How Does Texting Work in Recruiting
Texting college coaches is a great way to build relationships and get to know a coach in a more informal setting. Usually, texting will start further along in the recruiting process, after the first or second email, and often after your first call with the coach. College coaches don’t give out their phone number to every recruit, so take that as a good sign you are getting recruited by that coach.
While texting college coaches may be a convenient—and more casual—way to interact, a few misplaced texts could damage your prospects. That being said, student-athletes should take the time to learn how to text a college coach and how to respond. Even though you’ve progressed far enough in your recruiting to get to this point, you are still a recruit, and the coach is still evaluating you. When it comes to what to text a college coach, don’t be lazy and if you’re not sure a text is appropriate, ask your current coach or parents to give a read before you send it.
NCAA Rules on Texting Coaches
As of April 2016, the NCAA Division I Council deregulated texting for some of the last remaining sports under the ban, including football, cross country, track & field, swimming, and diving. This means that for every sport, texting rules fall under the umbrella of digital communications, alongside social media direct messages, emails and faxes. For most sports, D1 coaches can send you unlimited texts starting June 15 after your sophomore year of high school or September 1 of your junior year.
If you’re diligently looking at the NCAA recruiting rules, you may notice that for DI football and a few other sports, texting is not listed as an acceptable form of digital communications. Rest assured, college coaches can text you at that time. The recruiting rules do state that coaches can only correspond with recruits through a private means of communication. In other words, coaches aren’t allowed to post on your Facebook or Twitter feed or engage with you in online discussion forums. Texting, email and fax are all private digital forms of communication and are accepted!
General Texting Rules
Most times, texting is a form of communication that comes later in the recruiting process, once a connection has already been made by email, phone or social media. If you’re receiving text messages from college coaches, it probably means you are on well-established on their recruiting list! Texting college coaches is more casual than talking on the phone or sending an email. But believe it or not, texting etiquette is a thing. Here are a few guidelines student-athletes should follow for sending a coach text message.
When communicating with college coaches, follow these texting rules:
- Address a coach’s first or last name when texting. For example, “Hi Coach Smith,” or “Hey Coach Lisa!”.
- Sign your coach text message with your full name. Coaches receive tons of texts from recruits and might not always save their contacts. Make it easy for them to recognize your number!
- Don’t text a coach if you haven’t asked for permission to text. Sometimes, a coach will initiate sending a text first. If not, be sure to ask if it would be alright to text them for updates either in a follow up email or phone call.
- Don’t send coach text messages between 11p.m. and 6a.m in their time zone. Even if a coach texts you at midnight, wait until the next morning to respond.
How to Text a Coach
When it comes to how to text a college coach or how to respond to a college coach text, keep it professional. It’s ok to let your personality show, but you shouldn’t text a college coach like you text a friend. Your focus on texting college coaches should be to develop a personal relationship, show interest in their program and share notable updates.
If you’ve already established a texting relationship, continue to share regular updates via coach text to keep your name top of mind. Remember, you’re trying to see if you’d be a good fit for their program and that includes how well you get along with the coaches.
What to Say in a Text to a Coach
- Congratulate them on a recent win
- Tell them you were impressed by a recent stat you just saw about their program
- Explain that you’re looking forward to watching the team this season
- Thank the coach for looking at your highlight video, coming to see you compete, etc.
Close out your text with something about you. You can tell them about a big win, or invite them to watch you compete.
Make Sure your grammar is correct and your text sounds professional