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Three Tips for Football Recruiting: Kickers and Punters

SportsForce — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 02:31:20 +0000

Guest post by John Matich – Director – www.kickingsystem.com

Specialists often have the hardest times getting noticed by college recruiters and coaches.You often hear about kickers from a small school in Nebraska or Idaho that hit a 65-yard field goal and are listed as the number one kicker in their class on Rivals.com because of that kick. Kickers are also often the last position to get recruited and there are thousands of good kickers across the country. So,what can set you apart?

Here are three easy and simple things you can do to separate yourself from the rest:

Build it and they will call. If you can build a high-end highlight film or DVD, coaches will notice. All you need is a 3-5 minute DVD of your best kicks in games and practice that is easy to see and professionally done. Visit as an example: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/nsloan

Make sure your game film looks professional and that is not low-end film. Add your personal information such as SAT score, grades, phone number and school information at the beginning or on the DVD itself. Highlight your strengths, such as hang time on kickoffs or long field goals. Put your best stuff in the beginning.

Once you have your DVD, send it to at least 20 schools that interest you. Find out the name of the special teams coach or recruiting coordinator and include the DVD with your football resume. You have only one chance to make your first impression!

If you’re a rising senior or JUCO player, I recommend attending the college camps. Each Top 25 college football program will either have a “football camp” or a kicking camp in June or July. Sometimes you’ll be invited to attend by the coaches on staff; as an alternative, you can sign up online, as most schools list their camps on their athletic websites. There are numerous kicking events and combines out there, but the new rule that college coaches cannot attend them places even more emphasis on the summer camps.

I can tell you from experience, by running the San Diego State University Football Kicking Camp last summer, the entire staff was in attendance, with the head coach holding for placements. You’re guaranteed exposure at these camps. Sometimes colleges will just have you come in for a day and kick for a couple of hours. Others, like Cal, have full-fledged kicking camp; it has a three-day kicking camp that includes instruction and lectures.

Study! I can’t tell you how many more doors you can open for yourself if you can raise your GPA or SAT scores. Making sure you are on pace for the NCAA clearinghouse and have all the requirements to graduate are easy steps to solidify your eligibility, but I cannot overemphasize the important role grades play in your acceptance to certain universities. Sometimes kickers and punters have to “walk-on” their first year and earn a scholarship. Getting into the school academically is a great way to help you get on the football team.

Lastly,if you’re an upcoming junior, senior or JUCO player, let your performance speak for itself. Acquiring great stats, kicking long field goals and setting records will only help you get noticed. Your high school coach will believe that your college material and recommend you more to college coaches when they visit your school.

John Matich, is a former NFL and NCAA kicker and now owner and director of The Kicking System, which offers Camps & Private Kicking Lessons in San Diego, Orange County, and Los Angeles.

Visit www.kickingsystem.com for top level football kicking videos, recruiting tips, tools and upcoming kicking events.

How to Maximize Your College Recruiting Exposure: Part II

Andrew Beinbrink — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 21:02:31 +0000

The GAME has changed! The fact is, the college recruiting process has changed dramatically over the last 10 years and understanding how to play the game is important.

The college recruiting process is often misunderstood by many parents, student-athletes, coaches and fans. Are you a sports parent or a high school student-athlete who is asking yourself “How do I maximize my recruiting exposure to college coaches?” If so, you are not alone. This is a very common issue across the country that we often help student-athletes and families proactively address at SportsForce.

In this article you will learn more on how to introduce yourself to a college coach, what type of recruiting events to consider and gain an understanding of how video and the Internet are radically changing the recruiting process. At the end of this article you will have an opportunity to sign up for our complimentary SportsForce College Recruiting Guide to learn more keys to college recruiting success. See link at the end of the article.

Step 4: Get Evaluation in person: Target Key Recruiting Events

Identify key recruiting tournaments that some of your target colleges will attend
Email coaches your online profile link, team name, schedule and jersey # before the showcase to make sure you are evaluated
Potentially attend a few college camps for specific exposure to that program

Step 5: Get quality video, online profile & share

Video is key, college coaches don’t have the time to see every player
Create a custom highlight video to showcase your skills (3 – 5 min. long)
Create an online profile to add your athletic, academic and recruiting information

Some example SportsForce profiles below:

Girls Lacrosse: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/jmills
Softball: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/mbradvica
Soccer: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/kdick

Here is an example profile and highlight video of one of our senior clients Nick Melka that recently committed to Columbia University to play football. Nick and his family were proactive in the process and were able to maximize his exposure and generate significant interest from many of his top college choices.

