is it the key to success?  I have no how idea how to find a drop down........

are they easy to get?

thanks

1. Call the player
2. If player responds that you are a backup option then he can be pulled down. If he doesn't respond at all then he can't be pulled down.
3. Send scouting evals to pull him down (10 is what I have used, sometimes less)
4. Sign player

Posted by imthecrew on 4/17/2012 1:05:00 PM (view original):
is it the key to success?  I have no how idea how to find a drop down........

are they easy to get?

thanks

Yes.  The key to success at D2/D3 for sure.  The above method is for pull-downs which is different than a drop down.  Pull downs use scouting trips to speed up step #3.   This is expensive and a little risky if a D2 school likes him.

Drop Down for D3
1)  Call player that is on your D2 search
2)  If he responds with a message with the word 'backup' you have a shot at him.
3)  Wait....wait....wait....eventually the player will show up on your D3 search screen, maybe around signings, or 12 hours after.
4) recruit player normally.

Dropdowns - guys who you call at the beginning of recruiting and tell you that you are a back up - once they drop down, which you will know when they do because they will send you a message, are very easy to get. You can at that point recruit them as you would recruit guys who started on your DIII list. If you don't want to wait for them to drop and want to pull them down instead, go with the method above. Both have their own risks, the pull down method's risks are potentially worse because it could end up being money thrown down the drain, but the rewards are worth it because, yes, they are the key to success for the most part. That is not to say only recruit drop downs/pull downs. You can find many great players that start on your DIII screen, but in general, guys from a higher division have better starting ratings, and all things being equal, you'd rather sign a guy with 45 high ATH than 30 high ATH. Gain experience trying it out and figure out what balance of pull downs, drop downs, and neither works best for you - of course, number of open scholarships, money in your budget, number of strong recruits are available to you, good human coached schools in your area etc etc are all factors to consider. With experience, you'll learn to have a pretty good idea who will give you a back-up message, who is worth pulling down, and about when certain guys will drop down.

thanks for the responses.... say you had 4 schollys at a D3 level how many would you use on drop/pull downs?

I never mind taking a walk-on, but you definitely need to budget the money to make sure you are going to sign some good players. A good rule of thumb is to have 50% of your budget available after signings begin. There are tons of quality players out there that aren't recruited that can contribute to your team. 

I think that depends on how many guys you are sending calls to. If you are sending out a lot, call the players. Many of them will reject the calls and save you the $10. You can use all those $10 you saved and use to it call the coach for players you are on the bubble about that gave you the backup message, this way only potentially finding out an O a D or both for players you actually have a chance at recruiting, and spend less money overall. I know we are talking in tens here, but it could make a big difference if you get stuck at the end of recruiting.

And as for what I would do in the 4 ship situation... it depends. There is no one all cases answer. I could sitemail with you on details if you want, but as in all cases = it depends. imho

Biggest piece of advice I've gotten regarding recruiting drop-downs is... BE PATIENT!

If you send enough calls out and get enough back-up messages, guys will drop down to you, and they will continue to drop down to you even on the final day of recruiting. Don't bust your nut early, you might regret getting a drop-down on the last day of signings when you have no cash left

I haven't ever had a single drop down for my division three teams in any season.  For my Div II team, I had four in a single season.  Any chance the drop down thing isn't as prevalent at DIV III?  When I first started, I kept waiting for them after reading all the posts and that killed recruiting.  Is everyone else getting drop downs at DIV III?

Posted by tbird9423 on 4/18/2012 9:49:00 PM (view original):
I haven't ever had a single drop down for my division three teams in any season.  For my Div II team, I had four in a single season.  Any chance the drop down thing isn't as prevalent at DIV III?  When I first started, I kept waiting for them after reading all the posts and that killed recruiting.  Is everyone else getting drop downs at DIV III?

I would guess at least 75 percent of my signings between my three D3 teams are dropdowns. I see no difference grabbing drop-downs there than I do with my D2 program. 

In the 6 seasons I have been at Nebraska Wesleyan (D3) I have had I think 2 pull downs and everyone else has been a drop down. They are good players too, this year I am currently in the final four and have been in the NT each of the last five seasons.

Posted by tbird9423 on 4/18/2012 9:49:00 PM (view original):
I haven't ever had a single drop down for my division three teams in any season.  For my Div II team, I had four in a single season.  Any chance the drop down thing isn't as prevalent at DIV III?  When I first started, I kept waiting for them after reading all the posts and that killed recruiting.  Is everyone else getting drop downs at DIV III?

I don't think there's any difference in dropdown logic between D2 and D3.  I could be wrong.  I see similar numbers at both levels myself.

The trick to dropdowns is making enough phone calls to get your name out there to potential drops before they actually drop.  No phone calls means your chances of getting an email from one are drastically reduced.   The really critical phone calls for D3 actually occur on day 3, the last day before signings begin.  That's when you can more efficiently target players who actually might be available for recruiting, rather than shotgunning 50 guys who are going to sign with a D2 school.

I've also found that when a player drops, chances are he's also dropping to other schools.  Just because you got the email doesn't mean he's yours for the asking.

At D3 I try to aim for a healthy combination of pulldowns and dropdowns, but unfortunately I have the patience of a hyperactive child on a sugar high.  That's why I see my HD subscription as an exercise in character building :)

Thanks for the posts guys-- I will say that many of the guys I have been emailing at DIV 2 (at least 75%) are getting signed by DIV II schools or DIV III schools with better prestige or closer.  I will try to wait until day three this next time around and see if that will help.  I was shocked when my DIV II team kept getting emails of the drop downs as I was thinking, oh, this is how it is supposed to work. 
   One other quick question-- Do the recruits appear in roughly the same geographical areas or do those somewhat rotate?  I am finding that the guys under 100 miles never want to come to my team and have yet to have a real "stud" show up under 50 miles from my school.  Thanks for the help