At Hillsdale College, pure athleticism does not ensure a place on a varsity team.
Coaches have to make sure that every student they choose will fit in with the team and with the school as a whole.
“The athletics, academics, finances — it’s a puzzle that has to fit all together,” head football coach Keith Otterbein said.
During the recruiting process, coaches begin to weed out players based on academics and character. Students have to be willing to take on the challenge of Hillsdale classes along with a demanding practice schedule.
“We don’t want kids who don’t want what we have,” Otterbein said. “We rejoice in the school motto: ‘Strength rejoices in the challenge.’ We do things differently at Hillsdale, and they need to understand that.”
Head volleyball coach Chris Gravel, along with his wife assistant coach Stephanie, said they have already confirmed six new recruits for the upcoming school year. Chris Gravel just returned from a scouting trip in St. Paul, Minn.
“First, we don’t even look at them [the students] unless they have the grades,” Chris Gravel said. “If they’re good in the classroom and good on the floor, the next step is a sort of culture fit.”
Academics and character are very important to the Gravels. They once decided not to recruit a girl who talked disrespectfully to her mother. If she spoke that way to her family, she could have been a bad fit for the team, Chris Gravel said.
He also said many talented athletes are now choosing to attend Hillsdale before committing to the team. In the past, most walk-on athletes did not make the cut.
“Over the years, each group has come in and advanced the level [of the team] in some way. We have to find higher quality recruits,” Gravel said. “We’ve always had a lot of people who pick the school first. Now we’re getting higher quality people who pick the school.”
The swim team is also excited about its new recruits including Carson Burt, sister to junior Lauren Burt.
“I am ecstatic. It’s going to be really fun to have my sister on the team,” Lauren Burt said. “She has been accepted to Hillsdale already. It will be great to do relays with her again.”
For the sisters, Hillsdale College as a school was a large selling point in their decisions to eventually make the choice to accept their recruitment offers. But more influential in their decisions, they said, was the team itself.
“The team is what makes or breaks a situation,” Lauren Burt said.
Chris Gravel also said that even though recruits are up for a scholastic challenge, the team is what seals the deal.
“The best part of the recruiting process, and what makes them want to come out here, is the team,” Chris Gravel said. “It’s our main selling point.”
The coaches said that a student athlete who attends Hillsdale will take away much more than years of drills, practices, and games.
“Here our most important thing is to teach life lessons to our kids. If the process is right, the winner part can happen but not at the expense of the life lessons,” Otterbein said. “Our kids have to be a part of Hillsdale College. The athletics will never be bigger than Hillsdale College.”
