Straight answers about how AG2C works
Who it's for, what to expect, and honest answers to the questions families ask most. If your question isn't here, email us and we'll add it.
Too early, too late, or right on time
My athlete is a freshman. Is it too early to start?
No — in many ways freshman year is the best time. Not because coaches will be offering scholarships (they won't), but because freshman year is when the foundation gets built: understanding how recruiting works, getting grades on track, learning what coaches evaluate, and tracking stats and film in an organized way.
Athletes who wait until junior year to start learning the process play catch-up against athletes who've prepared for two years. The freshman-year work is education and preparation, not outreach — exactly what the Blueprint is built for.
My athlete is a junior and hasn't started. Is it too late?
Not too late, but the timeline is compressed and the strategy has to change. A junior starting from scratch moves quickly on three fronts at once: a complete profile, film in front of coaches, and a realistic target list at the right level.
Some D1 programs finish classes early — but most D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO programs recruit juniors and seniors year-round. A junior with good grades, current film, and a focused outreach strategy has real options. The athletes who run out of runway are the ones who wait until senior fall.
My athlete is a senior and still hasn't committed. Can AG2C help?
Yes — more common than families realize. Seniors without offers need three things: a realistic assessment of what level they can play at, a professional profile they can send that same day, and a focused plan aimed at programs still building their class.
Roster spots open late — coaches lose commits to transfers, injuries, or academics and need to fill spots quickly. A senior with a polished profile and a specific target list can still find the right program. We won't claim every senior lands somewhere — but quitting in February of senior year is how you guarantee the outcome you don't want.
What if my athlete isn't sure they want to play in college?
Most of the process happens before the decision is fully made, so they don't need certainty to start. What they need is information: what college softball looks like at different levels, the academic and time commitment, and whether programs exist where they could realistically compete.
The first two stops of the Blueprint — Learn and the division decision — are built for exactly this. They help figure out whether college softball is the right goal, not just how to get recruited. Many families realize partway through that the real goal is finding the right college, and softball is a tool that widens the options.
Does reclassing or a post-grad year affect eligibility?
It can now, and this changed recently. In June 2026 the NCAA adopted an age-based eligibility model for Divisions I and II. The five-year eligibility clock starts at the earlier of first full-time college enrollment or the start of the academic year following the athlete's 19th birthday — and once started, it runs continuously.
That means delaying enrollment no longer preserves eligibility the way it used to. An athlete who reclasses or takes a post-grad year may arrive on campus with fewer than five years available. Athletic redshirts and most hardship waivers were eliminated at the same time.
This is new, consequential, and still being litigated. Read the full explanation of age-based eligibility, and confirm your athlete's specific situation with the NCAA Eligibility Center before making a reclass decision.
Does AG2C work for sports other than softball?
Right now our step-by-step content, examples, and tools are built specifically for college softball. The underlying principles — profile building, division selection, outreach, offer evaluation — apply to any sport, and the profile tool supports any sport. But families who want softball-specific coach lists, scholarship numbers, position-specific stats guidance, and tournament references get the most out of the platform today.
How we're different — and where we're not the fit
How is AG2C different from NCSA, SportsRecruits, or FieldLevel?
The biggest difference is philosophy. Large services are built around exposure — get the athlete's name in front of as many coaches as possible and hope something sticks. The AthletesGoing2College Recruiting Blueprint is built around education and ownership — teach the athlete how recruiting works, give them the tools to run their own process, and produce a profile coaches actually want to open.
- Price. $24.99/month or $199/year. Most traditional services charge $1,200–$3,000+ upfront or through multi-year packages.
- Contracts. None. Cancel anytime.
- Who does the outreach. Your athlete does. College coaches recruit athletes, not services.
- What you get. A complete step-by-step education, a professional profile, a college search dashboard, a contact tracker, and the tools to run the process yourself.
If you want someone to do the work for you, we're not the right fit — and we'll tell you directly. If you want to understand recruiting and run it yourself, we're built for you. Our full comparison page goes deeper, including where another service might suit your family better.
