The National Letter of Intent

The National Letter of Intent was created in 1964 and today most colleges and universities are participating in the program.

The National Letter of Intent was put together for the benefit of the athlete and university. The athlete benefits when he signs a National Letter of Intent because he is assured an athletic scholarship for one full academic year. The university benefits when a National Letter of Intent is signed because the athlete cannot be recruited by any other university.

When signing a National Letter of Intent you must be positive that this is the school that you want to attend. By signing the NLI you are agreeing to attend the university for one full academic year. If you do not attend this school for one full academic year, you may be subject to some consequences such as sitting out for one year before being eligilble to play elsewhere.

When will you be asked to sign a National Letter of Intent? Well, how it works is, you will be recruited by a college or university. If they like you and want to offer you a scholarship, then they will ask you to sign a National Letter of Intent during one of the signing periods. If you are positive that you want to attend this school for at least a year, then you sign. If not, then you have the option of waiting to see what other offers come to the table. Signing a National Letter of Intent is not mandatory but it is a good idea if both the university and athlete agree on a scholarship amount and the athlete wants to attend that school.

If you are under 21 years old, then one of your parents must sign the NLI too.

Also, the coach of the college that you are signing with cannot be present at the time of signing.

The NJCAA also has their own version of the National Letter of Intent.