Here’s a link to Nick’s profile –http:/www.sportsforceonlone.com/nmelka

To get more advanced recruiting tips, strategies and advice visit our website and sign up for our complimentary SportsForce College Recruiting Guide and updates below.

FREE sign up for SportsForce College Recruiting Guide:

http://www.sportsforceonline.com/resources/resources_recruiting_recruiting_guide.html

Article courtesy of SportsForce, Home for professional College Sports Recruiting Profiles, Highlight Videos, Tips and Tools – www.sportsforceonline.com

How to Maximize Your College Recruiting Exposure: Part I

Andrew Beinbrink — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 21:36:58 +0000

The college recruiting process is often misunderstood by many parents, student-athletes, coaches and fans. The fact is, the college recruiting process has changed dramatically over the last 10 years and understanding how to play the game is important.

Are you a sports parent or a high school student-athlete who is asking yourself “How do I maximize my recruiting exposure to college coaches?” If so, you are not alone. This is a very common issue across the country that we often help student-athletes and families proactively address at SportsForce.

In this article you will begin to learn the basics of maximizing your college recruiting exposure and some key facts to understand about the recruiting process.

At the end of this article you will have an opportunity to sign up for our complimentary SportsForce College Recruiting Guide and get access to recruiting tips, advices and insight to learn more keys to college recruiting success. Click Here for the full recruiting guide.

First, a few key facts to keep in mind before we talk about maximizing exposure:

- College coaches are recruiting earlier and earlier (often evaluating freshmen & sophomores)

- Colleges often don’t have the budget to recruit many players in person and are relying more and more on video to help make better recruiting decisions

- 80% of college sports opportunities exist outside of DI level teams

- Over $1 Billion dollars in athletic scholarship money is awarded to student-athletes each year

- A recruited student-athlete has a significantly better chance of getting accepted to a college over a non student-athlete with similar grades

- College coaches are using all sorts of technology including: email, smart phones (Blackberrys, Iphones, etc.), online recruiting databases, social media (YouTube, Facebook) and more to find and evaluate players.

If your son or daughter is seriously looking to play college sports, your goal as a parent should be to support them and provide them an opportunity to best position themselves to reach their goal and find the right college fit.

You might be asking yourself what is the RIGHT FIT?

The right college fit means understanding what type of college experience your child is looking for and what’s best for the family. When creating a list of potential colleges focus on the most critical decision factors and criteria including: academics, athletics, location, cost, level of competition, coaching staff, social environment, potential playing time and scholarship opportunity.

Now that we have some more information on the table lets discuss “How to Maximize College Exposure.”

Step 1: Determine what College Programs are right for the Student-Athlete

- Conduct a realistic student-athlete assessment (stats, skills and grades)

- Ask for a coach’s evaluation (HS & Club team)

- Research & create a target list of schools based on critical decision factors and college criteria (10 – 30+ colleges)

Step 2: Express Interest / Build Support

- Meet with high school / club team coach regarding your college goals and commitment and make sure everyone is on the same page

- Network with other trainers, coaches and parents to seek potential qualified college coach introductions

Step 3: Introduce and Market Yourself

- Start early (Ideally Freshman and Sophomore years)

- Introduce yourself to college coaches and express your interest (use email, phone or an in person meeting to make an introduction)

- Remember you can call a college coach even though they might not be able to call you based on NCAA regulations

- Provide complete resume / profile and highlight video for a college coaches evaluation

Some example SportsForce profiles below:

Girls Soccer: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/kdick
Boys Soccer: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/scallahan

- Follow up is KEY (email, phone and unofficial trips)

We will include more in Part II on “How to Maximize Your College Recruiting Exposure” Click Here to read Part II now.

To get more advanced recruiting tips, strategies and advice visit our website and sign up for our complimentary SportsForce College Recruiting Guide and updates below.

