Old Bearkat":39myzibn said:
Everyone is moving to the cities and the rural folks left are not having big families any more. This is happening all over the nation.
Not to brag in the slightest but I have a maste's degree in history. While in grad school, I tried to write a paper about sixman football and even talked to Mr. Sanders a bit. I changed my topic to the impact of the Interstate because I saw the obvious correlation between economic growth and an interstate coming through a town.
While Mr. Sanders is right in the academic sense that every region is different, I think Old Bearcat's explanation holds a great deal of truth.
Here what I see happening:
1. Many sixman schools in the west will close down only to be replaced by schools that play 11-man right now. Leakey, Bronte, and Menard are good examples of this.
2. There will be more sixman schools in the east in areas without economic vialibity. Chester and High Island are good examples of this.
3. Many of the sixman schools in that I-35 corridor between Ft. Worth and Waco will grow and play 11-man; I hate to say it, but they can only keep development out for so long. I am not going to give examples of this one, but there are quite a few.
4. Private schools may become the dominant division within sixman football. People will make more money if they continue to move to cities. Large public schools are often not the ideal place to send your kids, so we may see more privatization of schools (our legislature wants that as well.)
I do not mean this to insult anyone as I understand the local concerns about the school closing down; Heck, my high school isn't looking great numbers wise, and it is weird to think I played against a high school that no longer exists. Unfortunately, I think it is reality for sixman football.