Struggling with numbers and expectations from last year

Football is hard. It takes a lot of commitment, discipline, and effort to be good. Sadly, there are fewer and fewer kid who are willing to do it.

We are a BIG school in Michigan and while our varsity numbers are fine at the moment, our sub varsity numbers are low.

Last year we had 55 kids play JV. This year I had 38 in minicamp last week. The 9th grade class isn't much better and may be worse. I haven't seen those numbers yet.

We have had success. Back to back state titles in 2013 and 2014, fairly deep playoff run last year.

It isn't about winning or not anymore. Kids just aren't playing.

We'll see what happens for us. I know our 9th and 10th grade classes are smaller in general. The district has known this since those kids were in kindergarten. Our population picks back up with the 7th grade class so our football numbers will hopefully jump back up in a few years here.

Your situation is very similar to what I experienced my last three years as a HC.  And is part of the reason why I decided after 45 years of coaching football at the HS and College levels to step aside, take a break, and re-evaluate if I want to continue or not.  I have also been a football coach in 5 different states (wife's job) and have noticed over the past 10 years a decrease in participation numbers.  As our society has become softer, so have the boys.  Football has never been a sport for everyone, but everyone loved the sport.  I don't believe that is the case anymore.

Don't let anyone tell you what you can get done or the kids can get done.

It's part of the building. It's not easy for the adults either and there are just as many programs that have adults-the coaches, admins, teachers, boosters that are the biggest problems. Evaluate all of them first. It won't be easy you'll need support and the ability to delegate to those people. Make sure you got people around that care about kids, build relationships with kids, and willing to contribute their strengths and learn more football as needed. They should know it is never easy.

Never stop recruiting your kids and building relationships with them.

Make sure you have efficient well planned practices and training. You will lose trust and this kids if you are not effective manager of all time you ask of them. You will lose good adults even faster if you are a poor manager. Kids and adults have lots they can spend their time on.

Make sure Maslow's hierarchy is taken care of. You'll need to get to know kids and coaches to get to know kids to evaluate this.

Make sure it's about the process and you congratulate kids as they get good at the process.

Make your program special and unique somehow.

It is not the kids!

You will lose some bc you are working hard and doing things right. That's is okay. Evaluate the guys you left. Can you count on them and they are pretty good kids?

If so you might be fine. We were in a similar situation at 2 different schools. Got it done at both. I hate to break it to you but it never gets easy-even after winning. Sometimes a little easier but it never gets easy! You got to 8-2 with hard work. It will take hard work to sustain it.

We were at bigger schools but our numbers have dropped since we were building and everyone got excited. A lot of kids are willing to come out and give it a shot at first. We used to get 110 and now we are s lot closer to 80. And that has steadied out right around there for a few years since we are losing about 1 time a year. For a few kids we ask too much. Some kids just don't like the game. That's okay. I can see why you would be concerned with only 22. Keep recruiting some of those guys.

As we have leveled off some. We have gotten even better.

The amount of negative press about football over the last 2 years is impacting participation all over the country. It started in the youth leagues and it will work its way up.

I know some of you believe the youth game gains and loses popularity all the time but that hasn't impacted HS football. I believe this time it's different. Parents aren't allowing their kids to play football because they believe it to be too dangerous. A different kind of dangerous. That won't change as they get older.

Sorry about that! I think we have to start selling football to parents. Unfortunately, that won't help the OP with his problem for this season.

I have been leading a grass roots effort in my area of the world. I made up a presentation that I have been giving to any group that will allow me the 20 minute it takes. So far it has been a handful of service groups.

I believe football has some unique opportunities for kids that the other sports don't provide. My presentation highlights those and puts the concussion issue into a context that I think is more realistic.

Hot Takes baby...Hot takes.    Although I think ESPN is on the verge (if it hasn't already done so) of losing its self proclaimed title as the worldwide leader in sports.  

