The Campus Visit Playbook

Official, Unofficial, and How to Read the Room

A visit is the highest-signal event in recruiting — for both sides. The coach is evaluating your athlete’s fit, manners, and family. You are evaluating whether this program deserves four years of your kid’s life. Most families waste the visit by treating it as a tour. This document is how to treat it as an evaluation you are conducting.

Official vs. unofficial — the rules that matter

Unofficial visit

Your family pays for everything — travel, hotel, meals. Unlimited in number, allowed at almost any age, and usually initiated by YOU, not the coach. This is the workhorse of recruiting: most families take several unofficials before any official is offered. Free game tickets are generally the only thing the school may provide.

Official visit

The school pays for some or all of transportation, lodging, and meals. Offered by invitation only, typically starting junior year (dates vary by sport — check the current calendar for yours). An official visit invitation is real interest: programs have limited budgets for these and spend them on athletes they are seriously evaluating.

Rule of thumb: unofficials are how you evaluate schools. Officials are how you confirm what the school has already decided about you.

Before the visit

□ Email the staff your visit dates (Playbook 07, Email 9) at least two weeks out. Showing up unannounced gets you a student tour guide, not a coach.

□ Re-watch your athlete’s film the night before. Coaches reference it; the athlete should know what the coach saw.

□ Research the roster: how many athletes at your position, in which classes? Bring that knowledge into your questions.

□ Know the academic side: does the school have your athlete’s intended major? A visit that skips the academic buildings is half a visit.

□ Agree as a family, in the car, who asks what. The athlete leads. Parents ask money and logistics questions only.

Questions that mark you as serious

Athlete asks: “Where do you see me fitting in your class, and what would I need to improve to earn playing time as a freshman?”

Athlete asks: “How do you develop players at my position in the first two years?”

Athlete asks: “What does a typical in-season week look like — practice, lifting, class, travel?”

Parent asks: “How do athletic and academic aid typically combine for a player in his/her situation?”

Parent asks: “What happens to the scholarship if there’s an injury, or if the coaching staff changes?” — and note whether the answer is specific or evasive.

Questions that mark you as naive: “Will he start?” “Is a full ride possible?” on a first visit, and anything about NIL money before an offer exists.

Reading what the coach doesn’t say

Strong signals: the head coach or your position coach spends real time with you; they talk about you in their system specifically; they introduce you to current players unprompted; they bring up next steps before you ask.

Weak signals: you only meet a recruiting assistant; the conversation stays generic (“we like your film” with no specifics); they talk mostly about the facilities; nobody mentions your class year or position needs.

The tell: serious programs end a visit with something concrete — a camp invite, a date they’ll call, a transcript request. If the visit ends with only “stay in touch,” take them at their word: you are on the long list, not the short one.

After the visit

Within 24 hours: the athlete sends the thank-you email (Playbook 07, Email 10) with one specific detail from the conversation. Within a week: the family debriefs honestly — score the school on roster fit, academics, cost, and gut feel before the next visit blurs them together. Log every coach interaction in the Coach Contact Log so the whole picture stays in one place.