The "A's" of getting an Athletic Scholarship

We are so excited to share this week's blog with you! Read on as guest blogger Johnny Quinn, founder and president of The Athlete Watch, explains the three "A's" you need to get an athletic scholarship. And remember - it's never too early to start planning for your collegiate career!  

- Amarillo Juniors
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Johnny Quinn, founder and
president of
The Athlete Watch.com

You need all A's for an Athletic Scholarship.

The road to playing collegiate sports is not black and white. The Athlete Watch is designed to help guide student-athletes and parents down the right path to play at the next level. You need all A’s for an athletic scholarship and the first one is pretty obvious – “Academics.” Student-athletes must have the grades to get into college and the desire to earn a degree. Academic standards for higher learning institutions are getting stricter every year, and with an ample amount of student-athletes out there for coaches to recruit, if you fall behind on your grades, you fall off a coach’s radar. 

“Athletic ability” is a vital part in the college recruiting process. Student-athletes must have the necessary skills coupled with the ability to outwork the competition. Today, student-athletes are bigger, stronger and faster and will continue to push the physical boundaries in high school athletics. In the realm of athletic competition and scholarship searching, it is a dog-eat-dog world... so you better be hungry.   

Rounding out the all A’s is the “Ability to market yourself.” Do not be fooled with the numerous companies and services charging thousands of dollars to join their network of coaches. As a former student-athlete who lived through the college recruiting process, my family could not afford those astronomical prices. Looking back, even if we could have afforded those services, we would not have fallen victim to their marketing tricks. The NCAA has an abundance of FREE and valuable tools to help families search for scholarships. Combine those tools with a student-athlete profile and skills tape from The Athlete Watch, and you now have an affordable and effective game plan.

- Johnny Quinn, Founder and President of The Athlete Watch and a Non-Recruited Student-Athlete

Johnny Quinn is a former NFL pro and has been a member of the US Olympic bobsled team since 2010. A McKinney, Texas native, Johnny grew up playing sports, and was a 5-A First-Team All-State wide receiver at McKinney High School, leading the state of Texas in receptions and finishing second in receiving touchdowns his senior year. After his successful high school career, Johnny went to the University of North Texas and became the University’s All-Time Leading Receiver. He was also a track walk-on who anchored the relay team to its third fastest time in school history. In 2011 Johnny was inducted into the University of North Texas Hall of Fame for his athletic success. After graduating with his Bachelors of Science in Pre Law, Johnny became a professional football player, spending time with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills. In 2010 he sent film showcasing his speed and acceleration to Olympic bobsled athlete Chuck Berkeley, who passed it along to driver Cory Butner. Johnny showed up the night before 4-man team trials and his very first push was the next day on ice in Lake Placid, NY during the 2010-2011 season, where the team finished third. Johnny spends his off-season in McKinney, training at the Michael Johnson Performance Center. He is the Founder and President of TheAthleteWatch.com, a digital platform for student-athletes to market themselves to colleges and universities around the nation.

To learn more about The Athlete Watch click here, here, or here!

To hear Johnny Quinn's interview with Amarillo Juniors coach Madelyn Vieth on her radio show, "Get Real with The getREAL Coach," click here!