The Paratum Scholars

NCAA Recruiting Calendars

The 2026-27 NCAA Division I and Division II recruiting calendars for 26 sports, laid out day by day: each row is one stretch of dates and the one period that applies, so you can see exactly when coaches can call, visit, watch, and meet with prospects. NCAA Division III and the NAIA don't use recruiting calendars; their contact rules are summarized below.

  • Contact Period
  • Recruiting Period
  • Evaluation Period
  • Quiet Period
  • Dead Period
  • Signing Date Dead Period
  • Recruiting Shutdown
  • No Restricted Period

Please Note: These dates come from the NCAA's official 2026-27 recruiting calendars, which the NCAA may revise at any time. Where the NCAA lists a shorter period inside a longer one (for example, a dead period during a contact period), we've split the dates so each row shows the period that actually applies. Each sport links to its official NCAA calendar; always confirm there or with the college's compliance office. Source: NCAA Eligibility Center. Last updated: October 2026.

What Do the Periods Mean?
Contact Period
Coaches may meet prospects and their families in person, on or off campus, and may watch them play or practice.
Recruiting Period
Used in Division I men's basketball. Works like a contact period: in-person, off-campus contacts and evaluations are allowed.
Evaluation Period
Coaches may watch prospects play or practice and visit their schools, but may not talk with them in person off campus.
Quiet Period
Coaches may meet prospects in person only on the college's own campus. No off-campus contacts or evaluations.
Dead Period
No in-person contacts or evaluations anywhere, and no official or unofficial campus visits. Calls, texts and emails are still allowed.
Signing Date Dead Period
Division II. Works like a dead period around a signing date: no in-person contacts, evaluations or campus visits.
Recruiting Shutdown
No recruiting of any kind: no contacts, evaluations, official or unofficial visits, letters, emails, texts or phone calls.
No Restricted Period
The NCAA calendar lists no contact, evaluation, quiet, dead or shutdown period for these dates, so the sport's normal NCAA recruiting rules apply.
NCAA Division III and NAIA: No Recruiting Calendars, but Contact Rules Still Apply

NCAA Division III

Division III does not use recruiting calendars, so there are no contact, evaluation, quiet or dead periods. These contact rules still apply. The year after each rule is when the NCAA adopted it in its current form.

  • Coaches may call, text, email and message a student privately at any time. (Adopted 2021)
  • Coaches may send recruiting materials at any time. (Adopted 2009)
  • In-person, off-campus contact with a student or their family is not allowed until the student has finished their sophomore year of high school. (Adopted 2015)
  • There are no limits on how often or when coaches may watch a student play. (Adopted 2009)
  • On a game day, coaches may not talk with an athlete until the athlete's coach releases them for the day, and coaches at the event may not call or text them there. (Updated 2021)
  • Coaches may talk with parents and guardians at the practice or game site, even during the game. (Adopted 2009)
  • Unofficial (family-paid) visits are unlimited and allowed at any time, including before junior year. (Updated 2021)
  • Each college may pay for one official visit, no earlier than January 1 of junior year and up to 48 hours long. (Adopted 2015)
  • There are no binding letters of intent. After admission, a student may sign a nonbinding celebratory signing form, but not on campus or with college staff present. (Adopted 2015)
  • Division III colleges do not offer athletic scholarships. (Per the 2026-27 NCAA guide)

Sources: NCAA Division III Manual 2026-27 (Bylaw 13); NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete 2026-27

NAIA

The NAIA does not use a recruiting calendar and has few restrictions on contact between students and coaches. The year after each rule is when the NAIA published or adopted it.

  • Coaches and high school students may communicate with few restrictions, and there are no contact, evaluation, quiet or dead periods. (Published 2026)
  • Once a student has enrolled at an NAIA college, or drawn equipment and begun practice there, other NAIA colleges may not start contact. If the student reaches out, a coach may respond but must notify the student's current college. (Published 2026)
  • NAIA coaches may start contact with junior college students at any time. Before this, they had to wait until the student finished a first year of competition. (Adopted 2025)
  • Tryouts are limited to two days (the NAIA's student guide says two days across a student's whole career). (Published 2026)
  • The NAIA has no association-wide binding letter of intent. Individual colleges may use one, but it does not oblige the student to attend, though some conferences honor letters signed within the conference. (Published 2026)

Sources: NAIA Guide for the College-Bound Student-Athlete (May 2026); NAIA: 2025 updated recruiting rules (Bylaw amendment 25-B-06, effective April 7, 2025)

