WVSSAC

[eastontilt]

This will probably get deleted (as usual) but this is an interesting read about how WVSSAC views WV athletes.




WVSSAC: One Bad Choice After Another


By Lowell Browning , Contributor
Mar 31, 2009
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The West Virginia Secondary Schools Athletic Commission may be the most inefficient powers that be in the nation.

It seems, and it seems purposeful, that the WVSSAC has money on the top shelf of their agenda and doing the right thing for the children a distant third or fourth.

While West Virginia typically produces fewer D1 athletes from year-to-year, the SSAC answers the question as to why with, "Well, our kids are usually more suited for West Virginia Conference play."

The WVC is a D2 league! That kind of attitude is terrible. In other words, our WV athletes should aim low and not stretch nor test themselves.

Tell me—someone, anyone? What kind of "thinkin'" is that from a board that is accountable for the WV high school athletes being the best that they can?

I venture to say one of the major reasons that WV kids are rarely of D1 talent is a stipulation that the high school coaches are allowed but three summertime weeks per year to work with their children during the offseason. This rule has been in place just a few years—and before the rule was implemented there was no contact allowed at all.

While the WV State Department of Education has a Board of Control (a board made up of every high school principal in the state) that has first access to requiring new rules' passage or failures, the WVSSAC is where their board of directors executive Gary Ray's office is located.

Recently a proposal came before the Board of Control,seeking to divide the schools in West Virginia to a four-division format. The proposal aimed to create a more level playing field in the Mountain State.

Currently, there are classes A, AA, and AAA. The problem with this alignment is the difference in enrollment.

Currently, the difference in class A is roughly 300 kids, from the smallest school to the largest. In class AA the smallest school in the class has about a 360-student enrollment disparity.

The problem is in class AAA. Bridgeport High School, with 627 students, is the smallest AAA school, while Parkersburg has 1,440 kids. These numbers only include grades 10 through 12, so the disparity is actually even larger!

There are 14 schools in WV's bigger class that have more than a 600-student enrollment difference advantage over 13 schools.

Kentucky while only having one class for basketball, does have a six-division set-up for all other varsity sports championships.

Ohio also has six districts and unlimited contact of coaches and players.

Virginia, another surrounding state, has over 300 schools—but they,unlike WV, do not allow the independent nor private schools participation.

Somebody grab me a calculator.

Why the powers that be in West Virginia can not do some basic math and allow a four class alignment and create better competition and a level playing field is another example of this organization not doing the right thing.

As coaches, we often tell our kids to do the right thing and not the easy thing.

I guess that does not apply to those in leadership of the athletics in the Mountain State.

Maybe these West Virginia athletic organizations need to hear what is tagged on the Virginia High School League board:

'The leaders of today's Fortune 500 companies, 95 perecent of them in vice president or above positions, have one thing in common. They all participated in high school sports."
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6 Comments

[Gator]

I couldn't agree more!

[coach_williams]

I have found the off-season contact to be an issue. I understand not wanting a coach to make it mandatory that kids spend their entire young lives invested in a sport, but what if a young athlete WANTS to spend their free time in the off-season getting better at their sport? Why should they be inhibited or prevented from working with their coach if they want to and the coach is willing to donate his/her time?

[mike.carman]

I have found the off-season contact to be an issue. I understand not wanting a coach to make it mandatory that kids spend their entire young lives invested in a sport, but what if a young athlete WANTS to spend their free time in the off-season getting better at their sport? Why should they be inhibited or prevented from working with their coach if they want to and the coach is willing to donate his/her time?

Amen to that. Principals want to control everything and everyone. That is why they should not govern the WVSSAC. It stems from the fact that school A cannot get a good coach so they want to handicap all the other programs that have a good coach. Just my opinion.

[coach_williams]

I have found the off-season contact to be an issue. I understand not wanting a coach to make it mandatory that kids spend their entire young lives invested in a sport, but what if a young athlete WANTS to spend their free time in the off-season getting better at their sport? Why should they be inhibited or prevented from working with their coach if they want to and the coach is willing to donate his/her time?

Amen to that. Principals want to control everything and everyone. That is why they should not govern the WVSSAC. It stems from the fact that school A cannot get a good coach so they want to handicap all the other programs that have a good coach. Just my opinion.

The catch is that most of those schools with better coaches are allowing their wrestlers to do off-season training at the school facilities. I won't name names, but I know of many that turn a blind eye to their coach having off-season practices. So in the end, the rule ends up only applying to those who have a principal or AD that enforces it.

[coastietrooper]

I believe for any sport, a coach should be allowed to have some off season contact and/or workouts which are voluntary for the athletes who want to participate. Some kids only play one or two sports... If for no other reason, it gives the kids a place to go, something to do, promotes exercise and keeps them out of trouble. Now making it mandatory would be something I disagree with. Anything other than that would be beneficial for all involved in my opinion.

[mike.carman]

I completely agree with off season work outs being voluntary, but to stipulate the coach can't work with the kids in that particular sport area and it can only be for conditioning purposes or what not is ridiculous. If a quarterback wants to throw a football in the off season and the coach wants to correct some mechanics, why can't they. Likewise, we have all heard or have been told that these wrestlers need to start working Freestyle. Well, the only time they can do this is in the off season. The wrestling coach should be able to work with his/her wrestlers then. He should also be able to take them to tournaments and coach them. Also, why can't the High School coaches have any involvement with the middle school kids. They will eventually be in the room.

[coach_williams]

This issue is a prime example of why we often see coach's children excel at the sport their parent coaches. The WVSSAC can not limit interaction between parent/coach and child/athlete, so those kids get extra attention in the off-season.

[mike.carman]

coach_williams: I complete agree with what you just said. What irks me even more though is middle school athletics are considered intramural/non-competitive. If that is the case, why are there so many restriction placed on our athletes. Where we live, the middle school coaches, in all sports, are always knowledgeable about the sport, leading to poor coaching methods and poor athlete performance. I heard someone describe it this way: they want to level the playing field for the average participant which forces the exceptional athletes to subject themselves to the rules imposed by the SSAC and thereby not allowing them to reach their full potential. Its a shame.

[mike.carman]

Meant to say aren't always knowledgeable.