Is the Club Volleyball worth it?

My daughter is a sophomore and is 5’9”. She plays front and back row on her high school team.  As she is attending a small school, she is forced to play front row as she hits hard and has a decent game vertical at about 2’ but her scrappiness is impressive in the back row. 

She has a hudl account and keeps on getting emails from ncsa, which she is hoping that it means colleges are interested but it’s more likely that paid recruiters want our money. She has been offered to play on a travel team but there is so few girls on the team that are college level girls and the cost is over $3000. Are we better to save that money for our daughter’s college or investing it toward her getting a scholarship? 

My daughter also is a softball pitcher and a basketball player and has a perfect gpa. She managed to play varsity as a freshman in all three sports.  She’s also a kind and a terrific team player.  She does love volleyball. 

I don’t know if contacting coaches is a good option. Should she get attend a camp to get some data on her athletic abilities?  Should we spend the money on her playing on a travel team?  Is she tall enough to make a D1 team?  Is her making a D2 or D3 team even worth the cost of travel volleyball?

K.O.

Thank you for your email and there are a number of questions to work through - Before answering, I will provide some additional context and information.

Club volleyball is looked at as the entry into college volleyball, but that is a little bit like "putting cart in-front of the horse".  Talent determines an athlete's ability to play college volleyball and club volleyball provides the opportunity for athletes to develop their talents.  Because an athlete will receive a significant amount of extra repetitions and hundreds of extra matches versus just playing high school volleyball, club volleyball is the dominant vehicle to increase a player's abilities.

As college athletic scholarships are limited in numbers and/or amounts, it is a competitive situation to obtain an athletic scholarship.  A player's talent will determine the opportunity to receive an athletic scholarship and the amount of such a scholarship.

Traditionally, club volleyball is commonly viewed as the pathway to college volleyball because of all the college coaches which attend club volleyball tournaments to evaluate/scout recruits.  If college coaches can't see an athlete in person, it can be uncomfortable for them to offer roster positions and scholarships to players via video tape.  Club volleyball tournaments allow college coaches to evaluate hundreds of players over the course of 2 to 3 days.  From January to the end of April, there is a large club volleyball tournament every weekend in the more populous states, which allows college coaches to constantly evaluate athletes in person!

NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball has 12 scholarships to award and since women's volleyball in DI is a 'head count' sport and only 12 heads can be on a scholarship, each player gets a full scholarship (provided the program is fully funded with scholarships, which the majority of DI women's teams are) - Obviously, the DI Full Scholarship, especially considering the crazy cost of college these days, is a huge motivation for families to participate in club volleyball.  

Families need to be aware that NCAA DI Women's Volleyball rosters are larger than 12 - Take a look at the roster page on the school's athletic website in the fall season, and you will see Volleyball teams with 16, 18 or 20 players.  This means that all the players outside of the Golden (like Greenwood) Ticket holders, are not receiving an athletic scholarship; they may well be receiving academic and/or merit scholarships, but these are not influenced or controlled by the athletic department.

NCAA Division II and NAIA have 8 scholarships (if the school fully funds the volleyball program) and these type of scholarships are called 'equivalency'.  A coach can take those 8 scholarships and divide them among 20 players, as long as the total amount awarded is equivalent to 8 full scholarships.  In Division II and NAIA volleyball, athletic scholarships are rarely awarded in full amounts, but rather in partial scholarship amounts.  But, unlike NCAA Division I, DII and NAIA schools can stack or package a variety of scholarships together; a player can receive an academic, an athletic, a merit and/or need based scholarships.  Often times, especially if the player has very good academics, the scholarship package at DII/NAIA schools can total out to a Full Scholarship.

NCAA Division III does not offer athletic scholarships.  Doesn't matter how great of a volleyball player, the division rules do not allow the awarding of an athletic scholarship. However, players can receive academic, merit and/or need based scholarships, but they cannot be influenced at all by athletic ability or the athletic department.

Junior College has a variety of athletic scholarship opportunities, depending upon the category of JC.  Junior Colleges have 3 divisions or categories of athletic programs, much like the NCAA.  DI Junior Colleges have full scholarships and the limit is 14 full scholarships if the program is fully funded.  DII gives out partial athletic scholarships, and DIII Junior College is not allowed to provide athletic scholarships.

That should provide some background information to move into your questions - As you have a number of important questions, let me break them out, along with a few other lines from your email which merit comment: 

• .....she is forced to play front row as she hits hard and has a decent game vertical....

