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Interest in high school sports

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Mr. X, Oct 20, 2008.

  1. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    Where I am, I have noticed reduced attendance at run-of-the-mill regular season games in football and basketball (the two most popular sports here), but when the games get bigger, schools still pack 'em in. Last winter, I coverered a girls regional championship game where the two schools had combined girls enrollment of about 125 and they jammed a 3,500-seat venue.

    I think people just have too many entertainment options these days. They still have an interest, and they still follow high schools sports, they're just doing it in different ways.

    I've talked to people who admit to attending fewer games, but their knowledge of the school they follow isn't in any less. In some cases, it probably has increased with the Internet boom.
     
  2. Tom Petty

    Tom Petty Guest

    the last place i worked at (i won't use round numbers because i want to keep my ID to myself) had between 50-70 high schools and 5-8 colleges in our coverage zone. we also attempted to give as much pro coverage as possible as well.

    the readers thought we put too much college and pro copy in front of them (not counting the local college FB teams). they wanted more prep coverage ... and never once, with the exception of a couple of freak parents, did anyone ever ask for sub-varsity coverage, ever.

    prep sports ruled that region of america, that's for sure, and they weren't terribly fond of sports that females played, either.
     
  3. shotglass

    shotglass Guest

    Looking at more of a 20-, 25-year sample, I'd say it's much like editorhoo said for us.

    We'll still have 8,000-10,000 for a big high school football game. But years ago, a game between two 4-5 teams might draw 5,000, because it was still the place to be for a community. Today, that same game draws 800 to 1,200.
     
  4. Tom Petty

    Tom Petty Guest

    bigger picture me, shots. less people are reading the paper. less people are attending games. but there's more folks on the face of the earth than ever.

    what the fuck is everyone doing? why does nobody care? and don't give me the old "they're all the the movies" line somebody tried passing off earlier.
     
  5. jps

    jps Active Member

    they're all online?
     
  6. NoOneLikesUs

    NoOneLikesUs Active Member

    Doing drugs and having sex!
     
  7. shotglass

    shotglass Guest

    They're doing 100 different things, tp. Look at it from the other side -- what they're not doing.

    When I was 10, it was naturally assumed that Saturday night, my uncle, my dad and I were going to the local HS stadium and see the mighty Hounds against Boiling Springs.

    Today, that family thing isn't happening. Yes, they might be going to the movies. Or the 14-year-olds may be getting dropped off at the local mall in their goth makeup. Or the 17-year-olds may be cruising Main Street for four hours. But they're not meeting at the high school stadium.

    Now, why don't they care? Yeah, that's a good question. I think part of it is that people have a wider view than they used to. In 1968, the local high school game was a big thing. In 2008, you know that there's a better college game the next day, or just that the high school game isn't that huge in the larger scheme of things.

    I don't think the high school football game has changed; I think Joe Everyman's view has changed.
     
  8. Tom Petty

    Tom Petty Guest

    solid. i buy that.
     
  9. Lieslntx

    Lieslntx Active Member

    High school football is still very important here in my neck of the woods. The only people who don't care about it are the ones that also don't care about who wins on Saturday or Sunday.
     
  10. CM Punk

    CM Punk Guest

    I think it's partly because a lot of people don't grow up and live in one place forever. These days -- and this is evident in our business -- you have to leave to go to college. You have to leave to find work. You have to leave to advance. Towns are populated by people who may only live there for a few years and then they pick up and go. The area I cover is thousands of miles from my home town. If I didn't have to cover the stuff for a job, I wouldn't give a shit either. I want to keep up with what the local idiot government is up to. I want to keep up with local business. I don't care if East Podunk beats West Podunk at football.

    Maybe my area sees more of it than others. But I'd be shocked to see 800 people show up for the local football team, even though it's ranked No. 1 in the state and undefeated.
     
  11. Appgrad05

    Appgrad05 Active Member

    Also take into account how many school systems across America have for years built up school after school.

    Where it used to be commonplace to have one county high school, there are now three. If 6,000 people showed up at the county high school's game, there are now 2,000 showing up at three different places.
     
  12. BrianGriffin

    BrianGriffin Active Member

    That's interesting. In Texas, the opposite has happened. Schools are getting bigger. Smaller populations consolidate. Good example is Port Arthur, where the old Thomas Jefferson, Lincoln and Stephen F. Austin high schools combined to form Memorial back in 2002. For a while, Beaumont was down to two schools in a city of around 115k.

    Only where there have been population explosions (places like the Houston, Austin and DFW burbs) do you see new schools. There are a ton of schools in Texas that have enrollments well over 2,000, some with enrollments between 4-5k. At these suburban schools, it's not unusual that these large communities draw 7-10k on their side for a game. If two suburban communities play each other, they can end up with somewhere around 15-20k, with both sides of the stadium packed.
     
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