Dwindling attendance at high school playoff events

This might seem odd, but the physical newspaper you picked up to see national sports was also telling you about the local kids and if podunk high was any good this year.

The newspaper was a great way to promote high school sports and now if you don’t have a kid in high school, you really don’t know who is good and who is shitty, do you don’t go to games.

 

Two NFLers between the first and second team. Great list.

 

High school football players transfer to national powerhouse Mater Dei to play during the football season, then transfer back to their original schools to graduate high school.

Fryer: Transfers make fast exit from Mater Dei, and it looks bad for all involved – Orange County Register

 

Nothing new. In the early 80s my friend graduated private (not prep) school early, then transferred to the public HS in town, to get a better position in the MLB draft. He bumped a senior catcher named Chris Christie to the bench.

 

I don’t know how California could have anything resembling a state championship. The state is so goddamn big. Also: is it really worth it if you have to fly to a state final?

 

Texas is bigger in area and it manages just fine.

 

Who didn't see this coming when the CIF changed the transfer rules? It's free agency for preps.

 

I figured California has more schools.

 

It's the "schools of choice" mindset run amuck.

If it's acceptable or even admirable for little Billy or Barbie to switch schools for an English or STEM or performing arts curriculum, why is it nasty and awful and horrible to do it for football or basketball?

Of course the problem now is a substantial part of the populace don't wanna pay no taxes for nothin', particularly public schools.

So sports and performing arts, of course, are the first things that get cut, but quickly enough they get to STEM and English, and cut that too.

 

In Texas, 1,339 high schools are members of the UIL as of the 2018 realignment according to its website. The CIF has 1,514 schools listed under each of the 10 sections according to Wikipedia. (Texas has a ton of very tiny rural schools, which might inflate the number, and also excludes private schools, which compete in separate organizations.)

Texas holds six state championships for boys and girls in basketball (1A through 6A), while California holds seven (Divisions 1 through VI plus an Open division). Of course, Texas waters it down in football, splitting each class in half and holding 12 state title games.

California's system, though, appears to be more subjective, because every section is different. I imagine it's a lot like the NCAA selection committee. In Texas you go into the playoffs based on the seed you earn in your district and play a straight bracket, against neighboring districts first, and then the deeper you go, the more the travel.

 

Always figured high schools should dump classification by enrollment since participation levels by sport don't always line-up and just format conferences by geography and then have three conferences with relegation and promotion.
The crummy schools can still play for a championship and then move up to better competition if they win, drop down to a lower level if they stink. Rivalries will develop - figure if two local schools in different divisions want to play they can schedule a non-conference game and teams aren't travelling 100 miles or more to road games.