In looking over the suggestions submitted so far, there seem to be four main headings.
Coaching
Recruiting
Athlete Retention
Publicity
I will now include sub topics that relate to each one of the four main topics.
Coaching>Staffing levels
Recruiting>Facilities>Fundraising
Athlete Retention>Tuition>Playing Time
Publicity>Initiating a "Coaches call" to make them more accessible to the media
Next Question: What specifically can be done to address the following at schools in the USA South:
Fund Raising
Recruiting
For me some ideas that come to mind are:
Fundraising- Do not re invent the wheel- Solicit ideas from schools that have successful fund raising programs.
Generate a conference panel made up of two school representatives and hammer out a conference direction
Recruiting-Game Day Visits for prospective athletes.(High School athletes) are made aware of this program, and have to submit a "Game Day Visit" form. They get free admission to the game, are allowed to wear a team jersey during the game, and are granted sideline access during the game. There would have to be a limit of probably 8-10 players per game. Fewer in some sports.
Camps for specific sports. Bring in big names for a one or two day session. Famous Alumni may do this as a way to give back to the school. There are plenty of camps already out there that ideas can be drawn from.
These are just 3 ideas. There are all kinds of ways to impact recruiting and fund raising. I am now hoping to get specific ideas from you. There are no wrong answers. Brainstorm!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
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Like the 2 member council idea, think if you can get the conference moving in one dirrection as a whole it serves a better purpose than individualy. Maybe a bit far fetched but might even be able to use this alliance to help reduce the cost of upgrading facilities. Two turf fields should be cheaper than one.
ReplyDeleteWhat about some local tv coverage? You see high school games all the time on the local channels. Why couldnt you get a game or two televised, add some exposure to the schools.
Like the camp idea but how about a conference camp. all schools represented, few days of work outs then a meet and greet with coaches, current team member or some of the more notable past members. Invite some HS coaches, build up the contact list so to speak plus promote the conference as a whole.
Game day visits are good but dont think they can be on field, might be wrong but seems like thier is a NCAA rule on that. But you can sure put on a nice dog and pony show for them when they visit.
What about large conference sponsers? Just an example but we are in the south, someone like NASCAR, get them to throw a big chunk of change at the conference as a whole, split it between member schools and all schools fly thier colors at thier stadiums? Might be a bad example but you get the drift.
Let me think some more....
I am astonished at the caliber of suggestions that have come in. These are all very good suggestions. Keep 'em coming!
ReplyDeleteI love the camp idea in helping with recruiting but the problem that I see is that the most popular ones are 7-on-7 camps but a running team like Ferrum wouldn't be the best place for a 7-on-7 camp. I'm pretty sure that all Ferrum games are replayed on Franklin County tv. How wide of tv replays do people want? Tv stations from Roanoke, Lynchburg, and greater areas showing late night Ferrum replays?
ReplyDeleteGetting athletes to visit during the season can be so difficult. The ones that deserve the dog and pony show are holding out hope that they can get a D-1 offer. The weekends that they aren't selling themselves to D-1 coaches they should be at home making sure they're eligible for college. My question is why UVA-Wise gets so many great athletes from this area that don't give us a chance. I know a bunch of Single-A Virginia athletes who go to Wise and would be helpful at Ferrum. Does FC just not recruit that type of athlete? Sorry, I got away from the conference in general and started focusing on Ferrum.
I really do think having more camps would help. I know Averett has them every summer and gets some kids from all over the county to come. A few years back Averett hosted a combine with Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and that gave locals a chance to get some exposure but it also put athletes in all of Averett's facilities. Running in their gym. Lifting in their weight room. Coaches from all over were there and it was great for the Pittsylvania County athletes but even better for Averett University. Combines for high school athletes hosted by USA South schools and combines for all USA South athletes trying to continue playing would both be good.
As for camps, I was looking for this as a possible recruiting tool for conference schools. I like the conference camp idea, and think it would probably be something that no one else is doing. Logistics may be an issue, but all is workable.
ReplyDeleteThis could also precede conference schools hosting their own camps.
Combines for HS athletes are an excellent idea, and this could easily be set up This is being done by private organizations at high schools right now. Why could'nt the conference schools offer combines in their region?
All of these are good ideas! Thanks for the participation!