By Mike Phelps
Across the country, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and high school state athletic associations have been working to prepare for the upcoming school year. Some have altered the rules that govern their respective sports, while one has welcomed eight inductees into its hall of fame. School isn't yet in session, but there's still plenty of work getting done.
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The NFHS Board of Directors has elected Dr. Ennis Proctor, Executive Director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA), to the position of president-elect for the upcoming year. This marks the first time since its founding in 1922 that the MHSAA has an executive director on the NFHS Board.
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Following a series of protests after controversial finishes in state high school basketball playoff games in South Carolina, Ohio, and Michigan, support began to grow for instant replay at the high school level. The NFHS discussed the issue at its April meeting and shot down the idea.
"Everybody wants to crown the right champion, we're in the business to do things for kids," Mary Struckoff, NFHS Assistant Director and Staff Liaison to the Basketball Rules Committee, told Rivals.com. "Philosophically, though, this is not where we want high school athletics to go. Do we do it for all games and what makes one contest more important than another? That was part of the discussion and why it got complicated and why it failed."
The Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association has decided to allow varsity basketball coaches to be on the bench during summer league games. Neighboring states such as Pennsylvania and West Virginia have allowed this practice for years, but this is the first time Maryland coaches will be allowed to do so. In addition to being on the bench during games, coaches are allowed to hold practices for every scheduled summer league game.
“I’ve been sending petitions for the last few years, and I guess they finally got so many they decided to change the rule,” Liberty High School coach Steve Johnson told the Carroll County Times. “Now, this gives us coaches the chance to evaluate players before they come to the varsity level in the winter.”
High school softball playoffs in Alabama will undergo a major change next season, as the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Central Board of Control unanimously approved a format to create four regional tournaments. The set-up is similar to the system basketball has used since 1994. AHSAA Executive Director Steve Savarese told the Cherokee County Herald that the changes, “will make high school softball even bigger and better than before.”
The classification system used by the Hawaii High School Athletic Association is drawing some criticism as schools with high enrollment numbers participate in the Division II championship tournaments. Division II was formed in 2003 with the goal of giving smaller schools a better chance at competing for state titles. However, the Oahu Interscholastic Association, the state’s largest division, continues to use a power rating—varsity and junior varsity win-loss records combined—as the source of separation between the two divisions, instead of enrollment. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin ran a series on the issue, and even offered up its own solution to the problem.
A Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) rule regarding transfer eligibility is under scrutiny after several athletes transferred to new high schools for non-athletic reasons and were forced to sit out their first season at the new school.
“All I'm asking is for the KHSAA to use more common sense,” writes the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Richard Skinner. “If a player wants to transfer and the school he is leaving is OK with that athlete playing at his new school, then that should be good enough.”
New Jersey started the nation’s first high school steroids-testing program two years ago, with Florida and Texas following a year later. Florida has since dropped its program, while Illinois will begin this year. Low occurrences of positive tests, however, are quickly diminishing other states’ interest in starting their own programs.
"We're not against steroid testing," Bobby Cox, Assistant Commissioner at the Indiana High School Athletic Association, told USA Today. "You look at Florida and New Jersey, and they have two positive tests. Is it really worth it to put that much money to get that kind of return?"
Bill Bost, Ken Browning, Richard Hicks, Mac Morris, Jan Stanley, Time Stevens, Billy Widgeon and Charlie Adams have been selected for induction to the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame. The group brings the total number of people enshrined to 118. The inductees will be honored during a halftime ceremony on Oct. 25 when North Carolina faces Boston College at Kenan Stadium.
Mike Phelps is an Assistant Editor at Athletic Management
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