26 of 26 sports · 306 periods

BaseballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Contact Period
    Aug 1-16, 2026
  2. Quiet Period
    Aug 17 - Sep 10, 2026
  3. Contact Period
    Sep 11 - Oct 11, 2026
  4. Quiet Period
    Oct 12 - Nov 8, 2026
  5. Dead Period
    Nov 9-12, 2026
  6. Quiet Period
    Nov 13-23, 2026
  7. Recruiting Shutdown
    Nov 24-29, 2026
  8. Quiet Period
    Nov 30 - Dec 21, 2026
  9. Recruiting Shutdown
    Dec 22-27, 2026
  10. Quiet Period
    Dec 28, 2026 - Jan 6, 2027
  11. Dead Period
    Jan 7-10, 2027
  12. Quiet Period
    Jan 11 - Feb 28, 2027
  13. Contact Period
    Mar 1 - May 30, 2027
  14. Dead Period
    May 31 - Jun 7, 2027
  15. Contact Period
    Jun 8-18, 2027
  16. Dead Period
    Jun 19-21, 2027
  17. Contact Period
    Jun 22 - Jul 2, 2027
  18. Dead Period
    Jul 3-5, 2027
  19. Contact Period
    Jul 6-31, 2027

Men's BasketballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Dead Period
    Aug 1-19, 2026
  2. Quiet Period
    Aug 20 - Sep 8, 2026
  3. Recruiting Period
    Sep 9 - Nov 8, 2026

    Live evaluations are limited to regularly scheduled high school, prep school and two-year college contests, tournaments and practices, scholastic activities at the prospect's own school, and international or nonscholastic team practice and competition.

  4. Dead Period
    Nov 9-12, 2026
  5. Recruiting Period
    Nov 13 - Dec 23, 2026

    Live evaluations are limited to regularly scheduled high school, prep school and two-year college contests, tournaments and practices, scholastic activities at the prospect's own school, and international or nonscholastic team practice and competition.

  6. Dead Period
    Dec 24-26, 2026
  7. Recruiting Period
    Dec 27, 2026 - Mar 31, 2027

    Live evaluations are limited to regularly scheduled high school, prep school and two-year college contests, tournaments and practices, scholastic activities at the prospect's own school, and international or nonscholastic team practice and competition.

  8. Dead Period
    Apr 1-8, 2027
  9. Recruiting Period
    Apr 9-30, 2027

    Live evaluations are limited to regularly scheduled high school, prep school and two-year college contests, tournaments and practices, scholastic activities at the prospect's own school, and international or nonscholastic team practice and competition.

  10. Quiet Period
    May 1-8, 2027
  11. Dead Period
    May 9, 2027
  12. Quiet Period
    May 10-13, 2027
  13. Evaluation Period
    May 14-16, 2027

    NCAA-certified events and regularly scheduled international scholastic or nonscholastic team practice and competition only. Certified events run Friday 8 AM to Sunday 4 PM.

  14. Quiet Period
    May 17-25, 2027
  15. Dead Period
    May 26 - Jun 6, 2027
  16. Quiet Period
    Jun 7-10, 2027
  17. Evaluation Period
    Jun 11-13, 2027

    Approved NCAA, NFHS and two-year college governing body scholastic events.

  18. Quiet Period
    Jun 14-18, 2027
  19. Dead Period
    Jun 19-20, 2027
  20. Quiet Period
    Jun 21-24, 2027
  21. Evaluation Period
    Jun 25-27, 2027

    Approved NCAA, NFHS and two-year college governing body scholastic events.

  22. Quiet Period
    Jun 28-30, 2027
  23. Dead Period
    Jul 1-7, 2027

    A prospect may not make an unofficial visit in July unless they have signed the school's written offer of admission and/or financial aid, or paid a deposit in response to an offer of admission (Bylaw 13.7.2.1).

  24. Evaluation Period
    Jul 8-11, 2027

    NCAA-certified events, institutional camps, permissible governing body events, and international scholastic or nonscholastic team practice and competition. Runs Thursday 8 AM to Sunday 6 PM.

  25. Dead Period
    Jul 12-14, 2027

    A prospect may not make an unofficial visit in July unless they have signed the school's written offer of admission and/or financial aid, or paid a deposit in response to an offer of admission (Bylaw 13.7.2.1).

  26. Evaluation Period
    Jul 15-18, 2027

    NCAA-certified events, institutional camps, permissible governing body events, and international scholastic or nonscholastic team practice and competition. Runs Thursday 8 AM to Sunday 6 PM.

  27. Quiet Period
    Jul 19-25, 2027
  28. Dead Period
    Jul 26-31, 2027

    A prospect may not make an unofficial visit in July unless they have signed the school's written offer of admission and/or financial aid, or paid a deposit in response to an offer of admission (Bylaw 13.7.2.1).

