I read an article that made me wonder about the future direction of high school athletics and their national perception. There can be a lot of money to be made in national tournaments by promoters and sponsors. Not to mention that it also leads to the development of high school super powers as some teams see a heavy influx of transfer students and even recruiting instate as well as out-of-state players.
I follow baseball players in our state and I have also noticed some player movement from school to school that has changed the outlook for teams. There are many reasons how this can happen, some legit, some not. Playing for a high school super power can draw the attention of college coaches, scouts and agents. I don’t believe it’s the same in baseball as it is for basketball, but the landscape seems to be changing.
So the question today is,” Should the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), sanction national championships in high school sports or should state tournaments be the culmination of a high school athletic season?”
The trend seems to be that more and more independent organizations and their sponsors are moving to the concept of competition beyond the state tournaments. I recently read that in addition to wrestling, the national coaches association sponsors high school national championships in football, golf and s****r. The organization is not alone. Foot Locker sponsors a national cross-country championship in which Winona's Garrett Heath competed during the fall. ESPN2 televised a prep football game in October between Evangel Christian (La.) and De La Salle (Calif.). The teams were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the USA Today preseason rankings.
Basketball has for years been putting together national tournaments that have promoted teams like Oak Hill (Va.) Academy. Some people argue there is a downside to national competition. Athletes miss school to play out of state. Schools that become national powers, particularly in basketball, compete intensely for top players. Tournament sponsors often pay for part or all of a high school's travel expenses.
The national rankings that are used to make the matchups also are a concern. Without support from the NFHS and individual states, promoters set up their tournaments based on national rankings, but some of the rankings are compiled by the same individuals who run the tournaments. Those promoters are likely to favor the teams they are bringing in when they make rankings.
Organizers can go out on their own and declare they're having a national championship, you can give anybody a trophy and a medal and make them feel good.
The NFHS adopted a position in 1934 not to sanction high school national championships, and it hasn't changed. In 1979 the organization's national council voted against a proposal to put on national championships in golf, tennis and track.
"If you make every game a life and death proposition, you're going to have problems. For one thing, you'll be dead a lot."
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