Maeve Heckard will have her phone on at midnight Sept. 1.

That’s when college coaches are again allowed to start reaching out to prospective student-athletes entering their junior year of high school.

“That’s definitely what I’m hoping for,” said Heckard, a defender who is a junior at Lansdale Catholic (Pa.) High School and plays for Ultimate Lacrosse.

She isn’t sure if any school will call then. She isn’t really sure what to expect after contact with college coaches was shut off when the NCAA passed Proposal 2017-1 on April 14, 2017.

“When the rule passed, there was a little bit of that shock value and a little bit of a scramble for people,” said USC women’s head coach Lindsey Munday. “Once everyone digested it, I think everyone could make a lot of sense of it. The majority of coaches wanted this. For the players, they hopefully realize this is in their best interest. It took a little bit of time to sink in, but once it did hopefully everyone realizes this is in everyone’s best interest.”

There was widespread uncertainty when the proposal passed and went into effect immediately to cut off men’s and women’s college coaches from communicating with prospective student-athletes until Sept. 1 of their junior year of high school.

“There was confusion over the implementation of the rules this summer,” said Kerstin Kimel, the Duke women’s head coach and chair of the IWLCA’s NCAA Division I Legislation Committee that orchestrated the landmark rule. “There were a lot of difference scenarios and questions that parents, coaches and club parents had. We compiled all that and sent it to the NCAA.”

The NCAA answered with an educational column on July 13 to clarify further the recruiting rules. Emphasized over and over by the NCAA is that college coaches are not to hold recruiting conversations with student-athletes, parents, high school or club coaches prior to Sept. 1 of a student-athlete’s junior year. They can, however, have evaluative conversations with high school/club coaches to get their take on a “student-athlete’s academics, athletic skills, speed, agility, personality, character, work ethic, coachability, etc.” And a college coach is permitted to tell a coach that they are interested in a player, but cannot, for instance, tell them they are a top prospect or where they may be on their list of recruits. They cannot set up future discussions or visits with a student-athlete through a coach, discuss potential financial aid or scholarship offers or ask about a student-athlete’s interest level in their school until that Sept. 1 date.

Said Heckard: “I reached out to more schools this summer than last summer because there was so much I didn’t know about schools and who was interested in me and who wasn’t.”

On the phone, college coaches are only allowed to confirm a student-athlete’s age, explain the recruiting rules and then hang up. Student-athletes can still email schools, but won’t hear back until after Sept 1.

“That’s the part that kids haven’t figured out,” said Notre Dame men’s head coach Kevin Corrigan. “Some are clear and concise in their communication with you and they understand they won’t get a response. And others, they feel it’s just a waiting game until Sept. 1 and then it all starts. Everyone needs to get educated what it’s like – parents, coaches and club coaches. Club coaches, when’s the right time to call us and get a guy on our radar? I think we’re all trying to figure out the most effective way to deal with the new environment is.

“There are always kids more or less clued into the process. At the end of the day, it’s still about coaches seeing kids, liking them and going after them.”

Aidan Danenza will be a sophomore midfielder at St. Anthony’s (N.Y.) High School who plays for Team 91 Crush. His summer changed after the recruiting rules changed, and he realized it will be more than a year until college coaches can talk to him.

“I actually didn’t go to some of the camps that I had planned to,” Danenza said. “I figured I’ll go to them next year when it makes more sense and coaches are interested. They could watch you play through the fall and part of the summer and then we could repeat it from there.”

It’s also true for some college coaches. There isn’t so much pressure to be at every event from start to finish.

“We’ve witnessed a difference in number of college coaches watching rising freshmen and rising sophomores,” said Virginia men’s head coach Lars Tiffany. “The Classes of 2020 and 2021 games, tournaments, showcases, have received much less in terms of attendance and Division I viewings than what would have been the case if this rule had not been into place. I was really happy to witness that. It felt good to me to realize the immediate impact of the legislation and that those rising freshmen and rising sophomores were playing lacrosse and challenging themselves without having the added pressure of what your status is right now with college coaches. I was happy to see the immediate impact of the legislation.”

Players noticed the stark change this summer. After games, tournaments, or showcases, there was no contact with college coaches.

“I think it was a lot less stressful knowing college coaches weren’t going to be coming up to us asking us to come play for them and we weren’t going to be getting calls right away,” said Quinn Ferry, a sophomore at Central Bucks East (Pa.) High School girls team. “It was nice for us freshmen. It was nerve-wracking thinking about it before we even got into high school.”

Part of the design of the rule was to allow players to just play, but even that took some getting used to.

“It went from talking every weekend to nothing at all, no input,” Danenza said. “When the rule came out I thought there would be some loopholes with what they could say, but there’s absolutely nothing. I don’t know anything.”

