Be true to your school
Summer tends to be the slow time for those of us that coach, play or cover high school sports.
Yes, there are the offseason workouts and a few summer league games, but for the most part it is a time that is a bit more laidback.
That’s not true for everyone though.
Summer is often the time when high school athletes decide to take their talents elsewhere.
It doesn’t take long for me to figure out who is new to a team and who has left. Every summer there are kids from across Okaloosa County that decide they will be happier at another school where they might get more playing time or where they will play their position of choice.
Sometimes the moves are lateral moves to a school that is similar in size and in the same classification and district. There are other kids that decide to move down to a smaller school. And, on rare occasions, some athletes from smaller schools want to see if they can make it in a bigger arena against tougher competition.
I also know some moves are due to conflicts between the player and a coach or a parent and a coach.
Whatever the reason, high school athletes have been reduced to junior free agents as they try to find the best deal and fit for themselves.
All of the maneuvering is made easier by the Florida High School Athletic Association, which has what amounts to an open transfer policy. The FHSAA doesn’t have residency requirements for a student athlete. The FHSAA leaves that decision up to the local school districts and individual schools.
In reality if a wealthy family in Pensacola or Crestview owns a private plane or chooses to pay for roundtrip airfare each day, their son or daughter could go to school and play ball in Miami or Tampa as long as the local school board in question gave its approval.
I’ll admit that is an extreme example that has never happened as far as I know.
I have heard of a situation in the central part of the state where a kid lived in Pennsylvania in the fall so he could play football and then moved to Florida each spring for baseball.
Most of the cases I’m aware of though involve local kids leaving for another local school. Usually the move is within Okaloosa County, but sometimes it involves athletes leaving Okaloosa County to play for a school in Walton County or vice versa. Some student-athletes from the east end of Santa Rosa County will sometimes find their way to Fort Walton Beach or Choctawhatchee, but because Santa Rosa County doesn’t allow transfers from outside the county local athletes don’t have that option.
I have to admit I’d like to see the Okaloosa County School Board adopt a similar policy, only with more bite.
I’d like to see a rule that would force kids to sit out a year athletically if they transfer without moving to their new school zone. I’d like to see a similar rule for those transferring to another school in the same FHSAA district.
I don’t like seeing kids quit one school to play for another. I believe it sets a bad pattern that in time could set the tone for the rest of their lives.
Life isn’t always easy and there are times we all have jobs we don’t like or difficult bosses. Those who learn the lesson of perseverance at an early age are ahead in the game of life when times do get tough.
The kids aren’t just leaving a school or a coach; they are leaving teammates who depend on them. When you leave one high school for another you say to me that you are bigger than the team.
As a student, athlete and alumnus, I’ve been a Gulf Breeze Dolphin for 38 years. I’ve known many of my old teammates and classmates since my family moved to Gulf Breeze in 1966. The moments we shared through elementary, middle and high school were common experiences we celebrated as we graduated and have continued to celebrate at our reunions.
I was a Gulf Breeze guy and the thought of attending Milton, Pace or Jay to play for a rival is a repulsive today as it was all those years ago.
Today, as it was back then, it comes down to loyalty and being true to my school and teammates.
Sadly, loyalty seems to have become the forgotten virtue.
