College Recruiting Weekly Podcast

On this episode of the College Recruiting Weekly podcast, we sat down to talk with Kyle Ferguson, Athletic Director at Fresno Pacific University about his interesting doctoral dissertation project that goes right to the heart of everything we talk about here at Tudor Collegiate Strategies:

How this generation of college prospect makes his or her decision.

Kyle discusses why he wanted to do that research, what his findings were, and how it should change the approach college athletic departments - and their friends in admissions across campus - should adjust the way they communicate with recruits.

To reach Kyle to connect or ask follow-up questions you might have, email him at Kyle.Ferguson@fresno.edu

To contact Dan Tudor, email him at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

On this episode, join host Dan Tudor as he drives back to the airport after leaving a client meeting with a coaching staff who works one-on-one with the experts at Tudor Collegiate Strategies.

Dan talks about a topic that prompted a question from the coach, which centers around the idea of recruiting, messaging and telling the program's story to your entire prospect list right from the start - not just the top prospects, but everyone.

- Why full recruiting is imperative.
- How to execute it the right way.
- Going deep with your messages, when it comes to content and ideas.
- Going wide with your message by spreading it out over the entire recruiting process, start to finish.
- What happens when you don't.

This is an important core communication message for coaches in all sports, at all levels. Listen, take notes, and tell your fellow coaches on your campus to follow, subscribe and listen too!

To contact the host, email him at dan@dantudor.com.

And don't forget to leave us a five start review on your favorite podcast platform, Coach! Have a great week.

How can you take your prospects through the different levels of increasing interest as you spend time in the recruiting process?

That's a question that Dan Tudor addressed while he was on a campus working with an athletic department, and he shares what today's recruits tell his staff at Tudor Collegiate Strategies when it comes to what keeps them moving forward, and how they slowly build a 'feeling based' decision that grows into a 'logically justified' decision. And, why that transition has to be managed by the coaches recruiting the athlete.

Want to watch this presentation in addition to listening to it? Go here:

https://dantudor.substack.com/p/ascending-recruiting-levels-by-managing

Contact the host at dan@dantudor.com to bring him and his staff to campus, or have them work one-on-one with your program to help take a systemized approach to executing your recruiting communication plan.

Thanks for listening, Coach! Tell 50 other coaches on campus about the podcast, and make sure to rate and follow the show.

On this episode, we're joined by Heart of America Athletic Conference Commissioner, Nik Rule, opens up about a post on X that has gotten a lot of attention because of it's frank, unfiltered assessment of many college athletic departments around the country.

You can read the post here:
https://x.com/NikRule/status/2094613895335833706

So, what's the future for college athletics?

How will college athletic departments deal with the ever changing world of money, deficits and the cost to do business?

And, what does all of this have to do with building programs and recruiting athletes?

Dan Tudor leads this fascinating conversation in this episode.

Follow Nik Rule on X at @NikRule for more insights on the evolving future of college sports.

And, follow Dan Tudor on X at @dantudor.

Email us at dan @ dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, and make sure to follow and subscribe to the podcast, Coach!

Coaches work hard to get to the end of the process when the prospects they really want might be ready to commit.

But what's the right way to ask that big question? More importantly, what are some of the ways coaches are trying to get commitments that often don't work, and result in a loss of that prospect they've worked so hard for?

On today's episode, Dan Tudor talks about recent conversations he has had with coaches about this topic, what they tend to end up doing that hurts their chances of getting their prospect to say yes, and some proven ideas on what to do instead.

Questions about Tudor Collegiate Strategies, or have questions about a specific situation you'd want to talk to us about? Email us at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

On the season premier of the College Recruiting Weekly podcast, we start off this year's show - and your new year of building a program - with culture guru and former college coach Theresa "Tree" Beeckman.

Her new book, "Win Deep", talks about how coaches can help their teams develop solid, positive culture through using her Tree Roots Team Culture Model. It builds on decades of experience that Coach Beeckman has used in helping programs understand, build and maintain winning cultures, something every coach at every level aims to do each year.

For more information on the book, and how Tree can help you and your program, go here:

Website: https://winningdeep.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TreeRootsCoaching/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/treerootsculture/

Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@treerootsculture?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theresa-beeckman-54673231

To contact the host of the show, and to find out how Tudor Collegiate Strategies can help you recruit the athletes to build a winning culture around, email dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening!

You're done recruiting - maybe even earlier than you thought! - and now the big questions are...

- What do I do now?
- What's my message to this class of commits?
- How can I make sure they stay committed?
- What's the best way to integrate my team with this new group, and start to engrain them into our team culture?

Those were the questions one of our clients talked with us about, and we're going to let you listen in to hear our advice, and what we've seen work best around the country for the programs we help in their recruiting and roster building.

Want more info on the work we do with coaching staffs and athletic departments around the country, and how we can help you recruiting and build your program more effectively? Visit dantudor.com/total-recruiting-solution

To reach out and connect with Dan, email him at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

On today's episode, Dan Tudor talks one-on-one with Bill Carter, the founder of NIL Forum and a university professor who specializes in understanding NIL and it's role in college athletics.

