High school passing leagues extend season

By Michael Carvell

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

High school football is slowly turning into a year-round sport with the proliferation of passing leagues in June and July.

They first kicked off nearly 20 years ago, mainly with teams that featured high-powered passing attacks meeting a few nights each summer.

Fast forward to 2009, when nearly every school in the state, even teams that predominantly run the ball, puts together a collection of skills players for the non-contact competition.

Some teams play in as many as 60 scrimmages, while most play 25-35 number of games. Rarely does a summer do go by without a team having the opportunity to enter a scrimmage or tournament. North Cobb and Gainesville won all-expense-paid trips to other parts of the country.

The Georgia High School Association (GHSA), the state’s governing body, has no authority over passing leagues and no intention to do so.

“We have three rules for the summer,” said Ralph Swearngin, the GHSA’s executive director. “Number 1, whatever they do has to be voluntary. Number 2, they have to observe the dead week [of July 4], and Number 3, that they not work out in full pads.”

Here’s a list of the pros and cons of passing leagues:

Pros

● New offenses. For first-year coaches such as Sequoyah’s James Teter and Dunwoody’s Michael Youngblood, it’s an opportunity to further install passing packages or make tweaks to new offenses.

“We’re going to run more than pass this season, but the games give our young quarterbacks a chance to throw the ball a lot,” Youngblood said.

● New quarterbacks. For first-year quarterbacks, such as North Gwinnett’s C.J. Uzomah, they are practicing in a competitive environment. “It’s a lot different than running against air or your own defense every day,” North Gwinnett coach Bob Sphire said. “And it’s a whole lot different when you officials out there and are keeping score. You have pressure situations, and you have to make plays at key times.”

● Team bonding. North Cobb was the state’s representative in the NFL’s passing tournament in Minnesota. Gainesville had 23 players and 7 coaches land a journey to Oregon for the Nike tournament.

“After spending that much time with each other, you learn a lot about your players and their personalities,” Gainesville coach Bruce Miller said.

● Recruiting. Several college scouts have requested film in advance of Lassiter quarterback Hutson Mason, who is participating in the Hoover (Ala.) Invitational this weekend. Mason has early scholarship offers from Iowa and Indiana and has a half-dozen other colleges seriously interested.

“They want to see if I can make all the throws,” Mason said. “This is my chance to show them against some of the top [defenders] in the nation.”

Cons

● Injuries. North Cobb had two starters suffer serious injuries in June in qualifying matches for the NFL passing tournament: Linebacker Kareem Reeves broke his left leg against Kell, and wide receiver Leanard Coons suffered fractured ribs against South Cobb.

“It’s frustrating, but at the same time you’ve got to get out there and compete because everybody else is doing it,” North Cobb coach Shane Queen said.

● The play is not realistic. Because it’s a passing league, and defenses know the ball will be thrown each down, many defenders will cheat on each play. “You see linebackers turn their backs to the quarterbacks right after the snap, and all kinds of things you’d never see in a real game,” Queen said.

Passing League rules

● Touchdowns count as seven points, while defensive interceptions count as three.

● Quarterbacks have four seconds to throw or thye are penalized with a sack.

● Games last between 22 and 30 minutes.

● Contact between players is forbidden.