High School Sport

The stigma around high school sport was that it was such a more intensive program and that only the best would play. Coaches would not put you in because "everyone gets a chance." This was the time when college recruiters would start looking at you the moment you stepped foot into high school athletics. It was the chance to get possibly a scholarship and even more. In middle school, practices would maybe be once or twice a week and not everything was mandatory. Personally, when I entered high school I was doing two-a-days, weight training, conditioning, and on top of that actual practice. Due to this stigma, people usually dropped out of the sports they were playing because they did not want to time commitment The objective of high school sports was to get noticed by colleges and to receive a higher education. They are usually never met, athletes probably around their junior year realize if they are going to college for athletics or not. Interscholastic sports are highly regarded by high schools. I can remember that the athletes were treated like kings and queens in school. We got to choose our parking spots and teachers were easier on us. The problems of interscholastic sport are that it is a lot of pressure for 15-18 year olds. The training is intense, while going to school for something that might not even turn out into a career. They are treated as the superiority, when they should be treated like everyone else. It also created rivalries among many neighbors and friends. I remember that I swam on a club team for 10 years and during that time I swam with ALL swimmers who went to my rival high school. It was always awkward swimming against them in high school meets, when we have always been apart of the same team for years. It also divides towns, especially at Friday night football games. I am not sure if there is a solution to rivalries, but it could be in the best interest of high schools to maybe not let athletes slip on by so they will not get in trouble with their coaches.