FREE sign up for SportsForce College Recruiting Guide:

http://www.sportsforceonline.com/resources/resources_recruiting_recruiting_guide.html

Article courtesy of SportsForce, Home for professional College Sports Recruiting Profiles, Highlight Videos, Tips and Tools – www.sportsforceonline.com

Fitness Quest 10: Common Young Athlete Questions and Answers

SportsForce — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:52:12 +0000

Coach Brett Klika is the Director of Athletic Performance at Todd Durkin’s Fitness Quest 10 in San Diego, CA. He specializes in youth fitness and athletic performance, overseeing a staff of 8 strength coaches developing programs for over 300 youth per week, both athletes and non-athletes. In addition to coaching, Brett currently authors for a variety of publications, produces DVD’s on fitness and athletic performance and presents around the world on topics in fitness, wellness, and sports performance. Brett can be reached at brett@fitnessquest10.com.

In my career I have the opportunity to interact with a vast array of parents, coaches, and other fitness professionals eager to improve youngsters’ physical adeptness. I attempt to navigate these professionals through the sea of misinformation and provide time tested, and practical strategies to improve youth fitness and athletic performance. This has turned into hundreds of pages of writing and endless hours of speaking and personal consultation. All of this time and effort has been spent answering a few common questions that I address on a near daily basis while working with youth. Below is a “one stop shop” for some of the most common questions I address, and short, concise answers.

1. Q. How old should my son/daughter be before beginning weight training?

A. Weight training is the introduction of overload to a movement. Overloading a movement with external weight of any kind is only safe and effective when that movement is done biomechanically correct. Furthermore, overload must be introduced in a progressive fashion, always allowing the movement to be executed properly. I recommend that all youth be involved in a movement training program with an experienced professional as young as possible (usually about age 6). The professional my chose to add overload to movement once an array of physical skills and biological capacities have been developed. The question of when to add this overload has more to do with a youngster’s physical fitness and biomechanical abilities than with age. While I am familiar with research on safe weight training with children as young as 6, I recommend consulting with an experienced professional who specializes in youth fitness and athletic development. In my experience unfortunately, I do not recommend the introduction of weight training to youth by parents or athletic coaches.

2. Q. Are supplements safe for kids?

A. The umbrella term “supplements” covers everything from Vitamin C tabs to pro- hormones. Most parents and coaches are asking about creatine, protein-based weight gainers, and NO2 products. In my reading, I have not found definitive research that would suggest that these are dangerous. However, “supplements” are only effective when they “supplement” a perfect diet and training program. I have never met a youth that has both, or either for that matter. The only traditional supplement I recommend for kids is some sort of meal replacement shake that they are willing to drink. These are NOT ideal nutritionally, however, they offer a reasonable nutrition profile and most kids are willing to drink them. Get your kids to eat multiple small meals made up of non-processed food while following a professionally designed training program. The results they will see from this regiment are far superior to any over the counter supplement. As a matter of fact, it is not even comparable.

3. Q. How long will it take for my son/daughter to improve their speed, vertical jump, etc?

A. The factors affecting a youngster’s physical performance are too lengthy to name. There is no piece of technology available that can maximize a youngster’s athletic performance more than a well-designed, longitudinal, progressive, consistent, all encompassing, athletic development program. To permanently improve true game performance and specific physical ability it may take months or years of consistent training. Research has demonstrated that in order to learn a skill, it must be practiced about 10,000 times. Most youngsters see an improvement in general performance merely from improving their physical fitness. This can be accomplished in a relatively short amount of time, usually about 6 weeks of consistent, frequent training. If they were to stop after 6 weeks however, the improvements in physical fitness would diminish, and in turn, their performance improvements. Athletic performance is a longitudinal process in youth that should be viewed as a multi-year commitment.

4. Q. How do I improve my son or daughter’s flexibility?

A. Improving flexibility in pubescent youngsters presents a significant challenge. The bones are growing at an accelerated rate. The places where the muscles originate and attach grow further apart. The muscle responds by contracting slightly to protect itself from the forced elongation. When the muscles are in a near constant state of slight contraction, a significant decrease in mobility (flexibility) is observed. In order to get the muscle to relax, it has to believe that it is not being over-stretched. In order to do this for youngsters, I recommend the following:

Frequent massage or fascia work. Massage therapy can help break down tight fascia in order to help dampen the contraction. This can also be done using a foam roller or tennis ball.

