Inside Pitch: The Current State of College Softball Recruiting

Coach Robby Wilson is the National Director of Softball Scouting for National Scouting Report (NSR) and is in constant contact with college and club coaches nationwide.

He has a unique perspective on all things fastpitch softball and shares his thoughts in this extensive report on where softball recruiting currently is as we enter the holidays and end of the year.

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We are just a little over a week from Thanksgiving 2020, and I think every college softball prospect, set of parents, college coach and scout that I know of are paying attention to how many days until the year 2020 is over, given the ups-and-downs and all-around confusion 2020 has brought us!

What a crazy year 2020 has been with the COVID-19 pandemic, the nationwide quarantine restrictions, the ending or shortening of seasons, and the flat-out killing of most college coaches’ abilities to scout athletes in person.

Rewind a little over three years ago when the D1 recruiting restrictions were approved with the intention of slowing down recruiting—it did to a fair extent, but what it did for the other divisions was to speed up their timelines of looking at some kids younger than they typically would.

That’s not to say that we didn’t eliminate the recruiting of the 7^th grader, because for the most part, it did. The elite of the elite can still get on some coach’s boards, but nobody is offering and committing the 7^th grader anymore.

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON RECRUITING

With NCAA D1 restrictions in mind, fast forward to March of this year when the “tornado” that is the COVID-19 pandemic rocked America and threw the whole world into a whirlwind… including the softball world.

From March until June, almost every coach was confined either to his or her office or home and college softball prospects were left to only have the option of being recruited via video and a good door opener a.k.a. connected individual.

Coaches were forced to either create or further use the virtual visits that were previously used and intended for athletes on the other side of the country or even players out of the country. The result has been that kids have made decisions based on virtual visits without getting on campus or having a chance to even drive around the town that will live in at some point in the future.

Previously “closed doors” of a coach’s recruiting needs for a particular class suddenly opened back up, but, in return, some coaches with pre-existing needs for the next recruiting class saw that disappear as a result of the extra year of eligibility for current players coming into play.

The result: rosters got bigger while budgets were being cut.

We saw more 2020’s commit earlier this year than we have ever seen seniors do so before, taking themselves out of the recruiting equation for fear that, because they had reached the final semester of their senior year and had gone unrecruited, they had to take whatever they could.

I personally even received messages from 40 or 50 seniors that I was interested in helping in the recruiting process who had decided they were no longer interested in playing college ball anymore because of the complications of recruiting and all of the COVID risks that came with it.

From the summer through the majority of this fall, almost weekly, I am hearing the same from a lot of 2021’s as well: the fear they have of being actively engaged in the process and not being recruited. That is scarier to them than to have dealing with the regret of not pursuing the dream. It is another unfortunate circumstance of COVID-19.

CHANGE IN CLASS FOCUS & NEEDS

From behind the scenes, I can tell you that there has been a more increased focus on the 2023 and 2024 classes, and, yes, there are fewer coaches in need of a 2021 and some 2022’s, but that is NOT to say that there are NO coaches still needing current seniors and juniors (‘21’s and ‘22’s).

You simply just have to know where to look!

The fact of the matter is that the 21s and 22s still being recruited have a couple of elements in common:

First, they have the “ gate opener,” someone advocating for them who is in the know with what collegiate programs do have a need for their graduation year and position as well as whether or not that coach typically recruits the athlete’s style of play and if the school would be a good fit for that particular prospective student-athlete… and vice versa.

Second, the ’21’s and ’22’s still being recruited—even with the smaller number of programs having a need for them—are the kids that have their academics in order, including test scores.

Although the NCAA may have waived test scores necessity for eligibility for certain classes, that does not negate the fact that the ACT or SAT score, in addition to the recruit’s GPA and class rank, can help facilitate the financial aspect of them getting recruited more than anything else.

If, on average, every two points on the ACT equals $20,000 in savings over a four-year period of time, then it behooves every kid to put as much effort into their test scores as they are into their craft and the classroom work!

A perfect example from the last few weeks involved one of my 2022 prospects, who got the call from her No. 1 program. She was ecstatic, of course, but also confused.

