Low Numbers in HS Football

[Eersfan 36]

1 hour ago, 50kw said:

Baseball has a bigger issue.

[Eersfan 36]

Just now, Eersfan said:

2 hours ago, 50kw said:

Baseball has a bigger issue.

I agree. It’s hard to sell HS kids on baseball. Football and Basketball are promoted year round by the media, coaches, and even administrators. I was watching ESPN the other day and NBA summer league was on. I’ve grown tired of the NBA in the past 10 years. It has saturated the media  since the late 90’s and I don’t see the excitement that it used to  bring in the 80’s and 90’s. Go up to any HS kid, athlete or not, and they can name almost any current NBA player. These same kids don’t know much about sports other than the celebrity of it. Most of them are clueless to the rules and history of the sports they follow. The media , including social media, have indivualized sports like never before. Focusing on superstars and not the game itself. Even kids that play baseball won’t watch baseball on TV other than the HR hitting contest.  Those same baseball players can tell you every player that Lebron had the Lakers trade for. Why isn’t the MLB draft covered as closely as the NBA and NFL ? Granted it’s like 100 rounds long but even so it receives very little attention.

[Bluefield researcher 1,195]

The baseball draft receives no media attention because the media is not showing the players in college or high school. Most people already know who the NBA draftees and NFL draftees are before they are drafted. Almost no one knows who the baseball players are.

[Eersfan 36]

2 hours ago, Bluefield researcher said:

The baseball draft receives no media attention because the media is not showing the players in college or high school. Most people already know who the NBA draftees and NFL draftees are before they are drafted. Almost no one knows who the baseball players are.

That lack of media attention starts at the local level. Baseball deserves more respect from media outlets , parents and administrators as well. Southwest Virginia, for instance, is blessed with more baseball talent than football or basketball talent. Yet it will always be the #3 or lower male sport at these same schools. That lack of respect will continue to fuel the discrepancy 

[sixcat 2,919]

5 hours ago, Eersfan said:

That lack of media attention starts at the local level. Baseball deserves more respect from media outlets , parents and administrators as well. Southwest Virginia, for instance, is blessed with more baseball talent than football or basketball talent. Yet it will always be the #3 or lower male sport at these same schools. That lack of respect will continue to fuel the discrepancy 

The whole state exhibits a "lack of respect" toward baseball.  Virginia is one of the only states still playing a 20 game regular season.  Every other state has mastered the 30 game schedule.  North Carolina even plays the entire Final Four as a best of 3 game series!

[stu_bean 1,058]

On 7/15/2019 at 6:25 PM, UVAObserver said:

In addition, what most of the Baby Boomers and Gen Xers bemoan as “picking up a controller” is in reality becoming more oriented in STEM and electronics.  I hate to break this to anyone, but coal will never again be what it was in 1973.  Information technology (IT) is the backbone of our future economy.  The boys that used to bale hay and dig ditches in the summer, which lends itself to a sport like football, are now learning to code and program, which doesn’t lend itself.

 

I am IT for profession and hobby.  I love gaming but that doesn't stop me from wanting to love football just as much.  I fully support the STEM and more nerdy things as I myself like it and my daughter has taken an interest as well.  My boy loves football with me and would like to play but as Ryan later said, with all the CTE things, we just haven't given in on that yet.  Still much debate there.  With all that said there is no reason that you can't be dedicated to multiple things.  You can be a IT pro and still have the passion for football if you want to that is... 

[SXSW 557]

7 hours ago, sixcat said:

The whole state exhibits a "lack of respect" toward baseball.  Virginia is one of the only states still playing a 20 game regular season.  Every other state has mastered the 30 game schedule.  North Carolina even plays the entire Final Four as a best of 3 game series!

The TSSAA has actually made schools dial back there schedules. In the late 90's and early 2000's the West Tennessee schools were playing 50-70 games per year, they would start playing tournaments in January and February. They would have 30 games under their belts before the regular season started..   

