RECRUITING:
APSE top 10 project, 2009

The 2009-10 senior class was a hotbed of football talent in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. So we launched a new recruiting theme page at Cincinnati.Com to coincide with a four-part summer print series.
Week 1 focused on the proliferation of recruiting Web sites and featured a profile of Lakota West star Jordan Hicks.

---

Inside the story

Week 1 of the recruiting project took up some major print space, with two lengthy jumps (you'll see one here) and sidebars. But with long-term planning and some smart strategizing, we pulled off this big-picture enterprise package. This coverage has helped us build a brand, and on Signing Day,
Feb. 3, we reached 200,000 page views from users who know we're the best source for local recruiting news.

---

Week 2: The role
of camps in the process

This installment addressed how summer camps -- which often can be expensive -- are getting colleges to notice players who previously had not been on the recruiting radar. In the photo is Elder's Pete Bachman, who ultimately signed with Indiana.

---

Inside the story

One key to this piece is the number of voices, from high school players and coaches to the coaches and recruiters from Division I colleges on down to local Division III programs. 

---

Week 3: Spotlight
on the college coaches

With so much local prep talent, the pressure was on area college coaches to snag the stars from their own back yard. This week, we talked to Miami's Mike Haywood and UC's Kerry Coombs about the challenges they face in securing the blue-chippers.

---

Inside the story

Scouting services are a boom industry in this day and age. What do they do, and how do they do it? We explained that for our readers.

---

Week 4: The ins and outs 
of campus visits

So just what is an official campus visit like? We wanted to know the details, everything from where recruits have dinner to how they spend their time with their potential future teammates. 

---

Inside the story

This piece features some of the most colorful anecdotes of the "good ol' days" of major-college recruiting. And then it explains how new rules and policies have put an end to much of that glitz. The package also reaches out to current recruits, making sure they know the rules before they encounter any possible pitfalls on their journey to the next level.

---