(Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)

The state basketball tournaments will be live on the NFHS Network this week in every classification.

Subscriptions, which are good for 30 days, are just $10.99.

The tournaments begin (and resume) on Thursday. In 1A-3A, Great 8 games are Thursday, the Final 4 is Friday, and championship games are Saturday.

In 4A and 5A, the girls Final 4 games are Thursday, boys Final 4 games are Friday, and championship games are Saturday.

All games in the winner’s brackets will be broadcast.

Browse upcoming games, and subscribe, using this link.

Additionally, a list of upcoming NFHS Network broadcasts and archived games is available on our NFHS Network page.

(Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)

INDIANAPOLIS – Seven outstanding former high school athletes highlight the 2020 class of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) National High School Hall of Fame, including three who went on to earn gold medals in the Olympics and four others who excelled in professional football, basketball and baseball.

Joining the seven former athletes in this year’s class are three highly successful high school coaches, one former state association administrator and one speech and debate coach in the performing arts area. The 12 honorees will be inducted July 1 at the 38^th induction ceremony of the National High School Hall of Fame, which will be held at the NFHS Summer Meeting in Denver, Colorado.

The four high school athletes who went on to professional stardom are Dave Logan of Colorado, Tim Couch ofKentucky, Matt Holliday of Oklahoma and Alex English of South Carolina. Other athletes in the 2020 class are three female stars who landed Olympic gold in the Olympics: Karyn Bye Dietz of Wisconsin, Maicel (Malone) Green of Indiana andMichele Smith of New Jersey.

Logan was a three-sport standout (football, basketball and baseball) at Wheat Ridge (Colorado) High School in the early 1970s and was drafted by teams in all three professional sports. He was a two-sport star at the University of Colorado and then was a wide receiver with the Cleveland Browns (eight years) and Denver Broncos (one year). In his second career also worthy of Hall of Fame notice, Logan has coached four different Denver-area schools to eight state high school football championships during the past 26 years.

Couch had a record-setting football career as a quarterback at Leslie County High School In Hyden, Kentucky, in the mid-1990s. Couch set three national career passing records – 872 completions, 12,104 yards and 133 touchdowns. He was named National Player of the Year as a senior. Couch also excelled in basketball, leading the state in scoring as a senior with 37 points per game. He had a stellar career at the University of Kentucky and played five years with the Cleveland Browns.

Holliday was a three-sport player – and two-sport star – at Stillwater (Oklahoma) High School in the late 1990s. As a quarterback in football for three years, Holliday passed for 68 touchdowns. He was a four-year starter in baseball and hit .443 as a senior with 12 home runs. He played with four teams during his 20-year professional baseball career, which ended in 2018 with the Colorado Rockies. Holliday was second in the MVP voting with the Rockies in 2007 and won a World Series in 2011 with the St. Louis Cardinals.

English is perhaps the greatest basketball in history in the state of South Carolina. He was a three-time all-state selection and Player of the Year at Dreher High School in Columbia, and he was the leading scorer in University of South Carolina history. English played 16 years in the National Basketball Association, including 10 years with the Denver Nuggets when he scored 2,000 points in eight consecutive seasons.

Dietz was a three-sport star at River Falls (Wisconsin) High School in the late 1980s and was a trailblazer for girls in the sport of ice hockey in the state. She was team captain and three-time all-conference while playing on the River Falls boys hockey team. She also played field hockey and softball. She later excelled in ice hockey at the University of New Hampshire and played on the 1998 Olympic women’s ice hockey team that won a gold medal.

Green was a track and field star at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 1984 to 1987. She won 11 of a possible 12 state titles in the three sprints (100, 200, 400)   during her four years at North Central.  She set state records in all three events and helped North Central to two state championships. She later won a gold medal in the 1996 Olympics as a part of the 400-meter relay team.

Smith was a three-sport athlete at Voorhees High School in Glen Gardner, New Jersey. She participated in field hockey, basketball and softball, which became her top sport. Smith had a 51-6 record with 11 no-hitters as a pitcher and helped her team to the state title as a junior. She had an outstanding career at Oklahoma State University with an 82-20 record and was the starting pitcher for the U.S. Olympic teams that won gold medals in 1996 and 2000.

Three outstanding high school coaches are a part of the 2020 class, including Rickey Baker, who led Hopi High School in Keams Canyon, Arizona, to a national-record 27 consecutive state cross country championships from 1990 to 2017. Another coach in this year’s class is Charles Berry, who retired in 2018 after a 57-year career as a girls and boys basketball coach in Arkansas. With most of his years at Huntsville High School, Berry won 1,377 games as a boys and girls basketball coach. The final coach in the class is Terry Michler, the winningest boys soccer coach in history from Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis, Missouri. Michler has won 1,004 games and nine state championships during his 48-year career.        

Completing the 2020 class are Bill Farney, who served on the administrative staff of the Texas University Interscholastic League for 32 years, including 14 years as executive director, and Robert Littlefield, one of the top speech and debate educators in North Dakota and nationally for 45 years.

Following is biographical information on the 12 inductees in the 2020 class of the NFHS National High School Hall of Fame.