The coach called to let her know how badly they wanted her and that they were absolutely offering a spot but are out of money for that class. That doesn’t change the fact that they have a huge need for her but—for the first year at least—they are not going to have any money to extend to her.

Fortunately, this student-athlete has a 4.1 GPA and a 31 ACT which, at this particular school, gets her a completely full academic ride! Thus, while there may be any athletic money involved initially, the player will not have to pay a dime.

Sometimes it’s hard for the prospects and even the parent to understand that the amount of athletic money available via scholarships does not dictate the amount of love or interest a coach has in the prospect.

In all of my years of scouting I have never once come across a coach who “lowballed” a kid and then tried to bid on them later when other schools become involved. The truth of the matter is the coach is going to offer the athletic money that he or she had allocated for that particular player (with the notable exception being, like now, when a worldwide pandemic such as the one we’re experiencing today comes along and provides a path for current collegians to receive an extra year of eligibility and money).

ADAPT… OR DIE

The current state of recruiting is unfortunate, but it is like anything in life: you “either adapt or die.” In college softball recruiting, it is a sport of continuous changes and to stay up on those changes and have the most relevant information, as well as accurate pathways to achieve what you are trying to do, is monumental.

Coaches across the board from every division have been forced to implement some level of budget cuts and a few programs have even been annihilated completely. There are coaches who have struggled to keep their assistant coaches—not just because of the budgets cut, but because of the loss of camp and other additional revenue providers

Unfortunately, NCAA Div. I coaches still cannot work camps, so some of the assistants on college softball staffs are losing a big chunk of their income. That is not to say all programs… but there are a lot.

And with the NCAA D2, D3, juco and NAIA programs, you may be talking about smaller budgets because of all of the repercussions of COVID, so now the amount allocated to travel expenses and the ability for these coaches to scout as they have previously, has been somewhat minimized.

4 KEYS TO GETTING RECRUITED

When you consider all of this, at the very least since June of this summer, it is pretty easy to see where things are headed when you are in my shoes, including the commonalities that enable me to predict how things are going to trend.

Some areas aren’t necessarily new but are ones that have increased in the level of importance.

The things I am about to list are not new and have now become so important that they are a humongous deciding factor on whether or not you are recruited… and to what extent you will be recruited.

I highly advise putting your efforts into ensuring these things over the 6-to-24 months:

1. Video

When it comes to video, I am referring to the prospect obtaining video multiple times a week which includes game footage, training at home, training at lessons, team practice and any opportunity to obtain images and get them to the coach in the case that they were not able to watch the previous ones sent.

2. Streaming

In the second reference to video, this one is going to be hard to hear. But with the large number of schools that either are restricted from scouting in person such as the Division I programs, or don’t have the budget currently to go all over the place to see all of the kids they need to, the emergence and widespread popularity of streaming has become extremely key over the last 4-to-6 monhts.

Make no mistake, you do not have to have an account with a streaming service for a coach to watch. Does it help if you have one of these for your team? It does, but if used adequately and maintained, it can be accomplished by using your team’s Facebook page just as easily.

Trust me I have seen it for myself since the beginning of the summer with the hundreds of coaches communicating with me about watching my kids because they could not attend an event. While some teams that my prospects were playing on had a streaming service, others did not and simply used their teams Facebook page. It does not matter where it is coming from as long as it works and is reliable.

3. Camps

Camps have always been an integral part of the college softball recruiting process. But if this summer made something abundantly clear, the Div. II programs were not allowed to go scout the tournament or showcase but they were allowed to go work the showcase camps.

And the plethora of the kids that I had attend those camps were not only recruited by the Div. II programs that were able to attend, but by the Div. III, NAIA, and Jucos. The camps throughout the fall—as long as they weren’t canceled because of COVID-19—have still been extremely productive for the prospects.

But if there is one thing that has been echoed by every coach of every division it is that, with the exception of the DI programs, November and December camps will be extremely crucial for college softball prospects and therefore, there will be anywhere from four or five different camps of schools that Susie is interested in having camps on the same weekend.

Unfortunately, this will not get easier after the winter (and perhaps spring) assuming that the DI dead period goes on significantly in 2021.

