The letters started flooding into the family mail box the summer between Jessica Waggoner's freshman and sophomore year.
"A whole collection came at once," Jessica's dad, Mark, said. "They came in bunches. Mail started coming in weekly."
Names like UC Davis, Fresno State, Indiana, Iowa and Florida State showed up first. Since then, though, the steady stream of mail hasn't stopped.
"There are days when we open up our e-mail and find 300 messages there," Mark Waggoner said. "It gets to be overwhelming."
And the thing is, not one of them can be ignored.
"That's probably the most important advice we'd pass on to incoming high school juniors who are just starting this process," Stephanie Waggoner, Jessica's mom, said. "If you get contacted by a college, always return a message back, even if it is saying that you have no interest in them.
"If you ignore it, it gets through the grapevine that you didn't respond. Always respond. When you see an e-mail, don't necessarily open it until you have time to respond."
The Waggoners have been fielding interest from a group of more than 70 colleges over the past year.
"It is a full-time job," Stephanie Waggoner said. "You have to go in with your eyes open and just take everything in to see what is out there.
"You could get distracted by minimal interest from a big school when there might be a really great Division III school that is looking at you that is on the perfect location on the beach somewhere. You have to keep in mind that you aren't just trying to market yourself to these colleges, but that you should be finding the best possible fit for your future."
Colleges are limited on the amount of contact they can have with athletes, but mail is often allowed starting the sophomore year.
"You'll get a letter from a school saying this is who we are, and we can't call you yet but we're looking at you," Jessica Waggoner said. "They can't call you, but you are allowed to call them."
Most schools send along detailed questionnaires as well.
"They'll ask how high you jump, how fast you run," Stephanie Waggoner said. "Some are really bizarre, they'll ask about your favorite food or your favorite color. Some schools, like Cornell, were more interested in academics. You can tell a lot about the school by the questions they ask."
Something else that has become apparent is that college coaches are watching your every move, not just when you're playing.
"You should always keep a smile on your face and be cheering your teammates on when you're on the bench, because you never know who is watching you,"
Stephanie Waggoner said.
Jessica agreed.
"You'll be at a tournament and there will be someone sitting behind the bench without anything on from the school, and all of the sudden you turn around and they are taking notes on their palm pilot," Waggoner said. "They want a complete package, so they watch everything. They want to see your attitude and your
teamwork just as much as your ability."
That also translates to practice time.
Waggoner said she has generated nearly as much interest from her teammates' professionally-made recruiting videos as she has from her own.
"On a video, you start out just with you and a camera performing your skills but then the second part is game highlights," she said. "Coaches can see the other players in the highlights and if they see you on someone else's video starting a great play or finishing a great play, they may ask that person who you are. It's kind of funny."
The same principal applies to game play as recruiters may show up to look at a talented teammate, but may walk away impressed with someone else on the floor.
The Waggoners said that the most important part is keeping as many options open as possible until you make your final decision.
"Don't commit to a school unless you are absolutely sure that's the one for you," Mark Waggoner said. "The coaches have such a network that if you commit somewhere, everyone else hit's the breaks.
"The most important thing is that you are trying to get a good education out of this, so make sure the place you choose fits in with your life goals as well as your athletic goals. It's more work keeping your options open, but it is worth it.
