College Athletic Opportunities

NJCAA

(National Junior College Athletic Association)

440 Institutions

EX: College of Lake County

Have to meet academic admission requirements

May offer athletic scholarships depending on sport

View an interactive map and breakdown of each sport, state and division.

Some do offer on-campus housing!

www.njcaa.org

NJCAA 26 Sports and 3 Divisions

• Men’s Baseball

• Men’s Basketball

• Women’s Basketball

• Men’s Bowling

• Women’s Bowling

• Men’s Cross Country

• Women’s Cross Country

• Men’s Football

• Men’s Golf

• Women’s Golf

• Men’s Half Marathon

• Women’s Half Marathon

• Men’s Lacrosse

• Women’s Lacrosse

• Men’s Soccer

• Women’s Soccer

• Women’s Softball

• Men’s Swimming & Diving

• Women’s Swimming &

Diving

• Men’s Tennis *Women’s Tennis *Men’s Track & Field Women’s Track & Field *Women’s Volleyball *Men’s Wrestling

College Athletic Opportunities

NAIA

(National Association of Interscholastic Athletics)Nearly 250 Institutions

Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, IL.

(Chicago Bears Training Camp)

Has their own NAIA Eligibility Center; specific admission criteria; separate from the NCAA Eligibility Center

Can offer athletic and academic scholarships per sport depending on qualifications

www.naia.org

25 NAIA Men’s & Women’s Sports

Fall Sports• Women’s Cross Country

• Men’s Cross Country

• Football

• Women’s Soccer

• Men’s Soccer

• Women’s Volleyball

• Men’s Competitive Cheer and Dance

• Women’s Competitive Cheer and Dance

Winter Sports• Men’s D1 Basketball

• Men’s D2 Basketball

• Women’s D1 Basketball

• Women’s D2 Basketball

• Men’s Indoor Track & Field

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field

• Men’s Swimming & Diving

• Women’s Swimming & Diving

• Men’s Wrestling

Spring Sports

Baseball

Men’s Golf

Women’s Golf

Men’s Outdoor Track &

Field

Women’s Outdoor Track &

Field

Softball

Men’s Tennis

Women’s Tennis

NAIA Invitational & Emerging Sports

Invitational Sports(Minimum of 25 NAIA Schools)

• Men’s Lacrosse

• Women’s Lacrosse

• Men’s Volleyball

Emerging Sports (Minimum of 15 NAIA schools)

• Men’s Bowling

• Women’s Bowling

• Women’s Wrestling

Invitational and Emerging sports

are those in the process of

becoming National

Championship sports and are

offered by a minimum of 15

NAIA schools as a varsity sport.

**Invitational Sports host their

own Championship every year.

**Invitational schools do not

receive NAIA Scholarships.

However each institution can

provide substantial financial aid

for their athletes, just not termed

“athletic scholarship.”

If interested in NAIA

sports, register at the

beginning of your

sophomore or junior year.

In your packet (p. 7)

High School Student Registration Checklist

Visit www.playnaia.org

Pay $80.00 fee

Complete profile

Receive a 2.0 cumulative GPA and a

minimum of 18 ACT Composite or 860 on SAT

score

Send WTHS transcript to NAIA Eligibility Center

Send ACT score to 9876

After junior year, in the NAIA Connections

service, create a sports resume to send to

five schools.

College Athletic Opportunities

National Collegiate Athletic Association

www.ncaa.org Three Divisions:

Division I (347 Institutions)…ex: Loyola University Chicago, Illinois State, University of Illinois

Can offer athletic and academic scholarships depending on sport & qualifications

Student-Athlete must register for the NCAA Eligibility Center and meet the university’s admission criteria

Division II (309 Institutions)…ex: Lewis University, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, University of Illinois-Springfield, McKendree University, Quincy University

Can offer athletic and academic scholarships depending on sport & qualifications

Student-Athlete must register for the NCAA Eligibility Center and meet the university’s admission criteria

Division III (442 Institutions)…ex: Lake Forest College, Elmhurst College, Carthage College

Can offer academic scholarships/grants only depending on qualifications

Student-Athlete DOES NOT have to register for the NCAA Eligibility Center, but must meet the university’s admission criteria

NCAA Sports and Seasons

NCAA Eligibility Center Registration

If interested in

NCAA DI or DII

sports, register for

a certification

account at the

beginning of your

sophomore or

junior year. This is

a one time, non-

refundable

$80.00 fee.

www.eligibilitycenter.org

Click here to

register for

your NCAA

account.

