Athletic Recruiting & NCAA Eligibility

In order to be eligible to compete in Division I College Athletics, a student must have over a 2.0 GPA in sixteen core courses and have the minimum SAT or ACT scores for that GPA (see the NCAA Clearinghouse website for the NCAA GPA/Testing Sliding Scale).

16 Core Courses:


• 4 years of English 

• 3 years of mathematics (Algebra I or higher) 

• 2 years of natural/physical science (one must be a lab science) 

• 1 year of additional English, math, or science
• 2 years of social studies 

• 4 years of additional core courses (from any area listed above, or from foreign language, nondoctrinal religion or philosophy)
• N.B. Visual and performing arts courses and computer science courses are not NCAA approved core courses.

Excerpts taken from Varsity Edge

Myth: If you are good enough, coaches will find you.

Reality: Recruiting is now a global process, and despite your skills or success in high school, it is extremely easy to be overlooked by college coaches. Therefore, it is essential for you to contact coaches in a systematic and timely fashion.

Myth: College coaches can contact me anytime they want.

Reality: There are strict rules as to when a coach can send you literature and how often they can contact you at the NCAA level. The good news is that you can contact college coaches at any time so long as you make the phone call, text, or send the email. Additionally, social media contact between high school athletes and coaches is not as defined. Private messages between athletes and Division I coaches are permissible, but public messages (such as wall posts on Facebook) are considered a secondary violation of NCAA recruiting rules. However, Division III sports programs, which have allowed unlimited texting as a recruiting tool since January, do not allow coaches to contact athletes via social media.

Myth: If you receive a letter from a coach, you are being recruited.

Reality: Coaches send out thousands of letters to high school athletes they may or may not have heard of and there are probably 500 kids tearing open the same exact letter you received. Receiving a letter means a coach knows your name and knows you play the sport they coach. Respond to the letter and follow-up with the coach. Until the coach calls you, invites you to the school, and makes you a formal offer to join their program, these letters don’t mean too much.

Myth: College coaches will help me get into their school if I am on the bubble academically.

Reality: While being recruited by a college coach can be an advantage over applicants who are not athletes, you need to be very close academically to what the school seeks out in any student. Coaches can submit a list of names to the admissions department, but you need to be committed to the coach and express a strong interest in attending that institution. At the end of the day admission offices make admission decisions, not coaches.

How do you establish a relationship with the coach?

Schools have recruiting forms on their websites where you are asked to fill out sport and academic information. The best time to fill out these forms is in your sophomore or junior year, depending on your sport. Generally speaking, the coach will contact you with a follow-up email after you have filled that out.

What is the Academic Index in the Ivy League?

The Academic Index combines numeric values based on a student’s SAT I and SAT II scores plus his/her class rank or GPA. The resulting AI score will fall between 175 to 240. Each Ivy League college or university is required to maintain a minimum AI for the entire athletic program with individual targets set for each sport. For example, College X might have an overall AI target of 200. To achieve that standard, the rowing squad might have an AI of 210 as their target, while the hockey team might have an AI target of 190. The average of the two squads will equal 200 and College X will be in compliance. (Chart) Each university or college interprets GPAs differently; however, standardized computation procedures have been established to allow Ivy League schools to calculate a consistent Academic Index for all applicants. In 2011 the Ivy League raised the floor from an Academic Index of 171 to 176, which roughly translates to a B student (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) with a score of 1140 on the old two-part SAT. One of the most misunderstood aspects of how the AI works is its fluctuation from institution to institution. Because the eight Ivy League members have varying academic standards and the basis for the athletic AI average is the overall student body, the average AI for the athletic cohort at Harvard, for example, is several points higher than the average at Brown. That means a soccer recruit with a 210 AI who is rejected at Harvard might be accepted at Brown. Finally, the AI is one of many factors involved in Ivy recruiting. Recommendations, interviews, socio-economic background, course of study, rigor, etc. all weigh heavily in the equation as well.

What is a Likely Letter?

Typically, Likely Letters are sent to athletic and academic recruits several weeks before official admission verdicts are slated to go out. This usually means some time in October for Early Decision/Action applicants and late-February or March for Regular Decision students. To receive a Likely Letter a student must complete and submit an application to the admissions office for review. Increasingly schools are using the Likely Letter to entice qualified applicants for particular programs or recruit students from various geographic locations.

NESCAC Summary

The NESCAC is the New England Small College Athletic Conference. It is an athletic conference made up of academically selective liberal arts institutions. On top of the institution’s high academic caliber, the league is often considered the most competitive Division 3 conference. To get started, it has become increasingly important for recruits to apply early decision. Almost 95% of recruited athletes will apply early decision at an institution. This is a way for the coach to know that the athlete is reciprocating the effort they are making to bring a player to their school. The effort is also monitored by admissions liaison who goes between the athletic department and the admission’s office. By going early decision, the coach knows that if you are accepted, you will be coming. There are a few wrinkles between the different schools in the conference. For example, Bowdoin and Bates have an SAT optional policy that makes it a good choice for strong academic performers in the classroom who may struggle with standardized tests. To a lesser degree, similar situations are available at Colby and Connecticut College. At Colby, applicants can make up their SAT score with any three SAT 2 subject scores. The admissions interview is a must for a player who is borderline for a program. The interview shows effort and interest to the admissions staff and allows a student athlete to explain any weaknesses in their application. 

What is a band?

NESCAC institutions use a banding system that the athletic and admissions departments use to rank players who seek admission. The banding breaks players up based on GPA, class rank, SAT (or ACT), and SAT 2 and then categorizes them as A Band, B Band, or C Band. Over a four-year period, schools slot a certain number of players per band. The system allows for more flexibility than the Ivy’s Academic Index but limits weaker academic applicants. Schools are generally given four to seven slots per year. At a school like Williams, the class may be made up of four A Band students and two B Band students. The same B Band student at Williams could be considered an A Band student at a slightly less selective school like Bates. 

Here is a general outline of A, B, and C Bands for NESCAC schools: 

A Band (Single space, if possible)

• SAT scores 700+ average, all above 670 
• SAT II: 710 
• GPA: 92+ GPA, almost all A’s
• Class Rank: top 5%
• Courses: 4+ APs, honors classes

B Band

• SAT scores: 650+ average, all above 620 
• SAT II: 640
• GPA: 88+ GPA, mix of A’s and B’s
• Class Rank: top 15%
• Courses: few AP, honors courses

C Band

• SAT scores: 630+ average, all above 590 
• SAT II: 600
• GPA: 85+ GPA, mix of A’s, B’s, occasional C’s
• Class Rank: top 20%
• Courses: honors

Official Visits

D1 Coaches: Each prospect is allowed to take one official visit to your program. They still cannot exceed five total official visits between your institution and any other D1 or D2 school to be eligible to play at your program.

D2 Coaches: Each prospect is still allowed to take one official visit to your program. Starting this year, each prospect you recruit is allowed to take as many D2 official visits as they like.

D3 Coaches: Unaffected

* Excerpts taken from: http://lacrosserecruits.com/NESCACrecruiting.php