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ATHLETES

Tim Couch

During his football career at Leslie County High School in Hyden, Kentucky in the mid-1990s, Tim Couch set three national career passing records – 872 completions, 12,104 yards and 133 touchdowns. He helped Leslie County to a 13-1 record as a junior while completing an amazing 75 percent of his passes – a national record that stood for 15 years. As a senior, he passed for 42 touchdowns and led his team to an 11-3 mark, and was named Gatorade and USA Today National Player of the Year while earning Mr. Football honors in Kentucky. ESPN.com selected Couch the sixth-best high school athlete in history. Couch was equally dominant on the basketball court. He scored 3,023 points in his career, leading the state in scoring as a senior at 37 points per game. He was two-time all-state in basketball. Couch’s football prowess continued at the University of Kentucky, where he passed for 8,159 yards and 73 touchdowns in his final two seasons. He led Kentucky to the Outback Bowl after his junior season and was fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting. Couch was the No. 1 pick in the 1999 NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns and passed for more than 11,000 yards and 64 touchdowns in his five years with the Browns.   

Karyn Bye Dietz

Karyn Bye Dietz was a three-sport star at River Falls (Wisconsin) High School in the late 1980s and was a trailblazer for girls in the sport of ice hockey in the state. Amazingly, Dietz was a three-time all-conference and team captain of the boys ice hockey team at River Falls. With the formation of girls hockey teams still almost 20 years down the road, Dietz became one of the state’s top players on the boys team. She also earned four letters in tennis and was a three-time state qualifier, and she was captain of the River Falls softball team and was three-time all-conference and all-state as a senior. She batted over .500 in both her junior and senior seasons. Dietz was the leading scorer all four years on the women’s ice hockey team at the University of New Hampshire and was team captain in her final two seasons. Dietz was a member of the USA National Ice Hockey Team for many years and was Player of the Year in 1995 and 1998. She was a member of the U.S. Olympic teams that earned a gold medal at the 1998 Games in Japan and a silver medal at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City.

Alex English

Prior to his stellar college and professional careers, Alex English was one of the top high school basketball players in South Carolina history during his days at Dreher High School in Columbia. English was a first-team all-state selection three consecutive years, Player of the Year in South Carolina in 1971 and 1972, and was a two-time all-American. He set the all-time scoring records at Dreher, and his No. 22 jersey was later retired. English stayed home for his college career and is still known as the greatest player in the University of South Carolina history. He ranks first in scoring and third in rebounding in Gamecocks’ history and was a two-time all-American, and he had his second No. 22 jersey retired by USC. While he played for four teams during his 16-year professional career, English will always be remembered for his decade of the 1980s with the Denver Nuggets. He was the NBA’s leading scorer in the 1980s with 19,682 points and was the first player in league history to score 2,000 points in eight straight seasons. English set 31 records in 10 seasons with the Nuggets and is the team’s all-time leader in points (21,645) and assists (3,679). English was an eight-time all-star – all with the Nuggets – and was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997. 

Maicel (Malone) Green

As a member of the girls track and field team at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 1984 to 1987, Maicel Malone was one of the most decorated athletes in Indiana high school track and field history and was, perhaps, the first superstar in any Indiana girls sport. She was an 11-time state champion in the 12 sprint events during her four years of competing in the state track and field meet. She won the 100 and 400 meters all four years and the 200 meters three years (finished second as a sophomore). She is still the Indiana state record holder in the 200 (23.12 in 1986) and the 400 (52.42 in 1986), and her 100-meter state record (11.52 in 1986) stood until 2015. She is the only Indiana female athlete to set three state records (100, 200, 400) in the same meet (1986). Malone (now Maicel Green) helped North Central to two state championships – as a freshman in 1984 and in her senior season in 1987. She was a four-time NCAA champion in the 400 meters (three indoor, one outdoor) at Arizona State University, and she was a member of the 400-meter relay team that won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. She won five other gold medals in international competition and was inducted into the Indiana Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1993.         

Matt Holliday

 Matt Holliday would rank high on a list of the top high school athletes in Oklahoma history, thanks to his days as a three-sport player and two-sport star at Stillwater High School in the late 1990s. He was a three-year starter at quarterback in football and led his team to a 30-6 record while passing for 6,211 yards and 68 touchdowns. In baseball, he was a four-year starter at third base and he also was a pitcher. He hit .438 as a junior and .443 as a senior with a combined 18 home runs. In between those sports, he was a three-year starter on the basketball team. Holliday was highly recruited in both football and baseball by a number of top universities, including his hometown choice of Oklahoma State University, but he was drafted in the seventh round of the 1998 Major League Baseball draft and embarked on a 20-year professional baseball career that ended in October 2018. Holliday played for the Colorado Rockies, Oakland A’s, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Yankees and returned to the Rockies to close his career. In 15 major league seasons, Holliday hit 316 home runs and finished with a .299 career average. His best season was 2007 when he hit .340 with 36 home runs and 137 runs batted in for the Rockies and finished second in the MVP voting. He was a member of the 2011 Cardinals team that won the World Series.