[swva_fan 91]

Parents express concern after cancellation of Bland County youth football

https://wvva.com/sport/top-sports-stories/2019/07/25/parents-express-concern-after-cancellation-of-bland-county-youth-football/

[Gridiron60 2,555]

13 hours ago, swva_fan said:

Parents express concern after cancellation of Bland County youth football

https://wvva.com/sport/top-sports-stories/2019/07/25/parents-express-concern-after-cancellation-of-bland-county-youth-football/

They had to beg and plead to get enough out for the high school team. They graduated Several from varsity team last year. Pulled all 6th graders up from youth league for the middle school team this year. 

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

2 hours ago, Gridiron60 said:

They had to beg and plead to get enough out for the high school team. They graduated Several from varsity team last year. Pulled all 6th graders up from youth league for the middle school team this year. 

On a positive note.  I believe Graham should end up with over 50 this season.   Numbers have continued to go up in recent years.

[sixcat 2,919]

A 16 year old kid just earned $3 million dollars for winning a Fortnite tournament.  Second place earned $1.8 million dollars while the two kids that tied for third split $3 million dollars.  The tournament as a whole paid out $30 million dollars in cash prizes. 

Maybe those kids skipping high school sports to play video games aren't crazy or lazy after all!!!!!!!!!

[cavalieratmosphere 6]

On 7/14/2019 at 2:57 PM, Bearcat Dad said:

Bristol has become nothing short of a retirement community as well. With once thriving industrial parks becoming little more than ghost towns, young families have no choice but to move away from the area to find work that pays good enough to raise their children. At least we are working hard to become the retail capital of SWVA! (Sarcasm)

Even a respectable profession like education, is in a horrible state in SWVA. Teachers are grossly underpaid compared to the rest of the state and because of issues like declining population, cities like Bristol do not want to build new schools, they just want to slap band-aids on their decrepit old schools and build fancy shopping centers in hopes of mirroring our Tennessee brethren. 

We do have a superintendent that is fighting very hard to help the kids in Bristol, but as we all know, the powers that be in Richmond usually forget that the state does extend west past Roanoke.

Both of my kids have expressed interest in leaving the area when they receive their degrees. I hate it, but I can’t say I blame them.

What jobs are there around here that pay well? There's the school systems, hospitals, a couple of tech companies in Lebanon & some tech jobs coming to the Oxbow Center in St. Paul. Outside of that, I can't of many. It's sad. 

[Bearcat Dad 439]

59 minutes ago, cavalieratmosphere said:

What jobs are there around here that pay well? There's the school systems, hospitals, a couple of tech companies in Lebanon & some tech jobs coming to the Oxbow Center in St. Paul. Outside of that, I can't of many. It's sad. 

There aren’t many at all. SWVA is really becoming one of the poorest regions in the country.

[cavalieratmosphere 6]

On 7/31/2019 at 3:05 PM, Bearcat Dad said:

There aren’t many at all. SWVA is really becoming one of the poorest regions in the country.

At least Virginia has Medicaid expansion now, so that at least helps some worse off people...

[grandpaw trojan 17]

47 minutes ago, cavalieratmosphere said:

At least Virginia has Medicaid expansion now, so that at least helps some worse off people...

Did not help me (AGAIN)
 

[SXSW 557]

On 7/31/2019 at 3:05 PM, Bearcat Dad said:

There aren’t many at all. SWVA is really becoming one of the poorest regions in the country.

Like I have posted on here twenty times, if you draw a line on the map from Gate City to Abingdon anything north of that line is dead or dying, some places quicker than others. Unless oil is discovered in Southwest Virginia or a gold strike, it going to like Southern West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky, a few spots of resistance but that will be it...the next round of change for SW Virginia is further school consolidations. One high school for Wise, Russell, Tazewell, Buchanan  counties.

[Deleted Account 5,203]

9 minutes ago, SXSW said:

Like I have posted on here twenty times, if you draw a line on the map from Gate City to Abingdon anything north of that line is dead or dying, some places quicker than others. Unless oil is discovered in Southwest Virginia or a gold strike, it going to like Southern West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky, a few spots of resistance but that will be it...the next round of change for SW Virginia is further school consolidations. One high school for Wise, Russell, Tazewell, Buchanan  counties.