It's a tough situation.   For instance, very long story, but last year we started off terrible and then had a coaching change (HC resigned on a Monday morning, haha--again long story) but then we got a few guys to come into the program and everyone went to work.  We won half of our remaining games in the season.  Guys were having success like they didn't have under the previous HC and his CRAZY systems (like I say long story, just trust me).  We had guys who were excited that there was finally a group of coaches there that would demand their best and would expect their best effort and wanted them to be great rather than just telling them they were awesome regardless of the scoreboard.  We had plenty of guys show up early in the morning before school, VOLUNTARILY, to run sprints, etc. because the HC hadn't made conditioning a big deal and when the change happened, they realized it was.  VOLUNTARILY showed up for sprints by themselves, with no coaches there.  It was amazing seeing how the attitudes had changed for these guys.  We didn't have great numbers, but we expected almost every varsity guy to be back this year and to have 2 deep at every varsity position.  Well, even though the attitude was amazing leading into the offseason, we still have had guys decide to quit so that now we are scrambling to fill positions.  They want to work, or spend time with GF's, or, most often, they just aren't feeling it.  I really just don't understand it.  We had one guy who was doing amazing through summer workouts decide to quit and run cross country.  If I'm gonna run my @$$ off, you better believe I'm going to do it in a sport that at least allows me to beat the hell out of someone, haha.  

It just seems that there's really never a good reason for a guy to quit in most cases.  At least I'm saying that most cases it isn't about a coach or a coaching style, so don't beat yourself up trying to figure it out.  I can't figure out kids.  I just try to get after the ones who are out there putting out effort to do something that is so difficult.  Let's face it, Tennis AIN'T Football.

I don't know great advice for you.  The biggest thing I can say that we are trying to do is to give the guys who come out a great sense of pride in being the type of guy that comes out for the hard work and pain and self-sacrifice and teamwork involved in football.  Hopefully, we'll win 80% of games or better and have great turnout from here.  

I'd say the biggest thing I believe is that I won't ever try to beg anyone to come out who doesn't want to be there.  And I won't let any guy on our team believe that anything has changed because Bobby or Joe isn't there.  Screw it.  He doesn't want to be a part of the team.  Who cares.  We're gonna beat the piss out of people regardless.  Let's get after it.  

Delta, I think you guys are headed in the right direction. I once heard a legendary IL coach speak at a clinic (you know who I mean, think Illini West/Carthage) and he was asked how he "dealt with" not having any sort of junior high program when several of his yearly opponents did. He stated that he preferred not having junior high football. Now, he didn't have this sort of program in place, but I do think it's a good idea.

Speaking for our program, we do have tackle in 7th and 8th grade, but we used to have tackle all the way down to 3rd and 4th grade I think. We eliminated the younger levels in favor of flag.

Last year was the first year we did flag only 3-6th grade, so too early for definitive numbers.  However...I'm not sure what's going to happen with it now.  Last year, our HC was very instrumental in the league--had a role in developing the rules and plays, we as a HC staff ran the coaches' meeting/clinic, and it was a joint effort with the local YMCA.  This year, there was no communication from the YMCA on when or how they wanted our involvement.  Then, when the flyer came out advertising registration, there was in rather large print, a message saying, "This league has no affiliation with XXXX Community School District"...so I'm not sure what's going to happen now. 

We made play offs last year & while we are not world beaters we are competitive. 

Our numbers have NEVER been great but they've been sustainable. This year scares me a bit. Will struggle to put 25 varsity kids on the field. We're a smaller school so not as bad as it sounds. We're kind of used to it. 

Unfortunately, I don't have any answers. I picked up a couple of kids through recruiting the halls. But...for the most part I think the concussion thing & the work FB takes is causing many to walk away. JMO.

Two sad things stand out to me. One, we lost 6 varsity players going into this season due to grades, moving away or code violations. In the past, we could usually recoup those guys through a concerted effort of recruiting.  This year seems different. 

Second, our talent is actually the best we've had in several years. It will be heart breaking if we sustain some injuries. Nothing worse then a talented team losing it's potential b/c you just can't find a few dudes to give them a blow during a game. 

On another note,

School 30 minutes from us has 1300 kids in the building & only 55 players signed up total. Another school close by has 1700 & only 80 players signed up.

The big school conference in our area that is very strong & usually competes very well at the state level just dropped a level of football. 

In the past I used to feel like guys who complained about numbers were just "making excuses". I don't feel that way anymore. This is a real issue & the future looks tough. 

Again, JMO.

Same way a person who registered in Feb 2017 is commenting on things since Nov 2016....    

Having a championship culture doesn't mean that a program is impervious from waning interest.   Of more importance is that having a championship culture doesn't mean constant twitter updates, slogans, hashtags, motivational signs etc.    Lots of posters on this board seem to not see the forest for the trees when it comes to this term.