College Volleyball Recruiting - Don't Panic as a Senior

Hello Coach,

My daughter is a 2015 Outside Hitter. She is very worried that she has not yet found a place to play next year. She was offered a walk on spot at a D1 school, but we are not sure that this is a good idea.

Should she play at a junior college and get playing time, or is it better to take the risk at the D1 school?
The D1 school has said that there is possibility of playing time and scholarship in the future, but we know how that goes. My daughter has been talking to this school for six months......they want an outside that can make an immediate impact as the senior girl is leaving.

My daughter just finished up high school....made 1st team All Conference and made the 5A All State Team.
Are these accomplishments worth sharing with this school? Is a recruited walk-on position a positive thing? 

Should my daughter wait and see shat happens during club season??

I would appreciate your advice.

Thanks in advance!

Volleyball mom in Colorado

Sorry for the later reply; got too busy with my day job!

The short answer is don't take the walk on or jump into the JC pool just yet.  

This is the crazy time of the year with college volleyball - Season is ending which means that many coaches will get fired, will take another job, will get hired; this all results in massive roster changes with the coaching changes. In addition, this is also the time for post season team meetings which result in players get cut or quitting.

You add these two facts together and you have many, many and many DI schools (and DII/NAIA/DIII/JC) programs who thought they were done recruiting, but now have to re-engage with the recruiting process.

I would suggest that your focus be on reaching out to a wide variety of programs (Category, Geography, Academics, etc) which fit your daughter's comfort zone.  Never feel bad about emailing/reaching out to a college program, because the worst that happens is they hit the delete button, while the best that happens is they start recruiting you!

This time segment we are in, from Thanksgiving to the New Year, is a great window of opportunity to get your daughter's name out to college programs.  And when you reach out, the email MUST include recent video - Don't over think the video, just make a quick skills tape from early season club practice and copy the link (NCSA Profile, Youtube, Vimeo, etc).

Your daughter still has plenty of time on the recruiting clock and it is better to keep shooting high (but physically realistic) in her desired schools.  Come April, then it makes sense to look at JC's because they can be a great first step to the perfect 4 year fit.

And, if you have read through my blog or Inside College Volleyball, you know my opinion about walk ons.

Good luck and Reach Out!

Coach