Dave Logan

In a state rich with standout high school athletes, Dave Logan was second to none during his days as a three-sport star at Wheat Ridge (Colorado) High School from 1969 to 1972. And with his eight state championships as a high school football coach the past 26 years, Logan has become the face of high school sports and activities in Colorado. He was two-time all-state in football as a wide receiver and defensive back and received the Gold Helmet Award as a senior as the state’s top senior player, scholar and citizen. He was a three-year starter in basketball and was Colorado Sidelines Player of the Year after averaging 24.1 points per game. In earning three letters in baseball, Logan hit .380 and was 7-2 as a pitcher as a senior and claimed all-state and team MVP honors. And if that wasn’t enough, Logan was a trombone player in the school band. He was one of only three multi-sport players who was drafted by all three major sports organizations. Logan was a two-sport star at the University of Colorado and then played nine years as a wide receiver in the National Football League, including eight years with the Cleveland Browns and his final season with the Denver Broncos. Logan has coached four schools to state football titles, including the 2019 championship with Cherry Creek High School in metro Denver. Finally, Logan is the radio voice of the Denver Broncos and hosts a popular midday radio talk show. 

Michele Smith

Michele Smith was an accomplished three-sport athlete at Voorhees High School in Glen Gardner, New Jersey, in the early 1980s. As a pitcher in softball, she was 51-6 and recorded 11 no-hitters. She helped her team to the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Group 3 state softball title as a junior with a 23-1 record, 0.17 earned-run average and 229 strikeouts. She was selected to the all-state softball team three consecutive years. In field hockey, Smith was named first team all-conference as a junior and senior, and in basketball, she scored 1,114 points in her career and was a two-time all-conference selection. At Oklahoma State University, Smith compiled an 82-20 record as a pitcher, and her career batting average was .343 with 15 home runs. She was a three-time All-Big Eight Conference selection and was a two-time Division I All-American. She was a member of the U.S. Olympic softball teams in 1996 and 2000, and she was the starting pitcher for both gold-medal winning teams. She also played on three gold-medal winning World Championships teams and two teams that won gold medals at the Pan American Games. Smith joined ESPN in 1995 and has been the lead college softball analyst since 1998. In 2012, she was the first woman to serve as commentator for a nationally televised Major League Baseball game. 

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COACHES

Rickey Baker

Rickey Baker has become one of the most successful boys cross country coaches in the nation since his arrival at Hopi High School in Keams Canyon, Arizona in 1987. Three years later, Baker led Hopi to its first state boys cross country championship, and his teams didn’t lose another state title until 2017 – a streak of 27 consecutive team championships. The 27 consecutive state cross country titles is a national record and is third all-time when considering all sports (girls swimming and boys swimming). Baker’s 1999 team scored a perfect 15, which means Hopi runners finished 1-2-3-4-5. Perhaps most amazing about the streak is that Hopi continued to win despite moving into larger classifications. Hopi won 11 straight 2A titles (1990-2000), six consecutive 3A titles (2001-2006) and 10 straight 4A titles (2007-16). Since the streak ended, Hopi has finished runner-up the past three years. Baker started coaching the girls cross country team three years ago and has led his teams to two second-place finishes. He has also coached Hopi’s boys basketball team for 18 years, with a 2A state title in 1997, and the girls and boys track and field teams for the past 10 years. Nine of his track and field athletes have won individual state titles. During his days as a high school athlete, Baker was Arizona’s one-mile champion in 1977 while attending Winslow High School, and he was a member of Winslow’s state cross country team in 1976.

Charles Berry

Charles Berry retired in 2018 after an amazing 57-year career as a boys and girls basketball coach in Arkansas. After four years in the Hector School District and two years in Plemerville, Arkansas, Berry moved to Huntsville in 1967 and remained for 51 years. He resurrected a dormant boys basketball program upon his arrival and coached the boys team for the next 20 years. In 1978, he established the girls basketball team, which he coached until his retirement in 2018. Berry’s overall combined record as a high school boys and girls coach was 1,377-686, with a 1,116-619 record at Huntsville. Along the way, he won two Arkansas Activities Association state girls basketball championships (1997, 2008), and his girls teams finished second two other times (1984, 2013). Berry’s teams made 30 appearances in the state tournament, and they won 16 conference championships and six regional titles. The Huntsville High School gym was renamed Charles H. Berry Gymnasium in 2006, and Berry was inducted into the Arkansas Coaches Hall of Fame in 2016. 

Terry Michler

Terry Michler is the winningest boys high school soccer coach in history, and this past season, he eclipsed the 1,000-victory mark in his 48^th season at his alma mater, Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis, Missouri. After graduating from Rockhurst College in Kansas City and playing professional soccer for three years, Michler returned to CBC in 1972 to direct the soccer program. After the 2019 season, Michler’s career coaching mark stands at 1,004-284-117. His CBC teams have claimed 31 district championships and have won nine Missouri State High School Activities Association State Soccer Championships in 15 appearances. Michler’s state titles have been distributed throughout his career, with his first in 1983 and his last in 2018. His teams have been ranked nationally in 13 different seasons, and he has had about 300 former players who played at the college level and more than 30 who played professionally. Michler has written – or helped to write – four books on soccer, and he has been inducted in numerous other halls of fame, including the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame and the CBC Sports Hall of Fame.   