In the conversation, Bill and Dan talk about:
- The impact on NIL on college recruiting
- What's gone wrong, and what's gone right
- How will NIL look in the years to come?
- Why NIL will continue to change recruiting

To follow Bill Carter, or to contact him, connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/billcarternil.

Questions for Dan Tudor? Follow him on LinkedIn, X, and other social media. Visit dantudor.com, and email him at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

On this episode, we talk to Bob Stocking, who is going to teach you something you probably didn't know you needed to know how to do:

Asking the right questions of your prospects, and making sure you answer them in a way that communicates what you want, and why they should ultimately cho0se your campus.

Bob is one of the lead trainers at Enliven Work, and internationally respected communication firm working with some of the top companies around the world. He teaches professionals the right way to ask questions, and the best way to answer them. This revolutionary training helps co-workers communicate more effectively, and also increases the connection that a staff can have with people they sell to and create professional relationships with.

This training applies directly to what you do on a daily basis with your fellow admissions professionals, as well as the prospects you talk to regularly.

To contact our guest, Bob Stocking, and to ask questions or inquire about how his firm can work with your admissions department, email him at bob@enlivenwork.com.

To see more information on the process they teach, visit the Precision Q+A page at https://enlivenwork.com/precisionqa/.

The company website is at https://enlivenwork.com/

To reach Tudor Collegiate Strategies and our host, Dan Tudor, email him at dan@dantudor.com. And, make sure to visit our admissions recruiting resource site at MondayMorningAdmissions.com

Thanks for listening!

Do coaches create their culture? Or, does their culture dictate the actions by the coach?

Every college coach and recruiter struggles with that idea, as well as the basic how-to aspect of defining, developing and fostering the right culture for his or her program. The culture topic is one of the most popular aspects of discussion around the idea of building a college program today, so we wanted to bring a coach on who has done a lot of thinking, and writing, on the topic.

Chad Gunnelson is the head track and field coach for Augustana College, a thriving Division III program in Illinois. Coach Gunnelson has build strong programs wherever he's gone, and today he'll share how developing the right culture is Priority #1 for him and his success, as it should be for you, too.

To learn more about Chad Gunnelson, connect with him on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-gunnelson-mm-cscs-a16850b/

To learn more about Tudor Collegiate Strategies, or to contact Dan Tudor, email us at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

Why does this episode an important one?

Because at some point in your college coaching career, you've either gone through a rebuild of your program, or you will in the future, or you are right now. Every coach - whether it's taking over a program you inherit, or face a rebuild of the one you've managed for years - goes through this process at some point.

So on today's show, we talk to a coach who volunteered to open up about the rebuild he's beginning for his women's volleyball program at Sweet Briar College in Virginia. Coach AJ Escobar shares his story, how he's going about the rebuilding process, and offers a glimpse into the attitude, strategy and tools he's approaching it all with. I think you're going to learn something today, and maybe even be able to steal a few ideas from a fellow coach for your own rebuild that needs to happen.

To contact and follow Coach Escobar and his team as they go through the rebuild process, email: him at ajescobar@sbc.edu, and make sure to follow his personal Instagram at aj5esco, as well as his team Instagram at sbc_vball.

To contact the show host, email him at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach! Make sure to subscribe, follow and like the show - and, tell at least 25 other people in your athletic department about it this week. Seriously, do it.

Ever wonder what's going on inside the mind of your typical student-athlete parent as their son or daughter goes through childhood?

Today's guest did, and conducted some fascinating research to unlock what those parents really think - even when it comes to the college recruiting process.

Chris Knoester is a Professor of Sociology at The Ohio State University, and shares his insights on today's show.

The article on his research that we're using as the basis for the conversation in this episode was recently published in the Journal of Sport and Social Issues, and can be found in both summary and detailed forms at the links below:

Journal article: https://doi.org/10.1177/01937235251392534

Open access version link (no paywall): https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/zpxqd_v1

OSU News study summary:
https://news.osu.edu/will-my-kid-be-a-pro-athlete-study-finds-what-parents-think/
NSASS website: https://nsass.org/

To contact Professor Knoester, email him at knoester.1@osu.edu.

Questions for the host, or want more information about Tudor Collegiate Strategies? Email dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, we hope today's information helps you understand the parent of your recruit better!

Modern college roster management is already a challenge for coaches. Now, add in new roster limitations and the constant comings and goings of athletes through the Transfer Portal, and it gets even more challenging.

But for some coaches, another wrinkle brings an additional layer of complexity:

What happens when you change your recruiting game and end up with better incoming athletes than you have on your team? What do you do when some of your freshmen are set to be better than some of your upperclassmen?

That's the topic today, as you listen in on a conversation with a Division I track and field coach who is doing so much right in the way that he's transformed his recruiting approach that he's going to have to make some tough roster decisions - and he wanted to get some advice on how to approach this little talked about aspect of recruiting and roster management in college athletics.

Questions for the show? Interested in making positive changes in your recruiting results? Email the host at dan@dantudor.com.'

