March is a very anxious time for many high school seniors around the country. Roughly 1/4 of them are set in their immediate future for the upcoming autumn. They may choose to enroll in the military, register for the work force, or have been accepted into a college or a university through an early decision process or binding agreement. This leaves the other 3/4 of the upcoming high school graduating class of 2009 remaining to bite their nails, check their mailboxes hourly, daydream about what could be, and sweat through each of their friend's acceptance letters. For those 5,000 or so seniors and transfers that applied to Davidson, March 30th is the big day. The incoming freshmen class will total about 470, leaving over 90% of all applicants to find pastures other than the ones between Main and Concord.
This backdrop was wringing in my head (yes wringing, not ringing) all last weekend as I voyaged 1,287 miles around the Eastern United States to watch recruits that have Davidson on their "favorites" list as well as find some future talent that might look good as a Wildcat. None of the swimmers I would watch compete were yet admitted into Davidson nor knew of any financial package that would be made available to them. And while I wanted to be the bearer of joyous news, the only information that I could really offer to each of them was, "admissions told me not to not pursue you, so that's good for both of us."
My big recruiting escapade began last Thursday and span over four days, four states, and six swim sessions. I could hardly sleep the night before; I was so charged to be driving to Pennsylvania to represent a small North Carolina liberal arts school that people probably only heard of because of the basketball team's magical run 12 months ago. Driving wasn't the first part of my day, though; it was spinning. Nothing says "get your rest before logging 510 miles like peddling as hard as you can for 50 minutes." It didn't matter - I think that got my heart pumping a little faster and by 9:30AM, I was off to Bucknell.
Thursday night I witnessed one of our prize recruits earn eighth place in the 100 freestyle and anchor her 400 free relay. Including her 100 butterfly, 50 butterfly, and two events on Thursday, she had swum best times in all of them and would be a tremendous addition to the squad. It was great speaking with her after the entire meet concluded. She was so ecstatic about the times she posted, about her teammates, and about how far she had come in just one year. "I really can see myself swimming for Davidson," she said as our rendezvous concluded. It was a great feeling for both of us.
The pleasures of work quickly were subdued by the gloom of Lewistown, PA. After dropping triple figures on a suite next to the highway and setting a record for fastest steak and cheese hoagie eaten by a featherweight, I was off to sleep, ready for the AAA championships at the same venue. This was slightly more crowded but more feverish in speed. A recruit that is looking to come to Davidson was in the stands, watching her brother compete in the 200 freestyle. I could spend hours talking to this recruit; extremely pleasant, positive, and charged by the prospect of swimming at Davidson. I did star some nice talent Pennsylvania has to offer and got to share pleasantries with a few parents - none of which I had ever met before that morning. Once the session concluded, I was headed to Fairfax.
I arrived at the finals of the Senior Championship meet just in time to glance over the morning results and witness the finals. There were many familiar faces in attendance and watching the meet from the stands at a pool I had coached at for four seasons was very surreal. The two Davidson recruits at this meet swam pretty well. The young lady was swimming for a third swim in Junior Nationals via the 100 butterfly and she got it! The young man was looking for similar glory in the 100 breaststroke but just fell short. I was not able to chat with the breaststroker, but the young lady spent a few moments with me after the session and you could tell that she was happy to be going in multiple distances and events.
After scouting the same meet on Saturday morning, I drove to Maryland to watch a YMCA District Meet. The young man we are recruiting is quite versatile - solid in most events - and has been a lot of fun to speak with over the phone - very lively and enthusiastic about being a freshman in college. He earned finals swims in the 200 free, 50 free, and 200 back and swam well in all of these. After the meet had concluded, he was one of the final few people to reach the lobby among the hundreds of swimmers and parents. What a delightful kid! His mother joined our conversation and 45 minutes later, we both left with excellent impressions.
I'm slowly learning that recruiting can bring extreme joy flipped by extreme heartbreak. Davidson in lucky to be getting a sprinter from Maryland that I had been in contact with and am proud that John gave me to opportunity to land him. Conversely, two prize recruits that were my responsibility have sought Emory and the University of Richmond as their homes for the next four years. But the beat rolls on and you have to keep up. You continue to talk, you continue to listen, and you continue to look for those student-athletes that you feel would best represent your institution. Recruiting can be a 24/7 whirlwind if you choose. That extra effort can be the difference between extreme joy and extreme heartbreak.
---> To make use of my Twitter account, I am going to inform the masses of any recruiting trips, news, and conversations I have. Should be compelling...
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