Recruited Athletes

anneluck

5-Year Member
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May 19, 2013
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Do recruited athletes need a nomination? A kid at my sons HS is being recruited and I am curious. Thanks!
 
I was afraid you would say that..... So this recruited athlete goes into the nomination process on a level playing field with my kid (all other conditions being equal)? I can hardly imagine that's the case.... Further insights would be great!
 
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I was afraid you would say that..... So this recruited athlete goes into the nomination process on a level playing field with my kid (all other conditions being equal). I can hardly imagine that's the case.... Further insights would be great!

It's not worth worrying about. The recruited athlete may/may not be medically qualified; may have other options for nominations (Presidential, etc); has to be academically qualified; does s/he have an LOA? All your DS can do is present the best overall package of himself and apply to all of his nomination sources. Oftentimes there are multiple candidates appointed out of the same high school.

And it's likely the RA is being recruited by other SAs/colleges. S/he may decide to choose another path.
 
Athletes compete for nominations like any other candidate, but if they are highly desired recruits, a nomination will be "found" for them (Supe, etc.) in the event they don't win one from MOC/other regular sources. This is what we were told by a coach at USNA.
 
Your DS will be applying to at least 4 nomination sources, 1MOC, 2Senators and VP. If either parent is AD military, then Presidential as well.
He will be competing for a nomination with all other applicants to those sources as well. So will that recruited athlete.
They both could get a nom from the same source. Your DS could "win" the MOC or Senator's slate and recieve an appointment while the recruited athlete could get an appointment and not be charged to any of the 4 sources. The recruited athlete might get an appoinment to the Academy or NAPS. Same with your DS.

You can't worry about other applicants, only that your DS needs to present the best application for nomination he can and go from there. USNA decides who gets appointments so he needs to present the best package to the Academy he can.

It's a great journey and even if you don't end up with an appointment first time, there are lots who get them second time around.

Good luck.
 
Best advice on here is don't worry about others. Every year multiple kids from the same high schools get appointed. Being recruited can help. It depends what team they are being recruited for and really how good they are. Coaches only get so many candidates they can help. Also, not all sports are created equal. Football obviously gets more spots to help out recruits than say something like rifle. Some candidates will never know how high on a list of recruits they really are. Some coaches will show interests on a marginal athlete because they have great stats and can get in without any help. This athlete could land somewhere else or maybe they end up failing DODMERB. Its a complex puzzle all SA coaches know how to play. With that being said, don't worry about that kid. You DS can only control what he does and his package. Ignore the rest of the noise around him. At the end of the day if he did everything he could to gain an appointment he will end up being a better and more mature person for it and know he did his all.
 
Best advice on here is don't worry about others. Every year multiple kids from the same high schools get appointed. Being recruited can help. It depends what team they are being recruited for and really how good they are. Coaches only get so many candidates they can help. Also, not all sports are created equal. Football obviously gets more spots to help out recruits than say something like rifle. Some candidates will never know how high on a list of recruits they really are. Some coaches will show interests on a marginal athlete because they have great stats and can get in without any help. This athlete could land somewhere else or maybe they end up failing DODMERB. Its a complex puzzle all SA coaches know how to play. With that being said, don't worry about that kid. You DS can only control what he does and his package. Ignore the rest of the noise around him. At the end of the day if he did everything he could to gain an appointment he will end up being a better and more mature person for it and know he did his all.
Great info - curious if there are rough estimates of how many RAs per Varsity sport per year are allotted. Thanks.
 
Yes, recruited athletes still need a NOM and no one (ever those with LOA's) should 'assume' that USNA will 'find' you a NOM. Coaches will sometimes stretch the truth during recruiting. I agree as mentioned above, best to not worry about other applicants since you have no control over their resumes and perhaps everything they are telling you may not be 100% accurate. Well intentioned friends/relatives/neighbors, etc. will provide you all sorts of dubious advice regarding applying to service academies.
 
No, they would never give that info and more than likely there is nothing set in stone or official for number of spots. It varies by sport and years. And I also agree with Time2, coaches will stretch the truth in recruiting. Recruiting for sports is very complex and to be total honest brutal. One minute you might be the #1 recruit for a sport, two weeks later you might be #4 on a list. It can change that quickly and the attention can change that fast.
 
Thanks, all. I appreciate the wisdoms and experience! My son is not at all worried, he said it would be great to know someone going in to Plebe summer when I asked what he thought! So, I will follow his leaD as he walks through the next several months!

And regarding the stretching of truth- I hope the kid and his folks investigate a couple statements they were told.....very interesting!
 
Anneluck, when your son starts the application process, he will meet many others via these forums that are in his same shoes. If successful and he gets an appointment, he will have his forum friends to greet I-day.
 
And regarding the stretching of truth- I hope the kid and his folks investigate a couple statements they were told.....very interesting!

I have no reason not to believe the coach (a current player on the team told us openly that it happened to him, along with getting a waiver for an "unwaiverable" condition that wasn't discovered until very late in the process - he knew going in that he would go restricted line because of it; another SA coach told us he found a player at an April tournament who then started the admissions process and was a plebe that July) - but I understood the coach(es) to be talking about very highly valued recruits who also demonstrate the potential to succeed in the SA environment. We can attest that the recruiting situation can change week to week, and that the process is brutal, as NavyHoops said. DS learned that "promises" are part of the recruiting game, and until you are actually accepted to a school and playing on the team it's wise to take all those promises with a spoonful of salt.
 
Being and RA does help. If your child want to go to the USNA, complete the application, get the nomination and get the appointment. If there is a RA on their slate who cares. This year we have 2 women representing our district at the USNA. One won three Appointments to USAFA, USMA and USNA. Probably beat out a RA. Who Knows....?????? You just need to be the best applicant you can and the chips will fall where they may.
 
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