  29. Dead Period
    Aug 1-18, 2027
  30. Quiet Period
    Aug 19-31, 2027
  31. Evaluation Period
    TBD

    NBA G League Combine only.

  32. Evaluation Period
    TBD

    NBA Draft Combine only.

  33. Evaluation Period
    TBD

    NBPA Top 100 Camp only.

Women's BasketballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Quiet Period
    Aug 1-9, 2026
  2. Recruiting Shutdown
    Aug 10-16, 2026
  3. Quiet Period
    Aug 17-31, 2026
  4. Contact Period
    Sep 1-30, 2026

    Contact period for seniors and two-year college prospects only. For other prospects it is an evaluation period, scholastic activities only.

  5. Evaluation Period
    Oct 1 - Dec 23, 2026

    Scholastic activities only.

  6. Dead Period
    Dec 24-26, 2026
  7. Evaluation Period
    Dec 27, 2026 - Feb 28, 2027

    Scholastic activities only.

  8. Contact Period
    Mar 1-31, 2027

    Contact period for seniors and two-year college prospects only. For other prospects it is an evaluation period, scholastic activities only.

  9. Dead Period
    Apr 1-5, 2027
  10. Quiet Period
    Apr 6-21, 2027
  11. Dead Period
    Apr 22, 2027

    For high school and two-year college prospects only.

  12. Evaluation Period
    Apr 23-25, 2027

    Certified nonscholastic events only.

  13. Dead Period
    Apr 26, 2027

    For high school and two-year college prospects only.

  14. Quiet Period
    Apr 27 - May 2, 2027
  15. Recruiting Shutdown
    May 3-9, 2027
  16. Quiet Period
    May 10-12, 2027
  17. Dead Period
    May 13, 2027
  18. Evaluation Period
    May 14-16, 2027

    Certified nonscholastic events only.

  19. Dead Period
    May 17, 2027
  20. Quiet Period
    May 18 - Jun 15, 2027
  21. Dead Period
    Jun 16, 2027
  22. Evaluation Period
    Jun 17 (from noon) - Jun 19 (until 6 PM), 2027

    Scholastic events approved by the NCAA and NFHS, and intercollegiate events approved by the applicable two-year college governing body (Bylaw 13.1.7.6.2).

  23. Dead Period
    Jun 20, 2027
  24. Quiet Period
    Jun 21 - Jul 7, 2027
  25. Dead Period
    Jul 8, 2027
  26. Evaluation Period
    Jul 9-12, 2027

    A prospect may not make an official or unofficial visit during the July evaluation periods unless they have signed the school's written offer of admission and/or financial aid, or paid a deposit in response to an offer of admission (Bylaw 13.7.2.2).

  27. Dead Period
    Jul 13, 2027
  28. Quiet Period
    Jul 14-21, 2027
  29. Dead Period
    Jul 22, 2027
  30. Evaluation Period
    Jul 23-26, 2027

    A prospect may not make an official or unofficial visit during the July evaluation periods unless they have signed the school's written offer of admission and/or financial aid, or paid a deposit in response to an offer of admission (Bylaw 13.7.2.2).

  31. Dead Period
    Jul 27, 2027
  32. Quiet Period
    Jul 28-31, 2027

Football (FBS)Division I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

The NCAA has published this calendar through Dec 31, 2026 only.

  1. Dead Period
    Aug 1-31, 2026
  2. Evaluation Period
    Sep 1 - Nov 29, 2026

    33 evaluation days (42 for U.S. service academies) during the fall evaluation period.

  3. Dead Period
    Nov 30 - Dec 31, 2026
  4. Quiet Period
    Around home games

    From 48 hours before a home game (on campus or at the usual home-game facility) played in August or on Sept. 1 or 2, through 48 hours after the game ends.

Football (FCS)Division I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

The NCAA has published this calendar through Dec 31, 2026 only.

  1. Dead Period
    Aug 1-31, 2026
  2. Evaluation Period
    Sep 1 - Nov 29, 2026

    33 evaluation days (42 for U.S. service academies) during the fall evaluation period.

  3. Dead Period
    Nov 30 - Dec 3, 2026
  4. Contact Period
    Dec 4-17, 2026
  5. Quiet Period
    Dec 18-20, 2026
  6. Dead Period
    Dec 21-31, 2026
  7. Quiet Period
    Around home games

    From 48 hours before a home game (on campus or at the usual home-game facility) played in August or on Sept. 1 or 2, through 48 hours after the game ends.

SoftballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Contact Period
    Aug 1-9, 2026
  2. Evaluation Period
    Aug 10-27, 2026

    Scholastic practice and competition only, except on the weekends of Oct 17-18, Oct 24-25, Oct 31-Nov 1, Nov 7-8, Nov 14-15 and Nov 21-22, when nonscholastic practice and competition may also be evaluated.

