Recruiting New Cougars, How Players Find Illinois Central College
Patrick Rolling
Oct 16, 2022
Robert Buss, Director of Athletics at Illinois Central College (ICC), explains how ICC recruits its student-athletes. Buss went over many routes players utilize to achieve their goal of becoming a Cougar.
Many student-athletes from local high schools are aware of ICC. Coaches are also able to attend the local games for live scouting. The variety of opportunities available at ICC help to attract local talent. The skill level of local players is great, feeding into the collegiate program exceptionally.
The “Recruit Me” button on the athletics website (here) is a great way for individuals to introduce themselves and for coaches to add to their pool of possible recruits. Utilizing this avenue allows athletes to answer a short questionnaire tailored to the specific interest among the 8 sports offered at ICC. This is where players provide the footage, honors, and history to assist decision-making.
Each team coach designates several dates for scouting and recruitment throughout the year, including integrating numerous camps and clinics on campus. Interested prospects can participate in seasonal leagues and help with weekly games to get an early presence on the radar of recruitments. Not only do these opportunities allow potential recruits to get familiar with the team and show their skills, but it also gives them a chance to check out ICC facilities and campus life.
Coaches often use analytics and statistics when deciding on which players to recruit. When viewing a player live, the statistics help account for anomalies if the player doesn’t perform well. Statistics also drive up interest in certain players.
Another option is recruitment companies. Agile Sports Technologies Inc., doing business as Hudl, designs and develops software that coaches utilize to discover players they want to look at digitally. Hudl works with more than 200,000 teams to track talent worldwide. ICC also captures other state players with companies like Hudl, finding talent regionally from Iowa, Minnesota, and Missouri.
Coaches also utilize a transfer portal in this process. The transfer portal allows players to switch schools without penalty, helping coaches network for recruits. ICC can offer a 4-2-4 ‘bounce’ opportunity for players, where a player begins at a 4-year school, then transfers into ICC before they go to a higher level 4-year school, sometimes of a caliber that the player may not have reached without the time spent developing at a junior college. More than 1200 Men’s Basketball players utilized the transfer portal last year.
Several teams at ICC feature large numbers of international players. Men’s and women’s soccer, being the planet’s most popular sport, are also the most populated with players from across the globe.
International talent requires a few extra hurdles before they can play for ICC. One requirement is if they wish to qualify for scholarships at In-District pricing, they must live in on-campus housing. A second requirement is the player must produce proof of bank statements that cover travel and living expenses.
International players often utilize companies that specialize in helping players find themselves within the purview of coaches at ICC. Finances help in amplifying the profile and potential of these international players by hiring these companies.
Overall, recruitment at ICC hinges on players making ICC aware that they are interested. An initiative of the prospective players to attend the camps, clinics, scrimmages, tournaments, and practices within the Cougars organization will help the coaches with their final choices. Commitment to the craft and keeping cognizant of the goal to attend ICC as a student-athlete and ICC Cougar are critical for success.