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ADMINISTRATOR

Bill Farney

Bill Farney retired as executive director of the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) in 2009 after leading the nation’s largest state association staff for 14 years. Farney joined the UIL in 1977 and served as an assistant director and athletic director for 18 years before assuming the executive director’s position in 1995. During his tenure at the UIL, Farney developed the academic and fine arts programs into the most expansive offerings of any state association. He also helped to expand more opportunities for girls by adding team tennis, soccer, softball and wrestling as sanctioned sports. Farney also developed a waiver process to help disadvantaged students with unavoidable circumstances, and he also implemented the Coaches and Officials Positive Expectations (COPE) course for coaches and players to learn proper sportsmanlike conduct. Farney was a teacher, coach, principal and superintendent at schools in Oklahoma and Texas for 15 years before joining the UIL, including the final seven years as superintendent of schools in Crawford, Texas. Farney earned his bachelor’s degree from Tulsa University and his master’s and doctorate from Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He was a member of the NFHS Board of Directors, NFHS Basketball Rules Committee, NFHS Swimming and Diving Rules Committee and the NCAA Football Rules Committee.  

PERFORMING ARTS

Robert Littlefield

Robert Littlefield has been one of the top speech and debate educators in North Dakota and nationally for more than 45 years. After beginning his career as director of forensics and fine arts in the Barnesville (Minnesota) Public Schools in 1974, Littlefield worked at the high school and college levels in North Dakota until 2016, when he moved to the University of Central Florida. In addition to serving as debate coach at Shanley High School in Fargo, North Dakota, for eight years, Littlefield was the state planner and coordinator for speech clinics for high school teachers and students for more than 20 years. He also coordinated summer speech and debate camps for high school students and was founder and executive director of the Valley Forensic League. During his time at Shanley, Littlefield revitalized the program and had teams regularly place at regional, state and national competition. Littlefield has been involved in national leadership positions with both Pi Kappa Delta National Forensic Honorary and the National Speech and Debate Association. In addition to service on boards and committees with these organizations, Littlefield’s research, development and publication in scholastic journals and instructional workbooks has been extensive. During most of his time in North Dakota, Littlefield was a professor at North Dakota State University and directed the NDSU Speech and Debate Invitational for 25 years.   

(Lisa Hayes/StillOfTheMomentPhotography.com)

While the behavior of parents and other fans at high school games is still a work in progress, there is some good news on the officiating front.

Last fall, we reported on a growing shortage of officials nationwide – even reaching a crisis stage in some areas as games were being cancelled. Through a nationwide recruitment effort, progress is being made in attracting more people to the high school officiating avocation. 

Thanks to the NFHS’ #BecomeAnOfficial campaign that was launched in the spring of 2017, more than 4,000 men and women across the country have registered and become certified officials. Many of these individuals are former high school athletes who want to remain involved in sports, earn some extra income and stay in shape, including first responders such as police officers, firefighters and EMTs.  

Individuals interested in becoming an official can sign up through the HighSchoolOfficials.com website, and most state associations respond within 24 hours to continue the registration process.

On the flip side, however, is the fear that any gains in new officials coming in the front door are being offset by other officials heading out the back door because of the continued boorish behavior on the part of parents and other fans.

Rickey Neaves, associate director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association, is struggling to cover all basketball games in his state in his role as officials’ coordinator.

“Fans and coaches alike feel freer to downgrade officials, and holler and scream at them, as opposed to the way it was 10 years ago,” Neaves said. “You can see where it is getting worse and worse with parents and coaches blaming officials or staying on an official to the point where they’re just not going to take it, so they just get out.”

Unfortunately, we continue to hear reports like this from across the country. A recent survey conducted by Officially Human: Behind the Stripes that was completed by about 19,000 respondents in 14 states indicated that the problem persists, with fans who do not know the rules being the main culprit.

If efforts by the NFHS at the national level – and others at state and local levels – to attract more people to officiating are to be successful, unsportsmanlike behavior on the part of parents and other fans must cease or we will lose some of these new officials within two years.

While we recognize the task of improving the culture at high school events is challenging and is one more item on the busy plates of school administrators, it is essential if we are to retain officials.

Brenda Hilton, founder of Officially Human: Beyond the Stripes, said “The time is now for all of us to realize that officials are human and their existence and hard work at sporting events allows all of us to enjoy the games that we love. We must start to humanize officials now before the whistles fall silent.” 

Recognition and thanks should also be a part of the game plan. We must regularly share our appreciation for the men and women who officiate high school sports.

Dana Pappas, commissioner of officials for the New Mexico Officials Association, shared the following with officials in her state during a special appreciation week:

“Never think that what you do as an official doesn’t matter because it does. Never let one contest where the fans are exceedingly brutal and the scrutiny is overly intense derail your love for what you do. Never think that you are not making a difference because you most definitely are. You are educators, role models and guardians of the integrity of the sport you officiate. You officiate because you care about kids, you care about your chosen sport and you care about your community.”

Instead of viewing these officiating issues as a crisis, let’s see them as an opportunity to impact lives through education-based athletics. 

(Chris Fehrm/Chris Fehrm Photography)

INDIANAPOLIS – Beginning next season, changes to the conditions and procedure for restarting play with a dropped ball will take effect in high school soccer.

The dropped ball procedure was among 15 rules changes made by the NFHS Soccer Rules Committee at its January 20-22 meeting in Indianapolis and subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

When a ball is caused to go out of bounds due to a simultaneous touch, Rules 9-2-2 and 9-2-3 now stipulate a referee will restart play with a dropped ball to one player of the team that last possessed the ball before going out of play. Previously, simultaneous touch resulted in any number of players contesting a dropped ball to restart play.

