your sport shows when you play your sport! You have to know your sport inside and out.

4. Defense

Student-athletes have no problem playing offense! After all, I don’t know a student-athlete who does not like to score! But college coaches are looking for players who can contribute (outside of certain sports like football) on defense as well as offense. If you’re not an asset when it comes to defense, you are not as recruitable as the student-athlete who is. 

5. Skill Sets

Each sport, and its individual positions, requires skill sets to be successful. It takes practice, development, commitment, sacrifice, hard work, and years to get your skill set to an elite level. Keep in mind that coaches and scouts not only look at the “big things” like scoring 40 points in a game, but also the little things, like how well you pass the ball, footwork, and agility to name a few. And, lastly, how are your skills affected by pressure and adversity in a game?

Keep these in mind the next time you play your sport. Keep these in mind every time you play your sport, because you never know who is watching!