Can Coaches Follow Recruits On Twitter?

As you go through the recruiting process, you will eventually begin communicating with college coaches around the country. Recently, coaches have begun using social media platforms, like Twitter, to communicate with prospects. I am sure you are wondering whether coaches can follow you on Twitter and other social media platforms.

The short answer is yes. Coaches can follow you on twitter. However, they cannot retweet or favorite your tweets, nor direct message you on Twitter until July 15 or September 1 after your sophomore year, depending on your sport. Further , they are not allowed to comment on your tweets until you have committed to their program. Restrictions during “dead periods” where communication between prospects and college coaches is limited still apply. As long as you understand the limitations of Twitter and other social media platforms, they can be incredibly valuable tools to generate recruiting interest and communicate with college coaches.

Mastering social media platforms, especially Twitter, can be difficult. College coaches use Twitter in very different ways - some simply use it to put out information about their program, while others use it to actively engage and interact with prospects. To help you understand whether a coach can follow you, the different uses of Twitter, and how to best use it to your advantage, we have included a more detailed guide below.

A Guide to Using Twitter In The College Recruiting Process

Coaches have recently begun moving away from using letters and questionnaires in the recruiting process. Now, they use a variety of online platforms, including social media. Social media, especially platforms like Twitter that have a direct messaging feature, are a powerful tool for instant, efficient communication between college coaches and prospects.

Restrictions On Using Twitter: College coaches are allowed to follow you on Twitter. Additionally, outside of scheduled dead periods, they are allowed to like your pictures, privately message you, and repost/share your posts. However, they are not allowed to publicly comment on any of your posts until you have chosen to commit to their school. While this may seem like a weird rule, it is important to keep in mind while interacting with college coaches on Twitter. This, however, does not restrict you from publicly commenting on any of their posts.

Keep It Clean: One of the most obvious, yet most essential, pieces of advice for interacting with college coaches on Twitter, or any other social media platform, is to keep it clean. Coaches use your social media profiles to analyze whether you would be a good fit in their locker room and, while coaches understand that you are a teenager, they do not want to see you posting things that are inappropriate, mean, or illegal. Coaches are much more interested in prospects who they believe won’t be problems off the field.

Consider Your Name And Picture: Another straightforward tip on using Twitter is to carefully pick both your profile picture and Twitter handle. You should aim to make it as easy as possible for the coach viewing your profile to know who you are. Your handle should be as close as possible to your real name. If your name is taken, make sure to include your full name in your bio. Your profile picture should be a clear, high quality image of you. It is never a bad idea to include an image of you in your uniform so the coach can see your number..

Include Relevant Info In Your Bio: In order to maximize the effectiveness of your Twitter account, you need some other supplemental materials for coaches to access. This can include many different things. Some of the important ones are your high school and/or club team, the year you will graduate, your preferred position(s), and a link to a highlight and/or skills video. Including these will allow a coach to easily gauge whether he has any interest in recruiting you.

Coaches live very fast paced lives, and do not have the time to spend more than a couple seconds looking at your Twitter. Because of this, it is important to make it as easy for them to interpret as possible. Doing so will greatly improve the chances of the following you, or taking notice of your abilities.

What To Do When A College Coach Follows You On Twitter

If you follow the tips above, a college coach will most likely follow you on Twitter at some point during the recruiting process. This gives you a chance to solidify their interest in recruiting you.

Determining Why They Followed You: Coaches follow recruits for many reasons. Most frequently, a coach follows you because they have a genuine interest in recruiting you and want to check your account for red flags, while also getting to know you better. If a coach DM’s you first, or responds with more than a generic note that could have been sent to dozens of prospects, they most like have genuine interest in recruiting you. However, coaches may follow you to promote their recruiting camps, or to boost their own followers.

Sending An Introductory DM: Once a coach follows you on Twitter, the first step is sending them a DM introducing yourself. Sometimes a coach will DM you first, but more often they will wait for you to send the first message. In your DM, remember to be kind and polite. Beyond that, introduce yourself and explain why you are interested in their specific program. Do not send a generic DM to multiple college coaches – they will be able to tell. If you have a specific question about their program, be sure to include that. Coaches will be impressed if they see that you have spent time researching and learning about their program.

Learn About Their Program: There is no better resource to learn about a program than its coach. They can answer pretty much any question you might have, and will be happy to talk about their program. Be sure to do your research before asking any questions, to make sure you don’t ask questions that are easily answered on the program’s website or social media accounts.

What Not To Do: There are a couple things you should not do when sending DMs to college coaches on Twitter. While this first one may seem obvious, you would be surprised by how many recruits make this mistake. Do not use your introductory DM as an opportunity to ask the coach whether they will offer you a scholarship. They will broach that topic when they are ready to. Second, don’t flood their inbox with DMs. Coaches are incredibly busy people and receive tons of messages a day. They likely won’t be mad if you send a follow up message, but try to avoid sending them an excessive amount of DMs.

Interacting with college coaches on Twitter, or any other social media platform, really comes down to respect and thoughtfulness. As long as you are considerate, don’t flood their DMs with messages, and come prepared, they will be receptive to your messages. Because of its fast-paced nature, Twitter is a great place to connect with numerous college coaches around the country.

Things To Keep In Mind

Be Personal: This goes for all forms of communication – Twitter, other social media platforms, and face-to-face. There is nothing that annoys college coaches more than a prospect who is unable to differentiate between their program and others. While coaches don’t expect you to be experts on their program, they do expect you to have done your research and understand how it differentiates from others.

Email Is A Good Alternative To Twitter: Some prospects either haven’t been followed by any college coaches, or they don’t feel comfortable communicating with college coaches on Twitter. One alternative is sending an introductory email to the coaches at programs you are interested in. In addition to the same information that would be included in your introductory DM, attach your high school GPA and/or transcript.

Stay On Top Of Things: For most prospects, this won’t be a problem. However, if you know you are naturally a forgetful person, consider designating a specific period of time each week to respond and reach out to college coaches over Twitter and other social media platforms.