Guest Opinion, Football 2001 (No. 2)
Return to Home Page

    This was originally a Random Thoughts submission by Tom Cocco, a grade school football coach. Because it was longer than the average RT and dealt with an interesting topic, I decided to make it a Guest Opinion. Below, we will publish responses. Thanks, Ted.

    This "Prep Bashing" has really gone full tilt. I didn't attend St. Joe's Prep, nor do I consider myself a fan. I am also a grade school football coach, and have seen a few of my guys go on to attend the Prep. Now deep down, I would love all my players to attend the local "feeder" high school because it's my alma mater and that would help keep the program strong. But I know that what's best for the student/athlete and his family is the most important factor.

    Back when I was in grade school, there wasn't open enrollment, so most kids moved on to the feeder high school. There were a few that chose to attend St. Joe's, Malvern, La Salle, etc., but that was mostly due to family loyalty and/or exceptional grades. So that meant that most of the student/athletes attended the feeder high school, and that left the private schools with limited numbers for their football programs. With that, the private schools were unable to field quality teams year in and year out and get the better athletes to attend their school. This is not the say that these schools never had quality teams, though.

    Now over the last few of years, the high school football landscape has shifted. Fans are now seeing St. Joe's, Malvern, La Salle, etc., field exceptional teams. I see two reasons that directly affected the shift:

    1.) Archdiocese Open Enrollment -- Now this was really geared towards the feeder schools so they could open their doors to any student in the archdiocese. But this new rule made recruiting legitimate, not an activity done behind closed doors. Now if anyone says that schools in the PCL don't recruit, you're wrong. I see it every year, from teams just sending letters to the whole 8th grade class, to inviting players to the school for a visit, to yucking it up with that player's parents at the corner bar after the game, and even video taping games and promising playing time as a freshman. We even had a coach from [an Inter-Ac school] ask for names and phone numbers of players by their uniform numbers after a game. Well, two of the four players' numbers he asked for were 7th graders who didn't even play. Was this guy even watching the game??? A lot of PCL school alumni/fans don't like recruiting because it takes players away from their school. An example, if Kyle Ambrogi decided to attend high school using the feeder system he'd be playing for Carroll right now.  In my opinion (which this whole rant is), the idea of recruiting is not wrong, some kind of recruiting tactics are.

    2.) Economy/Available Money -- With the upward trend in the economy over the last decade, the tuition for some of the private schools are now reachable for more families. Also, schools have widened their "need" assistance programs, giving more financial help to qualified students/athletes. I can not say for a fact that private schools have lower academic standards for "gifted" athletes. But I have seen students turned down by St. Joe's because they didn't meet academic guidelines, then in turn see an athlete with the same grades accepted.

    Private schools have always offered a top-notch education. It's pretty obvious, because these schools cost more to attend and have higher academic requirements. Now that these private schools can offer a consistent, quality football programs, the package is pretty solid. If a student/athlete and his family can get assistance so that the tuition is along the lines of a feeder high school and he is academically approved, attending a private school these days is a great opportunity. Isn't that how you succeed in life, taking advantage of the opportunity presented to you?

    Now, the burden is placed upon the Archdiocese schools to not only keep their football programs up to par but widen their academic prowess to compete with the private schools. I hope that a new trend starts: Schools compete for student/athletes not by how superior their football team is but whose academic curriculum & football team is superior. Let's no forget, STUDENT/athletes are attending high school to get an education first. Football is just an added bonus, and what a GREAT bonus it is!

    Thanks for your patience.

RESPONSES . . .

