Recruits Who Arrive
Prepared
Play2College is where student-athletes and their families organize recruiting. Athletes can publish a public profile with video, academics and achievements, including many international prospects.
What Coaches Will See
Play2College is not a matchmaking service. Athletes use it to run their own recruiting, and some share a public profile with you.
Athlete Discovery
Browse the athlete directory and filter by sport, gender, entry level, and freshman or transfer. Profiles show what each athlete chooses to share: video, GPA, achievements and stats.
International Talent Pipeline
The directory includes athletes from outside the US. Our guides walk them through Eligibility Center registration, English tests and the F-1 visa before they reach you.
Highlight Video Access
Athletes can add highlight videos to their profile, so you can watch before you reply to an email.
Academic & Eligibility Fit
Profiles can include GPA, intended major and graduation year, so you can judge academic fit and where a recruit stands on the five-year eligibility clock.
Contact Details
Profiles can list the athlete's club coach contact, and athletes use Play2College to log and follow up on every coach conversation.
No Cost to You
Play2College is completely free for coaches. We believe in removing barriers between talented athletes and the programs where they can thrive.
The Changing Landscape of College Recruitment
Key developments shaping how coaches build rosters in 2026-27.
Revenue Sharing & Roster Limits
The House v. NCAA settlement (approved June 6, 2025) replaced D1's per-sport scholarship caps with roster limits (105 in football, 15 in men's and women's basketball) and lets schools that opt in pay athletes directly through revenue sharing, capped at about $20.5M per school in 2025-26 and roughly $21.3M in 2026-27. Inside a roster limit every spot can be funded, but each school decides how many it actually funds, so partial aid is still common.
The old “head-count vs equivalency” split is gone at opt-in schools; schools that did not opt in keep the previous caps (for example 13 in men's basketball, 85 in football, 11.7 in baseball), so always confirm which system a program follows. Third-party NIL deals worth $600 or more must clear the College Sports Commission's clearinghouse to confirm fair market value.
Read the full House settlement money rulesThis changes how you recruit: athletes weigh direct compensation alongside scholarships, facilities, and program fit, and your pitch shifts from "is there a scholarship?" to "is there a funded roster spot?"
Sources: ESPN, June 6, 2025; College Sports Commission
Transfer Portal Updates
Academically eligible D1 athletes can transfer any number of times and play right away. A head-coach change opens an extra window for that team's players.
In Division I you can only enter the transfer portal during your sport's window, and the windows differ by sport. Football has a single 10-day window in early January, basketball gets 15 days after the national championship game, and most other sports get about 30 days after their season plus a short second window. The NCAA changes these dates almost every year, so we keep the sport-by-sport table in one place.
See the sport-by-sport transfer windowsSource: NCAA transfer window schedule
College Sports Commission
The College Sports Commission (CSC), set up by the power conferences in 2025 and led by Bryan Seeley, enforces the revenue-sharing cap and reviews third-party NIL deals of $600 or more through its NIL Go clearinghouse.
Source: ESPN, June 6, 2025
The "5-for-5" Eligibility Clock
Divisions I and II now use an age-based “5-for-5” clock: five seasons of competition inside one five-year window. The window starts at your first full-time college enrollment anywhere (junior colleges and schools abroad count) or the academic year after your 19th birthday, whichever comes first. Redshirts and most extension waivers are gone, so starting college on time protects all five years.
See how the eligibility clock worksFor evaluation: a recruit's birth date and enrollment history now tell you most of what you need to know about how many seasons they bring.
Source: NCAA.org, June 23, 2026
No More Letter of Intent
The National Letter of Intent was eliminated in October 2024. Commitments are now formalized with the school's own written offer of athletics aid (a financial-aid agreement), which is now the binding document.
What to check before you signRecruits can also take unlimited official visits (one per school) since the five-visit cap ended in 2024.
Source: ESPN, Oct 2024
How to Use Play2College for Recruiting
Browse the College Finder
Use our College Finder to see your institution's profile as athletes see it. Verify that your program's information is accurate and up to date. If anything needs correction, contact us.
Share with Prospects
Direct prospective athletes to Play2College. Our guides on coach communication, highlight videos, and financial aid help athletes prepare professional materials before they contact you - saving you time.
Connect with Athletes
Browse the athlete directory for public profiles that match your sport and recruiting class.
Explore Partnership Opportunities
Want to work with Play2College more closely? See our partner program or contact us.
Questions or Corrections?
Explore our platform or get in touch to learn how Play2College can support your recruiting efforts.