[Objective]

Has anyone else notice that overall Mountain football is just not what it use to be. There only a hand full of teams playing to the level of 5 to 10 years ago. The mountain top ten would have had 15 teams that could be in the discussion. TV Xbox and soft parents are killing the sport that I've grown up with and love. Outside of the top five the Mt top ten falls of sharply. So here's my question .....Can Mountain Football make a come back to its former glory ? or am I wrong about this ?

[Scotty_Bronson]

I think the downward spiral of coal mining jobs and all the otherjobs that the sites provided outside of the min itself, has alot to do with it. More and more people are having to move to the city or elsewhere in general to find work.

[Leonidas]

You're getting ready to get raked thru the coals by the parents who have kids playing BUT....I think you're right and so is the poster above me. Its a combination of those two things.

I've never seen mountain football so weak from top to bottom...meaning, the top is strong but the falloff is dramatic.

[Diogenes]

I don't think it's just the mountains. Football, like other sports, takes a time and energy commitment that a lot of kids today just don't want to make. Many kids would rather sit around and play Xbox and party at their buddies' houses than put forth the effort to be an athlete. The successful schools are the ones who are best able to get their potential athletes out of the hallways and onto the practice field. I would bet if you ran the numbers, you had a higher percentage of boys playing football in the student body in 1993 than you do in 2013. This is especially noticeable at the smaller schools' level. I remember back in the day, teams like Paintsville having a huge number of boys on the sidelines for the size of the school. Now it appears a lot of 1A programs are on the verge of being about to drop football across the state due to lack of numbers. I think we're headed toward sports moving out of the schools and onto a club basis in this country, just a matter of time, and that's not necesssarily a bad thing to separate sports and education. Public tax dollars really shouldn't have to be split between books and teachers and sports stadiums and uniforms. In Eastern Kentucky especially, we need more emphasis on education and less on sports, so in our case, probably the sooner the better.

[jlow]

Out of curiosity, what other mountain schools or schools considered to be mountain schools have state titles (Belfry,Breathitt,Bell,Pikeville,Corbin,Middlesboro,Hazard,Lynch) possibly Cumberland (runner up--Pburg,Paintsville,Somerset ( not really a mountain school), Rockcastle (not really a mountain school))

[64SUR]

Don't blame it on the kids playing x-box,I think to many middle schools coaches and highschool are playing x-box.heck the kids around here in eastern ky are faster,stronger and bigger it's the coaching :welcome: Dam I'm in trouble :Cheerlead

[maximus73]

The loss of Coal jobs is an under statment, Coal has been the infastructure foundation in eastern Ky for years. When money gets tight on the parents it effects the kids.

[jlow]

I don't think it's just the mountains. Football, like other sports, takes a time and energy commitment that a lot of kids today just don't want to make. Many kids would rather sit around and play Xbox and party at their buddies' houses than put forth the effort to be an athlete. The successful schools are the ones who are best able to get their potential athletes out of the hallways and onto the practice field. I would bet if you ran the numbers, you had a higher percentage of boys playing football in the student body in 1993 than you do in 2013. This is especially noticeable at the smaller schools' level. I remember back in the day, teams like Paintsville having a huge number of boys on the sidelines for the size of the school. Now it appears a lot of 1A programs are on the verge of being about to drop football across the state due to lack of numbers. I think we're headed toward sports moving out of the schools and onto a club basis in this country, just a matter of time, and that's not necesssarily a bad thing to separate sports and education. Public tax dollars really shouldn't have to be split between books and teachers and sports stadiums and uniforms. In Eastern Kentucky especially, we need more emphasis on education and less on sports, so in our case, probably the sooner the better.

I think there are valid points in this post. In fact I wouldn't argue any of them. Still, I think there are more laboring issues also. Our society has become complacent overall. Sports help kids show what kind of character they have had instilled in them from birth to that point. Many people have lost their will to work hard for a common goal (1st down, touchdown, WIN) where they are not the sole focus. People don't want to face adversity. The haves tend to seek other haves (Club teams, Travel ball, AAU), whereas the have nots tend to blend into oblivion or sit back and wait for someone else to deliver. People in general don't maintain pride within their communities and schools. They tend to forget how important their schools are to communities and areas surrounding. There is nothing like playing a sport for your high school and community. Obviously education is a key to success, but I think a persons extracurricular activities tend to produce what will make a person truly successful. It is easy to support programs like Highlands , Trinity etc. with all the money that is there, and those folks have every right to feel good about them. But are those kids any better off, than where a group of kids, parents, coaches etc refuse to give in and battle for whatever they can get. The state of Kentucky would love to see all these smaller schools falter, so that it would fit their budget better in having fewer schools, with fewer teachers, and fewer busses etc. To hell with that, I like where I live, I like my small school, I have pride in my community, I know the history of my area, and I will not give in. Unfortunately I am a minority. I guess I was just born at the wrong time. Sorry for the rant because I agree with the poster on where we are heading. It still don't mean I have to fully accept it. Roll Tide

[mightydog]

Also now you have parents afraid of letting their kids play due to all the recent concusion information. im sure this is going on all across the country, not just mountain football

[Scotty_Bronson]

As far as the video game argument goes u r spot on. Coming up theough school if a kid had a Sony playstation, he was the cats meow. But, there were such a scarce few that had them, that the rest of us would be outside playing sandlot ball of some kind. By the time we got our driver's license, we were going to malls, movies, parties or w/e, but still played ball. By m jr and sr year all that was gone. We rarely did anything other than hag out and play playstation 2 or xbox. The weight lifting program took a hit with that as well. I think kids in general are much less active these days. Thats why my kids WII is used for learning games and thats about it(they r 4 and 2) and can navigate it better than i can sadly. But i try to have then outside playing as much as possible. Thats where it starts. Keeping kids from thinking "this is excercise" and it is a chore. I wish i still had time to just go out at day light snd not come in till sundown and have nothing to show for it from the day except a few bruises, skinnedup knees, and a cut on my arm. Man thise were the days lol