National scout makes McMinnville his base
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But these days, the situation is much more complicated.
More and more high school students are choosing to attend college — including those who play athletics. And the number of scholarships for those athletes has remained unchanged, and in many instances, it has dwindled.
So for kids in small towns like McMinnville, being noticed by a college recruiter could rely on just two factors — being very, very good at their sport, or being very, very lucky.
But now, there is another option.
The National Scouting Report, an organization dedicated for the past 25 years to promoting qualified high school athletes to collegiate coaches, has established a regional scout in McMinnville, and is offering its services to local athletes and their families.
Andy Parton began scouting local sports teams this spring, after being brought in to cover this region by NSR director R. David Sherrod, whose organization has placed approximately 10,000 students in colleges since its inception, including nearly 400 who signed letters-of-intent from January to March of this year alone.
In an interview with the Standard last week, Sherrod offered two main reasons for NSR establishing itself in the southern Middle Tennessee area.
“One reason is, because we’d never been here,” Sherrod said, “and the second reason is because I prefer to work smaller towns like McMinnville, because nobody else does.
“Areas like this, no one is going to come out and watch these kids play, unless they’ve got an undefeated team, or they’re playing for a state championship. McMinnville and Warren County has some good athletic kids, and they can get scholarships — but not if nobody sees them. So we’re here to try and open that door, and give those kids an opportunity.”
Endorsed by college coaches from around the nation, the NSR offers a variety of services to help promote young athletes to universities, ranging from personal brochures and video promotion to personalized Internet web pages complete with statistics, biographical information, and even streaming video of athletes in action.
But before approaching an athlete’s family to offer their service, NSR scouts first determine if there are the athletic, academic and ethical makings of a quality college player.
“Let’s say I see your son play, and he does really well,” Sherrod explained. “The first thing I’ll do is approach his coach, and find out about his abilities. I want to know if I saw him on his absolute best day, or on a normal or even less-than-normal day.
“But the biggest thing I want to know from his coach is what kind of worker a player is on the field, and in the classroom. I want to know what kind of attitude he has, and what kind of leader he is.”
After meeting with a player’s coach, NSR then contacts that player’s parents, to discuss their son or daughter’s future athletic plans.
“We want to make sure they understand how the NCAA’s rules apply to their child, and I even make sure they get a copy of the NCAA guidebook for collegiate athletes, so they can be familiar with all of their rules,” Sherrod said. “Those are the kinds of things they need to know more than anything else.
“From that point, the parents have the option of either waiting for their athlete to be discovered by someone else, or we can help with our service.”
Sherrod — a 20-year school teacher before beginning his work with NSR — noted that the four most popular questions his organization receives from college coaches are regarding players’ attitude, their grades, their background, and their graduation date.
“Most of the time, they don’t ask us about their athletic ability right away,” he said. “If we’re in their office talking to them about a kid, they know the kid can play.”
While NSR’s services have been around since 1980, Sherrod said many parents are still skeptical when approached by his organization’s scouts.
“It’s a shame, but there are people who have been swindled by groups claiming to offer scouting services in the past,” he said. “They’ve been told for a certain amount of money, they can get their child posted on the Internet, and that’s all they end up getting — a name on a list on the Internet. So that’s the kind of thing we have to overcome, when we convince them we offer a legitimate service.
“We also have to overcome the perception of the recruiting process some people have, beginning with the myth that colleges don’t look at a kid until their senior year. That’s not true anymore.
“I’ve also had conversations with parents who have said, ‘if my kid is good enough to play in college, a coach will find them.’ And these days, that’s not always the case.
“There are 24,000 high schools in the United States with athletic programs, where in 1980 when we started this service there were only about 11,000. And with limited recruiting time due to NCAA rules, coaches can only go so far and see so many kids. That’s where we come in.”
While currently establishing their organization with local and area high schools, Parton said the NSR plans to continue building its relationship with more athletes and teams, including offering a free recruiting seminar for athletes and their parents sometime in the near future.
For more information on NSR and its services, log on to their website at www.nsr-inc.com.