University Of Florida Head Coach Mary Wise gives tips to would be Volleyball Recruits

“This is a great time for female athletes,” says Mary Wise, head coach of women’s volleyball at the University of Florida. “Any high school player who loves volleyball and puts all her time and energy into the game has a place on a college team.”

Perhaps the leading authority on moving players from high school to college volleyball, Wise has coached 41 players to 64 All-SEC honors and 15 players to 32 All-American titles. In her 14 seasons as the Gators’ coach, she has won 14 SEC regular season championships while producing an overall record of 459-48, a .905 winning percentage.

The 10-time SEC Coach of the Year says an unprecedented number of scholarships and college volleyball programs are available to women athletes. In this golden age of women’s volleyball, attacking the recruiting process like a perfectly set ball can reap huge rewards for rising stars who hope to play at the college level.

Wise explains what she looks for when recruiting volleyball players.

ADVICE FOR ALL PLAYERS

BE AN ATHLETE

Simply put, college volleyball coaches want athletes. “Regardless of position, we look for athleticism first. We want players with great foot speed, jumping ability and reaction time. Then we look at particular skills,” Wise says.

GYM RATS GET REWARDED

Working your butt off in the gym not only hones your skills, it demonstrates your desire and competitive spirit to college coaches. “We like to recruit the gym rats—the players who love to be in the gym all day,” Wise says. “When they come to our camps, they can’t wait to get back in the gym after lunch. We have to kick them out of the gym at night when we are turning off the lights.”

Wise seeks truly competitive athletes also. She says, “We want athletes who have an attitude on the court. They play hard regardless of the score or whom they’re playing. Great competitors can perform well in all different arenas. That is why we love them.”

BE SPECIAL, AND DOGGONE IT, COACHES WILL LIKE YOU

To stand out, a high school volleyball player needs a weapon. “Find something to be special at,” Wise advises. “College coaches are looking for some special ability in a player, whether it’s a strong serve, the ability to pass or being a great blocker or terminator. This will get you noticed.”

POSITIONAL PREFERENCES

FRONT ROW

Strong jumping ability is a distinguishing characteristic among front row players. Wise says, “Women’s volleyball has evolved similar to basketball. Just as basketball games are won more and more above the rim, volleyball matches are increasingly won above the net. We look at how dynamic a player is with her jumps and how high above the net she plays.”

SETTERS

According to Wise, hand contact and delivery are the two characteristics that make a setter effective in distributing the ball to teammates. “These skills can be improved in college, but there is a natural quality to them. Some people just have great hands and a touch for the ball, like a natural shooter in basketball.”

LIBEROS

Great ball skills and court courage make a good libero, according to Wise. Don’t confuse ball skills, though, with the ability to make great defensive plays. “The ability to pass is first and foremost in my mind,” Wise says. “Then come foot speed, quickness and hand strength to take balls overhead.

“We also want athletes with a gutsy attitude in this position. It is not a glory position, but it’s critical to a team’s success.”

Special Thanks to STACK magazine and the great advice that UF Coach Mary Wise instills in all female atheletes.

SO YOU WANT TO PLAY AT THE NEXT LEVEL?

If you only have a few years left to play Volleyball at the High-School level and you really love the game, I can imagine that your desire to play at a college or university is extremely high. Well we are definitely here to help.

Here's a few tips that we have found throughout time and talking with different college and university coaches.

* First and Foremost is being promoted. The more your name is out there the better it is for you. If your name comes out on the local paper, GOOD. If your coach posts your stats on websites such as MaxPreps, GOOD.
What else? If you play for a regional or national club, that's GOOD. If you play for a school that's always going deep into the playoffs, GOOD.

If you did all that and more, what do you think your chances of being recognized by the major universities in the country. They're actually 50/50, which is not bad.

Stop and think about it. How many university coaches from outside of Florida actually read the South Florida newspapers? Not many.
How many look at Max-Preps? Quite a few, Only if you come out in the Top 50 of a certain category. For a coach to go into the specific school on Max-Prep they need to know your name. That's where we come in.

If you've done all of the above what can help you improve your chances of promoting yourself? Working with us.

We place important information on your profile and send it out to hundreds of Div. I and II universities and if needed several TOP Div. III and Junior Colleges. We have great repertoire with these coaches and several even send us their wish lists for upcoming seasons.

Other things that are a must as of right now:

* Have your parent, friend, coach, etc. - take good clear closeups of you. Some action shots are great.

* You need to have several digital videos made of you. 1) go through several drills especially in your area of expertise. 2) Have about 10 minutes of unedited game video that clearly shows you in a semi close up. There are some clubs that offer this service - usually it's a few hundred dollars. Pay it, it's worth it.

*Talk to your high school coach and make sure they are posting your stats somewhere. Obviously the coach is unable to keep track of the stats, seeing that they are coaching the game. Make sure someone does it. We have seen students help out as a statistical assistant.

*Try and become the best athlete you can. Try and play beach volleyball it makes you such a faster player indoors. Find time to eat right and work on conditioning and some weight training.

We feel very strongly that South Florida has extremely talented Volleyball players and that the Nation has not yet realized it. We know how hard you work to become great and have a chance to play at the next level.

That's why we say:

Your coaches have taught you how to play the game
Your desire to be the best has made you the player you are today
We are here to let the Nation know how hard you've worked.