As she is only a sophomore and she is 5'9", it is a good thing that she is playing all the way around.  The most competitive collegiate recruiting position is the Libero/DS/Back Row player because there are so many talented players and not a lot of opportunity.  All to often, the back row players don't receive much of an athletic scholarship, if any at all.  I believe 'good' all around Outside Hitters have more recruiting opportunities, than 'good' back row players.

• ....but it’s more likely that paid recruiters want our money....

Recruiting Services are businesses and they have well developed systems to encourage families to sign up for their support.  Some families do need a recruiting service and this can be a wise investment to manage the collegiate recruiting process.  

• She has been offered to play on a travel team but there is so few girls on the team that are college level girls and the cost is over $3000.

Club volleyball is expensive, but it is the protocol to increase ability and to be effectively seen by college coaches.  College coaches don't recruit the club team, we focus on the player were are evaluating.  The majority of time, we don't even know the score of the game much less stay for the entire match.  We don't judge a player by the abilities of her teammates; we judge her interaction with team mates though.

• Are we better to save that money for our daughter’s college or investing it toward her getting a scholarship?

The current club season has ground to a stop with the COVID 19 pandemic, so we will consider the Junior and Senior year of high school playing club volleyball - If we look at this from a return on investment viewpoint; $3000 per year for the next 2 years of club volleyball, plus related expenses of equipment, travel, meals, etc: say....$8,000.

If an athlete plays for 4 years and graduates in 4 years (we won't consider the possibility of a redshirt year), the per college year investment is $2,000.  To make the math work, a player would want to receive at least a $2,000 per year athletic scholarship.  There is a certain in-college value to playing collegiate sports (academic support, priority scheduling, athletic clothing and equipment, representing something larger than yourself, developing lifelong friendships through a common experience, etc.), not to mention post college life of having athletics on your resume and potential employers rating you higher.

Because of my experience as a collegiate player and as a collegiate coach, I feel that eight thousand dollars is a good investment.

• ....and has a perfect gpa....

If her ACT/SAT test scores will reflect this great g.p.a., she will be in a good position to garner academic scholarships.  For the majority of non-Division I players, the academic scholarship will be the largest scholarship award and, as long as you keep up the college mandated g.p.a, this academic award will continue until graduation!

• I don’t know if contacting coaches is a good option.

It is not only a good option, it is the only option to reach your recruiting goals.  As presented above, college volleyball recruiting is competitive - Your 5'9", all around outside hitter daughter, with the great gpa and personality, is competing against thousands of other 5'9" all around outside hitters with great grades and personalities.  Waiting for college coaches to find a player is not a plan, it is a dream.  Because there are so many talented players of average height, it is absolutely necessary for players/families to reach out to college coaches via email with player information and current video.  Even if a player is participating in club volleyball, they still need to reach out to college coaches to convince them to come to court #52 in the Dallas Convention Center during the MLK Classic tournament.

• Should she get attend a camp to get some data on her athletic abilities?

Camps are generally not designed for recruiting, unless the camp specifically says it is for recruiting and has the itinerary to support such a statement; a college camp where the only coaches are from one school (the host college) is not a recruiting camp.  A better option would be recruiting combines or showcases, where a bunch of college coaches attend and would contact an athlete if interested.  The best, but most expensive option, is club volleyball, in which the team plays in large tournaments and the player/family can easily see how they stack up!

• Should we spend the money on her playing on a travel team? 

Yes, if she does want to play in college, she needs to have the training and repetitions needed to develop her talent, along with putting herself into the live view of college coaches attending big tournaments.  There are rare occasions that a gifted volleyball athlete can secure a collegiate opportunity by playing only high school volleyball.

• Is she tall enough to make a D1 team?

Yes, but not at the Power Conference or upper mid major level.  There are plenty of 5'9"-5'10" outside hitters at the mid to lower level NCAA Division I programs.  Her ball control/passing, attacking ability and volleyball intelligence will be more of a deciding factor for these type of DI programs, rather than just her height.

• Is her making a D2 or D3 team even worth the cost of travel volleyball?

I believe so - Think of DII/NAIA in terms of a combination of scholarships and collegiate experience.  Even a partial D2/NAIA 'partial scholarship' will routinely be more than $2,000 per month.  Again, the packaging of D2/NAIA school scholarships can approach and easily total a full scholarship.

There is much to digest when it comes to today's college volleyball recruiting environment.  Hopefully my answers and background information will provide some direction as your daughter moves forward with her volleyball career!!!

