Welcome to The Next Play Agency. This isn't just a business; it's a passion born from a deeply personal journey. As a single parent, I experienced firsthand the exhilarating highs and the overwhelming uncertainties of college football recruiting. From the outside, it can feel like a maze. Our goal, the heart of this agency - is to help families navigate the football recruiting process with clarity, confidence, and a strategy.

But this journey didn't start when my son got recruited - it started when I fell in love with football as a kid growing up in the Bay Area, cheering for legends like Steve Young, Jerry Rice, and Ricky Watters. That passion for great competition grew into a lifelong dedication to sports as an athlete, a coach, a scout and more. Over the years I have worn nearly every hat in youth and competitive sports. I served as Athletic Director for a top travel football program, helped organize camps and showcases, evaluated athletes and managed rosters and most recently, guided my son through college football recruiting.

At the Next Play Agency, we combine that deep sports knowledge with a proven recruiting and branding strategy to help student-athletes get noticed and get to the next level.

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The Story Behind

The Next Play Agency.

Sarah Blacksher

Founder

Our Journey, Your Advantage:

The journey to securing over 30 Division I offers for my son was a testament to strategic planning, relentless effort, a deep understanding of the recruiting landscape, and the tools available to take control of the process. This timeline highlights key moments that shaped our approach and helped us make the next best play.

This journey taught us invaluable lessons about resilience, strategy, and the power of informed decision-making. These are the very lessons we now share with families through The Next Play Agency, helping you write your own success story.

June 6th, 2022

My son made the strategic decision to switch positions before heading into his junior year of summer camps. I was scared. Not only was he switching positions but he switched sides of the ball moving from a defensive player to offense. This was a bold move that required careful planning and a clear vision for how it would impact his recruiting trajectory.

In June I took him to the summer camp at MSU where both college and high school coaches took note of him and he was invited to attend a mega camp the next month in Atlanta, GA. We went. He then went into fall training and his junior season with interest but no offers.

December 18th, 2022

The culmination of hard work and strategic positioning came on December 18th, 2022 almost two months after the end of his junior season when my son received his first Division I offer to play football in the MAC Conference. This moment was not just a milestone, but validation our approach was working and it fueled our determination to continue building momentum. Over the winter break of 2022, he attended two more showcase camps where media outlets highlighted him as a standout player.

January 20, 2023

After attending a few showcase camps and collecting a few more offers, my son was honored with the news he was named a 3 star athlete by 247Sports, then ESPN and Rivals rankings followed. From there, things accelerated rapidly. This triggered an intense period of college scouts visiting him at school, campus visits, junior day invitations, coach communications, and more evaluating opportunities. We were constantly on the road, managing a demanding schedule while ensuring every interaction was meaningful and productive.

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May 19th, 2023

After a whirlwind of activity and receiving over 30 Division I offers, my son committed to the school of his dreams. This achievement wasn't just about the number of offers, it was about finding the perfect fit academically, athletically, and personally.

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