Ivy Athletic Recruiting Success Stories--Share What it Takes To Make It

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

Track is getting destroyed by the new NCAA and NIL realities. Would not count on major D1 scholarships or Ivy recruiting there. Better to be a fencer than a runner these days. There is zero competition in fencing or squash or sailing or other rich kid niche sports these days. You can be incredibly mediocre in things no one else does and still get some attention from Ivies because they need to fill these spots. But track is super competitive because it's accessible and many do it. But it doesn't generate revenue so it is being cut to shreds. Whereas your fencer is likely a rich kid with rich parents who are likely to donate, so the fencer is more valuable to a school than a great 400 m runner or high jumper.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ivy recruiting can get a little whacky. My kid attended a recruiting session run by the Harvard baseball coach. Kind of a gruff old guy who wasn’t afraid to be maybe too honest.

For a top recruit he wanted at least a 1350…he might go lower for a true Power 4 player who he honestly thought wanted Harvard (ie a dream recruit who is too good for Ivy play).

He mentioned that every now and then he will meet a recruit who is both a great player and a 1580 SAT super impressive candidate. In that situation he may get greedy and not select that kid as a top recruit because he is very confident the kid will get in his own…so he is getting a top player for “free”. He will use his top slots for the second best 1350 kid and the other kid gets an asterisk so admissions know the coach likes him, but the kid needs to get in on their own.

I’ve heard of this happening.
Also heard of some coaches being wary of the solid athlete who has very strong GPA/test scores. They would rather take the superior athlete with meh academic scores because they prefer the kid on their roster who will prioritize the sport over classes. Ivy coaches want to win.

This is sour grapes. If your kid has what they want athletically, they will recruit them to the team.

It's not sour grapes. It's a rare kid that can achieve both academic and athletic superiority at the top levels. Something usually gives. The best academics who dedicate themselves to a sport are usually a notch below the best athletes who do nothing much other than devote every solitary moment to building agility and strength in areas to benefit their sport. So, given that choice, the coach is choosing the latter for the roster, knowing that without his hard support, the kid may not make it into a rigorous school. The coach worries less about the academically strong candidate who is also a great athlete and could very well offer that candidate soft support. Happens all the time!

[Anonymous]

I suggest all these people saying it’s an easy path to get recruited in squash, actually look at an Ivy League squash roster. How many US kids are on those rosters? Squash is a small sport in the US, but it is a global game. There are a lot of kids from all around the world that are more than happy to play for an ivy league school.

[Anonymous]

At least for XC and mid/distance track (1600, 3200) projected college xc 8k and track steeple/5000/10000, coaches are not telling us NIL/roster sizes are impacting at the Ivy level.

Run sub 4:12 and sub 9:10 junior year and have an SAT above 1500 that's what we've been told.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Baseball has 500,000.
Soccer has 850,000.
Basketball has 900,000.
Football has 1,000,000.
Track has over 1,200,000.
Even golf has 250,000.

According to the NFHS, squash has a couple of thousand.

Squash and sailing is the last bastion of elite, white privilege at Ivies. Where mediocre skill meets money. There is nothing wrong with gaming the system as long as you play by the rules but don't pretend it is anything but a backdoor way to preserve what the university community despises.

You don't need to be a zillionaire to learn to play squash, but it's not going to be easy to do if you're lower income. Maybe you can even learn the basics of sailing or rowing or horseback riding or golf etc. But learning to play and get into the level where you can get recruited to the ivy League or two different things. That is going to require some financial investment and if you make that investment in squash, you are going to have to compete against a significantly much smaller pool of athletes than if you're trying to get recruited to the track team. Even accounting for the smaller size of the squash team relative to the track team.

EADA 2024 data set. The schools that have a squash team (mostly Div III btw):

Connecticut College
Trinity College
Wesleyan University
Yale University
Bates College
Bowdoin College
Colby College
Amherst College
Harvard University
Tufts University
Williams College
Dartmouth College
Princeton University
Bard College
Columbia University in the City of New York
Cornell University
Fordham University
Hamilton College
Hobart William Smith Colleges
St Lawrence University
Vassar College
Denison University
Chatham University
Dickinson College
Drexel University
Franklin and Marshall College
Haverford College
University of Pennsylvania
Middlebury College
University of Virginia-Main Campus

May want to find another sport ...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

Track is getting destroyed by the new NCAA and NIL realities. Would not count on major D1 scholarships or Ivy recruiting there. Better to be a fencer than a runner these days. There is zero competition in fencing or squash or sailing or other rich kid niche sports these days. You can be incredibly mediocre in things no one else does and still get some attention from Ivies because they need to fill these spots. But track is super competitive because it's accessible and many do it. But it doesn't generate revenue so it is being cut to shreds. Whereas your fencer is likely a rich kid with rich parents who are likely to donate, so the fencer is more valuable to a school than a great 400 m runner or high jumper.

