But when it comes time to move into college athletics, everything becomes much more complicated. Suddenly, the athlete has to be not only good enough to play at that level but they also must find a college that fits them best and get noticed and recruited by college coaches.
John Farfaglia of GetMyNameOut.com says most parents and high school athletes lack the information necessary to properly go about promoting their student-athlete to prospective coaches.
"They’re completely unaware of the process, what they need to be doing, and when," Farfaglia said, stressing that the lack of knowledge stems from never having been through the situation before.
To help high school athletes and their families, Farfaglia developed GetMyNameOut.com, a Web site that helps to bridge the gap between athlete and coach by providing the athlete with an outlet with which to show off his or her accomplishments.
"A good athlete is going to be a known commodity within his region, or at least he should be," Farfaglia said. "The Internet, when used as a tool, will give you exposure throughout the country."
While GetMyNameOut.com provides guidelines and templates for the layout of an athlete’s personal home page, the page is completely customizable, allowing the athlete to display stats, highlights and personal accomplishments, as well as their team’s schedule. The home page can also be linked to press clippings and as many as four video clips of the athlete in action.
Perhaps the best feature of the Web site is its tracking of site visits, so members know who has been linking to their page.
"When a coach clicks on the athlete’s Web link, the athlete gets notified instantly, providing him with the name of the school, the name and the time," Farfaglia said. "It allows athletes to know who’s taking an interest in them, and help them know where to focus their efforts."
The Web site isn’t designed only for hockey. Just about every other NCAA sport is represented as well.
GetMyNameOut.com also helps players navigate the sometimes confusing world of NCAA recruiting restrictions by providing e-mail addresses, phone number and Web site links for all NCAA college head coaches, sorted by sport and region, allowing players to notify coaches directly, research colleges and initiate contact with the coaches in their chosen sport.
In addition, members can receive personal, one-on-one recruiting assistance from the GetMyNameOut.com staff at no additional cost.
With hundreds of NCAA and American Collegiate Hockey Association coaches constantly looking for new talent, GetMyNameOut.com can be a tremendous resource for the aspiring college hockey player.
For more information, visit www.getmynameout.com or the sample page available at www.getmynameout.com/nick_torres. |