One of Danenza’s 91 Crush teammates, Tyler Cordes, a midfielder who will be a sophomore at Connetquot (N.Y.) High School, likes the effect on the pace of the new recruiting rules. Just like Danenza, he was talking to college coaches before the recruiting rule went into effect in April, but then was cut off cold turkey. He looks at the extra year as a good thing.

“I don’t think it’s that long away,” Cordes said. “It gives me time to keep working on my game and get more skills up and gives me more time to think about what I want to do. I’m only a sophomore. I’m not sure what I want to do. It slowed things down and helped me a lot and allowed me to be a kid and hang out with the friends and not think lacrosse, lacrosse, lacrosse and think what I have to do.”

Slowing down the process was one of the main reasons the recruiting rules was passed. Initially, some had reservations about this effect, particularly on student-athletes who had been on the cusp of making a decision.

“It’s basically like the whole process froze,” said Mack Moore, a sophomore attack at Upper Dublin (Pa.) High School who plays for Ultimate. “Nobody else can do anything either so I don’t feel behind. We’re all in the same place. I don’t really feel behind.”

Said Cordes: “With the new rule, I feel less pressure. You have a feeling when all the college coaches were coming that you had to make a quick decision. I feel like I have more time to see what colleges are right for me. I kind of like the rule.”

Moore, though, points out that not all the pressure is gone.

“When the rule was put out, it was thought it would take all the stress off the kids and they won’t have to go to camps and clinics,” she said. “It’s not like that. I still have to go to camps and clinics to impress coaches because that’s what everyone else is doing.”

Club coaches have mixed feelings on it. They’d like to be able to pass along more information to their players, but the rule limits what college coaches can tell them. Carol Rainson-Rose, director for the Long Island Yellow Jackets girls club, likes being able to focus on one class more than in the past, but also sees players getting worried as it heads into the open recruiting period.

“Kids are anxious, concerned and overwhelmed,” she said. “Most have no idea what Sept. 1 will bring, which is frightening because they don’t know where they stand. It’s definitely tough on them and families especially as we navigate the rest of the 2019 class. We already had a large group commit early but the group of kids that did not commit early are concerned.”

There is still the fear that come Sept. 1, that pressure will ratchet back up for juniors. That’s when college coaches can start to extend offers to the players that they have been watching all summer.

“I think kids will very, very excited in anticipation of hearing from schools,” Kimel said. “The naysayers, and the people who are skeptical are concerned that coaches are going to bombard kids with, ‘This is where you are on our list, I need you to get here in a week and I’m going to make you an offer, and I need a decision tomorrow.’ That’s the stuff people are concerned about. Whether or not that’s going to happen, I don’t know. People are worried kids are not going to play their fall sport because they’re going to want to go on college visits.”

Heckard feels lucky in that respect. She plays field hockey in the fall, but her high school coach is also her lacrosse coach and will give her some flexibility to take visits as she tries to choose a college.

“I’d like to have it done this fall to get it all done with, but I still want to make sure I find the perfect fit,” Heckard said. “I don’t want to jump into anything too quickly. I want to make sure I’m comfortable with it.”

College coaches, who have seen transfer rates rise, are hopeful that the extra time will help student-athletes find the right fit, along with helping them make better decisions about who to offer spots to.

“Choosing where you want to go to college is an extremely important decision, both for the players that are choosing and for the coaches who are offering roster spots and potential scholarships,” Munday said. “In that sense, that pressure has died down a bit and you can get to know the kids more and kids can get to know the coaches more. I think that’s a really important piece of choosing a school. Hopefully everyone can buy into that process and really taking their time and making an educated decision about this huge part of their lives.”

This year’s decisions may come swiftly in some cases because prior to the recruiting rule passage, college coaches had established contact with some prospective student-athletes and already have a solid hold on their choices.

“The new normal is coming,” Kimel said. “It’s not going to work itself out for a year or two.”

Said Tiffany: “Down the line, are we going to hear about prospects committing Sept. 2? That raises red flags. Commitments should be happening in November or December after month or two of visits once they know some people. That’ll be litmus test for me if the spirit of the rule is being followed or not followed.”

Corrigan likes the tone that the rule sets. He thinks it’s good for coaches and players.

“I don’t liken this decision to buying a car,” Corrigan said. “I liken this decision to getting married. You’re not going to marry the first guy or girl that calls. If you make this decision properly, it’s forming a relationship and learning everything you can about them and making sure you know as much as you can.”

Heckard is grateful for the extra few months that have helped her narrow her focus on colleges. Without the passage of the recruiting rules, she might have rushed her decision.

“I honestly think I might have,” Heckard said. “I know college spots were filling up. Now that it’s slowed down, I’m not as worried. I know the schools that have 2019 spots open that I could potentially fill. It’s nice.”