NCAA recruiting calendar 2026-27, every sport
Which days college coaches can watch and meet recruits, in plain English. Pick your sport for the day-by-day calendar. The dates are read from the NCAA's own Division I calendars and checked every week.
Today, November 5, 2026
Football
FBS
Evaluation period
until Nov 29, then dead period Nov 30
FCS
Evaluation period
until Nov 29, then dead period Nov 30
See every date
Basketball
Men's
Recruiting period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
Women's
Evaluation period
until Dec 23, then dead period Dec 24
See every date
Baseball
Quiet period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
Softball
Evaluation period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
Volleyball
Contact period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
Beach volleyball
Contact period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
Lacrosse
Men's
Contact period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
Women's
Contact period
until Nov 5, then evaluation period Nov 6
See every date
Golf
Contact period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
Cross country and track
Contact period
until Nov 8, then dead period Nov 9
See every date
How to read it
These limit when coaches can meet or watch recruits in person. They do not stop a family from emailing a coach.
Contact period
Coaches may meet recruits and families in person on or off campus, watch them play, and visit their schools.
What a family does
Coaches can be at the school, at games and at the family's home. Be ready with film, grades and your page link.
Evaluation period
Coaches may watch recruits play and visit their schools to see them, but may not have in-person contact with the recruit or the family away from the college's campus.
What a family does
Coaches are out watching games, so film and a page they can open in ten seconds matter most. Send your athlete's link, and tell coaches the game schedule.
Quiet period
Coaches may meet recruits in person only on the college's campus. They may not meet or watch recruits off campus.
What a family does
If your athlete is visiting a campus, this is when the coaches there can meet them.
Dead period
Coaches may not meet recruits in person or watch them play, on or off campus, and campus visits are not allowed. Calls, texts and emails follow separate NCAA rules.
What a family does
A good time to build the page, add film and update stats. Email coaches so your athlete is in front of them when they are free to look.
Recruiting shutdown
A period when no form of recruiting is allowed: no contacts, evaluations, visits, correspondence, or making or receiving phone calls.
What a family does
Coaches may not recruit in any form, so do not expect replies. Use the time to update the page, and send your emails when it ends.
Basketball calls the contact period a "recruiting period". It means the same thing.
Soccer, swimming, tennis, wrestling and other sports
The NCAA has not published a day-by-day calendar like this for those sports. A college compliance office can tell you what applies. Either way, a coach can read your athlete's page whenever you send it.
Be easy to find while coaches are looking
Put your athlete's season, stats and film on one page a coach can open in ten seconds, then email the coaches who recruit their position. It is free to start.
Questions families ask
What is the NCAA recruiting calendar?
It is the NCAA's list of which days college coaches may meet recruits in person, watch them play, or have them visit campus. Each Division I sport that has one is split into contact, evaluation, quiet and dead periods, and some sports add recruiting shutdowns.
Which sports have an NCAA recruiting calendar?
For 2026-27 the NCAA has published day-by-day Division I calendars for football (FBS and FCS), men's and women's basketball, baseball, softball, women's volleyball, women's beach volleyball, men's and women's lacrosse, men's golf, and cross country and track and field. The NCAA has not published a calendar like this for sports such as soccer, swimming, tennis and wrestling. Ask the college's compliance office what applies.
Can I email a college coach during a dead period?
Yes. These periods limit when coaches may meet or watch recruits in person. They do not stop a family from emailing a coach, and a coach who is not allowed to meet your athlete in person can still read their page. A recruiting shutdown is stricter: coaches may not recruit in any form, so do not expect replies until it ends.
Does this calendar apply to Division II and Division III?
No. The NCAA publishes these calendars for Division I. Division II and Division III follow their own recruiting rules, so ask the college's compliance office.
Where do these dates come from?
They are read from the NCAA's own 2026-27 Division I recruiting calendars (the newest was updated July 30, 2026), and each one is checked against the dates the NCAA prints beside it before it goes on this site. We check the NCAA's calendars every week. Rules change, so confirm with a school's compliance office before you plan around a date.
Source: the NCAA's Division I recruiting calendars, linked on each sport's page. This is general information, not legal or compliance advice. NCAA rules change, so confirm with the college's compliance office. Read the full rules at NCAA.org.