Dynamic Mobility Warm-Ups. Youngsters should warm-up with progressive range of motion based exercises. This helps improve the pliability of tissue, allowing for greater range of motion during exercise. For an example of these warm-ups, please see the video below.
- Post work-out static stretching. This is the traditional stretching modality. It is ideal to do this when the muscles are warm and pliable. The helps convince the muscles that the elongation is OK, so they can dampen their contraction.
As I mentioned, these are the most frequently asked questions. If you have a specific question you would like to see addressed, feel free to contact me at brett@fitnessquest10.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Hopefully I am able to navigate you through the sea of misinformation to create youngsters that become happy, healthy, pain-free adults!

Spotlight Sports: Competing for College – The Competitive Edge

SportsForce — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 23:51:53 +0000

Spotlight Sports shared this article with SportsForce. The article can be found in the February/March edition of the magazine.

By Elizabeth Marks, Instructor at Revolution Prep

From UCLA’s infamous “Undie Run” to “Floatopia” at UCSB the decision to go to college is considered a no-brainer. Moving away from home, meeting new people, pursuing your dream career, and experiencing all that college has to offer, culminates to create the experience that so many parents and college graduates fondly refer to as “the best four years of their lives.”

Unfortunately, college admission has become exponentially more competitive in recent years. And now with the economy in a state of disarray, budget cuts mean fewer classes, fewer professors, and ultimately, fewer enrollment opportunities.

So how can you compete? How can you compete against students with four-point-whatever GPAs who are the heads of every club and the captains of every varsity team? Simple. Ace your standardized tests.

Okay, easier said than done. But rest assured, it can be done. And while scores of people believe you can’t study for your SATs, I challenge you to try, and we’ll see who signs that college acceptance letter in the end.

Of course GPA and extracurricular activities are important. Roughly 50 percent of the admissions decision is based on GPA, and another 25 percent is based on after-school involvement – and rightfully so. The average student spends 8,000 hours over four years developing his or her GPA, and typically another 1,000 hours on sports, student counsel, volunteering, etc. However, in the 3-4 hours it takes to finish the SAT or any other standardized test, the entire remaining 25 percent of the admissions decision is determined.

So it’s obvious where you get the most bang for your buck. Standardized tests are the easiest way to drastically impact your application in a relatively short amount of time.

But conquering these tests doesn’t happen over night. It’s like running a marathon. You wouldn’t expect to wake up tomorrow and run 26.2 miles, so how can you expect to wake up and ace the SATs? The more you prepare and practice ahead of time, the more successful you will be.

Standardized tests are not a measure of your intelligence. They measure how prepared you are to take them, and that’s it. The majority of standardized tests are more deceptive than they are difficult; so don’t be fooled. Taking AP Calculus as a sophomore by no means guarantees a competitive SAT math score. Know the test you are taking. Be prepared for the types of questions it will ask you to solve, take practice exams to build up stamina for those Saturday, 8 a.m. four-hour tests, and study the specific material being tested.

There are a variety of ways to prepare for these exams. For highly studious, self-disciplined students, studying from a book is a very cost-effective way to prepare. If the mere thought of the SAT puts you to sleep, consider taking a course with a friend. Or if you play sports and hold down a part-time job, there’s always private tutoring.

So whether you study from a book, take a class, or hire a private tutor, proper test preparation is essential to being a competitive college applicant. Each test is different and requires time and thorough preparation to surmount. But your test scores are your competitive edge. Preparing for six weeks pales in comparison to the four years of reward. So reach for your dream school. Take the time to improve your scores and get that much closer to making your dream college become a reality.

