View from the cheap seats
A weekly perspective on sports
Casey Krautkramer Reporter The Record-Review
Mark Lacke of Edgar, who is the Marawood Conference commissioner, told me this week the conference for football is “broken” because only five teams remain for next fall.
He said even if the WIAA Board of Controls approves the 11-man football conference realignment plans, Pittsville’s football team wouldn’t join the Marawood until the 2022 season.
That leaves only the Abbotsford, Auburndale, Colby, Edgar and Marathon football teams remaining in the Marawood for next fall’s season. The Athens, Owen-Withee and Thorp football squads are able to immediately leave the Marawood to play eight-man football next fall.
Athens athletic director Craig Diedrich told the Athens Board of Education at Monday’s meeting the Athens football team would play an independent eight-man football regular-season schedule next season. The Bluejays aren’t eligible to participate in the WIAA eight-man postseason football playoffs until after next season.
Diedrich told the school board he’s predicting the Athens High School football program to only have 16 players next season, after 10 seniors from this year’s team graduate in spring and only three eighth grade football players enter high school next fall.
He predicts the Athens High School football program will only have 14 players the following year, after the nine senior players next year graduate and seven eighth-grade players enter high school.
Diedrich said it’s simply not safe to have freshmen playing 11-man varsity football, because their bodies aren’t physically mature yet to play against seniors four years older than them.
Jeff Mastin, Athens schools superintendent, said it was remarkable the Athens High School football team has even been able to compete in 11-man play up until now.
Diedrich said COVID-19 has impacted student athlete participation numbers in the sports of football and wrestling, but in general high schools around the country are witnessing a decrease in student athletes wanting to play football and wrestle.
Athens and Edgar received a waiver from the WIAA to co-op in wrestling this season because of COVID-19. Mastin told the school board on Monday if the number of Athens High School students in wrestling remains low after this season, then the school might want to consider forming a long-term wrestling co-op team with one or two other high schools in the area.
There are four Athens wrestlers competing on the Edgar/Athens temporary co-op squad this year. Meanwhile, there are 11 Edgar grapplers on this year’s Edgar/Athens co-op team. I’ll admit it was odd to hear Lacke announce the WildJays at Monday’s wrestling dual match against Whitehall.