Will a big recruiting service get my athlete more offers?
Not in the way the marketing implies. Coaches recruit athletes they can evaluate — video, stats, academics, and real interest from the athlete themselves. A mass-exposure database doesn't change that. What changes outcomes is current film, accurate grades, a professional profile, and consistent, well-written outreach from the athlete.
Any service — including us — that promises specific outcomes (offers, scholarships, commitments) is overpromising. Coaches make those decisions, based on the athlete, not the platform. A good platform gives the athlete the tools to present themselves clearly and the education to avoid the mistakes that cost families real opportunities.
Does AG2C send my athlete's profile to college coaches?
No — and that's intentional. Your athlete sends their own emails, makes their own calls, and builds their own relationships. That's what coaches respect and respond to. A database sending mass emails with your athlete's name doesn't impress a coach and can actively hurt their standing.
What we provide: the email templates, the contact strategy, the profile link to include, and the system to track who they've contacted and what the response was. The work is theirs. The results are theirs.
I already paid for another service — should I switch?
It depends on what you're getting and where you are in the process. If your service provides real value — honest coaching, quality film evaluation, a profile coaches open — keep it. If it's functioning as an expensive directory your athlete isn't using, that's a different conversation.
AG2C is inexpensive enough that many families use us alongside another service as the education and profile layer. No exclusivity required either way. If you want to see what you'd be getting before deciding, the readiness assessment and the 30-day roadmap are both free and neither asks for a card.
No contracts, no hidden fees, no upsells
How much does AG2C cost?
- Monthly. $24.99/month.
- Annual. $199/year — saves $100.88, about $16.58/month.
Both plans include everything: the full Recruiting Blueprint education, the college search dashboard with contact tracker, the recruiting profile builder, the parents and coaches portals, the cost comparison tool, and every other tool on the platform. No tiered plans, no upsells, no "premium" features behind a higher price. See plans and pricing →
Can I cancel at any time?
Yes. No contracts, no minimum terms, no cancellation fees. Log in, cancel, and keep access through the end of your current billing period. You won't be billed again after that.
Do you offer refunds?
We don't refund partial months or years. There's no contract, though — you can cancel anytime and keep access through the end of the period you've already paid for.
If you'd rather evaluate before paying anything, two things are free and neither asks for a card: the recruiting readiness assessment, which scores where your athlete actually stands, and the 30-day roadmap, which lays out week by week exactly what the first month looks like. The Parents Portal preview is open too.
Can I switch between monthly and annual?
Yes, anytime in your account. Moving from monthly to annual applies the annual rate at your next billing cycle. Moving from annual to monthly keeps your access through the end of the year you already paid for.
I have two athletes who both play. Do I need two memberships?
Each athlete needs their own membership, because the profile and dashboard data are tied to one athlete — their stats, their target schools, their outreach history. Sharing one account gets messy, and coaches need each athlete's profile to be their own.
If you have multiple athletes and want a family rate, email us. We'd rather work something out than have you choose between them.
What happens to the profile if we cancel?
The profile URL is deactivated when the membership ends, so coaches with the link can no longer view it. Your athlete's content — photos, videos, stats, written material — belongs to them; we don't own it or repurpose it. If they reactivate later, the data is preserved and the profile returns exactly as they left it.
Are there any hidden fees or upsells?
No. The membership price is the full price. No per-email fees, no coach-contact fees, no "premium profile" upgrades, no consultants sold on top. If we ever add a service that costs extra, it'll be genuinely optional and clearly labeled — not a feature moved behind a paywall after you signed up.
How do I update my credit card or billing information?
Log in, go to My Account, and update payment details there. Billing changes take effect on the next billing cycle.
What it is, what coaches see, who owns it
What is the recruiting profile and why does my athlete need one?
