Are Recruiting Services A Scam? Is NCSA Waste Of Money?

August 06, 2025•2 min read

Are Recruiting Services a Scam? Breaking Down the Options for Parents and Athletes

If you’re a parent of a high school football player, chances are your inbox and DMs are flooded with recruiting services promising scholarships. But the big question remains: are they worth the money—or just a waste of time?

In this post, I’ll break down the three main types of recruiting services, share the pros and cons of each, and help you make the most informed decision for your family.

Option 1: Recruiting Software

These are the big-name platforms where athletes create profiles, upload stats and highlight films, and hope college coaches find them.

Pros:

Centralized place for stats, accolades, and film.
Search tools for schools that fit academic/athletic criteria.
Some exposure to smaller colleges (NAIA, Division 3, some D2).
Educational add-ons like webinars and training.

Cons:

Outreach often looks generic and gets filtered by coaches.
D1 and many D2 coaches don’t use them—they rely on internal tools.
Coaching support is limited and not personalized.
Families mistakenly think these are NCAA-affiliated (they’re not).
Simply creating a profile is not enough—it’s like opening a store and hoping customers show up.

Option 2: Recruiting Services

These are often small operations or individuals who either promise “connections” or handle email/DM outreach for you.

Pros:

Saves families time on outreach and communication.
May occasionally connect athletes with harder-to-reach coaches.

Cons:

Coaches prefer to hear directly from athletes, not handlers.
Lack of transparency—parents don’t know what’s being done.
No one can sell your athlete better than themselves.
Families risk being tied to ineffective strategies.

Option 3: Mentorship (The Next Play Model)

This is the path I created after struggling through the process myself. At Next Play, we mentor athletes step by step through the recruiting journey.

Pros:

Playbooks for every step—from highlight film setup to coach outreach.
Weekly athlete and parent calls for training, Q&A, and confidence-building.
Accountability systems (scorecards, check-ins, recruiting coaches).
Life skills beyond football: confidence, discipline, leadership, communication.
83% scholarship success rate thanks to strict athlete/parent evaluation.

Cons:

Requires effort, time, and discipline (1–5 hours weekly).
Not every athlete qualifies—commitment and coachability are non-negotiable.
Long-term process, not a quick fix.

The Bottom Line

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Recruiting software and services might work for some families, but mentorship is designed for athletes who want to take control of the process, develop life skills, and maximize their potential both on and off the field.

If you’d like to see if your son qualifies for a professional evaluation, the first step is applying here . We’ll break down his film and give you a clear picture of which divisions he has the best chance to earn a scholarship at.

Apply To Work 1-on-1 With Richie

Richie's mentorship program provides access to the entire Next Play® protocol for earning a football scholarship, complete with mentorship, coaching, and accountability for your son, thereby ensuring he develops into an elite communicator, leader, and businessman, and ultimately earns a full-ride scholarship.