Spotlight Sports is a bi-monthly magazine is dedicated to covering high school student athletes in the North County and parts of San Diego. Features a unique style and format whereby each school has a full page dedicated every issue. Each issue also includes a pro athlete interview, training tips, preparation for college info, and much more. You can also download the subscription form: Download

Google Yourself Before You Get Googled

Jennifer Hutchins — Wed, 27 May 2009 17:15:59 +0000

In today’s world, nearly every young person has a virtual life on personal websites such as Facebook or MySpace, and it is safe to assume that a potential college coach will try to find your online identity. First impressions on the Internet are hard to erase, partly because pictures and information on the web can be easily copied, downloaded and reproduced. Even after the original is gone, it most likely still exists on some website, somewhere, with someone. Thus, we recommend a student-athlete should keep his or her digital profile clean, private and respectable. This goes for both high school and college athletes. In the real world, employers often do a detailed background search including a web search before they will hire someone.

We’ve heard plenty of stories from college coaches where they have found pictures of student-athletes online, drinking alcohol and/or partying. Right off the bat this tarnished their image with their potential coach. Remember, college coaches are looking for someone that is going to represent their program on and off the field. An easy way to check what’s out there is to Google yourself. If you don’t like what you see, contact the site or user and request that they take it down.

Just to get an idea of the importance of the issue, here’s a quote from USA Today:

“Florida State athletes were given ten days to cleanse their profiles in December. That came after administrators there asked coaches to select random student-athletes’ names and plug them into a Facebook search. “They were surprised and dismayed,” associate athletics director Pam Overton says. “They were surprised at the pictures, that students would allow themselves to be exposed in the public domain.” http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/internetprivacy/2006-03-08-athletes-websites_x.htm

Here are a few tips on how to keep your online identity presentable:

Use your privacy settings. Facebook and MySpace have a laundry list of settings that can be customized to your liking. Make sure you have them set the way you want them. Typically, the default privacy setting for your account gives public access to all your information and everything on your profile. Check out the privacy settings and select what’s most appropriate for your interests. Case in point, if you want you can eliminate yourself from public searches or provide only your name and network to people other than your friends. Also, Facebook allows you to see your page exactly how someone else would see it. Here’s how you do it: 1. Click on Settings 2. Click on manage privacy 3. Click on either profile or search 4. Near the top of these pages, there is a space to type in a friend’s name. I’d highly recommend you be sure to check out how your restricted friends view your page, just to make sure you aware of what others see.

Manage your friends. Before you decide to friend a college coach or college program understand what they will have access to view on your profile. On the other hand, if a coach or a potential college program tries to befriend you, I’d recommend you put them on a restricted friend list. That way you can select which photo albums of yours they can see, perhaps one or two dedicated to your sport, as well as keeping them off your “Wall” if you so desire.

Edit your pictures and photo albums. Are you aware of how many pictures you have floating around on the web? Are these pictures that you want everyone to see? It seems as though most of the pictures posted online these days are focused around partying and all the fun times you want to remember when you’re older. Coaches can quickly lose interest and question your commitment and character if you are blatantly showcasing your inappropriate behavior. Often these can be deal breakers for college coaches and you may never know who saw them because a coach won’t tell you. If you really love some of your party pictures show your friends using your own computer and keep ‘em there.

Redirect prospective coaches and recruiters. The reason people look for you on these personal sites is that they want to get a feel for who you are. Unfortunately, Facebook and MySpace tend to bring out the more irresponsible side in most cases. The best way to protect your image is to satiate their curiosity by leading them somewhere else. Developing dedicated online sports profiles on sites such as SportsForceonline.com, BeRecruited.com or Prepchamps.com can provide coaches with video, stats and personal information about you in a serious and professional way. College coaches are able to “get to know you” based on how you would likely present yourself in person. Providing your private URL for these sites in emails to coaches is an easy way to lead them in the right direction. Also, be sure to post your sports profile link or video on your social profile also, since college coaches will likely check that out as well. There’s no harm in getting your online sports profile in front of as many coaches as possible.

The Importance of Playing Multiple Sports

Josh Strobl — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:21:39 +0000

Hello, my name is Josh Strobl, and this is the first of several blogs that I will be contributing to share some of my competitive sports experience and knowledge. The reality about making the transition from youth to high school to college sports is that there are an infinite number of questions, and many of them go unanswered. My goal is to shed light on the process and provide you some valuable insight and answers to frequently asked questions.