Collegiate Level Skill Sets

I attend a large number of Recruiting Combines each club season and I will see hundreds of volleyball players in a short amount of time at combine; easily thousands over the course of a club volleyball season - This is one of the benefits for college coaches attending combines/showcases; much easier to evaluate 30 outside hitters when they are on 2 courts doing position specific drills, rather than wandering around a convention center for 3 days trying to locate and evaluate those same 30 players.

The athletes which are attending these combines are there to demonstrate their skill sets/abilities to college coaches.  In a very real sense, it is a tryout for those coaches' college program.  One thing which I have been struck by, is the lack of basic college volleyball required skill sets by attending players.

Please allow me to break down my combine observations by position....

Middle Blockers:

• You must be able to run the slide; it is the primary attack option of college volleyball.  A slide is a one foot'ed take off attack pattern near the right front antenna.  In simple attack footwork drills (no ball or setter), easily half of the players cannot demonstrate a slide.  If you can't hit a slide, you won't be playing college volleyball as a middle.
• 3 step blocking footwork to 'close' the block to the right front or left front.  It is 3 steps only, not 4 or 6 or 18 stutter steps.  Again, it is routine to see half the athletes not do this primary collegiate blocking footwork.
• Transition from the net to the load or attack zone; the load or attack zone is the 3 meter line in the center of the court.  From this load/attack zone, a middle attacker can transition to attack any of the 4 primary attacks (front quick, back quick, 3 or C and slide).  The transition from block landing to load/attack zone is a 3 step movement to the center of the 3 meter line.  This transition ability is probably the least correctly demonstrated of the middle blocker footwork patterns, but a primary pattern for collegiate middle blockers.  College coaches don't want to teach you this movement, they expect you to have it before you arrive to campus.

Setters:

• Squaring your hips to the left front target - Wherever your hips face, the ball will tend to float in that direction.  If your hips are open, the ball will be too far off the net and if you back set, the ball will be too tight to the net.  Collegiate setters don't leave their hips open.
• Stopping your feet when setting - Doing a run through set on an average pass is not correct.
• Poor hand position - If you raise your hands late or drop your hands immediately after setting, this is not collegiate ability.

Outside Hitters:

• Hitting the ball in the court - Combines can be an uncomfortable environment and the sets are coming from an unknown setter, you still need to hit the ball in the court.  Blasting it into the net is a no go.
• Having basic passing skill sets - Even if you are not a primary passer, you should be able to pass your narrow zone.  Combines tend to have very easy serving or free balls, so the drills don't turn into a popcorn machine. When OH's can't pass free balls in a combine, they are not going to be recruited.

Liberos:

• Not going to the ground after the ball is completely mind boggling to a college coach.  Your whole volleyball existence is to keep the ball of the floor.  Watching a ball hit two feet away from a Libero, who doesn't make a move for the ball is an instant "do not recruit" evaluation.
• Correct passing technique - The Libero and Defensive Specialists primary job is to pass the served ball - Talk to any collegiate coach and they want passers more than they want defenders because if team can't pass, it doesn't matter how well they dig the ball.  L/DS should be stopped, with good balance when they pass the ball.  The arm movement should be smooth and controlled, and they should communicate/call the ball on every single touch.

Collegiate volleyball is not easy, no matter what category or level a recruit aspires.  When a college coach sees basic skill deficiencies from high school age athletes, they will rate these athletes low and not recruit them.

Families must understand that there are literally tens of thousands of volleyball players competing for a thousand opportunities - College coaches have the luxury of choice.  If one player does not have the minimum skill sets, the college coach will just move on to the next player; they are not interested in teaching basic collegiate level skill sets.

Playing club volleyball is not enough to develop skill sets to a collegiate level; club is a great platform but it is not the guarantee - It is the responsibility of the family/athlete to ensure they are garnering the correct techniques which will result in being recruited to play college volleyball.  This means applying what the club coach is telling you.  If for some reason your club program is lacking, then it is still your responsibility to figure out those collegiate level skills and it is not hard to do - GO WATCH COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL.

If you want to play college volleyball, go watch college volleyball with the eye of a player, not a fan.  Coaches are always watching volleyball with a coach's eye.  Doesn't matter if the coach is a Golden in Greenwood, they will be evaluating the players in the NCAA Division I National Championship.  As a player, you need to watch how the collegiate players play - If you want to be a middle, watch how the collegiate middles move, how they attack, what does their armswing look like, how is their transition footwork, etc.

