Recruiting season is stressful enough. Don’t let a poorly made highlight tape hold you back. Here’s a straightforward breakdown of what to do (and what to avoid) when putting yours together.
What To Do
Lead with your best stuff.
College coaches are watching dozens of tapes. If you don’t grab their attention in the first 90 seconds, they’re moving on. Put your most impressive plays up front — not at the end as some dramatic finish. Keep the whole tape between 3 and 4 minutes. That’s it.
Quality over quantity.
This isn’t a season recap. Pick your best plays and cut everything else. Ten elite moments beat forty mediocre ones every time.
Show your full game — by position.
- Attack — Don’t just show goals. Mix in dodges, feeds, off-ball movement, riding, EMO and ground ball work.
- Midfield — Same range as attack, but make sure transition play and defensive effort are well represented.
- Defense — Go beyond takeaway checks and midfield carries. Show off-ball coverage, clearing and hustle plays. Coaches are watching all of it.
- Goalies — Don’t make it a shot-stopping reel. Show your full game.
Show your athleticism.
Every recruit at the college level can catch and finish from five yards unguarded. What separates players is what they do when it’s contested.
Open and close with your info.
Your tape should start and end with a screen showing your name, contact info, your club coach’s name and contact, your high school coach’s name and contact, height, weight, and GPA. Hold each slide long enough to read comfortably — coaches shouldn’t need to pause and rewind.
Double-check everything.
Misspelling a coach’s name or listing a wrong phone number is a fast way to get crossed off a list. Confirm every piece of contact info before it goes on the tape.
Make it easy to watch on a phone.
Coaches are consuming content everywhere. Upload to YouTube at high quality and share the link. Pin it to your Twitter/X, add it to your SportsRecruits profile, and post it to your Instagram.
What Not To Do
No explicit music. Period.
Coaches will turn it off the second they hear a curse word, slur or inappropriate lyric — and it reflects on you. Keep the soundtrack clean and simple.
Cut the post-goal celebrations.
Coaches don’t need to watch 15 seconds of celebration after every score. Keep the pace up and move to the next play.
Don’t pad your tape with weak competition.
Scoring five goals against a team that just picked up a stick for the first time isn’t impressive. Show yourself against real competition.
Don’t flood coaches’ inboxes.
Send your tape and schedule before each season. A quick note before an event you’re attending is fine. Sending stat updates after every single game is not — and it gets noticed in the wrong way.
Skip the flashy effects.
No crazy transitions, sound effects or graphics. Coaches have seen all of it. They want to watch a good lacrosse player efficiently. Give them that.
Don’t ask college coaches for feedback.
Their feedback is whether or not they recruit you. Ask your club coach, high school coach, a trusted teammate or a parent to review your tape. That’s what they’re there for.
Know the communication rules.
College coaches can only directly communicate with juniors and seniors. Freshman and sophomore players — your coaches are also not permitted to discuss you with college coaches until September 1st of your junior year. Know the timeline and plan accordingly.
Want to get your tape in front of the right people? Start by getting seen at the right events. Check the Lax Lock Tournaments & Showcases directory to find recruiting events near you.