A little bit about myself, I grew up in San Diego, California where almost all sports are played year round. My parents were not former athletes but they enjoyed sports and gave me every opportunity to play any sport I choose. I grew up playing baseball, soccer, tennis, and basketball as a youth. Prior to high school I found myself playing baseball most of year for a San Diego based traveling team. In high school I ran track & field, played football, basketball, and baseball. Eventually I would play collegiate baseball as a catcher and third baseman, but I did experience a sports burnout at a young age and opted not to play baseball as a high school freshman. This leads me to the first topic: choosing a sport and playing as many as possible.

Sport specialization was starting to become a trend when I was in high school, but it has become much more prevalent in the last 10 years. There are obviously positive and negatives to specializing in a specific sport. Below are a few relevant articles discussing sports specialization that I found online. Each article addresses some of the key topics discussed by experts in the field of competitive sports.

http://lincolnnewsmessenger.com/detail/111330.html

There are many different opinions regarding the pros and cons for sports specialization. It really comes down to a personal decision and commitment that should be made by the student-athlete, not parents, coaches or trainers.

http://www.boonvillelittleleague.com/pdfs/parents_info/ParentsThoughts…THEBENEFITSOFNOTSPECIALIZING.pdf

The positive results allow young athletes to focus on a specific sport and the skills related to that sport. This makes for better player at an earlier age, but at what cost? The downside to sport specialization is a lack of broad athletic skills, experiences, and the possibility of burnout or performance anxiety issues. I feel very fortunate that my parents afforded me the ability to play multiple sports and make my own decisions when it came to sports. My personal advice to any athlete and/or parent is to play every sport that you want as an athlete, especially at a young age. I realized as I matured and grew, my skills were best suited to play baseball, but my athletic ability was a result of many combined competitive sports playing experiences.

Playing multiple sports was positive on many levels, all of which helped me at the collegiate level. Playing soccer as a youth ensured that my footwork and foot-eye coordination was above average. I was not blessed with great speed, but good instinct and footwork made up for a lack of speed and definitely helped my abilities as a high school and college catcher. Some of my fondest memories of sport came as a youth soccer player. My experience playing basketball was great for leg strength, endurance, and agility. The jump drills, sprints and constant running made sure I was in good condition going into the baseball season. As an undersized center, I also learned how to play big and tough against bigger athletes. The last sport I took up in school was football. The camaraderie while playing football was unmatched by any other sport I have ever played. An entire week of practice for one game wasn’t my favorite, but the friendships made resulted in many of my closest friends to date. Football two-a-days pushed you to the limits physically and mentally, and scoring a touchdown is one of the greatest feelings and accomplishments I have ever experienced.

I mentioned burnout a couple of times earlier in this entry because I have experienced the sensation and know it’s real. One of the best coaches I had growing up was my high school Varsity Football and Junior Varsity Baseball coach. I had grown up an All-Star baseball player, but playing the normal season and on a traveling team as an early teen became overwhelming. When I showed up for baseball tryouts as a freshman, Coach Griffith pulled me aside the last day when he was making the final cut for the team and asked me if I wanted to play baseball. He pointed out that there was no doubt I should make the team but it appeared that I was going through the motions. The answer surprised me and the result was my running track & field as a freshman. I earned varsity points in high jump and also compete in long jump, discus, and shot put. It was a great experience and I found a renewed desire to play baseball after taking a year off.

The lesson learned is that athletic skills can be cultivated by playing multiple sports. I was fortunate enough to play baseball as a collegiate athlete despite the fact that I didn’t even play my college sport all four years in high school. I have also noticed that young athletes who specialize in one sport early as a youth seem to lack a more complete set of athletic skills. This is something that I took for granted growing up playing multiple sports. I would like to give my parents a huge thank you for encouraging me to play multiple sports and enabling me to pick the sport that I became most passionate about. In the future I will share my thoughts and experiences regarding college preparation, academics, coaching, and more.

The Decision to Play College Sports

Nicole Morell — Tue, 19 May 2009 23:09:13 +0000

I don’t have any swimming stats from college, I never finished a mile around the track at my college while spectators stood by, and I certainly haven’t cleared a high jump bar beyond high school. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t take the journey towards college sports.

As a two-sport high school athlete who didn’t play college level sports, you may be wondering why I am writing on this subject. Here at SportsForce we are dedicated to assisting student-athletes reach their potential and a big part for those that want to pursue sports after high school is finding the right college fit for you.

