Cashew, attention points are how you unlock recruitable actions for scouted players. the more points you put in, the faster that action unlocks. Higher division players typically typically take longer to unlocks their actions.
you can't recruit a player until you've discovered him through scouting. additional scouting is used to learn more about the player. there are 4 levels of scouting.
players projected at a division above yours cannot be signed until the second period. players projected at your level can be signed in the first period. preferences determine when a player is willing to sign and determine multipliers for your attention points (aps are not on a 1-1 scale of there is a preference multiplier).
Scholarship offers are free once you unlock the action