This is how Rother Alexander Honig made it into the College Football League in Texas with Twitter –
57 minutes ago
On social media and on the field: Alexander Honig was able to convince coaches Kenny Hill (left) and Sonny Cumbie of the TCU at the crucial moments.
15.04.2021
© Kyle Coulter/TCU
On social media and on the field: Alexander Honig was able to convince coaches Kenny Hill (left) and Sonny Cumbie of the TCU at the crucial moments.
15.04.2021
Foto: Kyle Coulter/TCU
–
–
–
–
–
Up until a few years ago, you had to go to high school in the US to get noticed as a good athlete and maybe get a coveted college scholarship. But the possibilities offered by digitization made it easier for the exceptional young athlete to be able to stay in Roth until he graduated from high school before he went across the pond to Texas.
“It was a dream for me to play in the College League from a very early age. I just had no idea how I could do it. The all-important question is: How do I get on the coach’s radar? And that belongs next to it the ability also a lot of luck. ” And the young athlete had that in the decisive moments.
In late 2016, Brandon Collier, a former American football professional, founded the PPI Recruits platform, which aims to bridge the gap between international football talent and college programs in the United States. “I got the tip from a trainer in Bonn that I could contact the PPI.” The Rother was already there for two weeks on the first PPI Tour in June 2017 and the PPI took him under its wing in 2018 and 2019 as well. Initially at camps, later also at smaller, targeted events.
The mother as a camerawoman
In total, he drove to the USA five times for his dream. But besides the camps, it was above all the digital self-marketing that opened the doors to the colleges for him. “I started showing myself on social media very early on. Especially on Twitter, where the trainers look. This is the main recruiting platform.”
140kg/310lbs x1 with ease!????@TCUFootball @SonnyCumbie_TCU @TCUCoachP pic.twitter.com/hIPcwx3BDv
– Alexander Honey (@ AlexanderHonig1) November 18, 2019
There he repeatedly posted “highlight videos” with film sequences from training sessions and games. “My mother kept filming me for it.” He then edited the films himself, added music to them, posted them and also sent them directly to trainers. “The coaches get a lot of videos like this. If you’re lucky, they’ll take a minute for your video – and then you have to convince right now.”
Quaterback talent honey: will he be Franconia’s next NFL star?
He only found out that he had succeeded when he received the offer from the TCU (Texas Christian University in Forth Worth, Texas) in the summer of 2019 at the crucial recruiting camp. “Sonny Cumbie, the head coach of the TCU, told me that he had been watching me on Twitter for a while.” Honig is convinced: Without PPI and without active social media work, it would have been very difficult or even impossible to get there.
In the case of Alexander Honig, things went the other way around: He had to show himself intensively in the run-up to social networks in order to attract the attention of the trainers in the USA. Now he has reached his first big milestone. He trains and studies at the TCU. Since he has been there, he has been able to concentrate on training and studying. As long as he is on the college team, it is currently forbidden to have your own sponsors. Therefore, it is no longer so important for him to be constantly present on social media at the moment.
From talent to Frank’s football star: This is how Mark Nzeocha fought his way to the Super Bowl
It is probably every football player’s dream to be in the Super Bowl one day. For Mark Nzeocha, who was born in Ansbach, this dream came true in February 2020. We look back on the model athlete’s career and show how hard Nzeocha had to fight for it.
–
He still gets a lot of messages. His name is at the top of the “Placements 2021” on the PPI website. “I see it as an obligation. I know that I am now a role model for everyone who wants to come here too. Many young, enthusiastic American football players from Europe write to me who have the same dream as me. And of course I am happy to help them. I try to answer everything personally. “
“Train hard”
But if someone writes: “I would like to start playing American football at some point. What do I have to do so that I can go to college in the USA?”, Then his advice is: “First of all, find a club with one good coach and train hard. Then when you are really good you can worry about it. ” Self-marketing alone is not enough. Fortunately, athletic performance still comes first. And that is what the young quarterback can concentrate on now.
