Parent's Guide to College Recruiting
This section is written specifically for parents and guardians supporting a high school athlete through the college recruiting process. It covers your role in the process, how to use Path2Commit to stay informed, a complete year-by-year timeline, strategies to help your athlete stand out, and the compliance rules every family must understand.
How to Use This Guide
Start with Your Role in the Process to understand the philosophy behind effective parent support — it will frame everything else. Then work through the Recruiting Timeline to map where your athlete currently stands. The remaining articles can be read in any order based on what's most relevant to your situation right now.
Table of Contents
| Article | Description |
|---|---|
| 01 — Your Role in the Process | What parents do (and don't do) — and why it matters |
| 02 — Getting Started with Path2Commit | Set up your parent account, link to your athlete, navigate the dashboard |
| 03 — The Recruiting Timeline | Year-by-year roadmap from 8th grade through signing day |
| 04 — Helping Your Athlete Stand Out | Academics, highlight film, social media, personal branding, and direct outreach |
| 05 — The Communication Game | How coaches contact athletes, how athletes should respond, and how parents can help without interfering |
| 06 — Sport-by-Sport Considerations | Key differences in timeline, scholarship structure, and strategy by sport |
| 07 — NCAA, NAIA & NJCAA Rules Parents Must Know | Eligibility rules, contact restrictions, amateurism, and what can cost your athlete their scholarship |
Key Principles for Parents
- The process is athlete-driven. Coaches evaluate your child — including how they handle themselves. Parent-dominated recruiting is a red flag to coaches, not a show of support.
- Start earlier than you think. Top programs fill roster spots early, sometimes before junior year. Waiting until senior year severely limits options.
- A GPA below 2.3 eliminates D1 scholarship eligibility. Core course requirements must be completed in the right sequence.