Can A Recruit Practice With A College Team?

The end goal of the recruiting process is to get a coveted scholarship offer or spot on the roster from your dream school. You’ll want the school and team both to be a good fit for your personality. A great way to find that out is to practice with the college team you’re considering. But can recruits even practice with a college team?

Only Division I men’s basketball recruits are allowed to participate in tryouts. Depending on division and sport, there are more specific rules involving tryouts and practices.

There are a few reasons why a recruit may want to practice with a college team. Besides allowing them to see if the team is a good fit, recruits can show college coaches their athletic abilities. It’s also an excellent opportunity to show off your teamwork and leadership skills.

College coaches will want their recruits to meet a few, if not all of, the team to get a sense of your chemistry together. It’s against NCAA rules for coaches or coaching staff to organize a work out for recruits for most sports and divisions. But there may be an informal work out that team captains organize that recruits can attend. At these workouts, you can see if you connect with your potential teammates.

Division Specific Regulations

There are regulations on which divisions and sports allow recruits to practice with a college team. Tryouts or practices are more important in helping college coaches determine the skills of recruits depending on the intensity of competition of each sport and other factors.

Division I: The only Division I sport that can hold tryouts is men’s basketball. During an official or unofficial visit on campus, recruits will have the opportunity to try out, where they may be able to play with the college team. Tryouts are limited to potential players who are in their senior year of high school or transferring from a junior college or four-year college. These on-campus evaluations can only be two hours per week, whether or not the college team is in season or not. Tryouts have to happen during the regularly allowable practice time, which is 20 hours during the season and eight hours out of season.

Division II: Division II schools have more restrictions on when they can hold practices or tryouts. They can only hold one practice or tryout, and the college-bound student-athlete must be a senior in high school. During this tryout or practice, the school can conduct a medical examination of the student-athlete, including tests that gauge an athlete’s speed, strength, agility and sport skills. Players can even engage in competition except in the sports of football, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer and wrestling. The school can give out equipment for student-athletes to borrow during the practice or tryout. The tryout can’t last longer than the typical length of the school’s practice period or less than two hours.

**Division III:**Division III schools are not allowed to have practice tryouts with potential student-athletes. However, the unofficial work out rule still applies for Division III, so you may be asked to work out with just the team during a visit. Division III schools are much less competitive and more focused on a balanced athletic and academic college experience, so they are rarely limited by the NCAA recruiting rules.

Depending on which division or sport you’re focused on during recruiting, you may or may not be able to practice with a college team.

When Can A College Coach Watch A Recruit Play?

So if you aren’t able to practice with a college team, how can you make sure that a college coach knows who you are? There are a few points during the recruiting process where you have the opportunity to stand out.

Highlight Film: Student-athletes usually start by sending some initial emails to college coaches at schools that they’re interested in. These emails should include links to your highlight video, which showcases your best plays in a few minutes. Putting time and effort into making sure this video is high-quality and shows you in the best light can go a long way in differentiating from other recruits.

In-Person: Highlight films can only show so much of a player’s character and ability on the field. Coaches will prefer to watch you play or practice in-person to have a better judgment of your skills. Make sure you communicate with the coach if you are playing at a specific showcase or event, so it’s easy for them to find you.

High School Practice: Although you may not be able to practice with a college team, college coaches know how their team plays and interacts with each other firsthand. After watching you play, they’ll be able to use their best judgment in determining if your style matches their team’s. If a college coach drops into a high school practice, they will be evaluating potential student-athletes and their attitude, body language and their interactions with teammates and coaches.

Drop-In At High Schools: In addition to staying for high school practices, college coaches may also drop into high schools to talk to staff about the recruit they’re interested in. College coaches have been known to talk to guidance counselors, coaches and other members of high school staff that the recruit interacts with daily. They will be looking for players of strong character that have a personality that fits with their team.

Tournament, Camps Or Other Events: College coaches will usually attend a few select tournaments and camps to check out the playing abilities of top recruits. If you’ve already contacted a coach, you’ll likely be on their radar of players to watch during this event. Even if you aren’t on the top of a college coach’s list when they come out to the event, you still have the opportunity to catch their eye. Make sure you’re playing your best at these types of events.

All of these interactions with college coaches will occur for players during the evaluation period of recruiting. After you end up on the coach’s list of top recruits, they will likely extend an official or unofficial visit offer, which is the primary way to get a good sense of the program.

How To Decide If A Team Is A Good Fit?

Although most potential student-athletes won’t be able to practice with the college teams, it’s still important to figure out if you will play well with the college team. There are a few ways that recruits can meet the team, learn more about the program overall and watch the team play.

Official Visit: During an official visit, student-athletes and their parents participate in an all-expense-paid trip to a university to meet the coach and team. You will likely be given a tour of the campus, including libraries, classes, housing options and dining halls. There will also be meetings with financial aid, admissions and the coach. Bring workout clothes and shoes, just in case you are invited to work out with the team

Unofficial Visit: Unofficial visits are visits to schools that are financed entirely by the student-athlete and their parents. You can go on a campus tour and get a feel for the college on these visits before deciding whether or not to pursue the school or program fully. You might have an opportunity to work out with the team captains during an unofficial visit as well, so be prepared for this possibility.

Watching Games: Keeping an eye on the team’s record and watching any games they play during their season is a pivotal way to decide if they have the kind of environment you’d like to join. This is easier if you’re joining a more well-known team, but there are ways to live stream games, even if the school is small. Watching a team play together gives you a sense of how they interact with each other and what their playing style is.

Overall, it’s essential to make sure you have chemistry with the college team that you’re thinking about joining. Get to know the program overall and take any chances that might come your way to work out with the team or meet team members.

Things To Keep In Mind

Professional Teams: Just like there are specific rules for recruits practicing with college teams, there are regulations around college athletes practicing with professional teams. Some college-bound student-athletes will try out with professional teams before enrolling in college. To avoid an NCAA infraction, the student must visit the school for less than 48 hours before they are enrolled in college, and compensation pays only for necessary expenses. The college-bound student-athlete also may only participate in one try-out with a professional team.