A professional one-page website built for your athlete, with its own URL — for example athletesgoing2college.com/softball/janesmith2028 — including bio, photos, stats, highlight video, academics, GPA and test scores, intended major, coach references, tournament schedule, and a direct contact button.
Every email they send a coach should include this link. When a coach clicks it, they get everything needed to evaluate the athlete in under two minutes, on any device, without digging through attachments or social media. Coaches repeatedly tell us this is what separates athletes who get responses from those who don't.
Can I see a sample profile before I sign up?
View a sample profile here — the exact format and functionality your athlete will have.
Who owns the content on the profile?
Your athlete does. All photos, videos, written content, and personal information belong to them. We host and display the profile, but we don't claim ownership, sell the data, or repurpose the content for marketing without permission. If they cancel, the content is theirs and we don't retain or reuse it.
Can coaches contact my athlete directly through the profile?
Yes. The profile includes a contact button that sends a message to the email and phone number you specify. You choose whether that routes to the athlete, a parent, or both — we recommend both for athletes under 18, and parents should be copied on all coach communication for high school athletes.
Is my athlete's information public? Can anyone see the profile?
The profile is accessible to anyone with the link — intentional, because coaches need to open it from an email without logging in. It's not listed in any public directory, and the only way a coach reaches it is if your athlete sends the link.
You also control what's shown: home address is never displayed, and phone and email sit behind the contact button rather than visible on the page. Photos, video, and stats are what coaches see.
Do college coaches actually recognize and use these profiles?
A profile isn't a service coaches sign up for — it's a webpage your athlete links in their email. From the coach's side, they click a link and land on a clean page with everything they need. They don't need to "recognize" AG2C; they need the page to load fast, look professional, and contain the information they're after.
That's why profile quality matters far more than profile brand. Coaches consistently say the same thing: what matters is that video loads, stats are current, grades are visible, and contact info works.
Can the profile be updated throughout the season?
Yes, and it should be. Stats, schedule, and video are the three things that need to stay current — a profile with last season's stats or outdated video is worse than none. Log in and update anytime; changes go live immediately.
The questions families ask us most
What are the real chances of getting a scholarship?
The honest framing, which we don't hide: of the hundreds of thousands of high school softball players in the U.S., a small single-digit percentage play in college at any level, and only a fraction of those receive athletic aid.
NCAA Division I softball historically had 12 athletic scholarships to split across an entire roster. Under the House settlement, D1 programs that opt in can now fund up to 25 alongside a 25-player roster cap, while non-opt-in programs remain at 12 equivalencies. Either way, most athletes don't get full rides — they get partial aid. Division II has 7.2. Division III offers no athletic scholarships but often significant academic and need-based aid. NAIA and JUCO both offer athletic aid.
The realistic path for most families isn't a full athletic scholarship — it's a combination of partial athletic aid, academic scholarship, and financial aid that makes a specific school manageable. Our College Cost Comparison Tool shows the real net cost of every school on the list, because that's the number that matters, not the scholarship percentage.
What's the difference between D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO?
- D1. Highest competition, biggest commitment (20+ hours a week in season), most national visibility, hardest to get recruited into. Opt-in programs can fund up to 25 scholarships under the House settlement; non-opt-in stay at 12.
- D2. Very competitive softball at a less all-consuming lifestyle. 7.2 scholarships. Consistently undervalued — many D2 programs play close to D1.
- D3. No athletic scholarships, but often strong academic aid and a genuine student-first experience. Competitive level varies widely by conference.
- NAIA. Athletic scholarships available, often more flexible than NCAA on eligibility, competitive play. Often overlooked by families who don't know it exists.
- JUCO. Two-year path. Athletic scholarships, strong development, and a real option for athletes who need more playing time, higher grades, or a reset before transferring.
Choosing the Right Division walks through how to honestly evaluate which level your athlete can compete at — including the hard conversation about a current level that might not match a dream level.
When are coaches allowed to contact athletes?
