According to an exassistant coach, Hoover doesn't recruit but turns football players away if they aren't needed.

The funny part is that private schools do not have to actually win a championship ... they have the potential to start getting penalized when they make the quarterfinals.

FYI - MA hasn't won a state championship since moving to 4A two years ago but are being reclassed for football to 5A and will stay there if they make at least the quarterfinals the next two years.

Hoover turned Tagliavoia away, thats how he got to Thompson. Schools like Hoover aren't necessarily recruiting but they let it be known what positions they are looking for. When rezoning was done you can rest assured that some apartment complexes were kept in district.

Well great for them. The school has a jam up track program with out recruiting, however I’m betting most schools aren’t going to give out a full high school tuition for a track athlete, I’m betting that kinda program is kinda, “come here if you are good” that way you can be show cased on a top notch team, get all kinds of exposure and possible help out chances for college scholarships.

In the case you speak of, they have dominated the classification they are in with much fewer overall paying students to chose from. They should be excited about the challenge of competing against even larger schools. Are these private schools that win consistently in what ever program they are in scared to compete at an even higher level? If they have a true competitive nature, they should be excited about it. When I played basketball, we were excited to play much higher competition, we were in a preseason ball camp with some of the biggest ball programs in the state, as a 1A school we were playing against and beating the biggest schools in the state that week. We Put a whooping on Hoover in the finals of the team camp. We would of played that level of competition all year given the chance, just to be able to compete.

To me it ought to help them out in a long run. The higher level they compete competitively, the more exposure they get, the more exposure and success they have, the more little Johnny’s rich parents want to send him to “x” private school over “y” private school or public school. Therefore more paying students, more funds to grow more programs and buildings, etc. They’re running a business. Higher levels or competition and success = lotta $$$

You can see the argument on both sides. However, pubic schools have been luring certain kids for certain sports for a long time, for whatever reason, by whatever means. Just based on numbers of public schools, the argument can be made they do it more. How do you think the same schools are always really good at the same sports? Those schools that pile up championships over and over at one particular sport. They don’t just have kids in the same ages and grades that are really good at the same sport, over and over again - just by coincidence.

Have a multiplier and leave it at that. A school with 300 students competing with one over 1000 students is just dumb - since we know certain types of “recruiting” happens with all of them.

You are funny Travis. Tuition doesn't pay for buildings and other infrastructure - at any school, at any level.

No question some folks have no idea about the majority of private schools, or how they operate. And the “rich folks” stuff is silly for the most part. The majority of students at the school where my boys attend, come from hard nosed working families of country folks trying to get by and provide something better, plain and simple.

Both my daughter and niece played volleyball for Saint Paul’s and they are being moved up to 6-A in volleyball also. They’ve won a ton of state titles with No recruits on either of their teams, they just start them young and emphasize playing travel ball..

This is going to make another push towards something that has already been talked about and that is completely new classifications in AHSAA exclusively for private schools. The plan I saw has 4 classes. Big school south, big school south, small school north and small school south. I think this would draw some schools away from AISA so they eventually may even have more classifications. Who knows what it will cause, but you can rest assured there will be unintended consequences. The question would be are these going to be positive or negative?

I guess Private Schools in LASW are a completely different animal then the ones in Huntsville and Madison County.

Yea man. It's totally different. We went to private school in Selma cause we had to. Up here it's a status thing. Public schools up here are way better.

He's not kidding when he says had to. Wasn't always that way but I'd send my children for a weekend in Chicago and if they survived that, New Orleans before I'd send them to my Alma Mater, Selma High.

Nope was in public school til 6th grade. When rose, Hank and crew shut system down when Dr Rousell was fired. Selma coulda been a powerhouse in sports if we had all played together. All colors that is

When the Selma High guys, combined with a few from Morgan, a couple from Meadowview and Dallas County in summer league ball we were stout. Several state titles and I think it was four world series titles. We did well at Selma High in 4A competition. I imagine we could have been a lot better with our whole summer league all star gang.

Same for me. I would have never darken the door of a private school if rezoning hadn't of happened. But when I was in school in the eighties private schools ( APSA Alabama Private School Association ) classifications was based on enrollment and not wins or losses on the ball fields. Is this no longer the case?

Private schools really dont get to pick and choose athletes because the zoning rules still apply for all transfers... and its not instant gratification when someone transfers in. Players are still required to sit out of all athletics for a full year unless a "bonafide" move is made. Mrs Wonda from the state has recently retired but I have seen her on multiple occasions driving around north Alabama checking for pictures on the walls and moving boxes at the new addresses of recent transfers. ts

Also, Its not as simple as " go play AISA ". They goal of High School athletics is to give students the opportunities. In most cases there is a reason that the schools is AISA stay in AISA... typically that is enrollment or funding. IF a private School has the means to compete in the AHSAA then they should be allowed to compete.

I attended a private high school in Walker county and have now worked in the public school system for 5 years.... Ive coached against some of the small private schools in the state and I can tell you that when they do get a transfer in its typically because that student couldn't earn a spot at a larger public school in the area OR their parents wanted to get them out of a poor public system.

As for the new "competitive balance rule" im not whole heartedly against it... I do believe however that if it is going to be implemented it should APPLY to All schools in the AHSAA.

bulldoodoo. I don't have to move for my son to go from a public school to a private school and play sports immediately. If I want to send my son to a private school next year, all I have to do is enroll him and he can play. There are not "zones" for private schools.

If your son begins private school after attending public school, he has to sit out one year.

Since when? I know several kids who have done it and not set out a year including my brother in law when he was in high school 10 years ago.

Unless he is enrolls at the school at the start of the 7th grade then he would be eligible immediately, otherwise he would be ineligible for 12 months from the day he enrolls, unless you move from your current school district in to the zone served by the private school.

And from the AHSAA: Private and/or parochial school zone lines for eligibility purposes are limited to the municipality in which the school is located. If the school is not located within a municipality, the school zone lines are the county system where it is located.