"We're taking things slow with this recruiting class."
"We're still evaluating a lot of players."
"We need to see more of you before making decisions."
Sound familiar?
When coaches give vague answers, most players:
- Get frustrated
- Feel confused
- Keep hoping
- Waste time
- Miss signals
But vague answers aren't always bad news. Sometimes they're just incomplete information.
The Translation Guide
When a coach says: "We're still evaluating players." They might mean:
- "You're not at the top of our list."
- "We're waiting on higher-ranked recruits."
- "We genuinely need more information."
- "We're interested but not ready to commit."
When a coach says: "We need to see more of you." They might mean:
- "You have potential but we have concerns."
- "You're on our list but not at the top."
- "We genuinely like your style of play."
- "We're keeping our options open."
The challenge? You can't know for sure just from words.
Beyond Words
While coaches' words matter, their actions matter more:
- How quickly do they respond to you?
- How detailed are their communications?
- Do they make time for you?
- Do they remember details about you?
- Do they initiate contact?
Someone who's genuinely interested shows it through their actions. Someone who's stringing you along reveals it through patterns.
One Thing That Works
Start tracking patterns, not just words.
- Response time trends
- Follow-through on promises
- Conversation depth
- Question engagement
- Next step clarity
If these aren't trending in a positive direction with a particular coach or school, that is the signal among the noise.
Reality Check
You can't control what coaches say. But you can control how you interpret it. And you can make decisions based on patterns, not promises.
One more thing: actions speaking louder than words goes both ways in the recruiting process. Coaches are also looking for patterns in how you interact with them!
Want my complete guide to measuring actions vs words? The Field Hockey Recruiting Playbook includes my comprehensive framework for reading between the lines in coach communications.
