The best tool a recruit has is his highlight video. Done correctly, it gives a coach everything he needs to recruit that player. The easier it is for the coach to know the prospect is qualified and what he is looking for, the more likely the coach is to begin action recruiting that prospect.
Today’s technology allows recruits and coaches to put together effective highlight videos. Understand that this is a product created to share important information, not to entertain.
Though recruits may like music, most coaches turn the volume off, so don’t even worry about putting music into the video. It’s unnecessary. Transitions are a waste of time as well. Simply putting one clip after the next is enough.
COMING NEXT WEEK: Part 2 focuses on highlight package direction for defensive players
SEE ALSO: Tips to creating a highlight video package that will catch a college recruiter’s eye
Here are some basics: Identify yourself before each play starts. Be sure there is not too much time before the start of the play. Shorten it to two or three seconds before the snap if possible. Leave the speed of the film alone – do not speed up or slow down the video.
The highlights should begin with a slide or slides sharing your info. Understand that recruiting services and even the sports video system your team uses try to sell this information to college coaches. Do not let someone broker your deal. Make it easy for the recruiting coach to have all your information at once. Begin by putting this information on your intro slide:
You can divide this between two or three slides. Following that, you may choose to put your statistics on the field in the weight room and on the track. Be sure any information you find is accurate. A coach may see any false information you share as a red flag, and that could end your recruitment.
After sharing information, the highlight should include the best 25 clips. I can’t stress this enough: Limit it to 25. This is an introduction to you. The coach does not want your whole season. No extra editing such as titles or transition are needed, just your 25 best plays back to back will suffice.
Begin with your best play. This is not build up to the biggest plays. The best plays belong up front in order to grab the interest of the recruiter immediately.
Here are the type of plays recruiters look for at for each position:
Quarterbacks
Ideally the recruiter will see each type of throw made. Limiting it to one type doesn’t paint a broad enough picture.
Also, including different types of footwork and running plays help a coach understand the type of player you are. Coaches understand that your offensive system may not contain every type of throw, but don’t worry about that. Let the recruiter see you doing well within your system.
Try to include:
Running backs
Coaches like to see big plays of course, but be sure that they include agility and quickness as well. As much as possible, show the ability to be an every down back within an offense.
Include plays that show:
Offensive linemen
Showing that you possess good feet and flexibility makes a big difference in determining at which level you will be recruited. All 6-foot-5, 280-pound linemen are not equal. Coaches are looking at your ability to bend your hips and move your feet. If you appear stiff you will move on.
Include plays that show:
Receiver
Great high school receivers are typically the most athletic players on the field. At the college level, that evens out, so don’t fill your highlight reel with a bunch of long passes where you outrun players who won’t play in college.
Route running, possession catching, field awareness, blocking – all of these are critical to show off.
Be sure to show:
Tight end/H-back/Fullback
Players at this position are a hybrid between the skills of an offensive lineman and a receiver. Utilize the checklists above to put together your playlist.
The point of the highlight is to make the recruiter’s job easy in saying, “This guy fits what we are looking for, or this guy doesn’t fit.”
For the recruit, while you do not want to hear the second option, it will happen. Better to figure that out during the recruiting process and move on to another school. There will be a place that is a right fit for both the college and the recruit. Understand that the process is discovering that on both ends.
Taking these steps with your highlight film puts you in the best position to find the right place for you.
Keith Grabowski has been a football coach for 26 years, currently serving as an offensive assistant and technology coordinator at Oberlin College in Ohio. He previously was a head coach at the high school level for eight years and the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Baldwin Wallace University. Grabowski serves as an advisor for several sports technology companies. He is a columnist for American Football Monthly and writes his own blog at thecoachesedge.com/blog. He’s the author of “101+ Pro Style Pistol Offense Plays” and five other books available on thecoachesedge.com and operates Coaches Edge Technologies. Follow him on Twitter @CoachKGrabowski.