How X Match works

X Match is X Factor Recruits’ research and planning engine. It helps a high-school athlete and their family explore a practical question:

Where can I realistically look at playing my sport while studying what I want, based on who I am today?

It is not a scholarship predictor, an admission calculator, or a promise that a coach wants you.

What X Match uses

When your X Factor profile is available, X Match can read:

• Sport and position or event
• Verified and self-reported athletic metrics from your evaluation
• GPA and academic profile
• Intended major, career, or “I’m not sure yet”
• Graduation year
• Location and school preferences you choose to save
• Published school facts (College Scorecard and XFR school records)
• Sport sponsorship (whether the school fields your sport)
• Versioned XFR benchmarks for your sport and position

You should not have to re-enter information XFR already knows.

What X Match does not predict

X Match does not tell you:

• That you will get recruited
• That you will receive an offer
• That you qualify for a division
• That a school “wants you”
• That you will be admitted
• That a scholarship amount is available

An X Match Score is alignment, not a probability.

X Match is designed to help athletes research college programs based on available profile, school and preference data. Match results do not guarantee admission, roster availability, coach interest, scholarships or recruiting offers.

Athletic alignment

This is the X Factor difference. X Match compares your metrics with sport- and position-specific roster benchmarks XFR already maintains. A quarterback is not scored like an offensive lineman. Track events are not scored like football.

Missing a test does not mean you scored poorly. X Match uses what you have and lowers confidence.

Self-reported numbers are not secretly reduced. They mainly affect confidence compared with verified results.

Academic alignment

Academic alignment compares your current academic profile with the range XFR uses for that school (for example GPA versus published selectivity signals).

It is not an admission probability.

Major matching

You can search a major, a career, or plain language (“physical therapist”, “video game developer”, “sports”).

X Match normalizes those intents into related undergraduate pathways and labels them honestly. A related pathway is not the same program. X Match will not claim professional licensure from a related major.

If your search is ambiguous, you should see “Are any of these what you mean?” — not a silent pick.

If you are undecided, you are not punished. Athletics, academics, location, and cost can still rank programs.

Roster information

Roster Opportunity uses available roster context only. It does not mean a spot is open or that a coach is recruiting you. If XFR does not have attributable need data, that factor is left out rather than guessed.

Financial information

Financial Fit compares published cost with preferences you provide. Actual cost and aid may differ. Athletic scholarships are never assumed.

Preferences and hard requirements

Some choices exclude schools (for example: must sponsor your sport). Others only change ranking (for example: prefer to stay within 300 miles). Required filters never hide a failing school inside “Best Matches.”

Confidence

Confidence (High / Medium / Low) measures how complete and current the data is, not how “good” you are.

A Strong Match with Medium confidence still means: with what we know, this looks aligned — complete the missing items to trust it more.

Data freshness and versions

School cost and admissions figures include a data year when we have it. Every X Match Score is tied to a scoring methodology version and the benchmark version used for athletic comparison. Older snapshots are not silently rewritten when methodology improves.

Limitations

• Not every school has complete major or roster data yet
• Related majors are pathways, not identical degrees
• Distance uses approximate location (city / ZIP / state), not a minor’s street address
• Results are private by default

X Match should get more useful as your profile and XFR’s school data grow. That is the point: the answer evolves as you do.

FAQ

Does X Match predict if I will get recruited or admitted?

No. X Match scores describe alignment between available athlete and school information. They do not predict admission, roster availability, scholarships, recruiting interest, or offers.

Why is my confidence medium if my match score is high?

The score measures how well available data lines up. Confidence measures how complete and current that data is. Missing metrics lower confidence — they are not treated as poor performance.

Can a school pay to rank higher?

No. X Match never ranks a school higher because of advertising, sponsorship, or paid placement.