Coronavirus and Sports: Technology Lets College Football Recruiting Get Creative
With all of college sports ground to a halt due to the outbreak of COVID19, the recruiting world has changed as well. Back in mid March, the NCAA halted on campus recruiting until April 15th. and with the outbreak still hitting communities hard, this date could be extended.
In the video above John Garcia from SI's All American talks about the creative ways that coaching staffs are connecting with recruits. Teams have gone above and beyond the typical Facetime/Zoom method to really make an impression on these teenagers. For instance the University of Kansas had a Virtual Junior Day that hosted kids from all over the country for a twelve hour event.
Boston College is clearly out connecting with possible recruits. Earlier on Tuesday we reached out to Director of Player Personnel Joe Sullivan to talk about how the school is recruiting in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Of course Sullivan couldn't divulge all of his trade secrets, but his team of recruiters have been working hard to spread Jeff Hafley's #getIn campaign out to the recruits. "We have been watching all our recruits as a staff through zoom and then planning out the communication plan." Sullivan told BC Bulletin. "This includes the kid, parent, coach, teammates, any mentor in their lives."
Technology of course has been a major part of their campaign. "We have utilized videos of campus and graphics that are personalized to each kid" he explained giving a lot of credit to his growing staff. "The young guys in the recruiting staff have done a great job of organizing." In terms of getting a virtual visit, Sullivan says that "they are working on that technology".
With one recruit already committing, Kani Walker of Georgia, and other recruits listing BC as a top school, BC's approach appears to be working. It will be worth watching to see how Sullivan's team continues to adapt as the outbreak progresses.
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