Additionally, if play is stopped with the ball in the penalty area or the last touch – by either team – was in the penalty area, the ball is dropped to the defending team’s goalkeeper with all opposing players outside the penalty area.

A dropped ball is also used when a ball is deemed out of play due to touching an official, remaining on the field and resulting in one of three scenarios. Rule 9-1-1b states that if a ball touches an official and remains on the field, it will be deemed out of play if it 1) creates a promising attack for a team, 2) goes directly into the goal, or, 3) changes possession.

“The committee felt it was unfair for the ball to touch an official, remain on the field and give an advantage to either team in any of the three situations outlined,” said Stan Latta, chair of the Soccer Rules Committee.

Three rules changes to Rule 16 address when players may enter the penalty area and play a ball after a goal kick. The rules now state a ball is in play when it is kicked and moves, at which point opposing players may enter the penalty area and play the ball. Previously, opposing players remained outside the penalty area until the ball cleared the penalty area and the goal kick was retaken if it failed to exit the penalty area.

“The changes in Rule 16 will allow for a faster restart and alleviate the tendency to waste time,” said Theresia Wynns, NFHS Director of Sports and Officials and liaison to the Soccer Rules Committee.

Rule 14-1-3 clarifies goalkeepers’ positions during a penalty kick. Defending goalkeepers shall stand with at least one foot on or in-line with the goal line and the goalkeeper shall not be touching the goal posts, crossbar or nets. Forward movement is allowed provided both feet don’t come off the line until the ball is in play.

A complete listing of the soccer rules changes will be available on the NFHS website at www.nfhs.org. Click on “Activities & Sports” at the top of the home page and select “Soccer.”

According to the 2018-19 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey, soccer is the fifth most popular high school sport for boys with 459,077 participants in 12,552 schools nationwide. Soccer is the fourth most popular sport for girls with 394,105 participants in 12,107 schools.

(@fcasportsupdate/Twitter)

The enduring popularity of football in the United States was celebrated in the past year at all levels of the sport.

The NFHS celebrated its 100th year of service in all areas of high school sports, including the writing of football playing rules, although the first-known games date to the 1870s.

This past year, the NCAA recognized the 150th anniversary of college football which started in 1869 when Princeton and Rutgers met for the first time. And the National Football League just closed its 100th season, which started with a 1919 game between Dayton and Columbus.

From those beginnings to today, the impact of football on life in America is incalculable. From the youth leagues, through high school and college, and on to the NFL, football is the runaway leader as this country’s most popular sport – both from a participant standpoint with about three million players annually at all levels, to the millions of fans who attend or watch games.

Every fall, millions of families spend a portion of their weekends supporting their grade-school kids in youth football programs. Through these programs, kids are exposed to the basics of the sport and, more importantly, they begin to learn teamwork, sportsmanship and how to win and lose in a proper manner.

On Friday nights, beyond the one million high school students – boys and girls – actually playing football, there are more than 150 million fans who attend games each year. Parents are involved in booster club activities, and homecoming activities occur during one football game every year. In many communities – particularly smaller cities and towns – Friday night football is often the most anticipated event of the week. 

Another 50,000-plus players are involved in college football on Saturdays. As is the case at the high school level, homecoming events are tied to one football game every fall. Postseason bowl games have been a part of American culture for decades, and the new College Football Playoff has brought even more excitement to the end of the season. 

NFL games on Sunday complete the three-day weekend focus on the country’s favorite sport. Thanks, in part, to the singular weekly focus as opposed to multiple games each week in the other three major professional sports, football dwarfs its competitors.

The interest level in playing football – and following the sport at all levels – has never been higher. With that continued interest in the sport comes the expectation that everything possible is being done – at all levels – to ensure that the safety of each and every participant is of the upmost concern.

With that backdrop, last week we met with leaders from USA Football, several state high school association executive directors and high school coaches and athletic directors representing the National High School Football Coaches Alliance and the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, respectively.

Collectively, these groups are committed to consistent messaging and support to ensure the ongoing popularity of the sport for the next 100 years. We believe the Football Development Model (FDM) enacted by USA Football will re-invigorate interest in the sport at the youth levels. The FDM reduces contact in youth football and advances the game through comprehensive education, game progressions and safety standards.

There was also agreement about the importance of high school football coaches. By connecting with coaches of youth football programs in their communities, high school football coaches can spur excitement on the part of youth players and their parents and improve chances of kids continuing to play the sport. Without a doubt, high school football coaches can be the focal point to success of programs in communities across the nation.

Working together, we can count on a continuation of the sport’s popularity at the high school level.

(Kevin McNearny)

INDIANAPOLIS — In an effort to eliminate a potential timing advantage gained by the defensive team in high school football, the play clock will be set to 40 seconds – effective with the 2020 season – when an official’s time-out is taken for an injury to a defensive player or a defensive player has an equipment issue.

This change was one of six rules revisions recommended by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Football Rules Committee at its January 12-14 meeting in Indianapolis. All recommended changes were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

Last year, in an effort to establish a more consistent time period between downs, the play clock was expanded from 25 seconds to 40 seconds in many cases, although the play clock remained at 25 seconds in most cases following an official’s time-out. However, this coming season, the play clock will be set at 40 seconds following an injury to a defensive player or a when a defensive player has an equipment issue.

