On this page, you will find links to help guide you through the recruiting process. This is by no means a guarantee to receive a scholarship, but should help guide you through the process. Because basketball season in high school and college are at the same time, many colleges do evaluations during the summer at exposure camps, elite individual camps, team camps, and AAU tournaments. For this reason alone, summer is extremely important in the recruiting process.

The student-athlete should...

1) Be a student first. More scholarship opportunities are available to students with better grades. The first question college coaches ask me is "What are the players grades/ What type of student is the player?" Make sure to talk to your counselor and check that you are taking the courses that will gain entrance into college/university of your choice.

2) Work hard (in season and out of season). If your goal is to earn a college scholarship, then you must work harder than others who are pursuing the same scholarships. College coaches may be watching you during summer camp games or AAU tournaments and they notice when the effort is missing. 

3) Maintain a positive attitude with your Coach, your Team, and your Opponent. The second question many college coaches ask me is, "What type of teammate is the player/ Is the player coachable?" After watching film, college coaches use the word "body language of the player" towards a coach, or a teammate, or an oppsing player to describe what they have seen and want to know if this is typical of the player (both positively and negatively). Coaches are looking for players with key traits including leadership, toughness, intelligence, strong work ethic, and a team player. Coaches want to know that you have great habits, you won’t make excuses, and you won’t settle.

4) Start early! Register with the NCAAand NAIA Eligibility Centers to be cleared for athletic scholarships. Research the ins and outs of recruiting, regulations, colleges, coaches, and sports programs. Read the NCAA and NAIA Guide for the College Bound Student-Athleteand watch freerecruitingwebinar.org. Know the separate rules for exactly how/when coaches can contact you and how/when you can contact coaches.

5) Do research into schools that have the major that you are interested in at the level of competition you are interested in. School counselors can help with this as well. Go to the website of the school and look at the number of players that play your position and what year they are. You should be able to tell if the school will be in need of your position based on these numbers. Watch video of the team to determine if the style of play fits what you are looking for. If the school seems like a school of interest then fill out the questionaire on their website and let Coach Gammage know in writing this is a school of interest for you. You should visit the school and introduce yourself to the coach if possible. If the school has an elite individual camp, you should plan on attending. College coaches get bombarded with emails which are impersonal and cut and pasted to all schools. If you have done your research, you should be able to tell the coach the reasons (academically what the school offers or style of offense/ defense the team plays) why you think you are a good fit for their program. 

5) If you do not already have one, create a sports video, or highlight reel, of you in action, and send it to programs of your choice during your junior year. (The best video is a combination game video and skills video.) Your video should be accompanied by an athletic “resume” highlighting your sports-related achievements. Include stats, win/loss record, awards, high school transcript, and information on SAT/ACT scores. Make sure your video highlights who you are as a player. (example: If you are 1 out of 30 from the 3 point line, then do not put that one 3 point shot in your highlights). Find your best quarter, your best half, and your best game. Most college coaches do not want highlight only tapes. They want to see how you do for a quarter, a half, or a whole game against the best competition. College coaches know basketball. When the college coach asks for those from Coach Gammage, you should know what game to send.

6) Be creative. Show the school your personality by being YOU.

The parent should...

1) Listen to your child. College athletics is very demanding and is not for all players (even if the have the skills). I wanted my boys to get scholarships in baseball. As a parent, I expected to get paid back for the investment of my time and money spent on the summer baseball and lessons they had been provided through the years. Although they had some offers, they did not want to do it. Our relationship is better because I listened to them instead of forcing them to go somewhere they did not want to go. 

2) Make your child be responsible for doing the research. They will feel better about their final decision when they have put in the time and energy to find their college or university. Your daughter is becoming an adult and this is a great way for them to feel like they are in control of their future. Help them set time lines to get things done. Help them with your knowledge of the process. Help them take ownership of recruiting.

3) Support your child. Send them to as many exposure camps that they are interested in attending. Get them evaluated if you can. Attend showcase-style events where trusted third-party people oftentimes serve as the eyes and ears of the coaches who don’t have time to see every player.

The coach should...

1) Support the player as they ask for help in the recruiting process.

2) Go to team camps in the summer that will expose the players to different college coaches and campuses.

3) Send film to college coaches as requested by player or parent, then follow up with an email to the coach or recruiting coordinator.

4) Send schedule to college coaches inviting them to attend games and/or practices.

5) Maintain field level account which sends recruiting needs of mostly D2, D3, junior colleges, and NAIA school.