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IMG

Wow - that’s a number … private equity will look for a return … wonder if they will option for a piece of future contracts … should be interesting
 
When you see what is going on you realize that the PIAA and high school football in the Keystone State has got to take some kind of steps to open things up or just stand back and watch the sport as it winds down across the Commonwealth. Sure, there will be the St. Joe's and PCCs and Erie Cathedrals, etc. but as a whole the public side will kind of just disappear. Kind of just a glorified "flag football" - maybe make it co-ed (that would be fun - wear soft pads and won't need helmets). Go to 8 classes to make more "state championships" available (inclusion is important).

Leave "Big Boy" football to states like CA, AZ, Texas, LA, FLA, GA -- states where it matters.

Then when we want to get the blood flowing we can visit the good PA high school sites and read about the old days (when it mattered). Rover's and stalker's great writings and works can have us reliving the glory days over and over (at least in our heads)

The landscape is changing, for sure. Just imagine another twenty years from now when high school football players in the big states are getting big bucks for endorsements. You wonder how many families will make arrangements to have their star boys find their way into that mix (they're sure as heck not gonna hang around upstate PA playing for the local high school).

Changing in a hurry (and PA better get with it -- or just call it a day).
 
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When you see what is going on you realize that the PIAA and high school football in the Keystone State has got to take some kind of steps to open things up or just stand back and watch the sport as it winds down across the Commonwealth. Sure, there will be the St. Joe's and PCCs and Erie Cathedrals, etc. but as a whole the public side will kind of just disappear. Kind of just a glorified "flag football" - maybe make it co-ed (that would be fun - wear soft pads and won't need helmets). Go to 8 classes to make more "state championships" available (inclusion is important).

Leave "Big Boy" football to states like CA, AZ, Texas, LA, FLA, GA -- states where it matters.

Then when we want to get the blood flowing we can visit the good PA high school sites and read about the old days (when it mattered). Rover's and stalker's great writings and works can have us reliving the glory days over and over (at least in our heads)

The landscape is changing, for sure. Just imagine another twenty years from now when high school football players in the big states are getting big bucks for endorsements. You wonder how many families will make arrangements to have their star boys find their way into that mix (they're sure as heck not gonna hang around upstate PA playing for the local high school).

Changing in a hurry (and PA better get with it -- or just call it a day).
Very bold of you to assume football will exist in twenty years
 
The IMG thing is crazy and interesting, but i do not see it affecting things much in PA. Sadly, the locals with any power and influence just don't care enough about football being "big." And- honestly- I think football will "stay around." When that concussion movie came out people said "football was over" but that was 8 years ago- maybe football in PA is not what it was 30 years ago, but it is still popular, kids play, and parents support it enough to keep it going.

The IMG thing- to me, only a big deal for "4 stars and 5 stars" throughout the country and PA does not have many of those. Also- only one- but a good example of a big-time recruit and "success in PA" is Nick Singleton. Played in PA, trained in his local gym, and starring at PSU!!! Very likely to play on Sundays and do well.
 
I hope PA football remains important.

With the changes allowing high school kids to get endorsement money (and there are some examples) PA MUST get on the bandwagon - this is America where the almighty dollar controls all.

Check this:


You telling me PA isn't still producing athletes? Of course it is. You start holding out this kind of money in addition to college scholarships, a chance at the "Bigs" and cash on the barrel head today -- the kids will stay.

I like it - I like the money flowing - it should. When you consider the odds of a kid making it all the way (it's so slim) if you can cash in then cash in. Colleges were sucking the blood out of the kids forever (the NCAA - they care, right).
 
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Getting a bit sidetracked- the IMG topic obviously connects to NIL, but i just do not see this being a big impact on PA

For the benefit of kids and families, i hope there are benefits from NIL in HS- but i just do not see there being any "big payoffs" at least not in football in PA

I'm a homer, love football, western PA and PA, but every stat shows Pa decreasing steadily over the last 30 years in football- yes we produce athletes- just not enough to draw a billion-dollar company like IMG

Now-- my concern- you mention "colleges sucking the blood out of the kids" my concern now, is lawyers, recruiting services, trainers, the "for-profit" 7 on 7 leagues, and marketing companies might start "sucking money out of kids and families" starting in 8th, 9th grade- with "false hopes" of big NIL money, that never comes- and sometimes, maybe not even scholarships... I think that is already happening, actually i know it is, from kids and families i know.
 
