Dear Coach,

I’m writing to invite your program to participate in the 2026 Black Cager Live Period Invitational. Before I get into the details, I want you to know that this invitation comes from a place of deep respect for the work you do every day. I understand the weight you carry—not just the wins and losses, but the responsibility of helping young men find a path to college basketball and, ultimately, a degree.

I also understand how dramatically that challenge has changed.

The emergence of the NIL and Transfer Portal era has fundamentally reshaped the recruitment landscape, and I know you’re living it. Many Division I coaches have effectively stopped recruiting high school players, choosing instead to build their rosters through the portal. Those who do still look at the high school ranks are focused almost exclusively on the top 100 to 150 prospects in the nation. The result is a stark and undeniable reduction in the number of scholarships available to high school seniors.

And it’s about to get tougher. The proposed “5 in 5” eligibility model—granting athletes five years of eligibility after high school or after turning 19—will further squeeze the pipeline. With NIL compensation on the table, older, more physically mature players will have every incentive to use that extra year, staying in programs longer and further limiting the opportunities for the young men coming out of our high school gyms.

This is the new paradigm. It’s not going away, and simply complaining about it won’t help our players. We have to adapt, and we have to lead.

That’s exactly what the Black Cager Live Period Invitational is designed to do.

Black Cager Sports, in partnership with Game Plan Intelligence Group, is taking a deliberate and strategic approach to the new reality. We are not waiting for the old system to return. Instead, we are proactively inviting over 100 coaching staffs from Division II, Division III, NAIA, and Junior College programs to come directly to our event. These are the programs that still recruit and value high school players. These are the staffs actively looking to fill rosters with developing talent. And we are going to connect them directly with you, your players, and their families.

We want to help you help your kids. We want to take the lead in helping young players and their families navigate this unfamiliar terrain, opening their eyes to the outstanding opportunities that exist across all levels of college basketball. A scholarship isn’t defined by the division; it’s defined by the fit, the education, and the chance to keep playing the game you love.
We look forward to having you play with us. Let’s work together to make sure the players in your program aren’t left behind in this new era. Let’s identify those opportunities, make the connections, and show our young men that the dream of playing college basketball is still very much alive—the path just looks a little different now.

We will follow up shortly with schedule/opponent information. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you for the work you do. Let’s get to work together.

With resolve and respect,

Delgreco K. Wilson

Founder, Black Cager Sports

856-366-0992

Jason Boggs
Event Director, Black Cager Sports
484-522-2750