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College coaches talk about what makes a good high school recruit

Coaches at the next level say they heavily value a student-athlete's character, test scores and game film.

TYLER, Texas — Many high school athletes throughout East Texas may want to play at the college level.

College coaches say if that is the goal, a student-athlete needs a lot more than a good highlight reel.

Mike Reed and Louis Wilson coach softball and men’s basketball respectively at UT Tyler. They say the first thing they look at is an athlete's tape.

"I can tell if you just sent me film and you had a great day, and you might not be that good of a player," Wilson said. "But I can also tell if you've had a tough day, but that you have other skills that I can clearly see would translate into in terms of you being really effective at this level."

Reed says to avoid the fancy stuff at the beginning of a tape. He wants to see the action.

“If there's a laser show or music video in the front part of that [highlight tape], we're going to go straight to the hitting piece of that and evaluate their hitting," Reed said.

Putting the best highlights first is a key part of a highlight reel as well. Reed says he only watches about a minute, if that.

"As much as you can, put your strengths at the front of that video," Reed said.

Coaches at the next level know how to spot a baller, but what they really want to know is what else a student athlete brings to the table.

"Are they of good character? Are they good people?" Wilson said. "You do your research on who they are as people before you get into what they are as athletes."

As for scholarships, a large misconception is that every student-athlete with a scholarship gets a "full-ride," meaning all expenses are paid.

"Tuition fees, room and board in books, that's what we're allowed to cover in a full scholarship," Reed explained. "The [NCAA] Division II model, I think one of the biggest misnomers out there in recruiting is that everyone's on a full ride."

Many athletes only get partial athletic scholarships, but colleges can stack them with academic scholarships. So if a student-athlete keeps their grades up, the opportunities multiply.

"If they get some academic money that can stack with that, maybe we can get them their tuition, fees, housing, and books covered [completely]," Reed said. 

In the end, these coaches want good citizens on their rosters.

"Talent is never enough," Wilson said. "Obviously, talent is really important. But talents never enough. And character drives that talent for sure."

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