I imagine the popularity of FB is dropping everywhere except perhaps in the deep south (Al, La, Miss, etc). It is not what it was 10 years ago even in Florida, fortunate as I am to have had relatives at 4 title teams; Lakeland, Dwyer-West Palm, Manatee-Bradenton, Frostproof. Having said that, parts of Florida are still 'deep south'. These are mostly designated S (Suburban) or R (rural) in playoff designations, formally divisions.
Everything is different in Florida now with teams broken down to Metro (8 most dense counties), Suburban (59 other counties), Rural (8 to 9 rural schools) meaning very rural as in the Panhandle (south Alabama as we call it) and very north Fl towns on Ga border west of Jax; Okefenokee Swamp/Osceola Wildlife area.

Lakeland won it again last year (21-14 Venice) to a crowd maybe a little larger than Cumberland Valley or typical Hershey Pk Stad numbers. Check out the crowd size or google that game and score if it doesn't open. Not their best but not a bad team.

 
I imagine the popularity of FB is dropping everywhere except perhaps in the deep south (Al, La, Miss, etc). It is not what it was 10 years ago even in Florida, fortunate as I am to have had relatives at 4 title teams; Lakeland, Dwyer-West Palm, Manatee-Bradenton, Frostproof. Having said that, parts of Florida are still 'deep south'. These are mostly designated S (Suburban) or R (rural) in playoff designations, formally divisions.
Everything is different in Florida now with teams broken down to Metro (8 most dense counties), Suburban (59 other counties), Rural (8 to 9 rural schools) meaning very rural as in the Panhandle (south Alabama as we call it) and very north Fl towns on Ga border west of Jax; Okefenokee Swamp/Osceola Wildlife area.

Lakeland won it again last year (21-14 Venice) to a crowd maybe a little larger than Cumberland Valley or typical Hershey Pk Stad numbers. Check out the crowd size or google that game and score if it doesn't open. Not their best but not a bad team.

Stalk- thanks for the insight- very interesting from the Florida perspective
 
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Stalk- thanks for the insight- very interesting from the Florida perspective
You're welcome 2020. I think Florida ball is sometimes misrepresented (all is well, no problems, etc) with justification if that makes any sense as it is so good; speed, size, dedication to the sport. But they share similar if not same issues we have in Pa. Still, I don't think FB is on the way out unless hockey replaces it or some form of roller ball as we still love to bash each other. We're not all made to be soccer dudes, tho you can have some fun there too;)!
It's wrong making sweeping statements about a state as the intensity is different throughout the state, region to region. Southern Columbia, Mount Carmel, North Schuylkill, etc, etc don't approach the game like Baldwin does. And the kids/offspring are often as tough as their fathers and grandfathers who worked the mills in Steelton, Coatesville and other places. That 'tough' tradition carries over at times especially with a coach from there like Ortega at Coatesville via Steelton.
Many of the Mon teams resemble this, all along the river with tough as nails teams, and others in the Pittsburgh area.
 
Check out this "Southpark" clip featuring Cartman -- I'm not sure of the year it ran but it certainly addresses some of the issues this thread has touched on (he's visiting the University of Colorado to discuss how to avoid paying for services):



I think it is on point and I reiterate - pay the athletes (period).
 
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I think that there will be an IMG type of school in almost every state pretty soon where the best players from that state play for that school and play a national schedule. Then the rest of the schools in the state go back to what football was in the 1980's and play a more regional schedule and playoff. It's coming and PA has more than enough kids to fill out a 50-60 team roster of superstars and have a PA IMG. Right now there are 70 kids in PA with at least 1 D1 offer and I can see 10-12 more getting one so PA could probably field 2 superstar teams grades 9-12.
 
Speaking of payoffs looks like Penn State has 5 guys should go in the draft led by Joey Porter and Brenton Strange (those others include JiAyir Brown, Juice Scruggs and Parker Washington - I think that's their names).

Off the top of me head I don't know if they're PA guys originally - anybody have that info?

And has anyone ever done the math of seniors in high schools (nationally) playing ball every year (50 states - maybe a couple hundred thousand - PA must have 15,000 alone with 500 high schools and maybe 25 to 30 kids on average).

Then D1 schools - is it 110 now or something - with 25 rides a year or about 3,000 a year.

Then NFL picks what - 1,000 a year with how many making it - 300?

