JEFFERSON TWP — When it comes to college athletic recruiting, Tom Donahoe has experience from all angles.

He's seen it from the perspective of a high-school coach. He's seen the results from a pro football point of view.

Most importantly, he's gone through it as a parent.

“That's what made me realize how important it is to recruit yourself as a potential college athlete,” Donahoe said.

The Steelers' director of football operations from 1991-99 and the Buffalo Bills' general manager from 2001-05 now is a National Collegiate Scouting Association athletic recruiting educational speaker.

He has visited 40 schools and put on 20 seminars in Western Pennsylvania over the past year. Last Wednesday, he spoke to prospective recruits and their parents at Knoch High.

Donahoe's daughter, Kaitlin, is the point guard at Division III Bowdoin College in Maine. His son, Matthew, is a golfer at Division III Allegheny College in Meadville.

“I had never heard of Bowdoin,” Donahoe said. “They had recruited a girl from Chicago as point guard, but that girl had stopped studying after agreeing to go there, figuring she was set, and failed three courses.

“Bowdoin didn't want her anymore. My daughter was with a recruiting service, they found her video and called her.

“With the technology out there today, kids need to be proactive. Don't wait around to be found. You'll fall through the cracks,” Donohoe added.

Chris Krause, president and founder of NCSA, received more than 100 letters from colleges during his sophomore and junior years as a high school basketball player. By the end of his senior year, he hadn't gotten one offer,

He wound up walking on at Vanderbilt, made the team and earned a scholarship for his final two years there.

Donahoe said more than 7 million athletes played high school sports in the United States last year. There are 1,748 colleges and universities with athletic programs.

“Opportunities aren't limitless, but there are opportunities,” he said. “You have to find them, be aggressive and go after them.”

Less than 1 percent of high school athletes wind up with Division I scholarships. Eighty percent of the student athlete's opportunities are at schools other than Division I.

“Williams College in Massachusetts was the No. 1 ranked Division III sports program in the country last year,” Donahoe said. “They have 25 sports and their total recruiting budget is $38,000.

“Schools like that don't take a lot of (recruiting) trips. People come to them.”

Donahoe emphasized that a high school athlete can make only five official college visits. An official visit is when the college or university foots the bill.

“Unofficial visits are limitless. You can take as many as you want,” Donahoe said. “It's never too early to take advantage of that. Kids and their parents should start checking out schools as early as eighth or ninth grade.

“This isn't just a four-year decision. It's a decision that will affect the rest of the athlete's life.”

One myth Donahoe put to rest was that a player's high school coach will help place him or her with a college program.

“Most coaches would love to do that, but they have neither the time nor the resources,” he said. “Most high school coaches don't have more than five college contacts. Kids should market themselves to 40 or 50 schools, if not more.”

Knoch athletic director and basketball coach Josh Shoop agreed.

“Schools are cutting recruiting budgets all the time and high school coaches can only do so much,” Shoop said. “It's up to the kid and his family to get the athlete's name out there.”

While most college athletes will never turn pro in their respective sports, their paid education becomes their most prized tool.

Donahoe coached high school sports for 16 years. Only one of his athletes — Jim Sweeney of the New York Jets — ever turned pro.

“NCSA took a poll of 200 CEO's of major companies nationwide and 94 percent of those people were high school or college athletes,” Donahoe said. “All of them said that if two people were up for the same job and were equal in every other way, but only one was an athlete, they would hire the athlete.

“Sports can help set up life. It's up to the individual to take advantage of that.”