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WARREN, Weber County — The Weber School District's decades-old football program will be eliminated starting next school year.
The Weber School District Board of Education voted Tuesday to cancel football at nine middle schools across the district.
Some parents who spoke to KSL-TV called it a tragic and heartbreaking incident, and wondered how their children could still play the sport to prepare for high school football. The situation is such that they have to think about it.
“It's like breaking up with a brotherhood,” Devan Martinez said. His 7-year-old son was already looking forward to playing when he entered middle school.
Steven Barrera coached at South Ogden Middle School. Brotherhood and school spirit are irreplaceable, he said.
“Middle school kids look forward to game day, and even if they're not part of a packed team at a game, their parents are cheerleaders, their student council, their school is buzzing.”
District spokeswoman Lane Findlay said the main reason is not enough children are enrolled.
“Last year, we had about 350 students play this year. Just over 200 registered,” he said. “I think that was really the driving force. The low participation makes it very difficult. We also have a lot of coaching turnover, which creates challenges as well.”
Schools also had to consolidate their teams because smaller schools had fewer players than larger schools. Cost was also a factor. The program costs $50,000 a year, Findley said.
“You're talking about coaches, you're talking about officials, you're talking about transportation. On top of that, you have the cost of uniforms and equipment. So it's a pretty expensive program to run,” Findlay said.
But parents like Martinez have to think about what kind of recreational or community leagues they can use to keep their kids involved in sports through high school.
“Not everyone can afford that. If I had to do that when I was young, my parents wouldn't have put me into football,” he said.
Findlay said the program has been in the district for as long as he can remember, and Weber School District is the only school district in the state with a middle school football league.
“I know it wasn't an easy decision,” he said. “A lot of work has gone into committees, studies, program reviews, etc. to make sure we get the best overall results.”
Mr Findlay said the school's survey showed only about half of parents wanted to continue playing football. But Basella said he wished the district had done more publicity.
“We have to treat football like a kind of business. So we have to market this. We have to be on Facebook. We have to get the word out,” he said. .
Martinez said he believes football at the middle school level keeps many kids entertained and in school. Additionally, he said, it teaches young men life lessons such as how to play on a team.
“You learn chemistry in high school and you learn when you can be benched and when you can’t be benched,” Martinez said. “And I think it's just a tragedy to take that away from children.”
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Lindsay ArtsLindsey attended Utah State University and earned a degree in Broadcast Journalism. She previously reported for KSL NewsRadio.
