EHS Students Are Playing Sports — But Not For Eastside
For the first time in 30 years, studies have shown that participation in high school sports has dropped drastically. The sports that dropped the most were football and basketball. According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, the last time participation dropped this low was in 1988–1989.
In the 2018–2019 school year, 11-man football teams have dropped to its lowest mark for the first time since the 1999–2000 school year. The studies showed that 31,000 fewer students played this year compared to just the year before.
Basketball also experienced a significant decline. Girl’s basketball has reached its lowest point since 1992 with only 399,000 participants. That is almost 24,000 fewer students than just the previous year.
So why aren’t teenagers playing sports? The answer isn’t what you might expect. Turns out, most of these students are still playing the sports; they just aren’t playing for the school. While numbers for school sports have gone down, the number of athletes joining sports in our community have actually gone up.
Eastside sophomore Jesse Johnson is one such athlete. He plays basketball — but not for Eastside. “Playing outside of the school is better,” he says. “You can get a personal trainer that helps you craft your game and compete at a higher level.”
Fellow sophomore Cynthia Perez agrees. “I don’t play for the school,” she says. “And I don’t think I will. Yes, the sport is fun but I work really with my team.”
When you take into account athletes who are playing for teams other than their school, the 2018–2019 season actually featured the third-highest number of athletes ever.
