You’re packed, you’re early, and you have four fields to find. A showcase weekend puts your family in shared spaces with other families, other teams and, sometimes, coaches. You can’t know who’s around. So the rule of showcase weekend etiquette is easy: act the way you’d want your athlete to be remembered.
Most of this has nothing to do with recruiting. It’s what a good teammate’s family does anyway.
On the plane or at the airport
- Be patient at the gate and kind to the people working it. Many coaches from your area will be traveling too and may be watching.
- Keep team chat private. Don’t talk about other players, coaches or teams where strangers can hear. College coaches work hard to build a good team culture and want players who will add to it.
- Wear your club gear with pride, and expect to be noticed.
At the hotel
- Lobby, elevator and breakfast room count. Keep your voice down, clean up your table and tip well.
- Keep the team’s conversations in the team’s rooms. Hotels are full of other teams and other families.
- If a coach is in the lobby, a friendly nod is plenty. Let your athlete be the one to follow up (talking to a coach at the game).
On the sideline
- Cheer for your team, not against the other. Never yell at the referee.
- Be kind to the other team’s parents. Everyone is nervous.
- Don’t coach from the fence. Your athlete should be listening to one voice and showing that she knows the game. She also can’t play fast if she is reacting to your coaching.
- Take your volunteer responsibilities seriously. If it’s your half to watch for coaches, enjoy the other half (four parents, two per half, one list).
On social media
Post the team photo, not the complaint. Don’t tag coaches or schools in a way that puts your athlete on the spot, and don’t write about a referee, a teammate or another family where anyone can read it. If you wouldn’t say it with the team around you, don’t post it.
When things go badly
A loss, a bad call, an injury or a short bench will happen at some point in the weekend. How your family handles it is the part people remember. Take a breath, say something kind, and let your athlete lead the conversation in the car. Save the postmortem for after dinner, or for next week.
What your athlete should see you do
She’s watching you, too. If she sees you thank the volunteer, wave to the other team’s parents and stay calm after a loss, that’s a model worth more than any email. If she sees you chase a coach to the parking lot, that’s the model too. Pick the first one.
Why showcase weekend etiquette matters
Coaches are people. They notice how a family treats the people around them. They’d rather recruit a player whose family is a good fit for the program. It’s one small thing you control, and it costs nothing.
What to do with the rest of the weekend
Once the games are done, the work that matters is hers: a short follow-up email she writes herself, and the first 48 hours after a showcase shows how to sort the list.
What coaches may say or do at a showcase depends on the level and the date. For the rules, check the NCAA’s official recruiting page.
One more thing off your plate. Get the free CoachWatch Android beta, and let the team’s volunteers handle the sideline.
Behave well, play hard, let your athlete write her own emails. That’s the whole job. I’mCommitted.ai, the recruiting app we’re building, handles the rest.