Tips For College Summer Camps

Posted on June 4, 2025 by eliteathletesrecruiting

College athletic camps in the summer are a staple in the recruiting process for high school student-athletes. Camps are offered at almost every grade level and skill level. However, the high school camps comprise the implications of recruiting. Athletes attend camps to demonstrate skills, talent, and personality. They also have a chance to see the college campus, take some pictures for social media and shake a few hands of revered college coaches.

True, college camps are a fun experience, but actually they are vital in moving the recruiting process forward for prospective student athletes. Certainly, student-athletes want to come away from a camp with more than a t-shirt and sunburn. So, now that camps season is near, what must a serious student-athlete do to be prepared? How can the investment of time, energy and money of camps be used to your recruiting advantage?

Immediately after a camp the student athletes should develop a plan to improve the identified strengths and weaknesses. The measurement and collecting of metrics and statistics during camps should reveal the areas in need of improvement. For example, if a timed speed metric is too high then, the next step for the student athletes is to figure out what is needed to lower the time to the appropriate range. This may include adapting new speed drills and revising workouts to improve speed.

In recruiting, college coaches want student-athletes who put in the work to improve all aspects of their game. Staying the same is not good. So, moving forward, develop a plan to improve on your strengths and work on weaknesses. Surely, coaches will notice at the next camp or opportunity to be evaluated.

No Last Minute Miracle Needed- 5 Tips for Athletes Manage College Recruiting

Posted on August 22, 2015 by eliteathletesrecruiting

Time Management

Most athletic competitions have time constraints. For example, soccer has two 45 minute halves, basketball four 8 minute quarters, even track and swimming measure placements by time. Baseball and softball limits games by a specified number of innings. Clearly, time management is vital to every game.

Usually the team that did the best job of managing the clock wins the game. Teams that don’t have to rely on a last minute miracle.

Last Minute Miracles

Truth is athletes only have one shot at getting recruited. No one can have a high school do-ver. So athletes in the midst should never rely on a last minute miracle to land a scholarship.

I’m not a miracle worker, but I know how to manage the recruiting clock. Partnering with me will assure success!

Think of it like this. Would you rather hurry and scurry around as the clock winds down hoping to score at the last second or would you prefer to know that victory is eminent and relish the moment of celebration?

5 Tips to Enjoy the Recruiting Process (and avoid hoping for a last minute miracle)

Follow these few tips to be certain that you’ve met your goals and victory belongs to you!

Have a solid recruiting plan. Start working the plan early and stay the course. This is where years of recruiting exposure will pay off.
Keep focused in the classroom and on the field. The classroom is not the place to let your performance slip.
Be familiar with the recruiting timeline. Depending on the sport, calls from college coaches for recruiting can begin in June, July and September.
Know communication rules Communicate with as many coaches as possible.
Take official visits to colleges recruiting you. Five official visits are permitted, use them wisely. Make sure you know the academic and athletic expectations for athletes at each school.

The clock is ticking. Time will eventually run out. When this happens I want to be sure your family is celebrating!

Be committed, get committed.

Coach Mike Woosley is a National Scouting Director at CSA-PrepStar. As a professional collegiate sports scout Mike works with qualified next level student-athletes to find the right college athletic and academic fit. Comments and questions are always welcome.

Six Details to Include in a Short Email to College Coaches

Posted on August 5, 2015August 5, 2015 by eliteathletesrecruiting

Athletes that get recruited know that at some point it is necessary to email a college coach. This brief communication is crucial to your recruiting because needs to be short but detailed enough to give the coach enough information to put you on the recruiting radar. So, if writing isn’t your strong-suit or your unsure of what to include this blog will help.

For serious recruitings drafting a recruiting email takes serious effort — For serious recruits drafting a recruiting email takes serious effort

The format I’m sharing with you is great for the initial email to college coaches. However, if a coach contacts you this email will work, but you need to add one extra detail. That detail is to ALWAYS thank the coach for contacting you. Do this in the introduction of the email. Also its a good idea to include how the coach contacted you. For example, “Thank you for taking the time to contact me… write me…..email me..send me a postcard…”

Now, on to the 6 important details. Here’s what should be included.

1. Introduce yourself

Name, City, State,

2. Give them some specifics about you

graduation year, sport, position, academic interest
I attended the [camp/combine] on [date]

3. Tell them something about their program and/or college (some brief research will help )

Ex. “Your school has both a great [sport] team but also a top-notch [subject] program”

4. Request information about the college’s athletic and academic programs be sent to your home

Ex. “I would like to know more about your athletic program and the academic programs offered at [name of the school]”

5. Include address and phone number in your signature.

Name, address, phone

6. Help them connect with you on social media

hyperlink your Twitter handle or Facebook profile info at the bottom of your signature.

Again, remember to keep this email short. Its not necessary to be long winded. Truthfully, no more than two paragraphs is necessary.

One other tip. As your recruiting gets more serious a longer email will be necessary. I’ll show you what to include for that email in another blog.

Good luck,

Reputation Ruined by a Press of a Button

Posted on July 22, 2015July 22, 2015 by eliteathletesrecruiting

This week’s tip about social media is very important. So, here’s the tip: coaches pay attention to how athletes present themselves on social media.

Recently, All-Pro NFL superstar J.J. Watt lectured students on this very topic. Watts’ wisdom was this, “A reputation takes years and year and years to build, and one press of a button to ruin.” You can find the article here.

Here’s an example of the harm that can’t be undone. Recently, I spoke with an athlete that was kicked off his team because someone in a picture with him was holding an illegal drug. One stupid mistake has sidelined this stellar senior athlete and jeopardized his future. Please, don’t let this happen to you.

Make wise choices to avoid costly decisions.

Social media is a tremendous way to interact with people all over the world and express ourselves in any way we choose. But with great opportunity comes great responsibility. Here are some important things to keep in mind before you send your message into the great global conversation.

Anyone, anywhere can see your post
Your post speaks for your personality and character
Pictures can speak for the company you keep.
Posts are nearly impossible to erase once its out in cyber-space

To close, I’m not saying don’t use social media. I’m only suggesting that you use it to your advantage. Used properly social media really can make a difference with your recruiting. So before you press ‘send’ think about the consequences. If you have any reservations for what your about to send, by all means don’t send it!

Be smart with social media.

Coach Mike Woosley