“The rules committee was provided situations in which the defensive team was gaining a timing advantage late in games with a defensive injury or an equipment issue with the defense,” said Todd Tharp, assistant director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association and chair of the NFHS Football Rules Committee. “Under the current rule, if a play ended with less than 40 seconds left in the game and a defensive player was injured which resulted in an official’s time-out, the play clock would reset to 25 seconds and another play would need to be run. With the new rule change, another play would not need to be run.”

In the same rule dealing with the play clock (Rule 3-6-1), the committee approved one additional situation when 25 seconds will be on the play clock. Beginning next season, 25 seconds will be on the play clock and start on the ready-for-play signal when a new series is awarded following a legal free kick or scrimmage kick.  

Two changes to Rule 7 – Snapping, Handling and Passing the Ball – were approved by the committee. The exception in Rule 7-5-2 regarding an illegal forward pass being a foul was expanded. Previously, it was legal to conserve time only by intentionally throwing the ball forward to the ground immediately after receiving a direct hand-to-hand snap. The committee expanded the exception to permit a player positioned directly behind the center (shotgun formation) to intentionally ground the ball.

In Rule 7-1, a new Article 9 states that no defensive player shall use disconcerting acts or words prior to the snap in an attempt to interfere with an offensive player’s signals or movements.

Bob Colgate, NFHS director of sports and sports medicine and staff liaison to the NFHS Football Rules Committee, said this language was moved from Rule 9-5-1d and has been reclassified from a 15-yard unsportsmanlike foul to a 5-yard foul.

In addition, several rules will be affected by the committee’s ruling that the head coach, prior to the game, should notify the referee as to the team’s designated representative (coach or player) who will make decisions regarding penalty acceptance or declination. Several locations in the rules book required the team captains to make these decisions, so the new language throughout the book will provide teams more options.

The final change approved by the committee is an addition to the Note in Table 3-1 related to clock times. The new Note 2 will read as follows:

“If the game is interrupted due to weather during the last three minutes of the second period, and the delay is at least 30 minutes, the opposing coaches can mutually agree to shorten halftime intermission, provided there is at least a one-minute intermission (not including the three-minute warm-up period).”

“I am totally impressed with the thoughtfulness and discussion that went into the rules-making process this year by the Football Rules Committee,” Tharp said. “Two of the proposals dealt with the new play clock rule that went into effect last year, while another rule change now allows the passer who is in the shotgun position to intentionally throw the ball to the ground. 

“Additionally, the penalty on the defensive team for any player using disconcerting acts has been reduced from 15 yards to 5 yards. Coaches and officials shared concerns that this was too harsh a penalty for this act, comparing this act to a 5-yard encroachment penalty on the defense.”

A complete listing of the football rules changes will be available on the NFHS website at www.nfhs.org. Click on “Activities & Sports” at the top of the home page and select “Football.”

According to the 2018-19 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey, 11-player football is the most popular high school sport for boys with 1,006,013 participants in 14,247 schools nationwide. In addition, there were 31,221 boys who participated in 6-, 8- and 9-player football, along with 2,604 girls in all four versions of the game for a grand total of 1,039,828.

(Tim Bourke/TimBourke.com)

INDIANAPOLIS — Field hockey games will be played in four quarters instead of two halves beginning with the 2020 season.

This significant change was one of several rules revisions recommended by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Field Hockey Rules Committee at its January 13-15 meeting in Indianapolis. All rules changes were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

“The NFHS Field Hockey Rules Committee continues to strive to find ways to improve the ease and use of the rules for officials and coaches, which is evident in many of the changes made for the 2020 field hockey season,” said Julie Cochran, NFHS director of sports and liaison to the NFHS Field Hockey Rules Committee.

The rules committee’s change moves the game to four 15-minute periods from two 30-minute halves. The committee believes this will allow teams to maximize their play for the entire match. Set stoppage times of two minutes between the first and second quarters – as well as between the third and fourth quarters – will provide student-athletes breaks for rest, hydration and strategizing. The length of halftime is set for 10 minutes, with teams changing goals.

“I think the shift to quarters is going to be interesting,” said Sherry Bryant, Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) associate director and chair of the NFHS Field Hockey Rules Committee. “From an educational athletics point of view, a standardized break between quarters to address health and safety of athletes provides consistent opportunity for coaching, all while enhancing the excitement and flow of the game. It seems like a true win-win scenario.”

Changes to the sport’s period lengths primarily affect Rule 4-1-1; however, they also impact Rules 5-1-1, 5-1-2 and 5-2-2. To be specific, the rules now detail the start of a game with a center pass and the restart of play by a center pass following each goal by a player of the team not scoring.

As a result of the change in periods, the committee removed language pertaining to the starting and stopping of the game clock. Consequently, the sport no longer features time-outs. Rule 4-2-3 previously stated each team is permitted two 90-second time-outs per game. With the change to four quarters, teams now have guaranteed breaks for rest, hydration and coaching opportunities.

Cochran added that the rules committee adjusted team time-outs in an effort to keep the game fluid with the guaranteed stoppage of play now between quarters.

