Recruiting commitment: how to find a keeper

BY KENNETH HAMMOND AND KEVIN TRAN

On Jul. 1, 1998, lacrosse player Ryan Floyd, BK '03, received his first recruiting call from Yale—a single phone call lost amid the dozens of calls he received that day from programs across the country. Though he had received hundreds of letters and information packets throughout his junior year of high school, not until the first day of July did the floodgates of personal recruiting open. Suddenly, an athlete in Floyd's situation must condense the mountains of letters on his bedroom floor into a short list of his most attractive options and balance his college dreams against the reality of playing for a school that best suits his needs.

"As an athlete, you are allowed to make five official visits, and though most people know pretty much what they want, I took all five," Floyd said. "Yale was actually my last visit, and though some of the schools had perennially stronger teams, I chose Yale partly because I wanted to be involved in a work in progress—something new and special."

From the older, well-known player who invested extra effort in enticing a prospective Bulldog, to the coach who spent hours writing personal letters to each of his recruits, there are as many reasons for selecting the Blue and White as there are incoming rookies. It is difficult for any coach to develop a specific recruiting strategy because every prospective athlete requires unique attention. Yet across the board, Yale athletes, even those who quit their teams after a year, praised the recruiting efforts of Yale's coaches.

"For the most part, the recruitment is pretty standard. But I think what Yale coaches do best is to convey the personality of the campus, the school, and the players," said women's lacrosse goalie Amanda Laws, BK '03, who had a positive experience being recruited by Head Coach Amanda O'Leary. "At other schools you feel like you're entering a faceless institution, but at Yale you really feel like the coaches know who you are."

It is on these official visits—48-hour periods in which recruits live with prospective teammates and eat, sleep, and party at the college's expense—that almost all recruits select their future homes. The prospective Yale athlete traditionally attends a few classes, watches potential teammates practice, and enjoys New Haven's rich nightlife. Former women's tennis player Betsy Shapiro, DC '04, said, "Initially, I was set on going to Penn, but I came to Yale on the perfect weekend. The weather was beautiful, I was able to tailgate before a football game, and I went to Exotic Erotic. I just got caught up in the whole Yale experience."

EVEN IN 48 HOURS, PROSPECTIVE BULLDOGS ARE privy to the doubly difficult lives of Yale student-athletes, who must devote equal time to their sports and their studies. "Golf can be demanding, especially during weeks when you have to play in a tournament and come back to make up a midterm that you missed the first time because of a competition," Chris Eckerle, BR '02, captain of the men's golf team, said.

Yet recruits acknowledge these potential obstacles long before enrolling in classes or agreeing to join their respective teams. Part of being an athlete is accepting the dual responsibility that athletics entail; in filling a position on a team, a recruit implies that he will remain a contributing member of his team throughout his Yale career. However, it has become a growing trend in college athletics—and especially a phenomenon in the Ivy League—that players quit after a year or less of competition. And while individual players can often justify their decisions to quit, on the whole, the exodus of players from Yale athletics presents a dilemma for those involved in the recruiting process, from coaches to members of the admissions committee.

WHEN ONLY A limited number of recruiting positions are at the disposal of a coach, it is necessary to ensure that those offered roster spots possess both the skills to contribute and the commitment to stick with their sport. Athletic talent is an extremely powerful bargaining tool, but regardless of the recruit's merits outside his athletic pursuits, he must recognize that his willingness to give to the Yale community on the athletic field influences those who make the admissions decisions. "If you are recruited to come here and know that you don't want to play, that's a little bit under the table," men's tennis player Ryan Coyle, BK '02, said. "That's a case of not being completely honest with the coach, when he can only go to bat for so many recruits."

Certainly Yale athletes possess academic credentials above and beyond those of the typical athlete; indeed, many thrive in the classroom as well as on the field. Yet in an effort to build the strongest possible athletic programs under the high demands of Ivy academics, athletic interests often supercede the university's essentially academic goals.

Former football player Sean Fenton, DC '04, had visited several Ivies during his recruitment trips. He said, "The line I heard most often from coaches was, `We recruit football players who are good students, and not great students who happen to be football players.'" As athletics carry weight in the admissions process, both coaches and prospective players must consider the implications of their decisions.

Floyd recognizes the magnitude of this problem, and even goes so far as to separate those who quit somewhat justifiably from those who give up for selfish reasons. "As a Yale student, I'm upset that people quit their teams, as so many of those who quit would not get into Yale without their athletic credentials," Floyd said. "I'm most disappointed by those who quit and then don't give to the school in any other way—whether through writing for a newspaper, volunteering in the community, or performing in a theater group. Frankly, I think it makes Ivy athletics look like a sham and does a disservice to the whole Yale community." While Floyd concedes that he understands the motives of those who quit to pursue other interests, he nonetheless criticizes students who take advantage of the system. He added, "I don't know the solution to this problem, but that doesn't mean I can't criticize it as is."

Despite the inevitable distancing that occurs between those who quit their teams and those who continue to come to practice every day, many ex-athletes maintain cordial ties with their former teammates. "I really enjoyed being a student-athlete; the structure allowed me to keep a very regimented schedule," Shapiro said. "But everything had to be planned around tennis. Quitting has allowed me to plan around my academic schedule, and luckily, I still have a close relationship with several of my former teammates."

Often, those who quit become the strongest supporters of their former teams. They can truly understand the commitment required of an athlete, and they respect those with the ability to balance their obligations. "Even after quitting, I have the utmost respect for Yale football, and I only want the best for my former teammates. I understand what they give in order to be successful," Fenton said.

"WHAT MAKES RECRUITING IN THE IVY LEAGUE DIFFIcult is that there's no universal standard for an acceptable student-athlete," Floyd said. "Many schools employ a numerical formula involving SATs and GPA, but this number is not the end-all in admissions decisions. Brown, Princeton, and Harvard have far easier criteria for lacrosse admissions than does Yale."

All Ivy League programs must strike a balance between their athletic ambitions and their academic missions. For a Yale coach, this means seeking an athlete who has not only shown ability on the field and in the classroom, but also a consistent record of dedication to all of his pursuits.

There may be no definitive method of evaluating an athlete's likelihood to quit, but coaches can move in the right direction by presenting interested athletes with a view of his or her place in the wider Yale community.

As a college junior, Floyd is overwhelmed not with recruiting letters but with memories of his own experiences as a recruit. When he hosts prospective lacrosse players, he understands that his interests may not coincide with those of his recruits, but he nonetheless seeks to introduce the high schoolers to the breadth of the Yale experience. "At most other schools I considered, coaches only cared about whether we passed or failed," Floyd said. "I appreciated my visit to Yale most because the lacrosse players were so integrated into the larger community. It meant a lot to me when my coach suggested I do Directed Studies. Rarely does a coach express interest in his player's academic pursuits."

Graphic by Andrew Hamilton.

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