Recruiting starts earlier than most families expect, and it runs on the NCAA calendar, not the school calendar. This is the cross-sport version. Each sport runs on its own clock — football and basketball commit earlier than golf or cross country — so use the sport guides at the bottom for your exact timeline.
9th grade: grades and habits
Your freshman grades count. NCAA Division I requires 16 core courses, 10 of them (7 in English, math and science) finished before senior year, and your core-course GPA starts now. A weak freshman year is hard to outrun.
- Take NCAA core courses — check your school’s approved list with your counselor.
- Start recording games, matches or races. Film is what coaches evaluate.
- Research what college players at your position look like at each level.
- You can email coaches now. They may not be allowed to reply yet, but they can read.
10th grade: target list and first contact
Build a list of programs across several levels and start introducing yourself. Coaches who have your name before their contact period opens are the ones who call on day one.
- Build a target list of 20–40 programs across D1, D2, D3, NAIA and JUCO.
- Put together a highlight video and send it with an introductory email.
- Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center if you may play D1 or D2.
- Attend a college-run prospect camp at a school on your list.
- D1 contact opens June 15 after sophomore year in most sports.
11th grade: the key year
Junior year is when most programs evaluate seriously. Baseball, lacrosse and softball contact opens at the start of junior year, so check your sport guide. Keep coaches updated with new film and results through the season.
- Update your film after every season and send it to your list.
- Take unofficial visits to programs showing interest.
- Answer every coach who writes back, and follow up with programs that don’t.
- Narrow your list toward the programs responding.
Summer before 12th grade: visits and offers
In many sports this is when offers are made and official visits happen. There is no longer a limit on the total number of NCAA official visits, but you get one per school.
- Take official visits to your top programs.
- Ask each coach where you stand, and what aid is on the table.
- Keep going to camps at schools still evaluating you.
12th grade: commit and sign
A verbal commitment is not binding. The National Letter of Intent ended in 2024; recruits now sign a written athletics aid agreement with the school during their sport’s signing period.
If you are uncommitted, you are not out of options. Many D2, D3, NAIA and junior-college programs recruit well into senior year. Widen your list and keep sending updated film.