Just roughing things out: 200,000 to 3,000 to 300? I'm sure someone has better numbers on this stuff.

And I'm not counting D2. etc. and JUCO or whatever so I know there are aa few more options (so I admit I don't have exact numbers just sorta taking the straight-line approach).

Better buckle down on the books!

So if there is a chance of getting any money while you're rolling those dice - go get it!!

Take my word for it - the pound of flesh is always expected (and it is taken).
 
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Looks like Scuggs is from Cathedral Prep and Porter from North Allegheny.

The other guys are NJ (Trenton Central) - Brown; Texas - Washington; and West VA - Strange.
 
The IMG thing is crazy and interesting, but i do not see it affecting things much in PA. Sadly, the locals with any power and influence just don't care enough about football being "big." And- honestly- I think football will "stay around." When that concussion movie came out people said "football was over" but that was 8 years ago- maybe football in PA is not what it was 30 years ago, but it is still popular, kids play, and parents support it enough to keep it going.

The IMG thing- to me, only a big deal for "4 stars and 5 stars" throughout the country and PA does not have many of those. Also- only one- but a good example of a big-time recruit and "success in PA" is Nick Singleton. Played in PA, trained in his local gym, and starring at PSU!!! Very likely to play on Sundays and do well.
PSU has PA lineman (IMG 2 yrs ago) on the roster. Last year Pennridge lost a LB to IMG and this year North Penn is losing a center. The new head coach has PA ties. What many dont know is IMG is a international boarding school for the wealthy, tuition is well over 100k a year. High academics all interwoven into ALL sports. They just dont have a national team, they have 2 varsity teams and a post grad team. The national team players are on full scholarship. Thier varsity teams would give PA teams a run for thier money and probably be favored. So I think that you'll see more players making the commitment to play at a higher level.... SNOWBALL EFFECT. As far as Singleton, there's always going to be a freak athlete popping up every now and then. The problem PA has is not the caliber of athletes, it's football IQ that PA is falling behind on. Colleges don't have time to teach football, they want you to know the game when you get there. PA used to be one of the big 3 states in recruiting... I don't think
we're even top ten.
 
PSU has PA lineman (IMG 2 yrs ago) on the roster. Last year Pennridge lost a LB to IMG and this year North Penn is losing a center. The new head coach has PA ties. What many dont know is IMG is a international boarding school for the wealthy, tuition is well over 100k a year. High academics all interwoven into ALL sports. They just dont have a national team, they have 2 varsity teams and a post grad team. The national team players are on full scholarship. Thier varsity teams would give PA teams a run for thier money and probably be favored. So I think that you'll see more players making the commitment to play at a higher level.... SNOWBALL EFFECT. As far as Singleton, there's always going to be a freak athlete popping up every now and then. The problem PA has is not the caliber of athletes, it's football IQ that PA is falling behind on. Colleges don't have time to teach football, they want you to know the game when you get there. PA used to be one of the big 3 states in recruiting... I don't think we're even top ten.
 
The problem with PA is that some
Of your best coaches are not in PA. Since there are no teaching jobs that goes with these coaching jobs in PA good young coaches leave or have left the state. I did. The head coach at Butler in Charlotte is a PA guy the head coach at brother Rice in Chicago is a PA guy. My offensive coordinator is a PA guy and was a successful head coach. That’s just a few. This started in the late 90’s. The coaching brain drain started and it continues
 
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I am sure the top states here are the big producers in general.but I believe many 5 stars .are over rated and end up transfering due to not making the grade at the next level. On a related note, how many scholarship OFFERS are permitted to be given in a given year by schools ? I have heard that some offer 200 plus athletes in a year,but can only acceot about 25 or so. This seems to be awatered down process to me. Any thoughts ?
 
Romeo -

Here's an interesting chart:

Division LevelNumber of TeamsTotal Athletes in DivisionAverage Team SizeScholarships Limit Per TeamScholarship Limit Type
D1 – FBS12915,16711885Headcount
D1 – FCS12513,02810463Equivalency
D217018,88911136Equivalency
D324825,709104N/AN/A
NAIA859,10210724Equivalency
JUCO685,1607685Equivalency
CCCAA685,35479N/AEquivalency


So if it's strictly D-1 each team can carry 85 full ride guys which translates roughly into 21 a year. With 129 teams that's more or less 2,700 a year to toss out there (on average).
 
