Carson City-Crystal moving to 8-man football

CARSON CITY — Citing dropping enrollment, health and safety, and being able to play closer to home were all reasons determining the change in the football program at Carson City-Crystal Area Schools.

Following a 6-0 vote at the CC-C Board of Education meeting Monday evening, starting in the 2023 fall season, the current 11-man football teams will change to an 8-man ball game.

“We are currently traveling all over the place,” Athletic Director Travis Wilcox said. “We aren’t able to play teams in our conference because they all play 8-man. We aren’t able to play for a league championship because we don’t play in a league. We find teams who have a bye and will play us. We kick their butts one time and they don’t play us again.”

“Since 1995, our enrollment has had a steady decline,” he continued. “We aren’t going up. Looking ahead at the upcoming classes, we are going from having 104 or 105 males to having 89, 85 or 78. This year’s current sixth grade class has only 18 males, and how many of them are going to want to eventually play varsity football?”

Varsity football coach Tim Swore and junior varsity coach Michael Porter cited the health and safety of the players as their major concern with the current 11-man teams.

“We were in a position at one game this season that if we had one more player get injured, we would have had to forfeit the game. I didn’t have any more substitutes,” Swore said.

“If we start moving players up, then parents become concerned. They don’t want their freshman son playing against a senior from another team, and can you blame them?” Porter added.

Wilcox explained that the MHSAA looks at February enrollment numbers to allow a team to do the 8-man game.

Athletic Director Travis Wilcox counts off reasons why the district should change from traditional 11-man football to 8-man to the members of the Carson City-Crystal school board Monday evening. — DN Photo | Lori Hansen

“You have to be at 215 or less,” Wilcox said. “We used to be 240. Our fall count was 209 and now we are 207. We are eligible to play 8-man.”

Weighing the pros of the 11-man game, Wilcox cited tradition, more big man opportunities and upperclassmen familiarity. The cons were no JV team, farther travel and no conference affiliation.

Weighing the pros of the 8-man game, Wilcox said they were less travel, conference affiliation, coachability, longer team competitiveness, offensive creativity and continuity in playing the same teams in different sports. The cons were the stigma, fewer big man opportunities, the first time coaching and playing and more defensive challenges.

“We know it is football that drives the bus in the athletic standpoint,” he said. “It would be a responsible use of the money we just spent on a new football stadium. It would feel like we would have that small-town football feel all over again.”

Board member Neil Kapustka said he felt there were valid points made to go with the 8-man games.

“We have to do what is best for the kids,” he said. “Safety is a big concern, and if we can’t get the numbers to participate, I think this is what we have to do.”

With Kapustka making a motion, and board member Scott Fisher giving a second, the board voted 6-0 to change to 8-man football teams.

Also during Monday’s meeting, due to the high number of illnesses, especially at the elementary level where 33% of the student body was out with illness, Superintendent John Sattler explained why the decision was made close the school district for two days this week (Tuesday and Wednesday).

“We will have a crew in cleaning, and resume school on Thursday,” he said.