IS MY KID GOOD ENOUGH
TO PLAY IN COLLEGE? CAN WE AFFORD IT? WHERE DO WE EVEN START? STRAIGHT ANSWERS,
FOR ONCE.

Five phases. One framework.

You don’t need more technology. You need to know what to do with the information.

Most families treat recruiting, academics, and paying for college as three separate problems. They aren’t. Each phase feeds the next—and the SYSTEM keeps running after signing day.

I’m Randy Wallace, founder of Higher Degree Recruit.

As a dad, I’ve been through the recruiting process firsthand. Both of my sons were D1 athletes who competed in the SEC. My oldest was a quarterback at Vanderbilt University. My youngest pitched at the University of Tennessee and spent five years with the Kansas City Royals.

Here’s what I wish someone had told me: talent got my sons noticed, but it was never what got them recruited. Preparation did—and we were building it on the fly. No plan, no timeline, no idea which camps were worth the money or what a coach needed to see and when. We figured it out in time. But I’ve since watched too many families with a better athlete than mine end up with fewer options, for no reason other than nobody ever showed them the process.

Remember this number: 7. Only 7% of high school athletes ever play college sports—and the difference between making that group and missing it rarely comes down to talent. It comes down to preparation. So I built the process our family never had: assess honestly, plan by grade, prepare the things coaches actually check, decide with real numbers, and keep going after signing day.

I’ve talked with hundreds of college coaches and athletic directors, and I know what they look for. Every program is different and their needs change every year—which is exactly why families need a SYSTEM instead of a guess.

SIGNED ISN’T FINISHED.

Other services disappear on signing day. But with the transfer portal, coaching changes, and year-to-year scholarships, the journey is just beginning. We stay in your corner through all four college years.

Where does your athlete actually stand?

Grade eight categories college coaches really evaluate—academics, film, test scores, measurables, competition, outreach, character, and your family’s financial readiness. Every grade comes with a written definition and exactly what it takes to move up.

It grades preparation, not talent—because preparation is the part your family still controls.

Two of these are gates: a low grade in academics or film can end a recruitment no matter how strong the rest are.

TOOLS EVERY FAMILY SHOULD USE—FREE