Track isn't getting impacted by NIL at ivies, at all. They have been expanding their rosters. The NIL only affected other recruiting because opting in to that required roster limits. What are you even talking about?

You are making excuses and diminishing more accomplished kids success because you sound jealous, and ignorant. Tell your kid to go run cross country. It costs nothing, and the exercise would probably do more for you child than taking an additional self-study AP class that nobody cares about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At least for XC and mid/distance track (1600, 3200) projected college xc 8k and track steeple/5000/10000, coaches are not telling us NIL/roster sizes are impacting at the Ivy level.

Run sub 4:12 and sub 9:10 junior year and have an SAT above 1500 that's what we've been told.

Correct. Ivies track rosters have never been larger. They are still recruiting heavily. And it's not just running. They have throws (discus, javelin, shotput), jumps (long jump, triple jump, high jump), and pole vault.

As you point out, track athletes also tend to have high SAT scores. People just make excuses, especially the "only rich kids are athletes".

Track and field is the sport that they can't really argue against. All you need is a pair of shoes and hard work and you can find a spot on a roster. It takes a lot of hard work though. More hard work than they are willing to put in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

No one's making excuses. Ivy recruiting is incredibly competitive. My recruited athletes were not good enough to get recruited into the ivy league. My student was admitted for academics, not athletic ability.

A lot of niche sports are populated by kids with the money to invest in learning to master the sport. That is just a statement of fact.

If you get recruited for track, you have had to compete against a much much larger population of athletes than someone that gets recruited for squash.

The track kids, a sport which has SAT and GPA requirements for IVY recruiting, got in for academic ability AND athletic ability. Most of the kids had the stats to get in on their own, they used track as a guaranty. That's just being smart at life!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

Track is getting destroyed by the new NCAA and NIL realities. Would not count on major D1 scholarships or Ivy recruiting there. Better to be a fencer than a runner these days. There is zero competition in fencing or squash or sailing or other rich kid niche sports these days. You can be incredibly mediocre in things no one else does and still get some attention from Ivies because they need to fill these spots. But track is super competitive because it's accessible and many do it. But it doesn't generate revenue so it is being cut to shreds. Whereas your fencer is likely a rich kid with rich parents who are likely to donate, so the fencer is more valuable to a school than a great 400 m runner or high jumper.

Track isn't getting impacted by NIL at ivies, at all. They have been expanding their rosters. The NIL only affected other recruiting because opting in to that required roster limits. What are you even talking about?

You are making excuses and diminishing more accomplished kids success because you sound jealous, and ignorant. Tell your kid to go run cross country. It costs nothing, and the exercise would probably do more for you child than taking an additional self-study AP class that nobody cares about.

Honestly, the only reason you're not feeling it in T/F is because schools haven't had time to fully react to the recent changes in NIL. Once schools start to implement that holistically across all their non-NIL sports, I agree with the posters who are noting that T/F will likely get shafted. We work with a recruiting strategist and they're saying the same thing. It's just a matter of time that it'll hit sports like T/F the most--the Olympic non-NIL sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

Track is getting destroyed by the new NCAA and NIL realities. Would not count on major D1 scholarships or Ivy recruiting there. Better to be a fencer than a runner these days. There is zero competition in fencing or squash or sailing or other rich kid niche sports these days. You can be incredibly mediocre in things no one else does and still get some attention from Ivies because they need to fill these spots. But track is super competitive because it's accessible and many do it. But it doesn't generate revenue so it is being cut to shreds. Whereas your fencer is likely a rich kid with rich parents who are likely to donate, so the fencer is more valuable to a school than a great 400 m runner or high jumper.

Track isn't getting impacted by NIL at ivies, at all. They have been expanding their rosters. The NIL only affected other recruiting because opting in to that required roster limits. What are you even talking about?

You are making excuses and diminishing more accomplished kids success because you sound jealous, and ignorant. Tell your kid to go run cross country. It costs nothing, and the exercise would probably do more for you child than taking an additional self-study AP class that nobody cares about.