The simplified version: athletes can contact college coaches anytime, at any division, at any age. There is no rule against it. Coaches have specific rules about when they can reach back out, which vary by division and grade — for D1 softball, coach-initiated contact opens September 1 of junior year. D2 coaches can call and email any time, with off-campus contact and visits from June 15 after sophomore year. D3, NAIA and JUCO are far more flexible.
The practical takeaway: the athlete doesn't wait for the coach. They initiate. The full timeline and contact rules are on our recruiting timeline page, with the current calendar.
How many schools should my athlete contact?
No magic number, but a working target list for most athletes ends up in the 30–60 range, split across divisions and fit tiers — Stretch, Target, and Foundation. What matters more than the number is the quality of the outreach — personalized emails, current video, real follow-up — and the diversity of the list across divisions.
Athletes who only contact D1 programs and get no responses have a strategy problem, not a talent problem. A realistic list includes schools at every level where your athlete could genuinely compete and be happy.
What is NIL, and does it apply in high school?
NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) lets college athletes earn money from endorsements, social media, and personal-brand deals while competing. It applies once an athlete is enrolled in college — high school athletes can't receive NIL deals tied to a specific college, though some state rules allow limited high school NIL activity outside of college recruiting.
For most recruiting families, NIL is relevant as a conversation — understanding what a program's NIL collective looks like and whether it's a realistic income source there. It's usually not the deciding factor in choosing a school, and not a replacement for athletic aid. Separately, under the House settlement, opt-in D1 schools can also share revenue directly with athletes — again a college-level matter, not something that happens in high school recruiting.
Is the National Letter of Intent still used?
Not anymore — the NCAA discontinued the NLI program in October 2024. For NCAA D1 and D2, the binding commitment is now the athletics financial aid agreement: when your athlete signs it, the school commits to the athletic aid it describes for that academic year, and they commit to enrolling. There's no separate NLI and no national signing day.
D3 offers no athletic aid, so the commitment is institutional enrollment; NAIA uses its own letter of intent; JUCO uses the NJCAA process. If a coach still says "sign the NLI," they're using older terminology — the actual document is the financial aid agreement.
How accounts work and who can see what
Can parents and athletes share one account?
Yes. One membership covers the athlete and their family. Parents and athletes log in with the same credentials and share the dashboard, profile editor, and contact tracker. We strongly recommend parents stay involved, especially for high school athletes — the recruiting process is a family process.
Can a travel or high school coach access the dashboard?
Not directly — accounts are per-athlete and don't have multi-user access at this time. But coaches can view the recruiting profile, which has its own public URL your athlete can share, and can be listed as references. We have a separate Coaches Portal with resources for coaches who want to support their athletes' recruiting.
What devices does the platform work on?
Everything works on desktop, tablet, and phone. The profile in particular is designed to look polished on the device a coach is most likely to open it on — often a phone, often while traveling. The dashboard and profile builder are easiest on a laptop or tablet but work from a phone.
Is my family's information secure?
We take data protection seriously. Accounts use standard password security, data is hosted on secure infrastructure, and we don't sell or share personal information with third parties. Payment information is processed through a secure payment processor — we never store credit card numbers on our servers.
Full details are in our Privacy Policy. For specific security questions, email us and we'll answer directly.
What if I need help or something isn't working?
Email us — a real person responds, usually the same day, always within one business day. We're a small team, so when you email you're reaching the people who built the platform, not a tiered support queue.
Still have a question?
Email us — a real person, usually within one business day. Or explore the plans and see for yourself.
Already a member? Log in to your dashboard →
ATHLETESGOING2COLLEGE
STAND OUT | GET NOTICED | GET RECRUITED
The step-by-step college softball recruiting system — six stops from learning how recruiting works to signing with a program that fits. Your athlete runs it, under their own name.
Start the Blueprint — $199/yr →$24.99/month or $199/year · No contracts · Cancel anytime
Recruiting rules change and vary by division. Always confirm current rules with the governing body: NCAA.org · NAIA.org · NJCAA.org