MySpace, Facebook, and Recruiting

With how much trouble college athletes have been getting themselves in with these social networks, it is important that high chool athletes realize how these can hurt you as well.  It has gotten to the point where some schools make prep athletes sign contracts stating that if pictures are posted on any social network that involves alcohol, that is the same as being caught by the police.  That will lead to a suspension and you will likely lose at least a few games of your season. 

The University of Iowa football team is currently going through a huge scandal involving two of their players stealing and using credit cards.  While their Facebook profiles were not the reason they got caught, these pictures below were something that quickly surfaced on the Internet afterwards.  The two athletes that face jail time were both expected to play a significant role on the team this year.  And with the way things are looking, these players may be in jail before all is said and done. 

Going back to how social networks can impact high school athletes in recruiting, college coaches will do whatever they can do find out information about prospective recruits.  They want to learn more about the character of these recruits and will do whatever they can to do this.  That includes talking to teachers in the school, other coaches, people in the community, and any other sources they know close to the area.  With most high school students having at least one account at MySpace or Facebook, there is little doubt that these coaches will be anonymously taking a look at what the profile of the high school athlete says. 

What I would recommend for any high school athlete is to think about that and take a look at your profile on whatever social network that you use.  Is there pictures of you that may end up causing trouble down the road?  Is alcohol involved in any of the photos?  Do people leave messages about how great the party was this weekend?  It may seem trivial but coaches will use whatever means necessary to find out information about athletes.  Considering the companies now search these profiles (And it has cost people a potential job), these coaches will do the same thing. 

It may be tough for a high school athlete to completely avoid these websites.  There is nothing wrong with having a respectable profile.  But just make sure that there is nothing on there that could end up costing you a scholarship or a lot of recruiting attention down the road.