I am sure the top states here are the big producers in general.but I believe many 5 stars .are over rated and end up transfering due to not making the grade at the next level. On a related note, how many scholarship OFFERS are permitted to be given in a given year by schools ? I have heard that some offer 200 plus athletes in a year,but can only acceot about 25 or so. This seems to be awatered down process to me. Any thoughts ?
 
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From a story recently in The Athletic on programs developing recruits -

"Over the span we examined [2009-2019], there were 370 five-star prospects. Of those, 215 were drafted (58.1 percent)."

Say what you will about individual five stars, but as a group, a 58% NFL hit rate when evaluating high school seniors seems really high to me.

From Pennsylvania

Terrelle Pryor (Supplemental Draft)
Jonathan Baldwin (1st round)
Corey Brown
Dorian Bell
Shariff Floyd (1st round)
Noah Spence (2nd round)
Alex Anzalone (3rd round)
Dorian Johnson (4th round)
Miles Sanders (2nd round)
D'Andre Swift (2nd round)
Micah Parsons (1st round)
Julian Fleming

In that time period, nine of the 12 five stars from Pennsylvania have been drafted (above the national average, albeit in a smaller sample size), and a healthy Julian Fleming next year has a very good chance at making that ten out of 12.
 
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Very few are commitable offers. A lot of kids are in the dark about thier offer. Schools shouldn't be able to offer everyone in the country. PSU 357 Bama 191... I guess Saban is a little more selective.
 
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Very few are commitable offers. A lot of kids are in the dark about thier offer. Schools shouldn't be able to offer everyone in the country. PSU 357 Bama 191... I guess Saban is a little more selective.
That is the situation I was referencing. If a player receives an offer is it really an offer . If I received an offer and wanted to commit and was then told well wait we have to see if we get anyone better ,I would strike that school off my list for sure.
 
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Interestingly prior to 1973 schools could hand out whatever number they wanted for D1 and then because of Title X or whatever it was limited that year for the first time to 105 (make room for the ladies). It has been down sized since then to 95 (in the '80s I think) and then 85 sometime thereafter.

Next, and who cares about anyone's personal story, but I graduated from high school in 1972 and did secure a "full ride" at a major Southern school. As I recall there were a load of freshmen who showed up for the 1972 season with a football scholarship - like 70 or some crazy number (any notions about how good I was were quickly dispelled as most of the kids were Southerners and they dug football - and were tough as nails and good).

We were all under the assumption that the schools were (1) loading up to prevent talent from going to other schools and/or that (2) eventually the high number that showed up would be run off or be injured enough anyway to call it a day - so who cared how many "rides" were handed out as the numbers dwindled (for instance, we played Alabama and the rumor was most assuredly that Bryant was doing that).

It was a different world back then - that's for sure (and I did make it through all the way but mostly spent my time dressed in other's teams colors or on an operating table getting the latest orthopedic injury squared away - ha).

Note: If I had a son I would have advised tennis or baseball.
 
Interestingly prior to 1973 schools could hand out whatever number they wanted for D1 and then because of Title X or whatever it was limited that year for the first time to 105 (make room for the ladies). It has been down sized since then to 95 (in the '80s I think) and then 85 sometime thereafter.

Next, and who cares about anyone's personal story, but I graduated from high school in 1972 and did secure a "full ride" at a major Southern school. As I recall there were a load of freshmen who showed up for the 1972 season with a football scholarship - like 70 or some crazy number (any notions about how good I was were quickly dispelled as most of the kids were Southerners and they dug football - and were tough as nails and good).

We were all under the assumption that the schools were (1) loading up to prevent talent from going to other schools and/or that (2) eventually the high number that showed up would be run off or be injured enough anyway to call it a day - so who cared how many "rides" were handed out as the numbers dwindled (for instance, we played Alabama and the rumor was most assuredly that Bryant was doing that).

It was a different world back then - that's for sure (and I did make it through all the way but mostly spent my time dressed in other's teams colors or on an operating table getting the latest orthopedic injury squared away - ha).

Note: If I had a son I would have advised tennis or baseball.
If my memory is correct the limiting of scholarships was referred to as the "Johnny Majors Rule".
 
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Wilson -

You may be right about that (as to what led to the limiting of scholarships but I think the gals getting a chance played into that as well - they were spreading the wealth around as that was when they also said the boys sports were eating all the money).

