There are more than 460,000 NCAA student athletes across the country, and at some point, every one of them made the decision to attend their respective University and participate in their respective sport or sports. However, the age at which each and every one of them made that decision differs greatly. For most, it’s towards the end of high school - a senior or upperclassmen, at least. But as the spectrum of university size and athletic prowess increases, the age at which those universities get their commits decreases. Drastically. The Recruiting process is a shady, unregulated, and – for lack of a better word – corrupt thing. I understand those who sympathize with coaches in this argument, in that coaches are hired to win games, and to do that, the coach needs the best players. …show more content…
I don’t believe the athlete should feel pressured to make such a huge decision about their future at such a young age. I can speak on this topic specifically in Lacrosse. Lacrosse, being a less established NCAA sport compared to Football or Basketball, has less public eyes on it, and thus, less NCAA regulations. There are two kinds of ‘commitments’; Verbal (or Oral, non-binding, etc.), and Written (or signed, binding, regular, etc.). A Verbal commitment is as simple as a college telling the athlete that he or she will have a spot on the team if they elect to attend said college, and the athlete responding by confirming that they will accept the spot, and apply to the college with the intent of enrolling and joining the team. A Written Commitment applies to colleges in the NCAA that are either Division I or II – meaning, generally, that they are larger schools with bigger athletic programs. A Binding commitment is entered through the athlete’s signing of an NLI (National Letter of Intent)