Recruiting during a pandemic

COVID-19 related restrictions have forced coaches to change their usual strategies for bringing in new players

Sofia Bruzzo / Asst. Sports Editor

While COVID-19 has certainly altered how we go about our daily lives, the global pandemic has especially taken a toll on a group of people vital to colleges and universities across the country. Athletic college recruiting has taken a turn due to COVID-19 restrictions, changing the way coaches go about finding the next star players for their athletic programs.

Prior to the global pandemic, college recruiters would spend the majority of their time evaluating high school junior and senior athletes, interacting with them and their families. Recruits would normally travel to campuses for unofficial or official visits and enjoy being sought after by some of the best athletic programs in the country. However, for this new recruiting class, they are going to have to adapt to the new norm, and so will the recruiters.

Now having to watch online streamings of games from the comfort of their homes, coaches — like USD men’s basketball assistant coach Martin Bahar — are adjusting to a new kind of recruiting. 

“During the summer and spring time we were used to being in the gyms 10-12 hours, watching hundreds of kids compete per day,” Bahar said. “It’s going to be a very video-based recruiting process for the remainder of the year. It’s a lot of emailing and FaceTime calls with recruits and evaluating them over film, and that’s going to be the norm for this recruiting class.”

While coaches and recruiters adjust to these new norms, current Torero athletes have been taking note of what high school players are experiencing as well. Carson Lewis, a sophomore linebacker on the football team, addressed the difficulties his prospective teammates might be facing as they experience a new type of recruitment.

“The most difficult part of recruiting for me was having to make that final decision as it was all coming to an end and getting to select from schools you want,” Lewis said. “A lot of this will change, especially for the high school seniors who have to commit. For the people like me, I got a couple offers my senior year, they probably won’t be getting these offers as seniors if their season is pushed back.”

Coaches and recruiters are struggling to connect with players as COVID restrictions continue to prevent face-to-face interactions, causing some frustration within programs. One such frustration is trying to evaluate things that don’t come across well on video, as men’s basketball head coach Sam Scholl explained.

“You’re missing out on body language and emotion and those types of things in these video meetings,” Scholl said. “Video doesn’t show a lot of the intangible things that you need to see in really good players.” 

Not only is virtual evaluation strenuous, but establishing relationships with recruits and their families has also proven to be difficult. While official and unofficial visits are currently not allowed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Steve Oliver, Torero football’s recruiting coordinator, gave some insight on how his program is showcasing the beautiful USD campus. 

“Some kids are coming to see the campus on their own and then will FaceTime us as if we were both there,” Oliver said. “And for those who can’t make it out here, we go on campus and FaceTime a kid and flip the camera and talk about the school so they can experience it that way.” 

Bahar expressed the same concerns, explaining that, “a lot of kids want to see the campus and meet the students and staff in person so that’s a challenge if that’s an important emphasis for them and their families because unfortunately we can’t provide that.”

Despite not having the opportunity to make official visits and participate in summer clinics, these incoming athletes are still finding ways to build relationships with their new teammates through the virtual environment.

“Eventually I’ll meet them and we’ll get to practice together,” Lewis said. “We’ve already been in Zoom calls and communicating with them so when we get back on the field it won’t be a problem.”

However, even as recruiting teams struggle to adapt to this new reality, they are hopeful for what is to come. Oliver urges players to continue to perform.

“Continue to work hard, the process is gonna play itself out,” Oliver said. “The best thing you can do is put in the work and use that extended off season to your advantage so you can have a better senior season.”

Despite the many challenges college athletic programs are facing across the country, Bahar is confident in USD’s athletic prospects. 

“I think in a lot of ways we’re gonna continue to do well in recruiting,” Bahar said. “Just like every program, sometimes you don’t get everyone and that’s just a part of the business.”