NCAA Division I Recruiting Dead Period extended into April 2021

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA Division I Council has extended its in-person recruiting dead period through April 15, 2021.

The Council has been reviewing the dead period on a regular basis since April 2020. A dead period prohibits all in-person recruiting. Phone calls and correspondence can continue to occur.

This decision will continue to affect all NCAA Division I sports, including men’s and women’s soccer. As a result, college recruiting will continue to take place entirely through virtual methods.

Through a new partnership this year, all NCAA Division I women’s soccer programs have access to the InStat Sport software platform, which provides analytics and video sharing services. InStat also has a similar partnership with the Girls Academy, assisting in the virtual recruiting process.

“The COVID-19 numbers are not trending in the right direction for the Council to allow in-person recruiting and the associated long-distance travel for coaches, prospective student-athletes and their families,” said NCAA D-I Council chair M. Grace Calhoun, athletics director at Pennsylvania. “We acknowledge the impact the restrictions are having on prospective student-athletes and coaches alike, and we will continue to assess how to best balance health and safety concerns with the desire to support prospectives and coaches in the recruiting process.”

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Previously, the dead period had been extended into January 2021, with the latest decision pushing it another three months.

According to the NCAA’s press release, members of the Council acknowledged that while Divisions II and III had loosened recruiting restrictions, Division I schools are managing active fall sport seasons, which is not the case at most schools in Divisions II and III.