There were a lot of changes going on back then including that in 1973 freshmen could play varsity and a couple of our class did get that chance including my roommate that first year who was Rick Gibney from Bishop Egan (our local Catholic school rivals in high school). Rick was great (defensive lineman - DE) and made plenty of noise his four years (he did have a cup of coffee with the Colts after graduating).
 
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The problem PA has is not the caliber of athletes, it's football IQ that PA is falling behind on. Colleges don't have time to teach football, they want you to know the game when you get there.
I talk to college coaches everyday. Trust me when I say that outside of playing QB, I've never heard this brought up once in the past 20 years.
18th .... PA used to be one of the top states.
It's called population loss
 
The problem with PA is that some
Of your best coaches are not in PA. Since there are no teaching jobs that goes with these coaching jobs in PA good young coaches leave or have left the state.
I coached in Maryland and Delaware. I knew several PA guys in those states. But, none of them left PA to coach in those states. They left because PA used to have huge surplus of teachers. You struggled to find a teaching job in PA 15 years ago.

Now - we have a huge shortage. It's not hard to get a teaching job now. If you coach and have a teaching certificate, you have options nowadays in PA.

PA teacher pay and retirement is night and day better then MD, VA, VA, NC, etc it's one of the best in the country.
 
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I talk to college coaches everyday. Trust me when I say that outside of playing QB, I've never heard this brought up once in the past 20 years.

It's called population loss
"Population loss"...There's plenty of less populated states that are above PA... the numbers say so. "Outside of playing QB"... so PA doesn't have QB coaches? You've admitted that coaches left, but that doesn't effect football IQ? Go back and ask those coaches why we're seeing the numbers slip? What do you think theyre going to insult the local coaches? There's no rational that you can think of that says why one coach can dominate a league every year and other teams in that league dont even come close. Explain why the same teams players are getting the scholarships or grant in aid money. Its because theyre college ready. We may have different opinions, but PA football has fallen off and that's a fact we both agree on.
 
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I talk to college coaches everyday. Trust me when I say that outside of playing QB, I've never heard this brought up once in the past 20 years.

It's called population loss
PA has never lost population. It’s just changed and is still changing. PA has about 12 million people but hasn’t grown as much as CA, TX, FL and some other states. PA demographics have changed too. Compare us to OH and you’ll be surprised. PA was a dominant blue collar state; not so much anymore. Western PA population has migrated a bit east which helped the areas outside of Philly in the 70’s along with the suburbia sprawl and flight of Philly. Moleskinner can tell you about the 70’s powerhouses in his neck of the woods. Upper bucks was tiny until the last 30 years. Where I live was the sticks, why I guess they have new high schools. Philly peaked prior to the 70’s and had almost all the talent - speed and size and it wasn’t SJP. Philly, although growing recently, lost about 500,000 from their peaks. Pittsburgh is only about 400,000. Dougherty was the largest Catholic school in the country. West Philly and Frankford teams had incredible talent and size. Western PA was devastated in the 70’s, like the country as a whole - we were changing rapidly out of industries where the rest of the world caught up after being devastated in wwii. Many of these families moved down to some of what was left in South Eastern PA. Lehigh Valley has changed too. I’m retired now but travel, lots of PA too and see the big changes in populations and industries but also note that PA has also changed in other ways. When we were young players Football was king in PA, it’s still important but there are other options and considerably more professional families persuading their boys to play other sports besides football. There’s also this extreme attitude to succeed at all costs that has entered into high school football. Ask a current coach of the average IQ or responsibilities of the average football players or coach compared to 30 years ago (old timers). Also, the idea of joining another school system to play football that wasn’t local to win and or more exposure wasn’t even entertained. These are our times. Lots has changed the last 30 plus years, PA high school football is no different. One thing you can count on in life is change. For me, ill keep watching my local teams as it’s still my favorite entertainment. 😀
 
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PA has never lost population.
Sure it has. Some regions like you've said have lost much more then others. As a state we rank near the bottom in terms of population growth.

When I used to coach in Maryland, James Franklin stated the obvious that for PSU, the state of PA is not the priority it once was. For PSU the move DMV recruiting started at the end of the Paterno regime. Franklin said they have to dominate the DMV to be relevant in the B10 because PA can't support PSU the way it used to.

It's no coincidence that where the population density is the highest, the talent pool increases.

