Recruiting Guide
- Basic NCAA Recruiting Rules
- College coaches are not allowed to text recruits at any time. If you do receive a text from a college coach, it is illegal contact.
- Before September 1st of a recruit’s junior year in high school, the only recruiting materials a college can legally send are a questionnaire and a camp brochure.
- A college coach is not allowed to call, email, or facebook any prospective athlete before September 1st of their junior year. After September 1st of their junior year, college coaches are still not allowed to call a recruit until the contact period (April 15-May 30), which is approximately 8 and a half months later.
- A college coach may send an unlimited amount of emails and facebook messages beginning on September 1st of the prospective student athlete’s junior year of high school.
- A college coach is not allowed to call you or return your call before your senior year of high school, besides during the contact period (April 15-May 30).
- During your senior season, a college coach is allowed to call you one time per week besides for designated quiet periods when they cannot call.
- Beginning with the 2011 recruiting class, a college cannot send a written scholarship offer until August 1st before that prospective student athlete’s SENIOR year.
- Scholarship Information
- A Division I school is allowed a maximum of 85 football scholarships.
- A Division I football scholarship includes all costs of tuition, room and board, books, plus a monthly allotment of money to cover living expenses.
- As an Oregon football player, free tutoring is provided for all classes as well as academic advising and life skills development.
- Unofficial Visit Information
- The university can pay no expenses incurred by the prospective student athlete or their guests during the trip. That includes money for travel, food, hotel, clothing etc.
- The university cannot provide any benefits to allow for the student to come to campus. Ex: plane ticket, train ticket, gas money, etc.
- An unofficial visit is limited to on campus contact and cannot take place anywhere but at the universities athletic facilities or campus.
- The university can provide 3 complimentary tickets to a sporting event for the visiting student athlete and their guests.
- Official Visit Information
- Room and meals
- Gas money if you drive.
- Plane ticket
- Spending money for entertainment
- Hotel Room
- All Meals
- Gas money if driving with son
- 2 complimentary tickets to a game (football, basketball, track meet, etc.)
- Brothers and Sisters
- Non-Immediate Family
- Friends
- Coaches
A prospective student athlete is allowed an unlimited amount of unofficial visits which can be taken at any time during the recruiting process.
An unofficial visit is when a prospective student-athlete pays their own way to visit a university. An unofficial visit may take place at any time during the recruiting process. Many recruits choose to tour colleges and meet coaches during their free time such as spring and summer vacations and bye-weeks... these would be examples of unofficial visits. Also, visiting a school for a game, and receiving complimentary recruting tickets would be considered an unofficial visit.
Unofficial visit limitations include:
Once a potential student athlete is registered with the NCAA clearinghouse, and has started their senior year of high school, they are allowed 5 official visits to 5 different schools.
An official visit provides for a 48 hour period to visit a campus and experience student life. A recruit is usually only brought in on an official visit when they have a scholarship offer to attend that university. The biggest difference between the official visit and the unofficial visit is that the university can pay for all of the recruit’s expenses on the trip and most of the recruit’s parents/guardians expenses on the trip. An official visit provides time with the players, coaches, and support staff in order to give the recruit a good feel for the academic, athletic, and social atmosphere of that university.
Official Visits can be taken once a potential student athlete has started his senior year of high school. The university you are visiting can pay for all expenses related to your official visits, including:
A university cannot pay for parents and/or legal guardians plane tickets to come on an official visit, but the university can pay for a parent and/or legal guardians':
The following people are not eligible to have any expenses on an official visit paid for.