Honestly, the only reason you're not feeling it in T/F is because schools haven't had time to fully react to the recent changes in NIL. Once schools start to implement that holistically across all their non-NIL sports, I agree with the posters who are noting that T/F will likely get shafted. We work with a recruiting strategist and they're saying the same thing. It's just a matter of time that it'll hit sports like T/F the most--the Olympic non-NIL sports.

This is about Ivy recruiting. Outside of that, yes T/F will be impacted. It will not at Ivies. It definitely will not at prestigious D3 schools. Also, you don't need to work with a recruiting strategist. They are ripoffs. Especially in T/F where you can see the times you need to hit.

[Anonymous]

Track and field has 45 on the roster, football has 105

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Track and field has 45 on the roster, football has 105

Princeton has 67 male athletes and 58 female athletes. That's 125 athletes.

Football has 115.

The ivies don't have roster limits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Public hs
Men’s soccer
ECNL
3.9 WGPA (4.1 at graduation)
1460
top D3
Good financial aid and scholarship package
Guaranteed playing time

Unqualified dei

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These niche sports- fencing, sailing, squash, rowing are not the normal hyper competitive ones like baseball, football, basketball, cross country, volleyball, etc.

Too few engage in these esoteric sports to even matter. When you have millions and millions competing in particular sports that is far different than 200 in the entire country.

The niche, elite sports are Ivy centric. So those are the sports a kid should do if they want a chance as an Ivy recruit. The other more widespread sports are for lesser schools and public plebes. This thread is about Ivy recruitment.

Yes. They aren't niche, though, they are Olympic sports. The Ivies focus on the Olympics.

Participation rates say otherwise. Squash, sailing, fencing and rowing are niche sports played by very few. For those trying to game an Ivy admission they are far easier to be successful in than real sports. Most high school students find the real sports much more fun. The funny thing about squash is it is getting its clock cleaned by pickleball and is becoming an even more nichy niche sport.

Cool, so tell your kid to play a niche sport. Then they might actually get a good job when they graduate from college.

Many of these niche sports require access to squash courts, golf courses, sailboats or rowing shells, horses..... They are definitely sports for wealthy kids for the most part. And it's fine for wealthy kids to have their expensive niche sports, but don't pretend like anyone can just go out and master these sports without plenty money to invest in it.

Tell your kid to run track instead of making excuses. Track has the largest roster of any collegiate sport.

Track is getting destroyed by the new NCAA and NIL realities. Would not count on major D1 scholarships or Ivy recruiting there. Better to be a fencer than a runner these days. There is zero competition in fencing or squash or sailing or other rich kid niche sports these days. You can be incredibly mediocre in things no one else does and still get some attention from Ivies because they need to fill these spots. But track is super competitive because it's accessible and many do it. But it doesn't generate revenue so it is being cut to shreds. Whereas your fencer is likely a rich kid with rich parents who are likely to donate, so the fencer is more valuable to a school than a great 400 m runner or high jumper.

Track isn't getting impacted by NIL at ivies, at all. They have been expanding their rosters. The NIL only affected other recruiting because opting in to that required roster limits. What are you even talking about?

You are making excuses and diminishing more accomplished kids success because you sound jealous, and ignorant. Tell your kid to go run cross country. It costs nothing, and the exercise would probably do more for you child than taking an additional self-study AP class that nobody cares about.

Honestly, the only reason you're not feeling it in T/F is because schools haven't had time to fully react to the recent changes in NIL. Once schools start to implement that holistically across all their non-NIL sports, I agree with the posters who are noting that T/F will likely get shafted. We work with a recruiting strategist and they're saying the same thing. It's just a matter of time that it'll hit sports like T/F the most--the Olympic non-NIL sports.

This is about Ivy recruiting. Outside of that, yes T/F will be impacted. It will not at Ivies. It definitely will not at prestigious D3 schools. Also, you don't need to work with a recruiting strategist. They are ripoffs. Especially in T/F where you can see the times you need to hit.

Of course it will, the kids currently not interested in Ivies because not competitive enough will start being interested.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Track and field has 45 on the roster, football has 105

Princeton has 67 male athletes and 58 female athletes. That's 125 athletes.

Football has 115.

The ivies don't have roster limits.

This is like comparing apples and oranges though ... but leaving out the oranges. Assume you're looking at men's football, so the more equivalent comparison would be 67 athletes to 115. Almost double the number!