  3. Dead Period
    Aug 28 - Sep 3, 2026
  4. Evaluation Period
    Sep 4 - Nov 8, 2026

    Scholastic practice and competition only, except on the weekends of Oct 17-18, Oct 24-25, Oct 31-Nov 1, Nov 7-8, Nov 14-15 and Nov 21-22, when nonscholastic practice and competition may also be evaluated.

  5. Dead Period
    Nov 9-12, 2026
  6. Evaluation Period
    Nov 13-22, 2026

    Scholastic practice and competition only, except on the weekends of Oct 17-18, Oct 24-25, Oct 31-Nov 1, Nov 7-8, Nov 14-15 and Nov 21-22, when nonscholastic practice and competition may also be evaluated.

  7. Quiet Period
    Nov 23-24, 2026
  8. Recruiting Shutdown
    Nov 25-29, 2026
  9. Quiet Period
    Nov 30 - Dec 8, 2026
  10. Dead Period
    Dec 9-12, 2026
  11. Quiet Period
    Dec 13-21, 2026
  12. Recruiting Shutdown
    Dec 22-26, 2026
  13. Quiet Period
    Dec 27-30, 2026
  14. Recruiting Shutdown
    Dec 31, 2026 - Jan 2, 2027
  15. Evaluation Period
    Jan 3 - May 31, 2027

    Scholastic practice and competition only.

  16. Dead Period
    Jun 1-11, 2027

    Based on the Women's College World Series dates. If the WCWS is delayed, the dead period runs through the day of the final game; if it ends after two games, the dead period ends on the day of the final game and the contact period starts the next day.

  17. Contact Period
    Jun 12 - Jul 31, 2027

    Start date depends on the Women's College World Series (see the June dead period).

  18. Evaluation Period
    Varies

    During high school regional and state championship competition that does not fall in a dead period.

Women's VolleyballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Quiet Period
    Aug 1-31, 2026
  2. Contact Period
    Sep 1 - Nov 8, 2026
  3. Dead Period
    Nov 9-12, 2026
  4. Contact Period
    Nov 13-30, 2026
  5. Quiet Period
    Dec 1-16, 2026

    Coaches at the American Volleyball Coaches Association awards banquet may have incidental contact with prospects being honored there, provided no recruiting conversation occurs.

  6. Dead Period
    Dec 17, 2026 - Jan 1, 2027

    Thursday of the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship through the following Sunday. Coaches may evaluate at only one event on one day, within 30 miles of the championship site, and not while championship matches are being played.

  7. Quiet Period
    Jan 2-14, 2027

    Coaches at the American Volleyball Coaches Association awards banquet may have incidental contact with prospects being honored there, provided no recruiting conversation occurs.

  8. Contact Period
    Jan 15 - Feb 28, 2027
  9. Quiet Period
    Mar 1-4, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  10. Contact Period
    Mar 5-7, 2027
  11. Quiet Period
    Mar 8-11, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  12. Contact Period
    Mar 12-14, 2027
  13. Quiet Period
    Mar 15-18, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  14. Contact Period
    Mar 19-21, 2027
  15. Quiet Period
    Mar 22-25, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  16. Contact Period
    Mar 26-28, 2027
  17. Quiet Period
    Mar 29 - Apr 1, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  18. Contact Period
    Apr 2-4, 2027
  19. Quiet Period
    Apr 5-8, 2027

    Monday through Thursday each week in March and early April.

  20. Contact Period
    Apr 9-30, 2027
  21. Quiet Period
    May 1 - Jun 3, 2027
  22. Contact Period
    Jun 4 - Jul 31, 2027

Beach VolleyballDivision I

NCAA published Jul 30, 2026 · Official Calendar (PDF)

  1. Contact Period
    Aug 1 - Nov 8, 2026
  2. Dead Period
    Nov 9-12, 2026
  3. Contact Period
    Nov 13 - Dec 6, 2026
  4. Evaluation Period
    Dec 7-15, 2026
  5. Dead Period
    Dec 16-31, 2026

    Coaches at the American Volleyball Coaches Association awards banquet may have incidental contact with two-year college prospects being honored there, provided no recruiting conversation occurs.

  6. Evaluation Period
    Jan 1-15, 2027
  7. Contact Period
    Jan 16 - Apr 30, 2027
  8. Evaluation Period
    May 1-4, 2027
  9. Dead Period
    May 5-9, 2027

    Coaches may evaluate at only one event on one day, within 30 miles of the championship site, and not while championship matches are being played.

  10. Evaluation Period
    May 10-28, 2027
  11. Contact Period
    May 29 - Jul 31, 2027