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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Reverse recruiting is the best advice! Recruiting services are good for providing information, etc. but there is really not much they provide that you can't find online with a few google searches. Honestly, the best approach is for the player (not the parent, although you can help with edits, etc.) to reach out to the coaches of the schools they are interested in and let them know they have interest in playing at their school and why. Provide them some academic and athletic achievements to date, etc. This helps them get on the coach's radar. They can then stay in contact with the coaches and ask them to attend matches and stay in touch with each other. One of the biggest impacts my DD had on coaches was to attend their school specific ID camp days (not the ones with 20 coaches and hundreds of kids). The school specific ones have about 40 kids and the school coaching staff and some of their players helping. They get to know the coaches directly, get a feel for the team culture, in some cases, and really get seen and evaluated by the coaches. The risk here is that your kid has to perform in this environment. Coaches go to games to watch target prospects, not to generally recruit. Yes, they may see or find someone along the way but are normally there to see kids who have reached out and asked them to come watch. I would recommend starting in 9th grade and make sure it is at schools they want to attend, even if soccer was not in the picture. They should always ask the question..."If I could not play soccer, would I love going to school at X?".  My DD started in 9th grade, was very successful in finding about 10 coaches to stay in touch and were responsive, came to watch her play and showed real interest. She narrowed it down to about 3 by the end of 10th grade and committed at the end of her 11th grade year. She will start college in 2022 at a school that has a great nursing program (most important aspect of her search) and is also a successful soccer program with a culture she loves, coaches who respect her and teammates who are already welcoming her and talking to her through text, etc. She has been to 4 ID sessions at this school alone and did an overnight recruiting trip, did pregame with the team and was on the sideline with them for a match - so she has invested in her decision. Fortunately, she is a solid player who works hard to improve and maybe it was "easy" for her. But...she put the work in and very easily could have been left unfound or worse, gotten interest from schools she was not really interested in, if she was relying on coaches to find her. She had to recruit the schools and coaches, not the other way around.   [/quote]
Useful info. Thank you [/quote]

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