Fighting to Keep the Team Together

My son, Chase, played tackle football for the first time last year. He was finally old enough to play in the Metro Youth Football Association league. The teams are based on what school district you're in. There are teams from Linn-Mar, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Jefferson, and Washington. Chase played for Marion. It was an up-and-down season that ended on a high note of beating an unbeaten Linn-Mar team in overtime. Chase had fun playing and learned a lot. Fast forward to this year.

Chase has been on the fence about playing again. He likes football, but didn't know if he wanted to do it again. I asked him why and he would always tell me that it was a huge commitment and didn't give him much free time. He's right, it is a big commitment. Practices 3 to 4 times a week with games on the weekends -- and these kids are only 11 years old. I was pushing him to give it a try for another year. But I got an email this week from his coach that made me want him to do it even more. The email stated that only 12 kids had signed up for Marion football so far and that if they didn't get at least 4 more in the next week or so, they would disband the Marion team and spread the kids around to other schools.

The Marion school district faces a bit of a challenge. While the Linn-Mar district to the north continues to grow, the Marion district can't. It's locked in geographically. When this happens, participation is key. When you've got fewer kids, you need more of them to go out. That goes for any sport or extracurricular activity. When I saw that they might have to get rid of the Marion team, it took me by surprise. But the more I thought about it, the more it makes sense. There are so many sports for kids to play. And those sports also have a demanding schedule. Football isn't the only game in town anymore. Many parents think it's too dangerous. I personally love the game. I love watching my son play it. The Metro league teaches proper tackling technique and safety. They care about the future of the game.

So my son is signing up. Because he wants to play for the city we live in. The school he goes to. He wants to play for Marion.

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