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From Wells Wells Kane · Class of 2030 · Setter · Salt Lake City Hey everyone, Wells here. High school season's in full swing now. We're a few matches in and I'm still getting used to my new setter partner in warm ups (we somehow ended up with a 6'2 libero this year, still processing that one). My serve has been more consistent than it was all of last spring, which feels good to actually say out loud. Club tryouts start later this month too, so for a few weeks I'll technically be playing in two different jerseys in the same week. My travel coach says that's just how freshman year goes. I'm choosing to believe her. Honestly the thing I've been thinking about most isn't even a game, it's practice. Our coach started filming every single drill this month, not just scrimmages, and watching myself mess up a simple pass over and over on video is humbling in a way I did not expect. What's one thing you're working on changing about how you play this season? Hit reply, I genuinely want to know. — Wells |
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Contact Period has been open since September 1 and runs through November 30. That sounds like a long runway. It isn't. Strip out travel weekends, midterms, and the fact that most coaching staffs are buried in their own fall seasons right now, and you're really looking at a handful of real windows before recruiting goes quiet for the holidays. December 1 flips back to a Quiet Period, and a formal Dead Period lands December 17 through January 1, when coaches can't contact or evaluate anyone in person at all. The families who treat October and November like one long open door get more conversations started than the ones waiting for a better moment in the spring. There isn't a better moment. There's this one, then a six week gap. Two things to do this week: if a target school hasn't heard from your athlete since summer, send a short update now, new stats, new film, a tournament they're attending. And check your athlete's fall schedule against any target school's travel radius. Coaches go where the matches are, not where the highlight reel is. |
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Texas Tech dismisses its head coach mid-season Texas Tech parted ways with head coach Tony Graystone on September 13, naming longtime associate head coach Alisa Blair interim head coach for the rest of the season. Reporting since then has detailed serious allegations tied to the dismissal. A change this abrupt mid-season usually means a staff in flux on recruiting too, evaluations can slow or shift to a different assistant's priorities while things settle. If Texas Tech is on your list, confirm who's actually running recruiting there before you send anything. The transfer portal is still closed, and that's not an accident Women's volleyball gets one transfer window a year, and this cycle's runs December 6 through January 4. Anything you hear about a player "entering the portal" right now is speculation, not fact. If roster math matters to your family's target list, the real information lands in a little over two months, not this week. Pro volleyball sets its draft date Major League Volleyball holds its 2026 draft on November 23. Vegas Thrill picks first overall under new ownership, with MLV Los Angeles second and Minnesota Forge, DC Flight, and NorCal Rumble rounding out the lottery slots. Only players finishing their fourth or fifth year of college eligibility are draft-eligible, a reminder that pro volleyball sits on the other side of a full college career, not a shortcut around one. A net rule just got stricter Starting this season, a player's foot fully crossing the center line is an automatic fault, no interference required, and coaches can now challenge the call. It brings the college game closer to the international rule. If your athlete plays a position that crowds the net, this is worth a rewatch of her own film with that rule in mind before the next evaluation window. AAU Nationals registration opens next month The 2027 Girls AAU Volleyball Nationals will be held at the Orange County Convention Center, with registration opening December 1 at noon Eastern through the Advanced Event Systems platform. Specific wave dates haven't been released yet. Mark the registration date now, the schedule details are still filling in. |
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October 2026 NCAA Calendar D1 coaches are in the middle of the Contact Period that opened September 1 and runs through November 30, the longest in-person recruiting stretch of the year. It doesn't last. Quiet Period returns December 1, and a formal Dead Period lands December 17 through January 1. For 2027 grads: contact has been open since June 15, 2025. Most conversations happening now are later stage, official visits and real decisions, not first introductions. For 2028 grads: this is your first full fall as a contactable class. Contact opened June 15, 2026, and coaches are using these weeks to watch matches and introduce themselves in person for the first time. For 14s (class of 2029-2030): the rules haven't changed for you, coaches still can't contact you first. The next date that matters is June 15, 2027. You can always reach out to them though, most families wait. That's still a mistake. |
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Two things to do in Set Point this week. Start here →If your athlete is in a contactable class, log any new fall stats or film now while this Contact Period is still open. Coaches checking profiles in October are the ones watching film in November. If your athlete isn't contactable yet, use this month to build her target list and draft the messages to send the day she can. June 15, 2027 will come faster than it looks. That's what we built it for. |