FREE!!!!!!!

Additional NCAA D1 Resources in your Packet

To calculate ACT Sum,

add together your

Math, Science, Reading

and English ACT highest

sub scores. To calculate

SAT Sum, add together

your Reading and Math

sub scores. To be D1

eligible, need to get at

least a 2.3 core course

GPA and 19 on each

ACT subtest…total of 75.

Or at least a 2.3 and 450

on each SAT

subtest…total of 900.

On pages 9-10

NCAA Division I programs

Recruiting Process—in an ideal world!

Coaches identify talented athletes

Coaches “date” the player...exchange LOTS of communication

Player likes the coach and wants to play for him/her

Player completes Eligibility Center process

Player makes a commitment to attend and signs a National Letter of

Intent

Student-athlete is awarded an athletic scholarship

Student enrolls at the university!

NCAA Division I programs

Recruiting Process—in the real world!

Mass mailings, beginning even in grade 9

Communications to all-conference and all-state athletes

Once personal visits can begin, a coach can make the athlete feel like they are the “golden child”

All the recruiting attention can stop in an instant:

Once another (better) athlete signs

Once an injury occurs

Once the Eligibility Center deems the athlete ineligible

Once they find inappropriate content or images on your social media

Player completes Eligibility Center process

Player makes a commitment to attend and signs a National Letter of Intent

Student-athlete is awarded an athletic scholarship

Student enrolls at the university!

Athletic Years of Eligibility

Five years to complete four years of competition

Starts from the date of initial full-time enrollment at any

athletic institution

Academic Redshirts: No competition while representing the

institution during the academic year

Medical Redshirts: Limited competition in the first half of a

playing season prior to a season ending injury.

Additional NCAA D2 Resources in your Packet

To be DII

eligible,

students

need a 2.2

core course

GPA and 18

ACT on each

subtest (ACT

Sum total of

70) or 420 on

the Reading

and Math SAT

subtests (total

840).

On pages 11-12

Handling Coach Contact

NCAA Recruiting Calendar (www.ncaa.org), then click on Division I, then

click on Recruiting.

D1 coaches are limited with amount and type of contact

Contact period (coach can watch you play, you can visit campus & talk to the coach, coach can fully communicate with you face-to-face, phone, email, letter)

Quiet period (same as contact period, except coach cannot come out to watch you play)

Dead period (Coaches may only write or telephone an athlete)

If a coach offers you a Verbal Commitment

Not-binding, not written offer

Coaches can offer early in your high school career (sophomore year)

If you accept the verbal commitment, you are “promising” to play at the institution

High School Athletes can

contact a coach at ANY

time!

Sample Email on page 19!

Recruiting Contact

NCAA Division III Programs

DIII sports are not “glorified intramurals”

Coaches can “slot” student athletes for their teams, so

they may have a voice in admissions

Pressure exists for students to apply early

Financial aid inconsistencies…i.e. “leadership

scholarship”

Club Sports at the College Level

Typically run by senior college students, not coaches.

Some sports will be run be trained coaches, depends on

sport/school

No scholarships

Student travels with team in cars/vans

Fundraises to off-set expenses, otherwise student-athletes pay

for hotel expenses, travel costs, uniforms, etc…

Competition is against quality opponents

Men’s Varsity Athletic Scholarship Limits

Turn to

page 13 in

your

packet.

Women’s

Varsity

Athletic

Scholarship

Limits

To become an Eligible College

Athlete…Freshman and Sophomores

Should: Start planning now by working hard to earn the best grades possible.

