Signing Day Sports Adds Sierra Romero, Bolsters Recruiting App

Former University of Michigan four-time All-American Sierra Romero knows her recruiting story isn't the norm. But she still wants to use her expansive knowledge of softball—from Michigan standout to volunteer college coach to professional star—to help Signing Day Sports grow its softball recruiting division.

The recruiting-focused app started in 2020 in football, quickly adding baseball, and in November 2021, moving into female sports for the first time with softball. As the app gains popularity, now with more than 60 college softball coaches signed on, hundreds of players and regular additions, adding Romero as an ambassador helps promote an app designed to help players from a diverse softball background get noticed.

"The experience I got at Michigan, I want that for every athlete," Romero says. "I have a younger sister still going through the recruiting process and I want her to have that experiencing playing college ball, that athletic family and that team that is your family forever. Having that experience is once in a lifetime."

She says the goal of Signing Day is to open the gates for all athletes to connect with coaches. And not just at the Division I level. While Romero will continue to offer insight to Signing Day to help make the platform better, she wants the partnership to remain an ongoing effort of improvement and growth. "Every year we are fine-tuning and giving the best app we can to female athletes," she says.

Brittany St. Pierre, head of the softball division at Signing Day Sports, played junior college softball and earned enough scholarships to finish her degree at LSU without debt. She knows that recruiting isn't just about landing a DI offer.

And with recruiting so different across the country, Signing Day Sports puts a focus on more than just stats, but also verified video—ensuring coaches can see true numbers, such as speed—while including a component that allows students to show off their personality.

"I'm a high school coach and I'm always asked about academics and attitude before coaches get to batting averages," St. Pierre says. "You can always get bigger, faster, stronger, but can you get along with 23 other girls? Can you be a great teammate? Can you perform in the classroom?"

As part of the app, athletes respond to a series of questions. They get 25 seconds to read the question and then 25 seconds to answer it. Those answers are on video and uploaded to their profile. And with hundreds of questions in the system—nothing too complicated—they can't prep a canned answer. "The kids can't practice," St. Pierre says. "Coaches don't like seeing something rehearsed."

Within Signing Day Sports, players build a profile with verified video, verified stats and personality information via the video interview and can put in the work to really fine-tune their profile. Coaches then choose which athletes they view and communicate with via the app. Barriers are in place to keep coaches from getting spammed by athletes.

St. Pierre says it gives coaches a tool to evaluate athletes, learning about them before they put in the effort to see them in person. "It gives them autonomy to be intentional about where they are spending their dollars," she says. "It will never take away going to see the kids, but it allows them to be strategic and intentional."

Billing itself as an app just as much for high-level athletes as for ones looking to match a great collegiate softball experience with a school of their choice, St. Pierre and Romero say they want to connect athletes with that great college experience that fits their needs.

"With softball specifically, your end goal should be to get to college and the scholarship is the thing that benefits you the most," Romero says. "Softball athletes get caught up in 'I want to play here,' but if you think about it, you want to pursue a degree and create financial stability when you're older. You have to think about it that way."

Romero believes Signing Day Sports levels the playing field so coaches can find that hidden gem, especially for an athlete who can't afford to make high-profile trips, saying she sees the app as a resource for kids who don't have as many opportunities to be seen. "This is now an organized way to help you get recruited by DI schools down to JUCOs," she says. "You have this one app where these coaches can come find you."

Tim Newcomb covers gear and business for Softball America. Follow him on Twitter at @tdnewcomb.

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