Does anyone know any D1 schools that aren't very competitive that may be in need of some freshman?

how do i put this. the commercial TF standards sites are just guessing. i would spend more time just looking at team results on TFRRS. just, what kind of times do the current runners run.

if you do your research, you will figure out roughly what conferences expect in recruiting. the conference meet is a good hint.

that's the largest chunk of your competition, is are you fast enough to compete with the people you'd be at school with. if you'd be the worst or near bottom at a school, you're in trouble trying to get on there. if you'd be more top or middle, your odds go up. duh, but kids nonetheless often seem to target being the worst walkon at the best school anyway. which makes you the worst runner on the team and the first cut next year unless you improve your way off the bubble. and the one who gets the fewest, least impactful meets.

a lot of obsessive types seem to want to research what the recruits from previous years ran, neglecting that they may have gotten faster at college. you are competing for roster spots with what they did at college.

personally my advice is sit down and think about where do i want to live, what do i want to major in, and then cross-reference your scores by US news, cross-reference your times by TFRRS, and kind of figure out areas of the country you want to be in, types of colleges that have your major, and kind of roughly where you sit in the food chain. maybe even start making a wish list of schools from where these factors intersect. even maybe look up what schools are near those schools, or like those schools. put them on the list too.

my advice is then contact dozens of schools at a time, because some may say no, or have less interest than you thought. if someone says no, contact a few more.

my advice is do a mix of "wheelhouse" and "reach" schools. pick some schools you think you'd get in and the running coach would be interested. pick a handful that maybe you'd need luck to get in but you really like. the "reaches" keep you honest and ambitious what you really want. you need to dream a little or you may just settle. the "wheelhouses" ensure you end up at the end with someone who wants you on their team if every reach says no. i'd do more wheelhouses than reaches, but maybe figure out some ratio. i can stand this much risk. too much risk and every year on here is some kid who applied to nothing but reaches and the coaches there won't write back and he's only admitted to 2 schools and no one wants him to run. yeah, you applied to nothing in your wheelhouse.

if you start out with a lot of schools, you will have some choice at the end. you'll be admitted to several schools. you will be able to compare their qualities and financial aid offers. quality control is maintained by not contacting schools way beneath you, and being honest how A compares to B. you do that at the end you will feel good about your options.

if you have good test scores you might appeal to smart d1 conferences (ivy, patriot), and almost all d3s, including the smart ones (UAA, NESCAC, few others) as well as the general division as a whole. but generalities don't help much, you really have to get into nitty gritty and find about where your scores meet your times.

also, there is usually a tension in recruiting between maxing out academics vs. maxing out sports. some scholarship schools might be unimpressive academically but better sports teams. some good academic schools in d3 your times would already compete for conference and the sports value would be trying to make d3 nationals. other good academic school d3 conferences are more like low end d1.

to me if you play it right, at the end, good academic school, major you want, size you want, location you want, team that wants you, conference that challenges you but not so much you're off the back.

what is your name, lots of coaches look here and might reach out

Vermont women's XC is going to have to go from 38 down to 17 in the next few years due to opting in to the House settlement; I'm not sure how many freshmen they are going to recruit in the near future

besides rutgers those are basically the worst d1 schools out there

Go to the TFRRS website (tfrrs.org). Almost all of the results from across the US are listed here. This will help you see where you might fit in.

Dude UNLV lost to USC today

I coach a girl who ran 2:16 last year as a sophomore and her longer distance times aren't as good as yours (nor is she a great 400m runner). But she's gotten some interest from D1 schools. I think it's very likely you could find somewhere to run in D1, although you should also consider non-D1 schools that might also be a good fit for you.

You really need to be considering what schools might be a good fit for you academically--where will you be able to get in, and where will you be able to pursue the major that you're interested in? If you already have a major picked out, try to find a school that has a good program for that.

There are also financial, geographic, and social considerations. What can you afford? I wouldn't expect scholarship money from a D1 school if I were you, but can you get academic or need-based aid? What part of the country do you want to be in? Do you want a big school or a small school? Big city or small town?

I would strongly advise against making a college decision based solely on running. The standard advice I always hear is that you should pick a school where you think you'd be happy if you weren't playing your sport anymore.

I was going to suggest Dahl, but he only coaches "his boys".

(1) this isn't football.

(2) at XC you know USC W are begging for runners and finishing in between d3 CMS and oxy at meets.

D3 is the way to go. But do you realize that you will pay $200K in the US for college?

Based on the times you gave in another reply:

You'd likely be a walk-on at nearly all DI schools that you would reach out to. Some smaller private schools that still value enrollment (becoming more rare with the House settlement) might offer you something to get you to sign but it will probably be a small amount or at a place that doesn't have a great program.

There's a lot of DII schools that throw money at anyone, your times will stack up better there if money is a huge factor.

You're fast enough to get a response from some mid-majors but I'd move on from the research phase (in terms of wondering who will be interested in you) and start emailing coaches.

Hi Coach Dahl👋

I went to a weak D1 in pursuit of a small scholarship. In my particular situation I went to the flagship state university for my home state (HSU). I was in a weird place where my academics were competitive coming out of high school which allowed me to gain acceptance to some solid D3 schools (Tufts, NYU, Wesleyan), however because both my parents worked and me being an only child I ended up in a situation where I could have gone to either of those three schools and paid +60,000/year. My other option was going to HSU for ~17,000/year. In the end I made the financially smart choice and went to HSU. We were decent at XC, but in truth I was just not good enough for D1, but I would have been a very solid D3 runner and I would have made D3 nationals in my senior year of outdoor track and possibly in XC but I think that is less likely unless my team would have went.

Anyway, now being 10+ years removed I don’t have many regrets. I wish I could have gone D3 and not been an “also-ran” for 4 years, but overall I was able to pay my loans off quickly which has enabled me to invest heavily in my retirement and has put me on the path to purchasing a house. My point is remember this is a financial decision, and while we literally chase running goals, there are much more important goals that will set up your future. Make sure that you pick a place that will be good for developing you into a successful adult.

Can't stress enough to not go to Lowell. Other America East schools could be good though. Try Maine, Binghamton, maybe even UNH. Those are usually the best women's teams and I bet they would all take you. They all seem to have better education, culture, location, and quality of life than lowell as well.

Pitt

Maybe try some MAAC schools. If money is a consideration, most of those schools with the exception of Iona would probably offer you scholarship money.

The average cost is $65K. A 10% schooarship brings it down to about $60K.

And if she goes there, she should stay on campus.