Coaches. Stats. Grades. Applications.
High school athletes looking for an offer from a college have a lot on their minds. The recruitment process can confuse students, especially when they have no guide.
That is where Guilford College senior and former Quakers running back Josh Williams comes in. His company, Janesh Sports, provides services to help develop high school athletes looking to play sports in college.
“We are like a resource for all athletes who want to be on the next level,” said Williams. “We provide everything necessary.”
Williams says the idea came to him as a sophomore when he briefly lost his spot on the football team, a spot that he worked hard to regain. He felt that when he lost his spot, he lost his focus in life.
“I had to find something that I actually cared about,” Williams said. “So, I just sat down with myself and said ‘What do you care about?’”
Janesh, a Hindi name that means “leader of the people,” provides services targeted towards high school athletes such as athletic training and showcases. It also offers academic services like SAT prep and tutoring to help athletes succeed off the field.
“Our number one market is the guys who don’t have the athletic ability to go to the next level,” said Williams. “It’s not a shoo-in for them.”
Additionally, Williams plans on offering some free seminars for potential recruits featuring coaches and others from local colleges.
“The recruiting process in high school is not so clear for rising first-year students in college,” said Faris El-Ali ’14, coordinator of the First Year Experience, student success mentor and former Guilford football player. “As a high school senior or even junior there aren’t a lot of people out there who are telling you what the recruiting process looks like, what you should expect, how you get a coach’s attention or how to move on to the next level.
“There aren’t a lot of things like what Josh is doing with Janesh.”
Janesh’s seminars and other services will also help demystify the admissions process, another critical piece of the recruitment puzzle.
“Sometimes we don’t see the same thing that a coach sees,” said admissions counselor Grace Sullivan ’14. “We only see what they’re willing to give us, and they think that all of the power lies with the coach.”
Much like the athletes, Janesh faces challenges going forward. As a relatively new company, it is still in the process of building a customer base, which can be tough in the world of athletics.
“When (high school athletes) see the competition, the physical aspect, their confidence is high,” said El-Ali. “That’s what they know. But when they hear there is a professional development networking session, it’s a little intimidating.”
But, Williams has the confidence and support of many people in the Guilford community.
“Josh is a hardworking person,” said head football coach Chris Rusiewicz. “He’s done nothing but get better each semester.”
Williams hopes that he can build on that support and all of the things he has learned at Guilford to make Janesh a success.
“The things that we’ve all experienced are the things I will teach these kids,” said Williams. “The core values that I’ve learned at Guilford will be things that I teach kids.”