Take approved NCAA courses as listed in the curriculum guide or on the NCAA Eligibility Center’s website under “Resources.”

If you fall behind, use summer school sessions before your senior year to catch up.

Stay in shape! Watch what you eat! 80% food in-take, 20% exercise dictates body shape and strength.

Begin to develop a sports resume (sample in packet on page 20)

Attend exposure camps, combines, clinics, etc… at universities you are interested in. Do campus visits with the admission office while visiting colleges for your sport.

Realistically analyze your academic skills and athletic ability to be matched at the correct collegiate institution.

Big fish in a little pond, or a little fish in a big pond? Source: http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/eligibility_center/Your_Path_Presentation_for_Student-Athletes.pdf

To become an Eligible College Athlete…

Junior Year Keep your grades up!

Stay in shape! Eat right!

Attend exposure camps, combines, clinics, etc… at universities you are interested in.

Take the ACT/SAT test multiple times, send in your score each time (NCAA code: 9999 or NAIA code: 9876)

NCAA Super Scores!

Unofficially or Officially (if applicable) visit campuses,

10 Unofficial Visits are ideal throughout high school career (ex: 2 Fr yr + 4 So yr + 4 Jr yr)

5 Official Visits are allowed throughout high school career for D1, unlimited for D2 **Bring transcript/test scores on the official visits

Request your Official Transcript in Naviance at the end of your junior year…let your counselor know your intentions.

To become an Eligible College Athlete…

Senior Year Keep your grades up!

Stay in shape! Eat right!

Retake the ACT/SAT if necessary

Fill out college applications between Sept 1-Nov 1

NCAA D1 or D2, fill out the Amateurism Questionnaire

For NCAA D1, D2, sign the National Letter of Intent

Binding Contract with the College/University for one year of athletic competition

Request your official transcript to be sent to the Eligibility Center at the end of

your senior year

Please let your

Head Coach and our Athletic Director

know when you are

planning to or have

officially signed so

you can be

recognized!

In your packet (p. 15-16)…Helpful four

year timeline

NCAA D1/D2 Initial Eligibility

Process Flow Chart (p. 8)

Keep in mind…Athletic Eligibility is Step 1…the Athlete

still needs to apply for admission to the college.

On

page

14

NavianceColleges Super Match College SearchNaviance Log-in Flyer on page 21

Still have questions?

Contact your high school and club/travel coach

Contact your counselor, Mrs. McGahan, or Ms. Ecklund

Use Naviance (Super Match College Search) or Big Future

(collegeboard.org) to assist in the search process!

Visit the CCC during your lunch/study hall period to ask questions.

Contact current college student-athletes or coaches

Explore the NCAA College-Bound Student-Athlete Guide on

the ncaa.org website or the NAIA College-Bound Guide

Good luck with your journey!

Carri McGahan

Post-Secondary Counselor, O’Plaine Campus

WTHS Graduate

Former NAIA Softball Student-Athlete, Saint Xavier University

cmcgahan@wths.net

847-599-4532

Panel for students and parents

• Micah Jones: (Class of 2018) who has signed with the University of Notre Dame on their Football Team (NCAA D1)

• Andy Swedberg: Father of Claire Swedberg (Class of 2018) who has signed with Pennsylvania State University on their Softball Team (NCAA D1)

• Kelly Beck: (Class of 2018) who has signed with the University of Wisconsin-Stout on their Softball Team (NCAA D3)

• Devin Caesar: (Class of 2018) who has signed with St. Ambrose University on their Lacrosse Team

• Nic Scandrett: Athletic Director at the College of Lake County (NJCAA)

• Nate Brill: WTHS Grad & Offensive Assistant Football Coach at Robert Morris University (NAIA)

• Chris Barker: Assistant Director of Athletics at Carthage College (NCAA D3)

• Veronica Farmer: Assistant Director of Compliance at Northwestern University (NCAA D1)