You are the starter on your varsity sports team; a big shot. It is a cakewalk, but now the real process begins. You got recruited by some colleges, and now, you have to compete with people just as hungry, if not hungrier, than you are.

The first step is, “Keeping good grades is one of the main ways to get noticed by any college right off the bat,” senior basketball player KK Barbour said. “You’re a student athlete, and the coaches put more stock into your grades than your play. If your grades are bad, then you don’t play.”

Barbour, who has committed to Liberty University, also played AAU basketball every spring and summer. “We would go to huge recruiting tournaments with every college coach in the nation present. The tournaments were exciting, but intimidating with all those coaches there. It was pretty crazy.”

Keeping your performance and grades up is a pretty common process in anything, but in terms of recruiting, it is amped up. Once you nab the attention of a program, next comes the communication.

“You have to keep open communication with the coaches and staff once you get noticed,” senior football player Kevin McCarthy, who has committed to Frostburg State, said. “Showing your high interest in what they have to offer will entice them to want to keep you on their radar. Most players send in highlight tapes to the staff so that they can see just how well you’ve performed throughout your seasons.

Usually, we have someone from the staff as the cameraman, and then we use the program Huddle to see the uploaded game tape. Huddle can be accessed by players, coaches, and scouts.”

The next step is visiting the campus. Senior lacrosse player Justin Moran, who has committed to Jacksonville, said “coaches invite you to an overnight stay so you can spend time with some of the guys already on the team.”

Hopefully the offer does not get pulled from you afterwards; it happened to me once at another school. They pulled my offer for no apparent reason, and I felt really disappointed because I thought that I had finally achieved my goal. I worked very hard for it,” Moran said.

The second to last step involves finally picking the college you desire, which means sifting through your offers to find the best fit.

Senior Madison Noga, a swimmer who has committed to West Virginia, notes that “coaches will do anything to get someone they want for the college, and will continuously offer more to get you there. It is important for you to choose the college that best suits your preferences. For me, the coaches were very honest and helpful, and the team felt like a family; they all connected really well.”

Once you get an acceptance letter, the paperwork begins.

Senior lacrosse player Kyle Seago, who has signed with Davis and Elkins College, highlights the last legs of the process: “Once I got accepted, I had to send in a deposit to become locked into the program. The next thing to do was to make an NCAA profile, send in my SATs, official transcript, personal info, and read about the NCAA Drug and Code of Conduct policies.

Afterwards, I received my National Letter of Intent, or NLI, in which I had to officially sign and confirm my commitment to the school. I couldn’t speak with any other program once I signed it,” Seago said.

Seago is the first lacrosse player to be accepted in the new program for Davis and Elkins College. “It was a real honor, and I am excited for the upcoming season.”

Lastly, it is signing day at Albemarle, where the students finally put pen to paper to commit. The athletic department contacts the media and suddenly you’re featured on local news and Twitter.

“It felt great to finally sign the letter of intent and it really just solidified what you worked for. It was also really awesome to do it with friends, family, and coaches that helped and supported me so much along the way,” Moran said.

Moran and Seago were able to sign their letters together at a ceremony on Nov. 20. “It was a huge relief to know that I am locked into play lacrosse next year. It was a big weight lifted off my shoulders and now I can direct all my focus to this year and finishing my last season at AHS,” Seago said.

Barbour signed her letter of intent on Nov. 11, cementing her full scholarship to Liberty. “It was one of the best days of my life and I feel so blessed,” Barbour said.