Ted,
   Tom Cocco hit the nail on the head.  I've been trying to get alot of these points across on the RT section of your site but being a Prep alumni, and a teenager, you don't get much respect.  So I'd like to ask all people that doubted what I've said b4 about recruiting is true.  An adult, football coach has seen and heard much of what is the dirt on recruiting.  He makes too much sense.   He has expereinced this stuff first hand so we should take it to heart.  But, his most important, most crucial point, and one that should be noted is his solution to this.  I've said it b4 and now I have someone to back me up.  Other schools have to do some form of controlled recruiting. Their schools should upgrade their academic curriculum and work hand-in-hand with the coaches putting more effort in fielding better teams.
Good work and Thank You Mr. Cocco
---- Mark Gress
********
This is a response to the Guest Opinion 2 story.
        I think whoever wrote that is right i go to St. Denis myself and it
seems like almost every decent player on our 7th and 8th grade team has been
getting letters or something of that sort from private or Inter-Ac schools.
Most people want to go to the Prep because of our great players there now
(Kyle Ambrogi, Adam Hepp, John Connors, Tim Gangulio and others). But every
year we have a couple people who go to an Inter-Ac school too. I think the
number of people going to Carrol and Ohara from our school is defidently
decreasing. Hopefully everyone is goin to the right academic school for them
instead of the school with the best sport teams and coaches.
---- the 6th grader
********
Ted,
As an alumnus of the Prep, and starting left guard on the 97 PCl
championship squad, I can certainly attest to the rewards of a well recruited
class. However, I can also attest to the natural attrition of talent due to
acedemic failure. St Joe's is an institution dedicated to preparing young men
for the rigors of the collegiate ranks, as well as the world beyond the
classroom. As such, there are recruited athletes who are asked to leave
regardless of thier benificairy value to a team's win column. Are there
exceptions to the rule?-- definitely, but this is common practice among the
private institutions in the Philadelphia area. In a given year, more than five
hundred young men take an entrance exam for admission to the Prep. They are
competing for about two hundred spots, which is unheard of in a local parochial
high school. The numbers are roughly the same for other local prep schools,
such as Malvern, LaSalle, and Episcopal. Simply put, the declining academic
standards in the local parochial school system have placed such institutions in
great demand. Your average student athlete at a local prep school is not
anymore likely than his parochial peer to recognize the combination of academic
and social achievements neccesary for college admission, but his parents and
coaches probably do. When it is all said and done, most high school players
have no future in football beyond thier senior year. A talented few may be
lucky enough to have the ability to play at a higher level, with the million to
one shot at playing the game for a living. The rest of these young men will
depend on the foundation provided by thier high school, and those fortunate
graduates of local prep institutions have a step on thier peers. Mr Cocco is
absolutely correct in his judgement that local schools must improve
academically, and I thank him for his well reasoned and sensible arguements.
---- Michael Keenan
   (Ted's note: Thank you, Michael!!)
*******
To Tom Cocco,   
      In my opinion, none of what you said really made any sense.  Although there was one quote that really caught my eye, "A lot of PCL school alumni/fans don't like recruiting because it takes players away from their school. An example, if Kyle Ambrogi decided to attend high school using the feeder system he'd be playing for Carroll right now.  In my opinion (which this whole rant is), the idea of recruiting is not wrong, some kind of recruiting tactics are."  Are you kidding me?  That may be true ... but look at Carroll?  When you think about Carroll Football 2001-02 whose name comes to mind?   Maurice Stovall.  If he (Maurice) used the feeder system to decide where to go to school, he would sure as hell not go to Carroll.  And I'm sure there are many others who attend Carroll who otherwise (by using the feeder system) would not be there!  Thank you for your time.
      PS: I know many people agree with me!
---- Some1 who KNOWS
   (Ted's note: Kids from West Philly have been going to Carroll since at least the mid-1970s. Maybe someone definitely familiar with the situation will write in, but I'm 99 percent sure a few parishes, mostly in the Overbrook area, used to give their graduates the option of going to West or Carroll long before open enrollment was implemented.)
*******
Ted:
As a father who is just now becoming familiar with high school sports in the Philly area (my son is a freshman at Judge), I can speak from experience about recruiting in the Catholic League.
I grew up in the Chicago area almost 30 years ago.  When I was in the seventh and eighth grade, coaches would come to my Pop Warner (some of your readers will remember when pound football was called this) games to openly recruit players.  I and several of my teammates were asked if we would like to attend Catholic League schools to play football and/or basketball.  Additionally, several classmates that played for neighboring teams were approached as well.  My grade school basketball coach pushed players to attend Catholic League schools.  The coaches attended our games and visited the locker room before and after games.