4. Gate Openers

Although it may seem obvious, having someone who is experienced and connected and can alleviate some of the stress and wasted efforts is a huge advantage.

Even if the coaches can’t come out to watch you, the most important thing is that every move you make should be productive and have an end result. If you go to a showcase, at the end of the weekend you should have an idea of who is looking at you and who has decided not to move forward.

If you are looking at what camps to attend, it can be confusing because there are possibly several camps on several weekends. Knowing which one you should and should not be attending can be based on the accurate level of play, the fit, and whether or not that coach has legitimate interest in you. This is where having the right person in your corner comes in the play.

STREAMING… A VITAL PIECE

It might surprise you to know how many teams still did not stream this summer or this fall.

And while those coaches may be great coaches and great individuals, they are doing their team a disservice. Make no mistake, streaming is not the end-all solution. If streaming alone would get you recruited, then the majority of prospects reading this would already be committed based all the coaches who watched their team stream this Summer and Fall.

On any given weekend I would have prospects of mine message me saying that anywhere from five to 15 different colleges were watching their stream. But if streaming was the only key to getting recruited, everybody who streamed this summer and this fall would be offered and committed by those schools.

Often times, the coaches “watching” were actually watching another girl or even the other team. The important piece here or is that streaming is absolutely going to be a vital piece moving forward in college softball recruiting, not just for the next several months, but I believe for the next several years.

It is a piece to the puzzle that, standing alone, solves nothing. However, in coordination with those other points above, it can allow you to accomplish what you were trying to accomplish during one of the hardest recruiting seasons I can remember. Each of those four puzzle pieces above are crucial and necessary in finding success in recruiting.

THE ONLY CONSTANT… IS CHANGE

If there is anything else that I can leave you with it is this: Be active but be patient!

Almost every other day I am hearing from 50 to 100 different coaches that are having their needs change for different recruiting classes. They needed a 2022 catcher and now they don’t; now they need a ‘22 shortstop. And so forth.

With the signing underway for the seniors (2021’s), as well as the end of the fall coming and exit meetings for current college players coming, transfers are going to be all over the place and therefore, more opportunities for not only the obvious transfer portal kids and junior college kids, but also legitimate ‘21‘s and possible ‘22’s.

If, hypothetically, I am a solid Div. II program and I have my No. 2 pitcher transferring out at semester in December, I know I need to do my best to find another pitcher at semester so, while the transfer portal is an option, it’s more likely that I am picking up a solid Juco kid.

Furthermore, that increases the need for me to have a legitimate 2022 arm because that Juco kid will give me a couple of years but will be done by the time my 2022 class comes in.

I could turn this table in circles with explanation after explanation and example after example. But the take-home here has to be those four puzzle pieces above, in addition to being very active while being very patient.

CHANGES ARE COMING

One thing is for sure: a lot is going to change over the next 60 or 90 days! Previously closed doors will open as they always have, but even more so this year.

The 2020 year may have been rough for everybody, in life as well as in softball recruiting. But just like everything else in life, you either adapt to the circumstances or you fizzle out and fail. The choice is up to you.

And, just like in life, the most successful people are not necessarily the most talented or most intelligent all of the time. They are the people who maximize their resources and rather than giving up, they pivot.

Lastly, everyone is up in arms trying to determine whether or not the NCAA D1 dead period will get extended. I can’t say much, but there will be a vote tomorrow (November 18) that will answer everything. Stay tuned for some of the upcoming info on my social media, or feel free to reach out. Again, it is simple: “hope for the best plan for the worst.”

If you want to learn more about where are you are at in the recruiting process or have questions about how COVID has affected your recruiting process, please do not hesitate to contact me personally anytime.

— Robby Willson, National Scouting Report (NSR)

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If you would like to learn more about being recruited to play college softball, you can contact Coach Wilson in the following ways:

• phone: 501-438-3343
• email: [email protected]
• website: Nsr-inc.com/softball
• Facebook: Facebook.com/NSRsoftball
• Twitter: Twitter.com/nsr_softball
• Instagram: Instagram.com/Robby_wilson_nsr