Be the player at the combine that has the skill sets necessary to get recruited, rather than the player who is lacking in the basic techniques.

Volleyball Recruiting Combines

As we enter into the Recruiting Season of volleyball (both for college coaches and for club volleyball players), I wanted to share a couple of Volleyball Recruiting Combines.  In full disclosure, these combines are conducted by Championship Combines, which is a parter of NCSA, which is my employer!


California Kickoff Combine in San Jose, CA on January 12th:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2018-ncva-california-kickoffmlk-recruiting-combine-registration-37358469187

This combine is held the night before the NCVA California Kickoff tournament and Championship has partnered with the NCVA for this combine.


KC MLK Combine in Kansas City, MO on January 12th:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2018-kc-mlk-tournament-combine-registration-37358580520

The Combine is the night before the Heart of America (HOA) region's MLK weekend tournament and Championship is partners with the HOA for this combine.


In January, college volleyball coaches are focused on filling last minute openings and building their recruiting databases.  As written about previously, this can be a crazy time in the recruiting process for college coaches because of unanticipated roster openings; players quit, players get cut, coaches get fired and new coaches get hired.  This all leads to college programs needing players for the fall.

Early combines can be a great opportunity for Senior and Junior players to get some attention, and further their recruiting efforts.

I will be providing a Recruiting Education Talk at the California Kickoff Combine in San Jose, as part of the NCSA-Championship Combines partnership!

College Volleyball Recruiting

Hi coach. Thank god for your website. It is very helpful and informative as it has addressed a number of issues that we are currently dealing with. Here's the situation that I hope you can help us out with.

I have a 14-year old daughter, whose been playing travel club volleyball for the past years as s DS/L at the U15 level. This summer she made the varsity roster for her high school team and is part of the rotation (*I've read "To Play or Not to Play High School Volleyball").  She loves the sport and wants to play in college at the DI or DII level. For added exposure to such schools would you advise she attend the combines and showcases now as a freshman or wait until she's older?  Also can you tell me the pros and cons of attending such workouts?  Lastly, would be it benefit her to attend the summer camps and clinics of the colleges that she's interested in attending?

 Thanks and I look forward to reading your reply.

P.T.

Before I answer your question, I want to be transparent in the fact that NCSA Next College Student Athlete (my day job) is partnered with a number of recruiting combine groups and that I provide the parent recruiting education talk at many of these combines.

There are many combines available each year; whether stand alone combines or held the night before a club tournament.  Combines have become popular because they can provide equal opportunity exposure to college coaches, for about the price of a private lesson in club.  With a combine, it does not matter if you are the star of your club team or if you hardly ever set foot on the court; a quality combine provides equal court time and touches for each positional player.

For the college coach, a well run combine allows for the opportunity to see a large group of athletes, divided by position and/or graduate year, in an efficient time frame.  Club volleyball events are long and chasing players/court times around a huge convention center can be a challenge; it is nice to have a combine which supplements a large event (more bang for my recruiting budget).

Player attendance at a combine should be determined by 3 factors; 1) what is your graduation year, 2) what is your position, 3) what is your ability.

Graduation Year - In general, combines are more appropriate for Juniors and Seniors who are sill actively involved in the recruiting process.  Also, most of the attending colleges are looking at upperclassmen for their recruiting efforts.

Position - Combined with graduation year, your playing position can influence when to attend a combine.  In general, outside hitters and middle blockers gets recruited before setters and liberos.  If you have read this blog or Inside College Volleyball (greatest book every written on college volleyball and recruiting!), then you have also read that Libero's are last in recruiting.

Ability - If you are an elite, early developing athlete, then it make sense to attend a combine as a freshman or even an 8th grader.  If you know you will have a later growth spurt or you are just getting your volleyball game into shape, then waiting until your an upper classman makes sense.

The last thing I will say about combines, is that because of the lower cost (when compared to the other crazy expensive areas of club volleyball), sometimes it is good to attend a combine as a freshman or sophomore, just to get comfortable with the flow of the event and how to perform in such an environment.

My opinion of college camps/clinics for recruiting, often expressed at my NCSA Recruiting Talks, is they are not the best use of your recruiting dollar or time.  For training or a volleyball vacation, college camps can be great.  But for recruiting evaluation and campus understanding, better to go visit the school outside of volleyball.  College camps are not the reality of the college volleyball program; camps are the Disney version of the program.

Good luck this club season!

Coach