Impact of medical/injury history on player recruitment

[ERWUC65]

I would hazard a guess that approximately 1/3 of all posts on this forum mention the words medical or injury, which would make one think that top schools, like (especially) UConn, would consider this a critical factor in making an offer to a prospect to join their program. Many of the posts are highlighting players who are just beginning their high school (public, private, specialty) careers, even once and a while even a prodigy younger than that. Considering the scrutiny these players are now under I would expect we would hear about any of those who have career ending situations, but wonder about those who have minor issues, repeat problems, repairs, rehab, etc. 4 years of intense competition is to be expected of these prospects (maybe 30 games a year or more for the best - tournament, club, summer, etc.) and that's a lot of wear and tear and potential for damage goods before graduation. So my questions are: (1) Is this information readily available for review, (2) can a prospect be medically evaluated prior to offer, (3) Is this now an impact factor in selection, have schools been using this (UConn in particular), and (4) do we all recognize now that with this, NIL, Portal, and Conference realignment, the top teams in Women's College Basketball are now a mini WNBA.

 

[cancontent]

Don't think you'll get the answers you're hoping for. Questions 1 and 2 sound like they would conflict privacy of the athletes, prior to joining the team. Question 3, it seems like it hasn't deterred UConn from recruiting players like Fudd. Question 4 is a loaded one because everyone has an opinion. Also not clear on how it relates to the title of this thread.

 

[stamfordhusky]

Don't think you'll get the answers you're hoping for. Questions 1 and 2 sound like they would conflict privacy of the athletes, prior to joining the team. Question 3, it seems like it hasn't deterred UConn from recruiting players like Fudd. Question 4 is a loaded one because everyone has an opinion. Also not clear on how it relates to the title of this thread.

Medical exams of recruits are generally OK. From the NCAA bylaws:

"Before participating in an on-campus evaluation, a prospective student-athlete is required to undergo a medical examination or evaluation administered or supervised by a physician (e.g., family physician, team physician). A nurse practitioner whose state medical licensure allows for health care practice independent of physician supervision may complete the medical examination without supervision by a physician."

Medical Screening Examination. During a prospective student-athlete's official or unofficial visit to campus, an institution may conduct a medical screening examination to determine the prospective student-athlete's medical qualifications to participate in intercollegiate athletics, provided :
(a) The examination is conducted by the institution’s regular team or designated physician, or other institutional medical staff member (e.g., athletic trainer);
(b) No other nonmedical athletics department staff members are present;
(c) The examination does not include any test or procedure designed to measure the athletics agility or skill of the prospective student-athlete;

Exception -- On-Campus Evaluation -- Basketball. In basketball, additional athletics department staff members (e.g., coaches) may be present during a medical examination that is conducted as part of an on-campus evaluation (see Bylaw 13.11.2.1) and the medical evaluation may include tests or procedures designed to measure the athletics agility or skill of the prospective student-athlete.

 

[stamfordhusky]

More on the above:

"After Signing or Acceptance for Enrollment. It shall be permissible to administer medical examinations at any time to prospective student-athletes who either have signed the National Letter of Intent with the involved institution or have been accepted for enrollment in a regular full-time program of studies at that institution."

 

[cancontent]

Medical exams of recruits are generally OK. From the NCAA bylaws:

"Before participating in an on-campus evaluation, a prospective student-athlete is required to undergo a medical examination or evaluation administered or supervised by a physician (e.g., family physician, team physician). A nurse practitioner whose state medical licensure allows for health care practice independent of physician supervision may complete the medical examination without supervision by a physician."

Medical Screening Examination. During a prospective student-athlete's official or unofficial visit to campus, an institution may conduct a medical screening examination to determine the prospective student-athlete's medical qualifications to participate in intercollegiate athletics, provided :
(a) The examination is conducted by the institution’s regular team or designated physician, or other institutional medical staff member (e.g., athletic trainer);
(b) No other nonmedical athletics department staff members are present;
(c) The examination does not include any test or procedure designed to measure the athletics agility or skill of the prospective student-athlete;

Exception -- On-Campus Evaluation -- Basketball. In basketball, additional athletics department staff members (e.g., coaches) may be present during a medical examination that is conducted as part of an on-campus evaluation (see Bylaw 13.11.2.1) and the medical evaluation may include tests or procedures designed to measure the athletics agility or skill of the prospective student-athlete.