Thanks for listening, Coach! Leave us a five star review, and make sure to follow and subscribe.

As a follow-up to our previous episode, we continue the theme of learning insights about this new generation of college prospects from a college Athletic Director.

Keith Mondillo is the longtime AD at Gwynedd Mercy University, and also started Keith Mondillo Athletic Recruiting Coaching which advises rising high school prospects who want to compete collegiately. So, obviously, he brings a unique perspective to the entire recruiting conversation!

To find out more about Keith's service, you can visit www.KeithMondillo.com.

Questions for Keith? Email him at mondillo.k@gmercyu.edu.

If you want to contact the host, email Dan Tudor at dan@dantudor.com.

You can also find out more about what Tudor Collegiate Strategies does for college coaches and the athletic departments they work for at dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening!

Want to know what your prospects are thinking, and what priorities they are focusing on when it comes to going through the recruiting process?

On today's show, we talk to the founders of Blueprint to Bluechip, Erin Sarles, and Thomas Roe. They work with athletes to bring them to a realistic outlook on what to expect when choosing a college program, how to create a good match, and assisting them in improving their overall self-confidence and physical readiness for college athletics.

Along the way, these two are getting an inside look into what really goes on behind the scenes within families, and in the mind of the student-athlete, as they go through being recruited by college coaches. And today, they share those insights with you so that you can be ready to connect with them more quickly and effectively.

For more information on the firm, visit their website at BluepringBluechip.com. Contact the founder, Erin Sarles, at erin@erinsarles.com.

For more information on Tudor Collegiate Strategies, email us at dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening!

Starting to think about making that next jump in your college coaching career?

You're going to love this episode! We've had the chance to talk to athletic directors and head coaches about hiring their next leader of a program, and their key assistant coaches. They've told us what really matters when it comes to standing out versus your competition for that job, and on today's show we'll share those insights with you.

The goal? Give you the edge when you go in for your interview. We'll focus on six areas of preparation that you'll want to be ready for, as well as six specific things to do in your job interview.

Make sure to subscribe and follow to get every episode of the show, and leave a five star review if you're liking it! We appreciate it.

Contact the host at dan@dantudor.com if you have questions, show ideas or just want to say hello.

In the middle of the recruiting process, coaches usually have that "sit up in bed in the middle of the night" type of moment when they realize they haven't done a good job of contacting and recruiting the influencers in their prospects' lives: Parents, coaches and other outside voices.

On this episode, we dig deep into the art and the science of figuring out who your prospect is listening to, and how to connect and communicate with those important people so you can influence those influencers in a positive way.

Want more details on this topic, and others? We have free articles, training videos and podcasts at dantudor.com.

Do you have questions about how Tudor Collegiate Strategies can work with your program and help you bring the results you need for your program? Email dan@dantudor.com.

Thanks for listening, Coach!

On this episode, we talk about an important part of the stage as you begin the recruiting process.

It's important to connect with your prospect first rather than jumping in with all of your stats, facts and selling points when it comes to your college and your program.

Why? The feeling they have about you at first is way more important than the first facts they get told about.

We talk about it today - and if you want to watch it, go here:

https://dantudor.substack.com/p/recruitings-early-stage-priority

Get in touch with us at dan@dantudor.com!

Thanks for listening, and make sure to tell other coaches in your department about the show - and leave us a five star review. Leave a six star review if you can hack into the podcast platform and do that, if you know how.

Are you a coach looking to build a successful program, while avoiding the mistakes that usually go along with that effort?

Or, are you an Athletic Director who has the opportunity to grow a department and take it to new levels of competition and success?

No matter which category you fall into, today's guest offers advice on doing it the right way. Lance Von Vogt is the retiring former men's basketball coach and outgoing Athletic Director at Jessup University in California, and he has accumulated some unique insights and experiences in taking his program and department from the infancy stages of being a new program, up through several different division level changes and milestones over the past two decades. Today, he shares his advice for college coaches and athletic directors who want to follow that same successful path in building a program from the ground up.

The last segment of the interview can be found at Tudor University (where you can also watch the entire interview, if that's your preference). Go here for that bonus content:

https://tudoruniversity.thinkific.com/

To contact the host, email us at dan@dantudor.com.

And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review, plus subscribe and follow the show.

It's our Season 11 premier of the College Recruiting Weekly podcast, and we have a great conversation you're going to learn a lot from today.

As much as we talk about your prospects telling you 'no' at some point in the recruiting process, we should also bring up the fact that there are many, many times when you as the college coach need to tactfully, ethically and honestly tell one of your prospects 'no' as you end your recruiting conversation with them.

How do you do it? When do you do it? And what if the prospect raises their game and gets your attention again, and you want to renew the recruiting conversation?

Listen in to a conversation with a coach who wants to figure out how to trim down her recruiting list and stop the process with athletes who just aren't up to par for her program. You're going to learn a lot, and you'll be able to take the lessons we go over here and apply them to your own recruiting situations.

Questions? Contact us at dan@dantudor.com.

Make sure to rate and review the show, and let other coaches in your department know about the College Recruiting Weekly Podcast!