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Scots' Coaches Adjust to Pandemic Recruiting

by Dan Nolan

Monmouth, IL (05/21/2020) — Monmouth College students have completed their spring semester through online classes, many staff members have worked from home for more than two months, and Fighting Scots' coaches have adjusted their recruiting practices. It's all part of rolling with the punches thrown by a pandemic.

Spring and early summer are commonly considered a critical time in the world of NCAA Division III recruiting - a time when coaches lock in their recruits for the coming academic year. COVID-19 threw the recruiting routine a curve ball, but for Monmouth's coaches, it's business as usual … sort of.

"It's still very similar in many ways," said water polo coach Peter Ollis. 'We do lots of texting and calling with athletes and coaches."

That's not to say it's been a "normal" recruiting cycle. On-campus visits and in-person contact hasn't happened for more than two months. That's motivated the coaches - and the entire campus - to innovate with technology.

"The in-person and in-office meetings have been replaced with virtual meetings," explained volleyball coach Emily Thebeau. "I share all the information with the recruits and their parents that I normally would, but I really do miss the in-person meetings."

Cross country coach Jon Welty, who's also a track assistant coach in the spring, has put a positive spin on the cancellation of the spring season, turning lemons into lemonade.

"This has allowed me a lot more time than normal to focus on recruiting," reported Welty of the lack of spring competition. "Normally during the spring, we are in the heat of our (track) season and focusing on performances, so the change to having an 'off season' to work on recruiting has actually been helpful."

Helpful, too, has been Monmouth's ability to offer potential students a virtual tour of campus and the athletic facilities.

"The resources we have for our virtual tour options are phenomenal," said Welty. "I think they show the majority of campus and can give students a taste of what Monmouth is like without being here. I really appreciate what our admissions staff and members of our athletic staff did to put those together as a resource for our school."

Men's lacrosse coach Chris Klaiber touts Monmouth's tradition and commitment to academics when he's virtually meeting with his next recruiting class.

"Monmouth has a long tradition and great reputation which we recruit to," he said. "Being physically unable to come to campus, see our facilities, meet the great people here and interact with us in person hurts, but we're doing our best to inform recruits about all those things virtually. Videos have helped us show off our facilities and we've tried more virtual meetings to help get the feel of Monmouth without actually coming to see us."

Likewise, the coaches will not have the advantage of seeing their potential recruits in person at the usual summer showcase events. That's not a problem for sports such as volleyball, but it's a different story for other sports.

"Most interested recruits, for volleyball, had film done from their fall season and beginning of club season, so that is what they are sharing right now," said Thebeau. "The biggest obstacle is not being able to see recruits play in person. I love watching the live skill and personality of an individual."

Klaiber is still holding out hope for some sort of summer league competition.

"The status of summer showcases and lacrosse tournaments are still unclear," he reported. "We will find a way to evaluate top prospects and future Fighting Scots whether that's digitally or in person this summer. We ask our team to adapt and handle different circumstances all the time. Our coaching staff will be no different in these times and we'll find a way to get the job done."

The uncertainty of college sports returning as early as this fall has recruits and their families asking a new set of questions outside of classroom and athletic demands, dorms and meal plans.

"Will there be sports?" and "Should we commit if we don't know what the future of college athletics is next year?" are just two of the new questions recruits and their parents have this year.

Ollis understands the validity of those questions when visiting with his recruits and uses in his answer the Division III philosophy of student first, athlete second.

"Luckily, working at a school like Monmouth we are offering a great education in addition to the opportunity for athletic success," he explained. "As unclear as the immediate future in athletics might be, I personally can feel comfortable recruiting these athletes knowing that no matter what happens we are still offering a great education at Monmouth."

Klaiber has fielded similar questions from his lacrosse recruits.

"Recruits and their parents are the most concerned about the future and what that looks like for colleges in general," he said. 'Monmouth has been educating students for 167 years through multiple wars, public health scares and difficult times in American history. The college has shown that it will do the right thing for students. We've done it time and time again in our long history and the current situation will be no different. While we can't promise exactly what we will do given the quickly changing circumstances, our college's track record makes me confident we will handle it well as recruits and their families look to join our family."

The coaches agree that the lack of in-person contact has been their biggest obstacle, but they're finding ways to adapt and adjust. Only time will tell if those efforts will bear fruit. Thebeau offers advice to all recruits, regardless of sport.

"Don't be afraid to reach out at this time," she said. "I am very willing to answer any questions and would love to get know a recruit's interest."

Perhaps retiring softball coach John Goddard summed up the spring and summer best when he said, "Recruiting will be one of the areas that I will miss most. Recruiting can be frustrating, but it is the most rewarding aspects of college coaching. The pandemic just made the process a bit more challenging."

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