At seventeen, deciding what you want to major in through college is terrifying, factor in where you want to live, laying out your schedule and deciding what sports program might be right for you, these decisions can be downright crippling. I went down this path. I swam competitively all my life. I loved it and wanted to keep swimming in college. As a straight A student, I also loved writing, learning and all that good stuff. I needed a school that could nurture me academically and socially, but also offer a swim program that would allow me to maintain my life. I had swam competitively since I was six years old, and couldn’t imagine life without it.

I had looked into many colleges with DII and DIII swim programs. Some were great schools, but I was in love with the University of Rhode Island. As in “Division I athletics” University of Rhode Island.

After much thought I decided I wanted to go to URI, it had the academics, the location and social opportunities I looked for, I would figure out the swimming part later, I thought. At freshman orientation several meetings ran at the same time for students to attend. Varsity athletics and the Honors Program were at conflicting times. Being more terrified of hard schoolwork than a heavy athletic program, I went to the varsity athletics meeting. I sat in on the swimming meeting, spoke with the coach, and though I was still terrified, got excited to swim for URI. I was a little nervous about how doubles sessions and away meets would work with my class schedule, but figured I would find a balance, as many, many athletes do.

Then it came in the mail-a sign up and check request for the winter training session in Florida. I hadn’t even been on campus one day as student and I was already asked to bet away my whole winter vacation. It was a lot for me–too much. I sat there overwhelmed as I read the details. I wanted to swim, but I wanted to experience college and still see my family during break. I was so unsure, but as I sat there on the brink of tears it was clear sports at a D1 school was not for me, but URI still was. The next four years of my life were amazing, I certainly missed swimming, and sometimes wondered if I had made the right decision, but knew there we many paths I could take, and I waned to stay on the one I was on.

Over those four years, I became my own coach, swam on my own, ran some road races, and even a marathon. I enrolled in the honors program my sophomore year and made up what I had missed. Graduating from the honors program from an institution I loved and still having passion for swimming I knew I had made the right choice. But that was my choice. Each journey to that decision is different, and each decision will be different. But make sure that journey and decision exists, because they are yours to take and yours to make. Best of luck with the college planning and preparation process and be sure to follow as we address other important issues to assist your progression from high school to college and beyond.

Elevate Your Game During the Off Season

Javier Gonzalez — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:26:17 +0000

Use the Summer to Step Your Game Up

Are you taking the rights steps to reach your athletic potential? Are you looking to have a breakthrough season or potentially win a starting position on the team? Either way you’ve got to have a plan to reach your potential.

The majority of this year’s high school sports seasons have ended and the rest are coming to a close. With summer right around the corner, it’s time to take advantage of your free time and step your game up. Here are few key areas to focus on .

Manage Your Time:

We all know that the summer is the prime season to relax and hang out with your friends. However, with proper time management, you can definitely find time in your day to get workouts in and still enjoy the good life that summer has to offer. Sit down and create a specific schedule tailored to the demands of your sport. I recommend you schedule your intense workouts in the morning as it’s more difficult to do them as the day moves on. Also you should assign certain days for specific areas of your training program such as resistance training, speed / agility training and conditioning. Some days you might have a training session and practice, in that case I recommend handling your strength and conditioning workout in the AM and your practice in the PM. Once you create this schedule, be sure to stick with it. This will certainly pay off once your season comes around. To make sure you keep up with the schedule, post it on a calendar in your home or at least hang it up somewhere visible in your room.

Set Personal Goals:

It’s always great to actually notice and feel some improvement in your conditioning and skills. Go ahead and set some goals for yourself so that you can feel inspired to get out and train each day. The key point here is to write your goals down and be specific. Goal example: “To improve my overall strength by 10% over the next 3 months.” You can measure this by keeping track of your workouts and the amount of weight you are using per lift / exercise. Once you start seeing the slightest progression in your game, you will definitely want to continue making progress with your training program. You can set pre-season goals, so that you’re in top shape and ready once pre-season practices start, as well as set goals for the season to motivate you to strive for perfecting your overall abilities in your sport.