When Andy Urbanic was at FSU I spoke to him about recruiting and he said in 1975, the southern schools constantly recruited the north. What happened was the mills closed and those folks left. Many of my coaching buddies are in Florida. Many of them had family who were PA residents in the 1950's, 1960's, 1970's...

Philly peaked prior to the 70’s and had almost all the talent - speed and size and it wasn’t SJP.
Are you talking about talent when it comes to eastern PA or the state when saying Philly had almost all the talent? Pittsburgh and Western PA still was very much a different animal when it came to recruiting up and through the 90's.

Western PA was devastated in the 70’s, like the country as a whole - we were changing rapidly out of industries where the rest of the world caught up after being devastated in wwii. Many of these families moved down to some of what was left in South Eastern PA
Western PA families migrated to Southeastern PA during this time? Most of my western PA family and families alike migrated south to places like Florida, Texas, Georgia, etc.. I grew up in central PA and the majority of families I knew migrated into that area from Maryland and DC because the real estate was so cheap. Most of them worked in Maryland and lived in PA.

Dougherty was the largest Catholic school in the country. West Philly and Frankford teams had incredible talent and size.
In Western PA most of the large schools have a fraction of the graduating class size that they did in 1960's and 1970's.
 
Sure it has. Some regions like you've said have lost much more then others. As a state we rank near the bottom in terms of population growth.

When I used to coach in Maryland, James Franklin stated the obvious that for PSU, the state of PA is not the priority it once was. For PSU the move DMV recruiting started at the end of the Paterno regime. Franklin said they have to dominate the DMV to be relevant in the B10 because PA can't support PSU the way it used to.

It's no coincidence that where the population density is the highest, the talent pool increases.

When Andy Urbanic was at FSU I spoke to him about recruiting and he said in 1975, the southern schools constantly recruited the north. What happened was the mills closed and those folks left. Many of my coaching buddies are in Florida. Many of them had family who were PA residents in the 1950's, 1960's, 1970's...


Are you talking about talent when it comes to eastern PA or the state when saying Philly had almost all the talent? Pittsburgh and Western PA still was very much a different animal when it came to recruiting up and through the 90's.


Western PA families migrated to Southeastern PA during this time? Most of my western PA family and families alike migrated south to places like Florida, Texas, Georgia, etc.. I grew up in central PA and the majority of families I knew migrated into that area from Maryland and DC because the real estate was so cheap. Most of them worked in Maryland and lived in PA.


In Western PA most of the large schools have a fraction of the graduating class size that they did in 1960's and 1970's.
"I grew up in central PA and the majority of families I knew migrated into that area from Maryland and DC because the real estate was so cheap. Most of them worked in Maryland and lived in PA."

That's still the case Steel where I'm from (Gburg, Adams cty) with DC-MD crowd (Mason-Dixon 10 miles south) moving to Fairfield-Gburg area for cheaper land. And, many farms have been sold with the upcoming generation not following in footsteps. So Cent PA has always had appeal to us natives and now unfortunately to others. Some of the vistas etc in Fairfield-Carrolls Valley area aren't there anymore, replaced by a large expensive home where once you came down the mountains around a winding curve from the orchards and had a wonderful view. I get it but don't have to like it.
It's the same in parts of Florida where half my family lives, resenting the flood of people into the Jupiter-West Palm area tho realizing in some ways it's good for business. But not for traffic with my son and 2 other families moving north to Palm City/Stewart.
 
"I grew up in central PA and the majority of families I knew migrated into that area from Maryland and DC because the real estate was so cheap. Most of them worked in Maryland and lived in PA."

That's still the case Steel where I'm from (Gburg, Adams cty) with DC-MD crowd (Mason-Dixon 10 miles south) moving to Fairfield-Gburg area for cheaper land. And, many farms have been sold with the upcoming generation not following in footsteps. So Cent PA has always had appeal to us natives and now unfortunately to others. Some of the vistas etc in Fairfield-Carrolls Valley area aren't there anymore, replaced by a large expensive home where once you came down the mountains around a winding curve from the orchards and had a wonderful view. I get it but don't have to like it.
It's the same in parts of Florida where half my family lives, resenting the flood of people into the Jupiter-West Palm area tho realizing in some ways it's good for business. But not for traffic with my son and 2 other families moving north to Palm City/Stewart.
It blows my mind that people will commute from York/Adams to Baltimore and DC. My mom commuted from York to Baltimore for 35 years. I know without traffic, you can do it in 45 minutes but you can be on 83/695 for an hour and 1/2 depending on the day and time. I can't imagine doing the DC commute. The traffic around DC is for the birds!