Interesting as I haven't heard any of my friends with kids currently playing having to go through one during unofficial or official visits. The On-Campus evaluation portion sounds more like the waivers a player would provide for a basketball camp however. Would that be sufficient in as an evaluation or are you looking for something more thorough?

More on the above:

"After Signing or Acceptance for Enrollment. It shall be permissible to administer medical examinations at any time to prospective student-athletes who either have signed the National Letter of Intent with the involved institution or have been accepted for enrollment in a regular full-time program of studies at that institution."

After an athlete signs their NLI makes sense. This is contrary to the point you're trying to make.

Now the other question would be when would a school make an offer in your scenario? With players getting offers as early as Gr 8 and Gr 9, does that make sense? Things can change drastically and unexpectedly.

 

[stamfordhusky]

Interesting as I haven't heard any of my friends with kids currently playing having to go through one during unofficial or official visits. The On-Campus evaluation portion sounds more like the waivers a player would provide for a basketball camp however. Would that be sufficient in as an evaluation or are you looking for something more thorough?



After an athlete signs their NLI makes sense. This is contrary to the point you're trying to make.

Now the other question would be when would a school make an offer in your scenario? With players getting offers as early as Gr 8 and Gr 9, does that make sense? Things can change drastically and unexpectedly.

None of this is "MY scenario". And there is NO "point I am trying to make". These are the official NCAA rules - copied exactly as written. If you don't like them, please direct complaints directly to the NCAA.

Note that there are two different scenarios. The first applies to a situation where a recruit is having an on-campus evaluation (i.e. doing drills, scrimmaging, etc). The required medical exam may be provided by the family physician or by the team physician. But it would not be required if the student-athlete was just visiting but not being "evaluated".

The second scenario could be a follow-up physical, and it can be done at any reasonable time, not just on a visit.

 

[cancontent]

None of this is "MY scenario". And there is NO "point I am trying to make". These are the official NCAA rules - copied exactly as written. If you don't like them, please direct complaints directly to the NCAA.

Note that there are two different scenarios. The first applies to a situation where a recruit is having an on-campus evaluation (i.e. doing drills, scrimmaging, etc). The required medical exam may be provided by the family physician or by the team physician. But it would not be required if the student-athlete was just visiting but not being "evaluated".

The second scenario could be a follow-up physical, and it can be done at any reasonable time, not just on a visit.

When I say scenario, I'm referring to the original post where you listed your questions. Those are still scenarios even with the guidelines in the NCAA in my opinion.

Now to clarify the on-campus evaluation part. Basketball camps are considered evaluations from what I recall and participants have to provide a waiver with a doctor's sign off. As to how in-depth these evaluations are could vary, especially if done by a family physician. Is a family physician sufficient considering they don't have the same expertise as team doctors?

You didn't answer the question regarding timing. When does the school make an offer now in these scenarios? Timing of these physicals also have impact. A player could be just fine and suffer something unexpectedly. The logistics behind this idea would change things drastically compared to how things operate now.

 

[meyers7]

When I say scenario, I'm referring to the original post where you listed your questions. Those are still scenarios even with the guidelines in the NCAA in my opinion.

Now to clarify the on-campus evaluation part. Basketball camps are considered evaluations from what I recall and participants have to provide a waiver with a doctor's sign off. As to how in-depth these evaluations are could vary, especially if done by a family physician. Is a family physician sufficient considering they don't have the same expertise as team doctors?

You didn't answer the question regarding timing. When does the school make an offer now in these scenarios? Timing of these physicals also have impact. A player could be just fine and suffer something unexpectedly. The logistics behind this idea would change things drastically compared to how things operate now.

If you are thinking about what happens to a player who blows out her knee after signing a LOI, I highly doubt UCONN would pull the scholarship. Not even sure they would pull a scholarship after a verbal commitment.

Most athletes are going to have injuries of one kind or another. But even if it becomes a perpetual injury/injuries (e.g. Fudd or Ducharme), I believe UCONN stands by them until they call it quits.

 

[cancontent]

If you are thinking about what happens to a player who blows out her knee after signing a LOI, I highly doubt UCONN would pull the scholarship. Not even sure they would pull a scholarship after a verbal commitment.

Most athletes are going to have injuries of one kind or another. But even if it becomes a perpetual injury/injuries (e.g. Fudd or Ducharme), I believe UCONN stands by them until they call it quits.

I think most programs do for the most part as well. Just curious as to whether that dynamic changes if physicals are completed as a requirement as part of the recruiting process, per the idea suggested in the original post.