The rules committee also made significant changes that clarify the intent of penalties found as part of Rule 12-1. The committee also added definitions of cards related to coaches’ conduct.

Previously, Rule 12-1 PENALTIES consisted of six items and a note. It has been reduced from six penalties to three penalties, including the removal of definitions for each offense.

Rule 12-1 PENALTY 1 has been expanded to clarify when a penalty card is issued, and it also defines green, yellow and red cards. The newly adopted third penalty details restarting play when a foul is called prior to clock stoppage, when the ball goes out of bounds, and if no foul is called prior to clock stoppage.

An overhaul of the player uniform rule – Rule 1-5-1 through 1-5-8 – was also notable. Changes carried out by the committee reorganized the uniform rule and provided further clarity with the addition of language regarding uniform bottoms.

Changes to the player uniform rule reflect recent changes in high school volleyball rules. In field hockey, players are permitted to wear a single-colored short or long-sleeved shirt. If worn, home-team undershirts must be white. The visiting team’s undershirt must match the color of the jersey or be black or a dark color. All players who choose to wear an undershirt must wear the same color as her teammates.

Other uniform rules changes include like-colored uniform bottoms, which include styles such as shorts, skirts, kilts or pants, provided shin guards are visible. The home team must wear solid, knee-length white socks/sock guards, while the visiting team must have a dark, contrasting color. The committee’s actions also included defining the use of player numbers, which also must be a solid, contrasting color and feature no more than two digits (00-99).

Another rules change for 2020 introduces the definition of shadowing to the rules. Shadowing is the act of being within playing distance of an opponent and following the player’s movement on the field without impeding progress. The new rule, Rule 3-3-9, is found among definitions of techniques within the rules book.

The final change, Rule 10-3-2, specifies that the criteria for completion of a penalty corner during extended play will mirror the procedures for ending a penalty corner during regulation play.

A complete listing of the field hockey rules changes will be available on the NFHS website atwww.nfhs.org. Click on “Activities & Sports” at the top of the home page and select “Field Hockey.”

According to the 2018-19 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey, field hockey has 60,824 girls participating in more than 1,700 schools nationwide.

(Dustin Price/dustinpricephotography.com)

INDIANAPOLIS — Revised rules for roster submissions and penalties assessed to the team bench are among the most prominent high school volleyball rules changes for the upcoming 2020-21 season.

At its annual meeting January 5-7 in downtown Indianapolis, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Volleyball Rules Committee recommended six rules changes that were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

“High school volleyball is in a great place, which is reflected in the small number of both rules proposals and rules changes this year,” said Lindsey Atkinson, NFHS director of sports and liaison to the Volleyball Rules Committee. “The NFHS Volleyball Rules Committee continues to be dedicated to finding ways to improve the administration of the game as is evident in the changes made for the 2020-21 volleyball season.”

The first notable change pertains to the consequences for late roster submissions and changes made to the roster after 10 minutes remain on the pregame clock (Rules 7-1-1, 9-9-1).

Previously, a team’s failure to submit an accurate roster to the second referee at the prematch conference warranted a loss of rally/point under Rule 7-1-1 and 7-1-1 PENALTIES. However, since the prematch conference happens well before the 10-minute mark during warmups, the requirement for total accuracy of the roster at that time has been removed, and the corresponding charge has been reduced to an unnecessary delay (administrative yellow card). The penalty for a roster correction(s) made after the 10-minute mark remains a loss of rally/point.

This modification was also noted under Rule 9-9-1, which specifies unnecessary delay scenarios, and is now listed as Rule 9-9-1a.

“The 2019-20 rules change requiring coaches to submit their rosters during the prematch conference created an unintended consequence that potentially double penalized teams if they were both late with the submission of their roster and had to make a change with under 10 minutes,” Atkinson said. “The rule change to an unnecessary delay for late submission creates a penalty progression that is more appropriate.”

Administrative leniency for an unsporting conduct situation was addressed with the second major rule change.

Under Rule 12-2-6, a yellow or red unsporting conduct card assessed to the coaching staff or team bench rescinded the head coach’s right to stand inside the libero replacement zone and forced him or her to remain seated for the remainder of the match.

The amendment to the rule lessens the severity of a yellow card in this instance and allows it to function as a warning rather than an automatic retraction of privileges. Head coaches are still required to sit immediately if a red card or second yellow card is imposed for unsporting conduct. 

“Overwhelming support came from both coaches and officials on the 2019 NFHS Volleyball Questionnaire for allowing the head coach to stand when issued a yellow card for unsporting conduct,” said Atkinson. “This change now provides the official with an opportunity to warn the head coach, when appropriate, before requiring them to stay seated for the remainder of the match.”

One further alteration was made regarding roster submissions. As part of the addendum to Rule 7-1-4, teams that list an incorrect libero number on a lineup provided during the timed interval or intermission between sets may now correct the clerical error before play begins with no penalty assessed.

A protective face mask similar to those worn in other sports is now permissible under Rule 4-1-4. Face masks must be made of hard material and must be molded to the face with no protrusions.

The final adjustment is a change to Official Signal No. 15, which now mandates that a substitution be represented with two short whistles by the official, followed by two shoulder-height rotations of the forearms around each other with closed hands.  

