Finding Your Place: NCAA Division III
Overview
Many student-athletes and their parents make the
mistake of ignoring D3 institutions, limiting their search to D1 and some D2
schools. For many, however, particularly
those that are good students and/or have the financial
resources, D3 makes a lot of sense. What
kind of player is best suited to play D3?
Generally, a good D3 player is one who may be known locally rather than
regionally or nationally, possibly good enough to earn a partial scholarship
from a D2 school, and generally makes the decision to attend a D3 school for
reasons other than basketball.
Generally
speaking, NCAA D3 institutions:
·
Are private
and/or religious based
·
Emphasize
academics and “pay to play” athletes
·
Have enrollments
under 4,000 students
·
Provide for a
greater sense of community/belonging
·
Offer fewer
graduate programs
·
Have higher
graduation rates for athletes than NCAA D1 or D2
·
Require athletes
to meet the same academic eligibility requirements as non-athletes
Generally
speaking, NCAA D3 basketball programs:
·
Have small
recruiting budgets
·
Have less
experienced assistant coaches
·
Recruit almost
entirely locally or in-state
·
Play in smaller
gyms, before smaller crowds
·
Are not as
competitive as NCAA D1 or D2 programs
·
Attract a more well-rounded
student-athlete
·
Have less rules
governing recruiting
·
Do not offer
athletic scholarships
College Characteristics
Institutions
belonging to the NCAA D3 do so for a number of reasons. Generally, size, location and a long
tradition and established conference rivalries are the most influential. The majority of D3 schools
are located in the Northeast and are private rather than public
institutions. Among the three levels of
NCAA classification, D3 is the most numerous, with over 325 institutions having
D3 status. Generally speaking, academics
take on a greater importance for the student attending D3 institutions.
While
D3 schools are smaller than D2 institutions, they are significantly larger than
the average NAIA school. Average
enrollment is about 3,800 students.
Schools with as little 1,000 students are less common and schools with
enrollments greater than 15,000 are rare.
For example, New York University (NYU), the largest D3 institution, has
nearly 50,000 students. D3 schools tend
to have lower teacher-to-pupil ratios and give greater individual attention to
their students.
Nearly
75% of D3 institutions are private or religious based and some are very
distinguished. Since most are private institutions, tuition plus room and board
is high, averaging in excess of $30,000 annually and considerably more
expensive than most D1 or D2 schools. (D3 state institutions are considerably
less expensive.) Thus, a good number of students attending D3 schools come from a higher
socio-economic background. However, it would be
a mistake to imply that all D3 colleges
cater to a more wealthy student. Many D3 schools are quite diverse.
Nevertheless, you often hear reference to D3 schools as the “pay-to-play”
institutions.
D3
schools are generally large enough to offer a good number
undergraduate degrees; most having a liberal arts focus. Graduate programs are not as numerous as
those offered at D1 or D2 schools though some of the larger and more noteworthy
D3 schools offer very comprehensive curriculums and specialized fields. The
Recruiting/Scholarships
D3 institutions differ from D1, D2, and NAIA schools in two huge ways. First, and most importantly, they offer no athletic scholarships. All D3 aid is based on merit and need. An excellent student coming from a poor family is a good candidate to receive financial aid. In any event, many D3 players can qualify for some amount of aid and seldom pay the "sticker" price for the school.
Secondly,
while most student-athletes need only meet the minimum eligibility (admissions)
requirement to attend D1or D2 schools, D3 institutions tend to be stricter and
do not distinguish between athletes and non-athletes during the admissions
process. In other words, if you don’t
meet a particular school’s test scores and/or GPA requirements, you don’t get
in.
Recruiting
at the D3 level is not as intense as it is at the NCAA D2 and D1 levels. Most D3 coaches recruit locally or within
state because of limited recruiting budgets.
Thus, out-of-state athletes often are evaluated via videotape. It is very common to find D3 team rosters filled
entirely with in-state students. While
D3 schools do not attract many blue chip athletes, the more successful programs
are first rate, and frequently recruit against D2 and sometimes D1
institutions. For example,
D3
schools are forbidden to offer athletic scholarships, hence, coaches must
generally sell the school first; highlighting the educational benefits and the
total college experience his or her institution has to offer. Unfortunately for D3 schools, D3 coaches may
not know what they have to work with until late spring. Typically, top prospects wait out their
options, hoping for a possible athletic scholarship from a higher-level program
before deciding to go D3.
Because
the academic factor looms large at D3 schools, coaches are further prevented
from interfering or having any influence on an applicant’s admission or
financial aid package. Thus, even if the
coach has a tentative commitment from a prospective recruit, he/she is unable
to make it easier to secure that athlete’s admission.
Rules
Primarily because they offer no scholarships, D3 coaches are much less restricted than their D1 and D2 counterparts. (Some conferences or individual schools may impose some recruiting restrictions and some coaches do follow D1 or D2 rules anyway.) D3 coaches are not constrained by contact and evaluation periods and there is no limits regarding phone contact. D3 athletes need not register with the Eligibility Clearinghouse if they intend on attending a D3 school and there is no Letter of Intent. Student-athletes must conform to the institution’s admissions policy and test scores that is required of all students.
