High school football still feeling effects of economy

By Michael Carvell

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

If you received a scouting report from high school football coaches on the economy and its impact on their sport, it would read a little like this: It's about the same as last year, but we seem to be making wiser spending decisions.

Things don't seem to be as gloomy as months ago, when head coaches were being released because of layoffs. Then again, no one is quite ready to claim victory and predict an economic turnaround.

"It's too early to see what the impact of all these things is going to be," said Ralph Swearngin, executive director of the Georgia High School Association.

"From my discussions this summer with administrators, they were imposing some spending cuts on coaches. I think the coaches know they only have so much money. It's not as much as in the past, so they are being wiser with their decisions."

Here are some of the messages from around the state:

• Because of a budget deficit, Cobb County terminated dozens of teachers who were also coaches last May. However, with other teachers eventually deciding to retire or leave the profession, Cobb was able to hire back many of them, including the head football coaches at Pebblebrook, Allatoona, Lassiter, Wheeler and Kennesaw Mountain.

Cobb avoided major cutbacks that affected athletics, with the exception of incentives. In past years, coaches who directed two sports were given a $500 supplement, along with $1,000 for three sports. The incentive for coaching multiple sports has been eliminated.

• Creekside coach Johnny White says his booster club went to nine nearby car dealerships in Union City asking for sponsorships or donations, and none contributed. However, White said the economic challenges have developed stronger bonds between his boosters and parents, and he expects ticket sales to increase because "Georgians love football."
• DeKalb County athletic director Ron Sebree said that 25 percent of the junior-varsity games have been eliminated. Most teams will be playing five games instead of seven. "We'll save on transportation, coaching supplements, officials for those games, and the cost of using stadiums," he said.
• Kell coach Derek Cook says his strategy has been to stress membership to the booster club over the team's annual fundraisers, which include a golf tournament, "lift-a-thon" and coupon-card sales. As a result, Kell has increased to an 85 percent rate of joining the booster club. "It's too early to tell if much good is going to come out of [everything] other than increased awareness of fiscal responsibility," Cook said.
• Collins Hill has two to three fewer coaches than usual on its staff. One volunteer "community coach" lost his job and moved to Tennessee to seek employment, and the school was unable to fill a couple of jobs because of the hiring freeze. Those teachers would have been coaches. However, Collins Hill has attracted new sponsors and was more efficient at fundraisers.
• Lincoln County coach Larry Campbell says the economy remains "very poor" in Lincolnton, but that it hasn't affected school sports. The Red Devils had a sellout of 400 season-ticket sales and have more fans on a waiting list. The Class A school had some athletic funds in reserves, but had to spend the money while moving into a new campus.

"You know, stuff like bases for softball and baseball, equipment and things like that," Campbell said. "We'll have to watch our budget much closer than in the past."

• Centennial coach Jeff Measor said he has reduced products in the goody bag for his assistants, which included T-shirts, hats, polo shirts and hats. "We were spending a lot of money on things coaches like … they like to be fed, and they like a lot of gear," Measor said. However, Centennial did not have to cut back in other areas because of a hugely successful fundraiser. In past years, the team has generated around $10,000 to $12,000 by selling dining cards. This year, the number increased to $50,000, with assistance from players in the junior program, grades 4-8. Around 250 players total participated in the project.

"We had to make that a much bigger part of our program because our corporate sponsorship has gotten better than last year, but it is still well below where it was three years ago," said.

• Sandy Creek coach Chip Walker says things are going well at the Fayette County school. However, it likely has to do more with the team winning last year's Class AAAA state football championship rather than the economy. Sandy Creek hit the jackpot by playing in five playoff games last year, generating nearly $100,000 for its overall athletic funds.

"Tyrone is a small town, nothing like some of the nearby places," Walker said. "Everything is kind of spread out here, but we have the greatest support from our fans. They come from everywhere to fill up the stands and support these kids."

• Roswell athletic director John Coen has tried to plan ahead better, with the families of athletes informed much earlier about 2010 booster-club dues, as early as last March, because "a significant cushion of time allowed sensible pre-planning and well-paced payment." Coen added: "Our approach has been to work carefully with family budgets to allow them to support their student's chosen sport without removing food from the table."

Roswell also has struggled with sponsors, but is having some success by accepting services rather than donations. Coen said a landscaping company agreed to complete $5,000 worth of work on the campus rather than to give money.

• Mt. Pisgah Christian has raised $10 million to build athletic facilities, which is "a great testament to the commitment in these challenging economic times of our school and their families," according to coach Doug Dixon. However, the school now charges $95 to participate in interscholastic athletics, along with a fee for "spirit packs."

• Riverwood coach Robert Ingram said it's tough to gauge the effect of the economy on his program, with his team winning only five games in two years. However, he has seen a silver lining.

"You certainly find out who your supporters are," he said. "When things get tough, you find the same people right there with you. That kind of support cannot be replaced by raising funds or driving ticket sales. The emotional support is much larger than the almighty dollar, and we have that from our football families.

The GHSA says it needs to wait a few weeks into the football season before it can formulate any opinions regarding economic impact. However, Swearngin feels a little better about things than he did last year.

"It's eventually going to turn around," he said. "Maybe we'll be wiser and better appreciate the money we have when we start getting more of it, but it's going to take a while."