Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle Wimp
I cover high school football for a local newspaper. I see a lot of instances in the kicking game where what would be a close decision in college and pro football is easier in high school. Some teams have no kicker, so they always go for two, or go for it on fourth down when in college a field goal attempt would be in order.
I'm sure a lot of fans in the stands are second-guessing the high school coaches because they're looking at the games from the college and pro standards, when in fact the probabilities are much different.
Oh, I'm well aware of those issues, and you're right that it's often easier for them because the absence of either a placekicker or a punter takes away (losing) options. I mean clock management, play calling (and I really only judge this for the team I watch all the time, and am pretty forgiving about it), that sort of thing.
Actually, the worst decision I see consistently is playing the starters the whole game even when the team has no chance to win, or to lose (and this happens a lot in HS games), rather than giving the other kids a chance to get on the field. But obviously that's a different sort of issue.