Tazewell won’t be going to 1 high school until I’m old and senile, if even then.  It’ll be even longer for Wise.  Buchanan’s geography won’t allow it.  Russell is probably the only one where that’s feasible.

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

On 7/31/2019 at 2:04 PM, cavalieratmosphere said:

What jobs are there around here that pay well? There's the school systems, hospitals, a couple of tech companies in Lebanon & some tech jobs coming to the Oxbow Center in St. Paul. Outside of that, I can't of many. It's sad. 

If the school systems are considered as being paid well, then you are definitely in trouble. Our school systems in this area pay much less than other parts of the state.

[Bigrhsfan 884]

2 hours ago, Real Sasquatch said:

If the school systems are considered as being paid well, then you are definitely in trouble. Our school systems in this area pay much less than other parts of the state.

That is so true.  My wife has taught in this area for 33 years and we can attest to that as far as the pay goes compaired to the eastern part of the state !  But I will say that we are still blessed because it does pay better that a lot of other jobs in this area

[SXSW 557]

 

 

 

 

 

6 hours ago, UVAObserver said:

Tazewell won’t be going to 1 high school until I’m old and senile, if even then.  It’ll be even longer for Wise.  Buchanan’s geography won’t allow it.  Russell is probably the only one where that’s feasible.

It will become really feasible when there aren't enough students to fill the schools, all the East Tennessee Counties have or are considering consolidation and the economy in East Tennessee is far better than Southwest Virginia, it will be easier to run on 800 student school than 4 200 student schools, but I look for schools to start to push for "school from home" instead of homeschooling where they don't need buildings or teachers.  

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

As I mentioned before, the long range plan that has been discussed for Tazewell Co. (which I believe will happen eventually) is that there will be 2 schools in each town, Bluefield, Tazewell and Richlands.  The Middle Schools will house k-7 and the High Schools will be 8-12.  There are still 7 elementary and primary schools in the County that will be closed before the High Schools will be touched and I believe that the middle schools will be re-purposed, they can all 3 house over 1,000 students and the 8th graders could easily be moved into the High Schools.  Several Virginia counties already use this model.  2 elementary schools have already closed and I believe you will see the remaining 7 closed in the next 15 to 20 years.  There are plenty of 1A and 2A schools in the area to keep all 3 High Schools in the county.

[cavalieratmosphere 6]

On 8/2/2019 at 6:59 AM, SXSW said:

Like I have posted on here twenty times, if you draw a line on the map from Gate City to Abingdon anything north of that line is dead or dying, some places quicker than others. Unless oil is discovered in Southwest Virginia or a gold strike, it going to like Southern West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky, a few spots of resistance but that will be it...the next round of change for SW Virginia is further school consolidations. One high school for Wise, Russell, Tazewell, Buchanan  counties.

What do you think are examples of the pockets of resistance? I think it might include Wise and Norton. 

[Deleted Account 5,203]

33 minutes ago, cavalieratmosphere said:

What do you think are examples of the pockets of resistance? I think it might include Wise and Norton. 

Norton has the highest use of prescription opioids per capita in SWVA.  It’s been nationally published.  Don’t think it’d be them.

[sixcat 2,919]

1 hour ago, UVAObserver said:

Norton has the highest use of prescription opioids per capita in SWVA.  It’s been nationally published.  Don’t think it’d be them.

I read an article in the Washington Post on Thursday that stated Norton has the highest per capita mortality rate due to opioid abuse in the United States. 

[Deleted Account 5,203]

1 hour ago, sixcat said:

I read an article in the Washington Post on Thursday that stated Norton has the highest per capita mortality rate due to opioid abuse in the United States. 

This is the article to which I was referring.  I apologize for misquoting the article (though the truth of the matter is actually worse than I originally quoted).  Hard to tout Norton as an exception when it’s the definition of the rule.