by : Penny Hastings

Wouldn't it be a shame if you wanted to play your sport at the college level and were being recruited by the very coach you desperately sought to impress, but because you engaged in certain behavior, the coach dropped you for another athlete and you lost out on part of the $1.2 billion awarded in college sports scholarships each year?

Here's a list of what NOT to do during the recruiting process compiled by authors Penny Hastings and Todd Caven in their book, How To Win A Sports Scholarship, 3rd edition (Redwood Creek Publishing, 2007, $24.95, www.winasportsscholarship.com):

10 Ways to Turn Off College Coaches

1.Be dishonest: Lie about your grades, accomplishments or stats.
2.Focus only on what the college will do for you and ignore what contributions you can make to the college and the athletic program.
3.Boast and brag.
4.Play one school's program against another.
5.Show little or no regard for the academic side of college.
6.Look like a slob on your campus visit.
7.Fail to return applications or questionnaires as requested.
8.Pay little or no attention to the accuracy or appearance of your correspondence.
9.Have your parents call the coach on your behalf.
10.Show disrespect for the coach's time by arriving on campus without first calling for an appointment.