As I said, speaking from personal experience, Mr. Cocco has valid points in his letter.  Recruiting in the Catholic League can be found anywhere.
---- Arthur Livingston
*******
Mr. Keenan
   You mentioned the declining academic standards of schools in the parochial system. Maybe you should do some research of the schools in the Archdiocese and maybe you will find out that the students are held to a pretty strict standard. Despite what you and others might believe a good percentage of our graduates go on to achieve very nicely in their adult lives. The percentage who go on to academic and career success is very high.  I have been associated with one of these institutions for over 25 years and I get a little annoyed at the perception that the so called "Prep" schools have cornered the market as far as success and academic achievement is concerned. Among others I have had the privilege of coaching players who include an oral surgeon, a cardiologist and an Oxford graduate who now is a consultant for an educational network. They have done quite well for themselves. Maybe their high school experience contributed to their lofty accomplishments.
---- anonymous
*******
Ted,
   I need to address a point regarding my post that has evolved into a "Guest Opinion". My original e-mail was made to express my opinion on the subject of recruiting of high school student/athletes. It was not composed to put down an education provided by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. I am a product of an archdiocese education (Cardinal O'Hara HS 91') as well as both my parents and family. I received an excellent education at O'Hara and wouldn't trade my time there for anything.
"Feeder" high schools have always been fighting an upward battle against private schools, when it comes to academics. The Archdiocese supports and maintains 21 high schools in our area. Private schools are a single entity, and require substantially more tuition and have better facilities. Private schools can always "get a leg up" because they generate more money from tuition and donations. Archdiocese high schools are comparable in all other aspects, and can offer some things like "neighborhood pride" that private schools are not able too.
The point I was trying to get across in my first post was recruiting, when done properly, can benefit a student/athlete. When I say "properly" I mean that the recruiter must offer an education that is well-rounded in academic, moral, social, and athletic standards, no just athletics. Most catholic high schools (private or archdiocese) in our area can provide such an education, when the students apply themselves.
Also, my use of Kyle Ambrogi as an example we just that, an example. I could have used a number of guys that chose a private school, instead a feeder school.
Looking forward to the next three weeks in the PCL Red. All the "Big Dogs" are matching up against each other. Good luck to all the squads, may the best team (O'HARA…hey, I'm an alum) win!
---- Tom Cocco
******
   Ted- Anonymous has raised an important point which I neglected to clarify in my original note: By no means am I dismissing the benefits of a parochial education in the Philadelphia area. Having attended a small parochial grade school in Bryn Mawr, I am certainly not ignorant of the educational standards put forth by the Archdiocese and the benefits of such rigors in real life. Three generations of my family have attended local feeder schools, beginning with my grandfather who attended and taught at West and La Salle University-to my father, aunt, uncles, and younger brother who are Carroll alumni. It was unfair of me to suggest that success is the right of a privileged few, when in reality academic success is the result of individual high achievement and the right of every student. The crux of my argument  is that private institutions are capable of offering a higher level of guidance and support through a combination of selective enrollment, higher staff pay, limited class size, and dedicated alumni involvement. The Archdiocese does an outstanding job of providing a solid core education in its twenty one schools without the benefit of operating on the singular private model. I realize that it is ignorant of an outsider to lay waste to the many accomplishments achieved by the students and alumni of these institutions, and I apologize. That said, Mr. Cocco is dead on in his assessment of "proper recruitment." For those who have not been through the process of college recruitment, it is hard to understand that the best interests of the student/athlete are often the furthest thing from a recruiter's mind. In the PCL recruiting may be the new way of life, but the recruit can still expect to be treated as a student athlete rather than a commodity.
---- Michael Keenan
******
Mr. Keenan
   Thank you for your clarification of earlier statements made. However you state that certain private schools can give as you state a "higher level of guidance and support." You state because of "selective" enrollment and "higher salary" this is the case.  Can you see why some may take that the wrong way?  What you and others perceive is not always reality. Try convincing that to the many teachers and administrators who staff the Archdiocesan schools. We are doing just fine.
---- anonymous
******