Stories continue to come out which show student athletes whom
are losing their scholarship due to posts made on social media. It is unfortunate and will continue to become
more and more prominent. Recently the
NCAA has ruled that college coaches are allowed to “click, not comment” on
social media posts by prospective student athletes. This means college coaches can friend, like
and even share the prospective student athletes post. This new ruling already is having a dramatic
effect on college recruiting.
If you are planning to become a student athlete it is very
important you are educated on the impact social media will have on your
future. The use of profanity, images of
you with alcohol, bullying, and wearing skimpy clothing are all examples of how
it may cost you a scholarship. It’s not just the scholarship you should be
concerned with either. College admissions offices and employers are also going
to be using social media to better understand what kind of candidate you are. In addition, colleges and employers are viewing
the pages you are following, liking, and posts you are sharing. Remember your mother saying, “Be careful of
the company you keep?” As a side note, I
had a coach who always tells his players that you can never outrun your
reputation. That rings even more true in
regards to social media!
Now that doesn’t mean don’t use social media. Social Media can be used to share with the
world what type of person you really are.
Think of social media as a platform to share with colleges, coaches and
even potential employers that you are a positive role model for their
program. Remember, your image is going
to be plastered throughout the institution, on the media guides as well as
their social media network. It’s fine
for you to have some silly images of yourself, but be conscious that your page
contains no profanity, and understand the balance between sharing how hard you
are working outside of your select or high school programs.
Social media is not at all bad. It actually can be used as a
powerful recruiting tool to gain exposure.
DeliveryMaxx highly recommends
putting together short video clips that can shared on your personal social
media accounts such as Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter. We even suggest
creating a Facebook profile or fan page. This is a great place to check in at
tournaments, share articles, video and pictures. Although some of your peers may
not utilize Facebook, the college coaches who are recruiting you are using it. DeliveryMaxx customizes a mobile App that
will allow you to build a personal profile page that college coaches can easily
look at as well as allow you to share all of the great things you are doing
throughout your network.
A great recruiting tip is to follow all of the college
programs that interest you. The coaches post awesome clips of their athletes in
practices, matches, traveling, and site-seeing. It’s fun to follow and it is
easier to stay up-to-date when you are sending your own updates. You can take
the time to personalize your emails to them to reflect their record or upcoming
matches. You will also get a better feel for what the next level is really like
and whether it’s for you.
Good luck with achieving your dreams of becoming a student
athlete and remember everyone is watching!