PROMOTE YOURSELF NATIONALLY

(E-MAIL US AT volleyballreport@gmail.com SO THAT WE CAN SEND YOU THIS QUESTIONNAIRE)

Name: ___________________________ HT/WT: ___________

High School: ______________________ Position:________________

City: ___________________________Coach’s Name:_____________

Year of Graduation: ________________________________________

GPA: ______________ Major to be Studied: _____________________

High School Coaches Comments & Stats: ______________________



Club Coaches Comments & Stats: __________________________




Since when have you been playing competitively: ____________________
(List all Teams)




List any and all awards received both individually and team wise: ______________




Why do you want to play Volleyball Collegiately? __________________________




What does the word Coachable mean to you? _______________________



What position do you think you would play in College and why? ___________________




High School Stats: ____________________________________________

Approach Reach:

Block Reach:

Standing Reach:

GPA/HPA:

List any Academic awards:


What other sports or activities do you enjoy?

Add any other athletic Ability.

Have you registered with the NCAA Clearinghouse?

Please include two digital pictures

Player Profiles will be posted and sent to our 500 and counting contacts starting after April 19th, 2009 and into early summer. Then again starting in December 2009. This is a free service used to help promote Volleyball in South Florida.

We do a great job of protecting your privacy and always CC: your parents. We can also post your profile on the South Florida Volleyball Report. If you wish to only be promoted to Universities and not be placed on the S.F.V.R. you can tell us. We work closely with you and pass the information on the interested universities to you - then you and your parents take it from there. If you need any assistance we are here to help.

Please send the player profiles to: volleyballreport@gmail.com

Note: We can post your profile more than once if new stats and info are added.

We are here to help promote the talented players from South Florida to the Nation.

Coaches chime in on Volleyball Scholarships

Recently we spoke with several University Coaches and we copulated several key factors in being recruited for a Volleyball Scholarship.

*Start preparing your potential student/athlete in the 9th grade by explaining the core GPA and the NCAA process. Register at the beginning of their junior year with the NCAA Eligibility Center. Keep constant tabs on their transcript and daily grades.

*Build a resume of sports accomplishments and awards as well as community service and inter-scholastic activities and honors. Save it in your computer and update it with everything they have accomplished each month. This resume should be sent to college coaches. This allows them to see the student/athlete as a person that is active and has good character.

*Choose a few good sports photos to have on hand to send with your resume and other sports related scholarships that they may apply for, such as state sportsmanship scholarships for example.

*Form good relationships with high school and club coaches; remember they will give the final recommendation on your skills and abilities.

*Play other sports in high school, it’s good for you and makes you a more appealing athlete.

*Fill out all sports questionnaires, even to schools you may not attend. It’s a small world and coaches change jobs every day and may remember you.

* Get your name and accomplishments out there - they felt that a player profile is a great way to get your name out and have pledged to read our periodicals.

Volleyball Recruiting Facts:

MOST COLLEGE COACHES HAVE A RECRUITING BUDGET OF LESS THAN $1,000. THIS MEANS THAT MOST COACHES WILL NEVER GET A CHANCE TO SEE YOU PLAY, UNLESS YOU FIND SOMEONE TO PROMOTE YOU. IF YOUR LUCKY YOUR HIGH SCHOOL COACH OR CLUB WILL POST YOUR STATISTICS SOMEWHERE AND YOU HAVE TO HOPE AND PRAY THAT A UNIVERSITY COACH SEE'S YOU.

THERE ARE 988 NCAA SCHOOLS THAT OFFER SCHOLARSHIPS FOR VOLLEYBALL.

THAT IS A TOTAL OF 7,500 AVAILABLE SCHOLARSHIPS.

THERE ARE ALSO 243 NAIA SCHOOLS THAT OFFER VOLLEYBALL AND CAN PROVIDE SCHOLARSHIPS.

THE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COLLEGE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION (NCCAA) CONTAINS 90 SCHOOLS THAT OFFER SCHOLARSHIPS FOR VOLLEYBALL.

ON TOP OF THESE 1,321 SCHOOL THERE ARE OVER 250 JUNIOR COLLEGES THAT CAN OFFER VOLLEYBALL SCHOLARSHIPS.

A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF GIRLS THAT PLAY HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL RECEIVE A SCHOLARSHIP TO PLAY COLLEGIATE VOLLEYBALL. GETTING YOUR NAME, STATS AND COACHES COMMENTS OUT BEFORE 100'S OF VOLLEYBALL COACHES IS CRITICAL IN IMPROVING YOUR CHANCES OF PLAYING AT THE BEST POSSIBLE SCHOOL FOR COMMENSURATE WITH YOUR ABILITY.

Volleyball Scholarship Support

It is important that high school volleyball players play& club volleyball and beach if available. The high school season coincides with the college season so most coaches actually recruit during the club season. A lot of college coaches recruit players at Junior Olympic tournaments, national qualifiers and regional tournaments.

Not all athletic scholarships are full ride like football and basketball, so called "head count" sports; most are classed as "equivalency" sports, like volleyball This means that coaches can" share" their allocation between a larger number of players. Women's volleyball is classed as a "head count" sport and 12 FULL RIDE SCHOLARSHIPS are awarded by each college in division 1 and 8 in division 2. The NAIA allows 12.& This works out to about 7500 volleyball scholarships that are available for girls.