I recently staying in a nice hotel in downtown Cleveland. Everything is great about the room except the walls are thin, and I can hear what my neighbors are saying with clarity. One morning I actually heard a stern conversation coming through the wall from a father talking to his son about boasting on social media. He was stating that coaches, teachers, friends, parents, and people you don’t even know will look at your posts and comments and make judgements about you whether they are valid or not. He stated to be very careful in this day and age about what you put out there about yourself and your life. I wanted to knock on the wall and congratulate this dad for giving his son this wisdom, but that would have been too much like “Office Space.”
College and prep school coaches look at your social media. They have been doing this for years. Most teens have smartened up, but some have not. Just a few weeks ago the D’angelo Russell video went public and the fallout will hurt his persona for some time. Laremy Tunsil lost approximately nine million dollars when he dropped in the NFL draft due to a video appearing of him smoking weed, through a gas mask. When posting to a site keep it free of profanity, sexualized material, and excess. If you are constantly tweeting, snapchatting, or posting Instagram pictures a coach might wonder when you have time to practice your skills or study your books.