In summary:
A recruit may receive printed materials, letter, or faxes at any time.
A college coach can call a recruit as often as they like, whenever they like.
A recruit or parent, high school or AAU coach can call a college coach at any time.
A coach can contact a recruit or parent after one's junior year.*
A recruit can make as many unofficial visits as they like.
A recruit can make official visits starting their senior year; one per institution.
D3 athletes need not register with the Eligibility Clearinghouse if they intend on attending a D3 school and there is no Letter of Intent.
There are no limitations on the number of times a coach can evaluate a recruit.
*The term "contact" generally refers to speaking to a player or parent (face-to-face), for example, during a home visit.
Coaching Background
Resumes
of head coaches at the D3 level can vary tremendously and money is not what
draws coaches to the D3 ranks.
Oftentimes it is the purity of the game, small-school environment, or
different responsibilities that attract coaches to D3. Unlike NCAA D1 or D2 head coaches who are
paid to coach full-time, some head coaches at the D3 level may be part-time
though the more successful programs have a full time head coach. On average, head coaches earn very little,
perhaps $20-$30k per year. It is common
for D3 coaches to teach or have other responsibilities (e.g., athletic
director, coaching another sport, sports information director, etc.) Unlike their D1 and D2 counterparts, D3 head
coaches spend considerable time doing their own recruiting.
D3 coaches have varied backgrounds. Compared to D1 and some D2 coaches, certainly more D3 head coaches were former high school or college standouts with little basketball experience at the collegiate level. But this is changing. Many D3 coaches are now coming in with prior collegiate coaching experience. The better the program the better the background of the coach. Bob Gaillard coached at the University of San Francisco (D1) and turned the program into a national contender and then came over to Lewis and Clark College where he proceeded to do the same thing.
Coaching differences at the D3 level are more
apparent at the assistant level. While
the more successful programs employ a full time or part time assistant, it is
estimated that perhaps just half of D3 institutions have an assistant. Those institutions that are fortunate enough
to hire an assistant coach generally do so on a
part-time basis. Assistant pay is low
which suggests those assisting do it because they love
the game and wish to garner some experience that will promote their own career
paths.
While
most D1 or D2 assistant coaches are specialists and can provide an athlete
better skill (position) instruction, athletes attending D3 institutions may not
receive individual instruction due to the lack of experience in the assistant
coaching ranks. Among the more
successful D3 programs, however, adequate staffing and experience may be available
but it is generally not as good as one would find at the D1 or D2 level.
Schedule/Practices/Games
Despite
D3 institutions being noted for their academic prowess, the more successful D3
basketball programs are highly competitive and there are many schools that can
compete with D2, NAIA, or lower tier D1 programs. Like all NCAA programs, practice cannot start
until October 15. However, unlike D1 and
D2 programs that can begin supervised conditioning at the start of the school
year, D3 programs must wait until October 15.
Practice
time is limited to 20 hours per week during the season. Depending on the
program, the amount of practice time expected from D3 athletes is probably less
than D2 or D1 athletes -- but still demanding.
Practices are typically 5-6 days a week, 2-3 hours a day. Many programs require strength and
conditioning and possibly study hall. As
D3 programs place a greater emphasis on academics, it is not uncommon for
coaches to schedule practices around their players’ class schedules or to have
players arriving late or leaving early for academic reasons. This could be a real plus for the serious
student-athlete.
D3
schools can schedule 25 contests. By
comparison, D1, D2 and NAIA schools can schedule 28, 27, and 32 games respectively. D3 programs develop strong rivalries within
their own conference/region. More often
than not, league opponents are located within relative short distances,
reducing the number of overnight stays on most away games. This too can be a huge advantage to the
serious student-athlete. Like their D1 and D2 counterparts, pre-season
tournaments may take them out-of-state but even then, D3 schools typically do
far less traveling in the pre-season than D1 or D2. Finally, unlike higher-level NCAA schools,
many D3 schools schedule games to permit women and men’s teams to play
back-to-back. Post-season play consists of a National Tournament for both men
and women at each division with a total of 64 teams.
Conclusion
As D3 institutions cannot offer athletic scholarships,
they stand apart from D1, D2, and NAIA programs that can. For the majority of programs, the level of
play and caliber of player probably most closely resembles the NAIA level. Among the more successful D3 programs, the
level of competition can mirror that of many D2 or lower-tier D1 programs. Generally speaking, D3 programs offer greater
opportunity for players to come in right away and get quality minutes.
Generally, a good D3 player is one who may be known locally rather than regionally or nationally, possibly good enough to earn a partial scholarship from a D2 school, and generally makes the decision to attend a D3 school for reasons other than basketball. Typically, the D3 student is one who loves the sport but who may not have the speed or agility of scholarship-type athletes.
Very
often, those choosing to attend D3 institutions place as much emphasis, if not
more, on the academic offerings of the college or university. As a result, many
coaches promote what the school can offer after basketball.
Contributors to the above article include:
Shanan Rosenberg, Men’s Basketball Coach,
Lisa Liberty Becker, author, Net Prospect: “The Courting Process of Women’s College Basketball Recruiting”, Wish
Publishing, 2002
Cheri Harrer, Women’s Basketball Coach, Baldwin-Wallace, Berea, OH
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