A complete listing of the volleyball rules changes will be available on the NFHS website at www.nfhs.org. Click on “Activities & Sports” at the top of the home page and select “Volleyball.”

According to the 2018-19 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey, volleyball is the second-most popular sports for girls (trailing track and field) with 452,808 participants in 16,572 schools nationwide. In addition, there are 63,563 boys participating in the sport at 2,692 schools, and 25 states conduct state championships in boys volleyball.

(Paul Soriano)

Two days ago, the nation observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day for the 35th time. This annual remembrance of the civil rights leader and his remarkable efforts in the 1950s and 1960s to combat racism in the United States continues as one of the most significant days on the calendar every year.

King’s “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington, D.C. in 1963 — one of the most iconic speeches in history — was the defining moment of the civil rights movement and led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made desegregation a prerequisite to school funding and further strengthened the Supreme Court’s 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.  

As a result, separate schools for African Americans ended and King’s dream of equality for everyone began to occur.

Thanks, in part, to the efforts of King, who was a member of his school’s debate team at Booker T. Washington High School in Atlanta, blacks and whites were assimilated in schools and in athletics and other activities such as speech and debate.

A few years later in the early 1970s with the passage of Title IX, girls — both white and black — were provided the opportunity to participate in high school sports. With this landmark legislation on the heels of the civil rights movement, high school sports and activities were for EVERYONE.

Amazingly, participation in high school sports increased from 3.9 million to 6.4 million in seven years between 1971-72 and 1977-78 — a jump of about 2.5 million. Why? The opportunity to participate was now available to all.

High school athletes — male and female, black and white and other races — began to work together and excel both individually and as teams. Many have seized these opportunities and had a profound impact within their communities and nationally.

In the past five classes of the NFHS National High School Hall of Fame, 13 of the 22 athletes were minority males and females, including the likes of Derrick Brooks, Dusty Baker, Seimone Augustus, Nicole Powell, Lisa Fernandez, Nikki McCray and Marlin Briscoe. Other females were Tracey Fuchs, Carrie Tollefson, Missy West, Joni Huntley, Jackie Stiles and Cindy Brogdon. 

In previous classes, there were Ozzie Newsome, Chauncey Billups, Kevin Johnson, Janet Evans, Sean Elliott, Cheryl Miller, Archie Griffin, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Kim Mulkey.

Can you imagine the storied history of high school sports without these individuals?

Thanks to the efforts of many people in the 1960s and 1970s, there are more women and minorities in leadership positions today. Nine of our member state high school associations are led by minorities, including three females — Que Tucker of North Carolina, Sally Marquez of New Mexico and Rhonda Blanford-Green of Colorado.

Despite these advances in opportunities the past 50-plus years, the late Dr. King would be disappointed to hear about some of the disrespectful behavior in and around high school sports the past few years. Since our column in late October, we have heard of other racially related incidents. Indeed, pain still occurs.

As we reflect on the tremendous efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to bring everyone together, let it be a further reminder that all student activity participants — regardless of race, religion, political views or gender identity — should be treated with respect. 

(Dan Schuster/NFHS)

Long-term solutions to increasing the number of participants in high school sports and improving parental behavior at high school contests? The answer to both questions might start at the youth sports level.

The NFHS hosted a first-ever meeting of about 25 leaders of National Governing Bodies and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee last week to discuss common concerns and opportunities to align and work together.

Within the youth areas of these organizations, the issues are familiar ones to high school leaders – decline in participation, parent behavior, coaches education and minimizing the injury risk. Clearly, however, reaching parents with appropriate educational messages on sportsmanship, injury risk and the values of participation is a top priority for leaders at all levels – youth, middle school and high school sports.

Recently, the NFHS formed a Middle School Committee in an effort to build interest in education-based sports at that level and to share the proper messages with parents before their kids reach high school. However, as we learned last week, middle school may even be too late!

Those educational messages will be enhanced if the process starts in out-of-school youth sports. If messages about the values of multi-sport participation, playing for the love of the game, and limiting contact in sports like football are consistently shared and demonstrated at the youth level, the education-based concept should be firmly in place by the time students reach high school. 

Coaches education is another common concern. While the NFHS has created an outstanding online education program for interscholastic coaches through the NFHS Learning Center (NFHSLearn.com), there is no standard requirement to coach at the youth level. There should be some type of required certification for anyone to walk onto a field or court to coach. And while knowledge about teaching the proper tackling form in football or the proper defensive positioning in basketball is important, those are not the most important prerequisites for coaching.

Similar to the NFHS’ online Fundamentals of Coaching course, youth coaches should be required to take courses that help them learn how to coach the kids more so than the sport. And since many of the coaches at this level are parents of players on the team, these individuals – and all youth parents – should be presented materials similar to what is presented at preseason meetings at the high school level. This would include, among other things, the non-negotiable requirement to positively support their child while letting the coaches coach, and the officials officiate.

Lofty goals, for sure, without a collective governing organization over youth sports. However, these concepts can be endorsed and promoted within the youth areas of sport-specific NGBs. These fundamentals of education-based athletics are essential for the two to three percent who play sports beyond high school as well as the majority who apply the values learned in high school sports in their chosen careers.

The skills will eventually fade – even for those individuals who play sports beyond high school – but the values learned from playing sports, beginning at the youth sports level, will last a lifetime.