Social Media and College Recruiting: What Coaches See and What to Do About It

Coaches are people, and many of them look at an athlete's public social media before they spend time recruiting that athlete. You do not need a big following. You need accounts that show someone a coach would want on the team, and an easy way for a coach to find your film and stats.

What coaches are usually looking for

• Character: how you talk about teammates, coaches, referees, and opponents.
• Judgment: what you post, what you comment on, and what you are tagged in.
• Your sport: highlights, training, and results.
• Attitude: whether you come across as positive, coachable, and serious about getting better.

A quick clean-up checklist

1. Search your own name on each platform, and on Google while signed out, to see what a stranger sees.
2. Scroll through your public posts, comments, and the photos you are tagged in, going back at least a couple of years.
3. Delete or hide anything you would not want a coach, a teacher, or a grandparent to read or see.
4. Check your handle, bio, and profile photo. They are the first thing anyone sees.
5. Review who can tag you and who can comment on your posts.
6. Decide on public or private. A private account is a fine choice for personal posts, but then a coach cannot see it, so your recruiting profile needs to do the work.

Make your accounts work for you

• Put your name, sport, position, and graduation year in your bio.
• Add one link to your recruiting profile. A coach who finds you can tap it and see your stats, academics, film, and contact details in one place.
• Post highlights, training clips, and good moments from games. Not every post has to be about sports.
• Follow the programs you are interested in. It is a good way to learn how they play and what they care about.

Messaging coaches on social media

Athletes sometimes message coaches directly on platforms like X or Instagram. If you do, send it from your own account, keep it short, and say who you are. Many coaches still prefer email, so treat a message as a quick introduction and not a replacement for a full email.

If a coach does not answer right away, that does not mean they are not interested. Coaches are busy, and the rules about when and how they may contact athletes, including on social media, differ by sport and division. Check the calendar for your sport before you follow up.

A note for parents

• Talk about this with your athlete and go through the privacy settings together.
• Coaches want to hear from the athlete, so let your athlete send the messages.
• Keep personal details such as a home address, phone number, and daily schedule off public posts.

Recruiting and eligibility rules differ by sport and division, and they change. Always confirm the current rules with the NCAA, the NAIA, or the college you are talking to. GritRecruit is not affiliated with the NCAA.