Athletic Recruiting · Athletic Scholarship Corporation

How Social Media Impacts College Athletic Recruiting

·40 min·3 clips

AJ Hodel reveals how social media misuse is derailing college athletic recruiting for students.

This episode of the Athletic Recruiting show examines the risks social media poses for high school athletes seeking college scholarships. Host AJ Hodel, founder of the Athletic Scholarship Corporation, is joined by former collegiate athletes Brandon Elliott and Nick Williams. The guests co-founded the SMART program to educate families on navigating social media's pitfalls in recruiting. Brandon Elliott, a nurse and former Mount St. Joseph football player, frames social media as a powerful tool many young athletes misuse. Nick Williams, a former University of Cincinnati football player, shares his personal experience of being recruited before the social media era. The conversation details how coaches now routinely review an athlete's public social media profiles. Specific negative posts involving drugs, alcohol, or offensive language can immediately eliminate a recruit from consideration. The guests emphasize that a single inappropriate tweet or image can override years of athletic achievement. They argue many families are unaware of how permanently and publicly social media documents behavior. The SMART program aims to teach athletes to manage their online presence proactively. A key insight is that athletes should operate as if every college coach is silently observing their social accounts. The guests compare giving a teenager unrestricted social media access to letting them drive a Ferrari without training. They note that a clean social media profile is now a de facto requirement for serious recruits. An interesting claim is that social media scrutiny applies equally to high-profile and lesser-known athletes. The discussion suggests a recruit's digital footprint can sometimes outweigh character references from coaches. A memorable point is that social media missteps can not only cost scholarships but also future professional opportunities. The tone is advisory and cautionary, drawing heavily from the hosts' personal experiences in sports. The style is a straightforward, conversational interview focused on practical warnings. This episode is essential for high school athletes and their parents who are actively navigating the recruiting process. Listeners seeking purely tactical athletic training advice might find the content less directly applicable.

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