In the coming weeks and on every Friday, we will roll out our Fastbreak Friday column, which will consist of the loads of visitors that will take in college campuses throughout the weekend. 

The more important visits will be done in the official variety, which made us think, why don’t we instill in you, the readers, the meaning of what an official visit is. We examine how does it compare to an unofficial visit, what goes down during one, and the coaches and players perspective on it.

WHAT IS AN OFFICIAL VISIT?

Before we break things down as to what occurs during an official visit and why it is so important to the recruiting process, let’s dive deep into what the meaning of an official is. An official visit can be paid for by the school where the program and his parents can come onto campus for 48 hours and receive travel and lodging. These visits can only occur after the school has received the proper test scores from a valid college exam along with the prospects high school transcripts. 

In recent years, the NCAA had allowed for these types of visits to only occur after the start of a kid’s senior year. Now, the prospect can take an official visit January 1 of his junior year, as long as his academic test scores and transcripts are in hand. 

THE VALUE OF VISITS, ACCORDING TO COLLEGE COACHES

So, what really transpires during these official visits? We talked to a few college coaches throughout the land that gave their two cents on their objectives in attempting to leave a good impression on the hosted recruit. One coach spoke on the entertainment side of things. 

“We will have a nice dinner at a steakhouse or go to coach’s house and have a BBQ. Maybe they will watch a practice or play pick up,” the coach said. “They will meet with the academic advisor, strength coach, athletic director, and chancellor. Also, we will have a tailgate and go to a football game, if possible.”

While another coach at a successful, academic program gave his own layout on the primary points of emphasis of the official visit. 

“Our main objectives when hosting a recruit is for them to get a genuine feel for our players, coaches and the people on campus.  We want them to have a really great idea of what life will be like at our school and in our program,” the coach said. “It is important to us that they are very comfortable with what we hope will be their future teammates and just as important to us is if our current players want them to be their future teammates!  While we do roll out the red carpet and do our best to make recruits feel welcome, more than anything we just try to be ourselves.”

A prospect can take as many unofficial visits to see a school and at any given time, except during a dead period, which usually occurs during the open recruiting periods throughout April and July. It is getting the kid onto campus and as one coach noted above, rolling out the red carpet for the recruit and his family for a full 48 hours, that might enable the school to receive a commitment out of the prospect. Hence, the importance of an official visit within the recruiting process goes beyond just what the 48 hours might entail.

 “Official visits are critical,” a college coach said. “First of all, each school only gets twelve and each kid only gets five so when both parties decide to use one, it is a major step.  Most of everything today is so visual so getting a prospect and his family to come ‘see’ for themselves your campus, arena, facilities that will be their next ‘home’ is huge.  Obviously prospects can experience that on unofficial visits but it is always a little different feeling because of the extended time, planning, and the relationships are even stronger.”

THE PLAYER’S PERSPECTIVE ON OFFICIAL VISITS

With an extended stay on campus, the feeling of what a campus and program can offer might really change the vantage point the prospect has on a college recruit. Take for instance Donovan Mitchell. Louisville was never seen as the leader within his recruitment. However, everything changed when the product out of New England made his first and only official visit to Louisville and popped off the board before the 48 hours finished up. 

“Whenever I arrived and people asked me to sign autographs already and I hadn’t even committed yet, that really stood out to me,” Mitchell said. 

The commitment may have stunned the national landscape whenever Mitchell committed, but the Cardinal freshman noted that it might have been difficult to come to such a quick decision in selecting his future home if he had not taken the visit. 

“I think it’s very important to take an official visit because it allows for you to experience not just the school but the overall feel of being in the city and being a part of the team,” Mitchell said.

OFFICIAL VISIT STRATEGY

While the Brewster Academy guard committed during his first official visit lined up back in August 2014, some of the college coaches that we spoke to are a bit mixed on what order they want to be in when hosting a college recruit for an official visit. 

“There are no guarantees in this process and being first and last has been very beneficial.  If you are first, there are a lot of follow up visits to schools to stay in front and if last there are a lot of visits to ensure you will get a visit,” the coach said. “Typically, I like being first but official visits are pretty cool so you take the risk of ‘I want to take some more of these’ kind of deal.”

Another coach surveyed on the matter was even more on the fence with the matter at hand. 

“Many people suggest that being the last visit can leave a lasting impression in the recruits mind, and there is something to be said for being the last program the recruit has visited before making a decision. However, if we have the last visit scheduled with a particular recruit, I am always worried that the recruit will commit elsewhere while on a visit, before we’ve had a chance to host the recruit and really show them our program.” 

Hence, Louisville rolled the dice and made other programs like Villanova, Providence, and a select few others pay for not getting the New York native on campus and because of it, will now showcase one of the most explosive combo guards throughout the land this winter.

TAKING THE STRATEGIC APPROACH TO VISITS 

Not as quick to the punch to make a commitment during his time on campus, Justin Robinson went through the entire process as he visited all four of his schools that he had cut his list down to, but he came back to Virginia Tech, his first official visit that he had originally tripped off to, that he decided was his best setting for his collegiate playing days. Asked on the importance of his official visit, the 6’1 freshman guard noted on the entire process and how a few trips, both of the unofficial variety along with his official, left a lasting mark in his mind prior to his commitment. 

“I enjoyed my unofficial and had a great relationship with the coaches and players alongside with good academics that school offered and playing in the ACC,” Robinson said. 

Whether you get the prospect on campus for his first, middle, or last, it seems that the most important thing is just getting the recruit to your school for those important 48 hours in showcasing what the program and school can offer the student-athlete. 

In all, the recruiting process culminates while the program hosts the recruit for an official visit. A prospect’s recruitment is never cut and dry, compared to the ramifications of what is and what isn’t allowed during an official visit, but like Robinson and Mitchell, each of their official visits and the interactions with the coaching staff, fans, and what the school offers academically, went a long way in bringing in what should be, two immediate producers and contributors within the ACC during the 2015-2016 basketball season.  

Related links: 

NCAA guide to recruiting questions
NCAA Clearinghouse
Recruiting Regulations