My good friend Drew was a senior captain of the soccer team at our high school in New Hampshire. While he played soccer, I played football and lacrosse, and we were always talking about how exciting it would be to play at the collegiate level. During Drew's senior year, he broke the school record for the number of goals made in a single season, which naturally attracted the attention of numerous college coaches.

Drew received offers from mostly Division II and III schools, all of which were trying desperately to get him to commit to their schools. The recruiting coaches assured him that they needed a goal scorer like him to add to their roster and that he would most likely get playing time as a freshman. Drew ended up attending Curry College, a small liberal arts school outside of Boston. He liked the location, and the coach made it seem like the college would be a perfect fit for him. He was blown away by his recruiting visit; this is where he connected with the team, coach, and school as a whole.

I remember asking him why he picked Curry, only because it is a smaller D III school where he couldn't receive any scholarship money. He insisted that the college was the right fit for him and that the coach promised him that he would make the team and that he would get playing time. After all, he did have the best season in his high school's history, so why wouldn't he get playing time, right?

Drew reported to preseason in late August, leaving for school a week or so ahead of the rest of us. He was ecstatic to get there and get started. After the first day, I got a text from him saying that there were far more kids trying out than he had anticipated but thought the practice was going well. The second day he texted me again, saying he had a game-winning point during tryouts. At that point, it sounded like he was going to be a star on the team, a sure lock-in to make the roster.

Then, the unthinkable happened. The end of the week came, and I got a text from Drew saying that he was on his way home because he got cut from the team. It was a pure shock to me as much as it was to him. How could that be possible? After the coach assured him that he would not get cut, it seemed virtually impossible that he did not make the roster.

After some evaluation, the answer seemed clear to us. The coach probably brought in more players than he initially planned to do. Meaning, he told every other recruit the same thing he told Drew. It seems unfair and wrong. But this situation can be a part of the recruiting process. Coaches don't HAVE to tell the truth during the recruiting process. They should, but sometimes they don't. They can say what they want to bring in the right number of players needed for that season. They can say whatever they want to a recruit without any consequences. 

The reason why 2aDays does Recruiting Horror Stories is so that you stay on your toes and do your diligence with researching college coaches. We want you to ask as many questions as possible and to make sure you ask the current players about their experiences. And if that does not help, then go to our site to see what current and former players are saying about their coach. 

The NCAA is a business just like any other. Executive decisions will be made without any remorse for personal feelings. Absolutely NOTHING is guaranteed when it comes to college sports; it doesn't matter how good you think you are when coming out of playing a high school sport. Top recruits can easily get cut just like my friend Drew did. Word to the wise, educate yourself on college coaches before you make that big decision.

* Originally published on April 27, 2018, by Travis Newman