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Transferring of prep athletes is a scary trend
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Published: August 20, 2008
The adage – old adage, my dad always reminds me is redundant and therefore unnecessary – about not being able to tell the players without a program is becoming far too commonplace in an arena in which it has no place. It's much too much of an issue to ignore.
As the current high school fall season opens this week to christen the 2008-09 year in sports across the state, it's sad but true that making more news these days is the number of prep athletes who have already or may well be in the process of transferring to other schools for the sake of possibly enhancing athletic careers. It's a trend that needs to stop now.
Hardly a sports article crosses my eyes without the reading that one former student-athlete at one high school has now surfaced at another. More times than not, these are schools that are in near similar district lines. The ones involved are able to manipulate the system so that their needs as they see them primarily in the sports realm are met.
I'm not naïve enough to know that this hasn't been a concern of school athletic administrators, coaches and educational personnel as well. Hopefully, they have their eyes set on the proper priority that the academic surrounding and situation of the involved party has to come first. Sad to say, though, but that doesn't seem to be the case.
In nary an article of all the array of athletes popping up on new teams have I yet to be informed that the move was made in order to increase the educational potential of the student. Unlike in some situations, classwork has to come first and athletics second at the high school level. The emphasis is then replaced at higher levels of competition. That's why we have the professional ranks in place to begin with.
Local teams have their share of players coming and going, filing through the rotating door on a yearly basis. Some have moved in. Others have moved out. There have been cases where the player and/or players in question have been investigated to the point where they were deemed attending classes at and therefore playing sports for schools they were not legally allowed to do so. Penalties have in turn been assessed. One local high school sports program has been forced to the sidelines for a full year because of these findings.
At the high school level, the issue should be mute. In cases where families have to move for any number of reasons, it's understandable for the athletes to switch schools. However, switching schools first and then trying to squeeze in around the residential requirements in order to make the move seem legit is not the way the ball should roll.
It's obvious that sports play a major roll in the advancement of student athletes. For many, the only way they can assure moving on to the next level is with some scholarship assistance. Many are well aware that recognition in some sports is easier to come by at schools known for success in a particular area. For that reason, they are transferring just to play and perhaps get more attention.
It's a trend we can do without.
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