Welcome to Day 4 of the 5-Day Recruiting Challenge! You’ve come a long way in 3 days—creating your highlight video, outlining your college target list, and starting outreach to coaches. Now, it’s time to make your journey visible by building a focused, professional social media presence that can truly set you apart in the recruiting process. Today’s Mission: Create Your Soccer-Only Social Accounts Coaches regularly check social media to get a real sense of who you are. A carefully curated digital presence gives them a front-row seat to your growth, achievements, and dedication—all in real time. The key: keep everything soccer-specific and professional. The only personal info should be accolades or key details like grad year or position. No unrelated content, private info, absolutely NO DRAMA. ⚽ Step 1: Set Up Your YouTube Channel Your highlight video from Day 1 needs a home, and YouTube is the easy destination for coaches looking to see you in action. How to do it: - Create a new YouTube account with a professional email address. - Name the channel after yourself and your grad year/position (e.g., “Sam Lee – 2027 Center Mid”). - Upload your highlight video with a clear, professional title. - In the description, list your position, team, GPA/academics, and link to your player profile. ⚽ Step 2: Launch Your Soccer Instagram Instagram is where you can showcase your talent, personality, and commitment through short video clips, photos, and stories. Keep it all soccer: training, matches, tournament results, and honors. How to do it: - Create a new Instagram handle like @SamLee_Soccer2027. - Set your profile bio with details: Grad Year | Position | Team | Accolades. - Use a quality action headshot as your profile picture. - Your first post: a highlight from your video, a great photo from a recent match, or a “College Soccer Journey Begins” announcement with a positive, soccer-focused caption. ⚽ Step 3: Create Your X (Twitter) Account X (formerly Twitter) is essential for updates, networking, and getting your content in front of coaches—many of whom use X daily. One powerful bonus: I can repost your content to amplify your reach to my coaching network.

Welcome to Day 3 of the 5-Day Recruiting Challenge! So over the past 2 days you have created your highlight video and built your targeted college list. Now, it's time to connect with coaches and get on their radar. Today, you'll learn how to write a simple, powerful introductory email that gets opened and gets a response. Today’s Mission: Write Your First Email to College Coaches Your email is often a coach's first impression of you. A generic, mass-blasted email is easy to spot and even easier to ignore. A personalized, professional message shows you've done your homework and are serious about their program. Let's use the college list you built yesterday to start your outreach. ⚽ - Step 1: Craft the Perfect Subject Line Coaches receive hundreds of emails. Make yours stand out. Keep it clear, concise, and professional. Example: 2027 Goalkeeper | Oakwood SC MLS Next - 6 ft 2' Athletic, Brave, Winner! This gives the coach all the essential information before they even open the email plus it needs to stand out! ⚽ - Step 2: Write a Compelling Email Your goal is to be brief but effective. Provide the key information a coach needs to evaluate you quickly. Use this simple template: Introduction: Start with a personalized greeting. Briefly introduce yourself and state your interest in their specific program. Mention something you like about their team, school, or recent season. Key Information (Use Bullet Points): - Academics: Your GPA and any relevant test scores (SAT/ACT). - Athletics: Your team, league (ECNL, GA, MLS Next, etc.), and a few key athletic achievements. - Highlight Video: A direct link to your highlight reel. Make sure the link is clickable and easy to find. Closing:Thank the coach for their time. Express your interest in learning more about their program and mention that you will be following their season. Include your contact information and a link to your full player profile or sports resume. ⚽ - Step 3: Personalize Your Message

Welcome to Day 1 of the 5-Day Recruiting Challenge! We are going to spend the next 5 days completing one or two tasks per day, and by Friday we should have you completely organized and on the right path to be "Scholarship Ready!" Let's get started! Day 1: Your Highlight Video Today is all about creating or perfecting your most important recruiting tool: your highlight video. This is your digital handshake with a college coach, your chance to make a great first impression and get noticed. Without a video, it's tough to move forward in the recruiting process. Why is a highlight video so important? Think of it as your movie trailer. College coaches are incredibly busy and can't see every game. A well-made video brings your talent directly to them, showing them exactly what you can do on the field. Profiles with videos get significantly more attention. Let's figure out where you stand and what your next step is. Where Are You Now? Choose Your Path: ⚽ - Path 1: "I don't have a highlight video yet." No problem! Today is the perfect day to start. Your mission is to gather your resources and make a plan. Your Action Steps: 1. Find Your Footage: Your first task is to locate game footage. Check with your club, high school coach, or team manager. Many teams use platforms like Veo, Trace, or Hudl to record games. If you don't have access to full-game film, ask family or friends if they have clips from the sidelines. 2. Identify Your Best Moments: Watch through the footage you have. Look for 10-15 key plays that show off your skills. Don't worry about perfection; just find moments you're proud of. Think about goals, assists, great defensive stops, clever passes, or a display of your work ethic. 3. Plan Your Opening: Pick your top 3-5 clips. These will be the first 30 seconds of your video and need to grab a coach's attention immediately. 4. Gather Your Info: Write down your key details for an intro slate: 5. Full Name - Graduation Year - Position - Team Name & Jersey Number - Contact Info (Email or Phone)

If you could play soccer at any college, no strings attached—forget about money, scholarships, or even getting in—where would it be?

Calling all 2027, 2028, and 2029 athletes just starting this journey! Each day this week, starting on Monday, November 3rd, we are going to work through a step to get you organized and set up for success! Each day I will give you a specific task to complete. I promise it won’t take too long! - Day 1 - Your Highlight Video - Day 2 - Creating Your List of Schools - Day 3 - Organizing Your Social Media - Day 4 - Contacting College Coaches - Day 5 - ID Clinics If you are up for the 5-day challenge to get organized, please post below! @Liza Borches @Jill Ciminero @Amy Greaser @Jennifer Looney @Leila Sweet @Courtney Tucker @David Riedel @Kendal Sandlin @Jason Wheaton @Alexa Cergol @Qasim K @Duncan Parsons @Meredith Trimble @Gaetana Deiso