After a successful freshman year you now are entering a critical juncture in the recruiting timeline. As a sophomore in high school, college coaches will start to take interest in your talents. You will begin receiving brochures, questionnaires, and other collegiate information from college recruiters. Although coaches cannot contact you in any way, you will still be getting evaluated on the field. Here are some pointers to get you prepared:

-Keep up with your grades: You did a good job your freshman year on your studies. Don’t let the grades slip now. Your first two years of high school have a big factor on your overall GPA, and there is nothing you can do to go back and change your grades. Remember it is really hard to increase your GPA later in your high school career, therefore; you need to maintain good study habits and excel in the classroom. If you are struggling in a certain area get help from the teacher or a tutor.

-Talk to your guidance counselor: Let your guidance counselor know that you are thinking about playing collegiate sports, and you need help following NCAA guidelines. Your guidance counselor will help you pick the right classes to ensure you are on track to get cleared by the NCAA. The NCAA has certain core course requirements that you must follow. Visit the NCAA questions page to read some frequently asked questions about division 1 and division 2 rules and regulations.

-Formulate a list of schools: Start making a list of colleges that you might be interested in. Visit the athletic website of that college, and fill out their online recruiting forms. This will get your name into the coach’s database. Although you are only a sophomore you still want coaches to know your name, and have access to your information.

-Attend camps and clinics: If one of the schools that you are interested in is holding a camp you should try and go. It is a great chance for the coach to get to know you and evaluate you.

-Play in showcases and tournaments: No matter what sport you play you need to get in front of college coaches. During the offseason college coaches spend majority of their time on the recruiting trail. They are travelling to big tournaments and showcases all over the country. The key to getting noticed is playing in the right events. It would be better for you to compete in an event where the talent level is extremely high, than playing in an event where your team is by far the best. Coaches are going to travel to the location where they have the chance to view the most talent. Coaches need to evaluate your talents against the best competition.

-Keep your RecruitLook profile updated: Make sure you have all your stats, photos, videos, academics, and any additional info that you want coaches to know about updated. The more information a recruiter has the better.

-Review the NCAA rules: Know what the NCAA rules are. Don’t jeopardize your eligibility because you didn’t know the rules. Become familiar with the recruiting calendars, terminology, and restrictions the NCAA has on the recruiting process.

-Improve your game: Don’t be satisfied with a good season. Complacency will get you on the bench real fast! You should contact an athletic trainer and work on getting bigger, faster, and stronger. Also, work on the fundamentals of your game. Put in the long hours during the offseason and you will enter your junior year ready for a big season. Your junior year is a critical year for recruiting. Be prepared.