Getting noticed

By JAMES BURKY

James.Burky@gjsentinel.com

High school athletes anywhere face an uphill battle to get noticed by college coaches. Those on the Western Slope and in rural areas may face an even tougher time.

Student-athletes have showcases, camps, travel teams, social media and online services at their disposal. But there’s no clear path for athletes to be noticed. What works for one may not work for another.

Fruita Monument basketball players Daniel Thomason and Liv Campbell are two local athletes who have broken through and inked their letters of intent with MSU Denver and Colorado School of Mines, respectively.

For both, travel/club basketball was key to getting noticed.

“We tried out some recruiting services but those didn’t really play a big role. It was more just camps and playing AAU ball. My coach for my AAU team has a lot of connections and he really helped me get noticed,” said Thomason, referring to the Amateur Athletic Union. “... AAU tournaments, there’s a lot better competition and a lot better players.”

Not all high school recruiting is created equal. Sports such as swimming, cross country and track and field are objective because times are times, marks are marks and quality of competition isn’t at play.

Sports such as basketball and football can be subjective and hinge on the quality of competition. Scoring 12 points in an AAU tournament against basketball- first athletes may look better to coaches than scoring 20 in a high school game. That’s not to say the latter doesn’t have value, but it doesn’t carry the same weight.

“I think it’s definitely a lot harder out here because with Denver, there’s tons of colleges there so there’s a lot more exposure to all that,” Thomason said. “But being over here on the Western Slope, it’s definitely harder. Colorado in general isn’t looked at as a basketball state, much less the Western Slope. It was definitely hard, that’s why club ball and AAU was really crucial and important for my recruiting.”

And unless a school is already on the Western Slope, it may be difficult for coaches to make the time to get out here, Campbell said.

Campbell leaned on social media to promote herself by posting highlights from high school and club games. Her father, Jeremy, also frequently posted her highlights on social media.

The travel/club basketball circuit runs in the offseason. Campbell and Thomason spent a good chunk of their summers traveling to and from the Front Range, or around the U.S. with their club/ AAU teams before committing.

“It always felt worth it to me just because of how much I love basketball,” Campbell said. “The goals I wanted to achieve, I knew it was the right path for me.”

In both of their cases, Thomason and Campbell said perseverance was key.

”Show what you can, try to get on a more competitive team, get your name out there even if you’re not traveling to play for a team,” Campbell advised.

“Get your name out there, contact coaches, don’t be afraid to repeat emails or send out your highlights. If they can’t see you in person, they gotta see you somehow. Keep at it, don’t get discouraged if you don’t get messages back, that’ll happen. Try to find the right fit for you. Don’t give up on it.”

A COACH’S PERSPECTIVE

Some athletes will pay recruiting services and scouting services to review their tape and send it to college coaches. How effective these services are depends on who you ask but some coaches maintain that they

See NOTICED, page 11A ➤

Fruita Monument’s Daniel Thomason, left, lays the ball in during the Wildcats’ 51-33 win over Grand Junction on Feb. 7. Thomason is committed to play basketball for MSU Denver and said that playing travel and club basketball helped him get noticed by college coaches.

Photos by LARRY ROBINSON/ The Daily Sentinel

Fruita Monument’s Liv Campbell, right, swipes at a ball to try to add to her many steals during a game against Grand Junction in this Jan. 19, 2024 file photo. Campbell is committed to play basketball for Colorado School of Mines and said that playing travel and club basketball helped her get noticed by college coaches.

Fruita Monument’s Liv Campbell, left, drives to the basket and draw a foul ina game earlier this season. Campbell said that perseverance is a key trait to have during the college recruiting process.

LARRY ROBINSON/ The Daily Sentinel

Fruita Monument’s Daniel Thomason, left, grabs a rebound from Grand Junction’s Koen Wright on Jan. 17. Thomason is signed to played basketball at MSU Denver and said getting noticed by college coaches is harder on the Western Slope than in Denver.

LARRY ROBINSON/ The Daily Sentinel

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don’t play a big role in college recruiting and others call them money-making schemes.

That’s not to say those will be entirely disregarded. But coaches are busy, especially those at smaller schools. Where Power 4 schools have entire departments dedicated to scouting, smaller division schools have coaches juggling scouting, recruiting, game-planning, you name it.

“It all depends on when you get that email. Is it the right time?” said Neil Linehart, the wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator for the Colorado Mesa football team. “Because there’s definitely times when you have the ability to look at it and there’s other times that it kind of gets passed over and your emails continue to build, unfortunately. It’s all about timing there.”

Like basketball, camps are key for football recruits to land on a coach’s radar.

Linehart, who also was the head coach for Division II William Jewell (Missouri), said being judicious with which camp you go to is also important. A football player from a Class 2A school in Colorado may perform better at a DII camp than if they’re being outshined by ranked athletes at CU Boulder’s camp. “It’s a little bit of a humbling experience for guys to say ‘OK, where am I really at?’ and that’s a little on the coaches, too, (to say), ‘Hey, I project you at being a Division II guy so you should look at those camps,’” Linehart explained. “I think that’s the greatest way to be seen. People host mega camps, and we did at Jewell, but you’re shuffling 200-300 guys through in a matter of hours. Yeah, some guys might stand out but those are the guys that are Division I. It’s being able to figure out potentially where you are as an athlete and how do (you) get in front of those specific coaches and go to those camps.”