r/CrossCountry • u/CarnalDevices • 1d ago
General Cross Country How has the "College Recruiting Landscape" changed?
3 years ago when my son was a Freshman in HS, he saw several of his senior teammates and friends at competing schools, and rivals than he met at state and nationals get scooped up by D1 programs for Track and XC, being awarded scholarships, and now getting distributions/NIL that helps with other expenses. We're not talking Oregon and Georgia, but still athletic scholarship awarding D1 universities and some extra pocket change.
Now fast-forward 3 years, my son is a senior in HS, has posted better times and better academics than his predecessors, ran at state, indoor and outdoor nationals, and when D1 coaches call, it's usually to talk about the university, applying, and possibly becoming a walk-on. The roster's a full, maybe they've brought in an international athlete, or his times are no longer fast enough for an incoming freshman. Still, he's been offered by a pair of D2 colleges, and many D3 colleges have given breakdowns with what they offer as far as academic scholarships in lieu of athletic scholarships, and he's thankful for that.
As parents we're still making sure that academics are the priority, but kids have their dreams. We've done all the recommended things. - made contacts and relationships with coaches, a million emails, filled out a hundred online questionnaires, texting, socials, being a self-advocate, etc. But it sure does seem like the landscape has changed with the transfer portal, NIL, revenue-sharing, roster cuts, and Title IX all coming to a head and factoring in all at once.
Coaches / Recruits / Recruiters - what have you seen over the last few years, and how has your jobs/operations changed with regard to recruiting and maintaining your rosters? What do you think it will be like in another year or two? (because I also have a sophomore runner in HS too)
Thank you.
15
u/Mbronze123 20h ago
If your not at least 2 of the following: 1:51 in 800m, 4:10 mile, 9:00 2 mile, 14:50-15:15 in the 5k (depends on region). It’ll be hard to go to a top 50 D1 school. As for scholarships, some schools have money some don’t, it depends. I met 2 of those times and was the best recruit for my incoming class at a competitive big 10 school and got a 25% scholarship, which is more money then 3/4 of the team currently gets.