Wisconsin Elite Recruiting Info

Wisconsin Elite has successfully recruited every girl from our 18s program, if not earlier, who has wanted to play in college. We aren’t here to promise a D1 offer, but we can find an opportunity to play. Check out our page listing every athlete who has graduated from Elite and chosen to play in college, and where they are attending. There are several steps to be recruited, but the athlete will need to put in significant hard work. We are here to help with every step outlined below.

Key Steps:

Identify schools of interest – aided by SportsRecruits.
Make a highlight tape and update regularly.
Write an intro letter and email schools – follow-up.
Join our list of athletes seeking recruitment so we can follow up and help you.

Here are the Top Questions asked and answered about recruiting. Below are the key links to visit.

How do I get noticed?

Create a highlight video
Do research on schools you may want to attend
Create an intro letter- include what you like about the school and what their program has to offer you
Follow-up consistently with the school. Email them from your personal email, works better than sending through SportsRecruits. Can do both to get started too.
Set up a tour- virtual or in person
Get letters of recommendation
Show your energy, leadership, skill
Play well at tournaments, and showcase the interpersonal skills, especially. They know what you look like as a player from film, but are looking at all the other dynamics: reboundability, handle the lows and highs, leaderships, etc.

University Athlete at tournaments

University Athlete is a popular free service that creates a profile for your athlete. This is a common service recruiters use to find you at tournaments. Otherwise, ensure you email the coaches your weekend schedules and which courts. But we know many coaches will use that platform when possible to find tournament details.

Recruitment Dates

June 15th after Sophomore year- verbal offers, electronic communications, phone calls
August 1st (D1) Before Junior Year- Official and unofficial visits /off-campus contact can begin
June 15th (D2 & D3) Before Junior Year- Official visits, in-person and off campus contact can begin
NAIA- Can start Whenever
https://www.ncsasports.org/womens-volleyball/recruiting-rules-calendar

What Is SportsRecruits?

Recruiting platform with a database of over 2000+ college needs by position and year.
Allows contact with coaches and accountability on follow-ups.
Provides a filter and search function to identify the best-fit schools.
Buying a membership through Elite offers a nearly $300 annual discount. Current membership rate is $125.
Register below if you are looking to join SportsRecruits.

Who can play college volleyball?

Anyone willing to work for it. There are countless opportunities to play college volleyball. Many players believe they aren’t tall enough to play college volleyball…58.4% of players are between 5’8″ and 5’10”. We aren’t guaranteeing that everyone will play D1 volleyball, but we can find opportunities at all levels and fit each girl. Regional to National team players can find an opportunity to combine volleyball and academic work in college.

Recruiting Rules

https://www.ncaa.org/sports/2021/2/10/recruiting-calendars-faq.aspx

How to make a highlight video

Get film. Can use Hudl or iMovie
Clip the good plays, high energy, hustle, skill
Organize by skill sections, passing, defense, hitting, setting, to the ones that apply, and have a title slide about yourself and metrics.
Aim for about 3-4 minutes
Have some raw footage available
We are happy to review and make suggestions along the way.
If you don’t feel like you have time or the ability, reach out to jmohr@wisconsinelite.org – he can make one for a price.
HUDL is available for select National teams. Please utilize this option to the max.

Promote Yourself – Social Media

Highly recommend posting consistently on a social profile of highlights and updates about yourself as a player. Coaches will look at profiles, and it never hurts to see clips gain traction. They will also be looking at teams on YouTube.

What are coaches looking for?

Leadership abilities and attitude
Skills and technique
How do you rebound after mistakes
How you respond to feedback and your coachability
How you interact with your teammates

Combines and College Camps

These are great opportunities to get exposure. The key is ensure colleges of interest are in attendance for the combines and that you are ready to work hard at the event. College camps are a good idea if you’re interested in a school and can start a little dialogue with the coach or an assistant there. Otherwise, many colleges will flood camp offers, but it’s just a way to get more kids into their programs, not an offer or an illusion.

Things That Go Wrong?

The coach never responds to my emails.
Don’t let up, keep trying to reach out until you get a definitive no. They get flooded with emails, so things get lost or they aren’t looking just at that moment, but then they are.
The coach and I have been having a good dialogue, but stopped talking all of a sudden.
Many things happen in the process, they find someone slightly better, they see something they didn’t like, or they don’t have the courtesy to say they narrowed down a final option. The key is don’t put all the eggs in one basket. They might stop responding, be ready to pivot at times.

How will Elite support you?

The big ticket item here. We will work with every girl who matches the energy and output we will bring. If you want us to just hand you offers on a platter, this won’t work out. The girls who follow up with coaches, send highlight tapes and emails, we will match them, make calls, and push them with integrity to the colleges.

If you start slacking in practice or play differently in tournaments, we have to say those things to coaches when they ask. Typically, every college coach will speak with us at some point about all aspects of your game.

If you join the list below, Jon, Sandy, and Patrick will help recruit you and find you a home to play collegiate volleyball. Join the list, and we will ensure follow-ups and action steps occur throughout the season.