Tackle Your Weaknesses:

The downtime you find during the off-season provides the perfect opportunities for you to analyze your weaknesses and tackle them head-on. There is always some aspect of your game that could use improvement. Take a moment to reflect on past performances and list the areas where you believe you could improve the most and why. I’d also ask someone you trust, whether it’s a coach or one of your parents, what areas of your performance could you improve the most. This will help provide clarity on what areas you should focus on.

Your weaknesses could range anywhere from rehabbing an injury to improving your flexibility to working on your jump shot. In general, progression in any sport is highly dependent on athletes’ abilities to address their weak points directly in order to become successful, complete and consistent performers.

Stay Motivated and Disciplined:

There will always be days in which you just don’t feel the drive to go out and train on your own. If you feel yourself lacking this motivation, working out with a partner or a group will help you stay on track. Even if you don’t feel like doing a set workout on some days, you can keep it fun by playing pick-up games or mixing up the type of workout. In addition, having a set workout schedule can become pretty monotonous. To help you break away from this, don’t be afraid to add some variety to your workouts by doing things like cross training. Ex. Instead of running wind sprints you could do stadium stairs at top speed or run up a hill with interval speeds. You can even condense longer workouts into smaller increments of time. Your workout will be more rigorous, but it may serve as incentive to just get the training done quickly and open up more spare time in your day to relax and hang out. Ex. Instead of 45 – 60 min. upper body lift you could pick 5 upper body exercises and do a circuit routine from one exercise to the next with 30 seconds rest for two cycles and be done within 20 minutes. Whatever it takes, find your source of motivation and keep working towards perfecting your game.

In the end, the work you dedicate during the off-season will not only help you reach your potential, but it will also make you stand out to coaches by reflecting strong character, discipline, and dedication. Don’t be the kid who’s lagging and complaining during preseason sessions because you’re simply out of shape and rusty. You won’t be helping the team and you may potentially get dropped down or even cut from the team. No matter which sport you’re involved in, the bottom line is that commitment is key during the offseason. Managing your time, setting some goals, and working to eliminate your weaknesses should help you stay motivated and on top of your game. Once you start receiving feedback through your progression, you will want to push yourself to reach your greatest potential.

Getting the Most Out of Your Time in College

Nicole Morell — Mon, 11 May 2009 18:42:46 +0000

Getting the most out of your time is important to every college student, whether you’re an athlete, an honors student, a part time student or someone taking on more credits than imaginable. As with many things in life, the mantra, “work hard, play hard” works well in the college atmosphere. I hope to offer you a few tips to get the most out of your time in those four years, or whatever they may be for you.

Though I did not play a sport in college, I did work 20 hours a week and was active in many clubs and organizations. Trying to balance these commitments with class and studying, I learned a few tricks to get the most out of my time and still manage to push myself and enjoy the college experience.

One way to avoid a time crunch during your college years is to enroll in Advanced Placement (AP) classes in high school. Most schools offer a variety of AP subjects, which will not only count for credits in high school towards graduation, but also offer you the chance to earn credits for college. To count for college credit, you must pass the test at the end of the course, and be sure that your school of choice will accept these credits. This can ensure you have some general education classes or Gen Eds finished before you even step foot on campus. Just be sure you know where you send the scores, your school will process them apply them to your transcript, so long as they have received the scores in the first place. This is something that is important to follow up on.

Despite getting some credits out of the way, scheduling classes around your extracurricular activities can still be tough with many higher-level classes only being offered at one time or only one semester during the school year.

An easy option to work around this is to take down your course load if you can. Summers are a great time to squeeze in classes you may need. You can either take shorter, more intensive courses from your university over the summer or take them from an accredited college in your hometown. I was able to knock out some Gen Eds during summer courses, allowing me to take fewer credits during my senior year.

There are also many different types of classes out there which may be easier to work into a hectic schedule. Some classes meet just once a week for a longer block of time, while there are also opportunities for independent studies. Don’t be quick to panic about classes running into your schedule, from colloquiums, to independent studies, there is many options around the usual Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes. Many schools are now offering online courses even for students who live on campus, allowing for more flexibility in scheduling.

Really researching and planning out classes and credit loads can be time consuming, but it will pay off when your schedule is able to accommodate all of your obligations and still leave time to enjoy the college life.