Interdepartmental Communications 141
often play a crucial role in a student athlete’s enrollment in an
NCAA Division III or NAIA institution.
So if you are convinced you are a Division I prospect, but
you feel you are being overlooked or are being strung along,
your best choice for continuing your education and your ath-
letic career, as well as receiving financial aid for your athletic
ability, may well be at Division III or NAIA.
Recently, an Indiana high-school football prospect was con-
tacted and pursued by Purdue. Evidently, he fell so low on the
depth chart that the calls from the Purdue coaches stopped. No
explanation—just stopped! Then Ball State, another Division
I college, albeit I-AA, began calling and discussed potential
financial aid for the prospect’s football ability. Wow—he was
excited! He’d still get to compete in Division I. He discovered
he wasn’t #1 on the depth chart when Ball State signed a pros-
pect from Michigan. He was then contacted by Division III
Franklin College. With his opportunities rapidly disappearing,
he visited the college and talked with the football coach. “Our
high school is bigger than Franklin,” he told his high-school
coach. He decided that Division III was beneath his Division
I ability. But as signing day approached and he realized he
wouldn’t be sitting with his teammates, his coach beaming
behind him, signing a letter of intent on signing day, he swal-
lowed his Division I pride and asked his high school coach
to call the Franklin coach to tell him he’d play for Franklin.
After a few days of practice, the high school prospect that had
convinced himself that he was a Division I prospect called his
high school coach to tell him he was going to leave Franklin
and come home. The coach incorrectly concluded that his
former player just didn’t like playing at the Division III level.
“Coach, I’m the worst player on the team!” He remained at