York, PA is very much a commuter county. There is hardly any large industry minus Harley Davidson. Lancaster and Harrisburg have always seemed to have stronger industry/jobs.
 
"Population loss"...There's plenty of less populated states that are above PA... the numbers say so.

"Outside of playing QB"... so PA doesn't have QB coaches? You've admitted that coaches left, but that doesn't effect football IQ?
We have some of the best QB coaches in the country.

We have some of the best training outlets for kids to get better.

It has nothing to do with coaching IQ or player IQ. That's completely bunk.
Go back and ask those coaches why we're seeing the numbers slip? What do you think theyre going to insult the local coaches? There's no rational that you can think of that says why one coach can dominate a league every year and other teams in that league dont even come close.
I am a coach.

The college coaches all tell me the #1 factor in finding talent in numbers is population density.

The DMV is the closest hotbed that produces the highest end talent around here. The amount of people that live that small area is ridiculous.

The DMV is 6th largest metropolis in the USA. Philly is #7. There is no coincidence they produce the highest quantity in football talent.

The reason SJP dominates is they value football and they have access to the highest # of population in the state. The same can be said for Imhotep.
Explain why the same teams players are getting the scholarships or grant in aid money. Its because theyre college ready. We may have different opinions, but PA football has fallen off and that's a fact we both agree on.

Do the same schools year after year get the same type of money? Let's take the non boundary schools out of the mix and answer that question. 15 years ago Woodland Hills produced year in and year out more talent then anyone in the state. They were a 4A program in a 4 class system. now they're a 3A school in a 6 class system. hmm..
 
We have some of the best QB coaches in the country.

We have some of the best training outlets for kids to get better.

It has nothing to do with coaching IQ or player IQ. That's completely bunk.

I am a coach.

The college coaches all tell me the #1 factor in finding talent in numbers is population density.

The DMV is the closest hotbed that produces the highest end talent around here. The amount of people that live that small area is ridiculous.

The DMV is 6th largest metropolis in the USA. Philly is #7. There is no coincidence they produce the highest quantity in football talent.

The reason SJP dominates is they value football and they have access to the highest # of population in the state. The same can be said for Imhotep.


Do the same schools year after year get the same type of money? Let's take the non boundary schools out of the mix and answer that question. 15 years ago Woodland Hills produced year in and year out more talent then anyone in the state. They were a 4A program in a 4 class system. now they're a 3A school in a 6 class system. hmm..
I know coaches also. One thing you left out on why coaches leave the HS game. They're very aware of how hard they're allowed to coach. Take Pine Richland for example... it only takes one kid or parent that wants to make an issue and the program/ coach is made a target of the school board. Another school CB West coach taken down by one kid and his parents. You brought up SJP... they don't have the same problem because the students are there by choice and expect to be coached hard. Hats off to you for coaching but the quality of coaching has fallen off. For example Pennsbury has been terrible until the previous retired coach couldn't stand it anymore and came back to coach. Worst to first his first year back.
 
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I know coaches also. One thing you left out on why coaches leave the HS game. They're very aware of how hard they're allowed to coach. Take Pine Richland for example... it only takes one kid or parent that wants to make an issue and the program/ coach is made a target of the school board. Another school CB West coach taken down by one kid and his parents. You brought up SJP... they don't have the same problem because the students are there by choice and expect to be coached hard. Hats off to you for coaching but the quality of coaching has fallen off. For example Pennsbury has been terrible until the previous retired coach couldn't stand it anymore and came back to coach. Worst to first his first year back.
You guys are both correct. Population loss in western PA and also "population density" are both big factors. Pa football is still good, just not as great nationally as it used to be. Also, Wilson you are correct, coaches leave, or don't even START coaching because of the lack of support- off the top of my head in the last 20 years, i recall very good coaches who were, or "almost" pushed out at Aliquippa, North Hills, PR, McKeesport. All places that "support football." idk, maybe overall, coaching is just as good as it used to be, it's just different

And PR? 2 years ago, the "leaders" PUBLICLY stated that one of the reasons they "pushed out" the coach, was cuz he "cared too much about winning." Crap, bs. those idiots pushed out a great staff, great dudes- and still there is backlash!! these two idiots helped vote him out!!

 
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