EXPERT REVIEWS...

A message to college coaches and recruiters: beware.  Your task of acquiring as many high quality athletes as possible with the smallest amount of money just became slightly more daunting.  Your great advantage over the players you court has just been eradicated. Why? Because America's young athletes have found a new ally to which they can turn in defense of their inexperience regarding the recruiting process: Dion Wheeler. "Prospects don't understand their value in the marketplace," Wheeler wrote in his new book, "A Parent's and Student Athlete's Guide to Athletic Scholarships." Because of this, and their ignorance about how to negotiate for athletic financial aid, Wheeler said athletes are at a tremendous disadvantage when it comes to trying to get money out of coaches and recruiters. He intends for his new book to provide tools, devices and strategies that will give prospects an equal hand in negotiations. "The purpose of the book is not only to educate," Wheeler explained.  "The real purpose is to provide useful tools so [prospects] can level the playing field." The tools Wheeler provides include tips on how athletes can boost their leverage in negotiations, how to avoid sleazy coaches or being strung along and questions that every athlete should ask of a potential coach. Wheeler explained that while coaches might not flat-out lie to their recruits, they certainly may be selective in what truths they decide to reveal.  Therefore it is important for prospects to know what they need to find out about the schools they consider. "I've never heard of a situation where the coach would be devious," Wheeler said.  "They really can't afford to be. But they need to be asked the right questions." Wheeler also provided in his book negotiating strategies that he has found to be successful in his own experience with the recruiting process. "I thought that there were certain parameters the recruiting process lied within as far as how college coaches treated prospects. But there were a couple of situations where the outcomes were not what I thought they would be." And Wheeler has ample experience with the recruiting process. He has been involved with the process from every angle, including being recruited himself.  Then as a high school coach, Wheeler struggled to understand the process and watched as several of his athletes were unsuccessful in being recruited.
By Jeff Cockrell SUN CORRESPONDENT
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