I am thinking about making a video to send to college coaches and I have a few questions hopefully some people can answer.

What should you show on the video? I was thinking hitting in BP, taking some grounders, I am also a catcher so I'd tape a bullpen session, and then I'd end it with me running. (Also at what angle should I video tape each?)

What should I do with running? Home to 1st? Home to second? Sixty?

What should I include in addition to the video? Stats, transcripts, a hand written letter to the coach, contact information?

Will a division 1 school give out a scholarship by just seeing a player on video?

Thanks in adavance for the responses and any other tips you have would be great as well. Thanks!

What we did was to post a video on YouTube. Then tell the coaches about it and supply a link. That way, if they were interested, they could easily access it. We also put together a web page with the piles of details. Again we referenced the big stuff in the letter and refered them to the web page for the small stuff

I've been told, keep it short with a few edit down shots of the skills needed to play the position the player is interested in. After all, you are trying to generate interest. Most coaches will not recruit from anything you send them. They will either want a first hand recommendation or to see the kid for themselves.

quote:

Will a division 1 school give out a scholarship by just seeing a player on video?

It is possible (ask Bobbleheaddoll) but unlikely imho since most coaches want to see you in person. The video could likely get you an invite to be seen however. obrady gives good advice.

Suggest sending a pm to CPLZ whose son was recruited by D1's and (if I recall correctly) at least some of the attendant interest was generated from a personal website and video. I would never just rely on a mailing campaign however. You need to attend some showcases where it is guaranteed that college coaches will be in attendance. That said... here are some suggestions for your video...

For hitters, the side view while taking bp is what is mostly provided. If you have some footage of you hitting off a nationally ranked pitcher that might be cool to include. Unless your 60 time is really good, that usually is not that big of a deal for catchers. If you can embed a 60 time reading in the video while you are running that would be cool. For a catcher, pop time is very important. Perhaps you can embed pop time readings while catching the ball and throwing down to second. Another way to show a time would be to have someone in the frame taking a measurement and then focusing in on the stopwatch after the measurement is made.

We were advised to keep the whole thing under 3 minutes. Don't try to make it too flashy, loud music, etc, and if you are going to put times on there, put them on accurately - don't fudge and make a 2.09 pop time a 1.8 pop time! (I have seen it!)Simple is best. Good luck.

I agree with most everything said here. What is rare fo ra catcher is to be a good defensive catcher and have a great bat. Probably one of the hardest things to find. If you are good at both show that. Base running is important aswell.
I think it is harder for a position player to show his stuff on a video. We didn't use any HS footage but only high level elite footage and elite senior ball witch was full of current and ex college players and ex pros. It is very impotant to play at the highest level you can find and record some of that.
We chose DVD because it allowed hours of clips and the coaches often took the DVD home to watch because they were too busy on campus. With DVD you can also put6 the resume on it as well. Internet is also very7 good but the DVD was a physical reminder for the coach to take a look. I always follower up to see if the coach had had a chance to view at least one of the videos.

I made a video for my daughter for softball (son is soph to be in high school). It was less than three minutes long. It was three reps swinging the bat, three reps in the field (routine play, going right, going left), two reps throwing to third and home, running from home to first and first to third with times printed on the screen. There was no music. None of it was game highlights except the last sequence was a great slide by, reach back play at the plate where she jumped up pumping her fist. The video was dubbed over with a short talk on why she wanted to attend the college and play in the program. At the end her schedule was posted.

I can't add much to what has already been said other than your video should only be a part of the "exposure package" you use to promote yourself. I say this because you asked if a D-1 would give you a scholarship based on JUST on seeing the video. If you think you can get a scholarship by just producing and sending a video you could end up being very disappointed with the outcome. Best of luck.
Fungo