How to get your Student-Athlete Recruited

by Tonya Johnson – Women's Head Coach Georgia Tech Volleyball

I think it's very important for everyone to understand that there is a place for every volleyball player to play on the next level. The different levels of collegiate volleyball are Division I, II, III, NAIA, and Junior College. Certainly your student-athletes skill level will determine what level they play on, but if they have a desire to play the opportunities certainly exist.

The rules are different on each level but regardless of the level it's going to require some work from the student-athlete and the high school coach. There are a few ways to let a college know that your student-athlete is interested in their school.

The first thing you can do is have your student-athlete call the college coach directly to let them know they have an interest. Some examples of questions you should have your student-athlete ask are:

• What positions are you recruiting in my class?
• Do you have a scholarship available in that particular position?
• What tournaments will they be recruiting at in the future? If your student-athlete is at the same tournament they should invite the college coach to come watch them play.
• Do they offer the major the student-athlete is interested in?
  

The second thing is have your student-athlete send the college coach a letter expressing their interest in that particular school. Please have the student-athlete include in the email all the important data such as High School/Club, Position, Height, Approach/Block touch, etc. Also have them include a high school or club schedule so that if they are recruiting at a particular tournament they can make plans to watch your student-athlete play. It also helps to give coaches some insight as to what the student-athlete's academic background is and what degree they have an interest in pursuing in the email as well.

Third, have your student-athlete put together a skills video. It is important to make sure the video includes the student-athlete performing all the skills that pertain to their position and some footage from match play. You want to make sure that the match play is one of your student-athletes best performances. With the way technology has advanced the skills video can also be placed on the website YouTube and the link can be attached in an email to the colleges the student-athlete is interested in.

The last option and one that I find to be very important is for you, the high school coach to contact the coaches of the colleges that your student-athletes are interested in. This could be an important piece because who can better attest to the players character, work ethic, and abilities than their high school coach.

These are just a few ways to help your student-athlete's get recruited. It is important that you stress to your student-athlete the importance of being proactive in the recruiting process. It is also very important for you to help the student-athlete determine what level they can compete on. Once you have concluded what level your student-athlete can compete on then you can begin to assist in the search for the right fit for your student-athletes to continue their academic and athletic endeavors.

About the Author...

In her first season as head coach of the Georgia Tech Volleyball Team, Tonya Johnson led the Yellow Jackets to a 21-10 record and their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2004. Under Johnson, the Jackets finished third in the ACC after being picked eighth in the preseason poll with a 15-5 conference record. Johnson coached two AVCA honorable mention All-Americans, the ACC Freshman of the Year and three All-ACC picks.

Johnson immediately won over Georgia Tech fans as the Jackets topped rival Georgia in a five-set thriller in her first career match as a head coach. Later in the season, the Yellow Jackets handed ACC champion and NCAA national seed Florida State its only conference loss of the season. The win was Tech's first on the road against a ranked team since 2003. The Yellow Jackets finished in the top of the ACC in nearly every statistical category including second in assists, third in kills and fourth in hitting percentage. Defensively, Tech allowed the second-fewest kills, assists and digs in the league.

Tonya Johnson was named the seventh head volleyball coach in Georgia Tech history on January 9, 2009. She was an assistant coach under Jerritt Elliott at Texas for five years before being promoted to associate head coach in 2008. She helped guide the Longhorns to the 2008 NCAA Final Four following back-to-back Regional Final appearances in 2006 and 2007. The Longhorns concluded last season with a 31-3 record after recording more than 20 victories in each of the four seasons prior. An excellent recruiter on the national level, Johnson helped Elliott land the nation's second-ranked recruiting classes in each of the last three seasons (2006-08). Texas' 2009 recruiting class is aslo expected to be among the country's best, with the signing of the nation's top- and fifth-ranked prep players. A Longhorn has earned the Big 12's Conference Freshman of the Year honor each of the last three seasons, one of whom has also been named the National Freshman of the Year.

In addition to serving as the recruiting coordinator, Johnson worked with the Longhorns' outside hitters, three of whom received All-America accolades over her last three seasons at Texas. Juliann Faucette, the National Freshman of the Year in 2007, was tabbed a first-team AVCA All-American in 2007 after receiving first team Big 12 honors as a freshman. Ashley Engle, a right-side hitter that earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors in 2006, was named a first-team AVCA All-American in 2008 after being tabbed to the AVCA All-America second team in 2006, and Destinee Hooker received first-team AVCA All-America honors in 2008 after earning second-team accolades in 2007 and honorable mention recognition in 2006.

Prior to her arrival at Texas in 2003, Johnson served as the top volleyball assistant at LSU from 1998-2003 under Fran Flory, where she was responsible for the majority of the Tigers' recruiting efforts. Johnson began her collegiate coaching career as an assistant under Flory at Kentucky in 1995.

Johnson was a four-year letter winner at LSU from 1987-90, helping the Tigers to Southeastern Conference titles in 1989 and 1990. She led her Tiger team to the NCAA Final Four her senior year after LSU advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1989. Prior to joining the collegiate coaching ranks, Johnson taught at Wellington Landings Middle School in Boca Raton, Fla., while serving as an assistant coach at Olympic Heights High School and coaching the Florida Gold Coast club team.