So, before playing a single football season, Sobrato High School
has unceremoniously dumped the Tri-County Athletic League, leaving
its other league members in the lurch, scrambling to fill gaps in
their schedules.
So, before playing a single football season, Sobrato High School has unceremoniously dumped the Tri-County Athletic League, leaving its other league members in the lurch, scrambling to fill gaps in their schedules.
Sobrato’s desire to leave was not the problem, but when it left is. The other members, which include San Benito High, Gilroy High and Live Oak, asked Sobrato to evaluate its membership in TCAL before committing to playing. After Sobrato officials insisted they wanted to stay, the league members continued with their plans. Sobrato then pulled out after schedules had been set.
Attributing the school’s exit to “parental concerns” makes one doubt the veracity of the motivations. One article quoted one parent saying many were concerned for the safety of the participating students. Another complained that working parents in San Jose couldn’t get to games in Monterey and Salinas.
Both are legitimate points, but not irreconcilable. The goal of high school league realignment is equity and geographic common sense to contain costs. The league, not the players’ parents, who will change every year, should have the final say.
The excuses for Sobrato’s late withdrawal just don’t wash. The team had coaches good enough to teach the youth how to play football properly and address safety concerns. The teams, while younger than their league counterparts, could certainly have performed well enough to compete. Other schools survive through years where there are few experienced seniors. This next year’s team would have had plenty of juniors. And, if they felt overmatched, they could forfeit and still scrimmage, gaining good experience for the next year. This is how a solid program is built.
Sobrato Principal Richard Knapp has enough experience from his years heading TCAL member Live Oak, and the input of his competent coaches, to have been able to educate the parents and students about what it takes to build a competitive program from scratch, and the wealth of opportunities for the first football teams to receive not only loads of playing time, but also to establish traditions, including a healthy and entertaining cross-town rivalry. These are advantages that could have provided many life lessons.
We sympathize with the student athletes, whose interests actually seem to have come last in this debacle, as the school will suffer for years with a reputation for having a muddy vision for its athletic programs, and resolve too flimsy to participate seriously in league competition.
Knapp acknowledged that his handling of the matter was inexcusable. Leadership requires forethought and appropriate action. This is an example of abject failure in both regards. In terms of Sobrato High’s future, that’s worrisome.
