It was about this time last year in this very blog when I talked about my decades in the writing business. A good portion of that time has involved sports coverage, and the hundreds of kids that have transferred during those decades.

 

Understand, I am not talking about a transfer where a student-athlete’s family moves from Logan to Wheeling. I am talking about transferring to a neighboring school or nearby district for the sole purpose of getting more playing time, playing on a better team, or getting out of a situation cooked up in the minds of what in a majority of the situations is an overzealous or out of touch guardian or parent.

 

I've witnessed transfers where kids follow the current rules and sit out a year, some where families have moved to have their kids play sports elsewhere, some moving in with a grandparent who was given legal guardianship, and every other manner in which a rule can be skirted, and eligibility begins immediately. I have seen the rules skirted so much that when someone tries to transfer and says honestly it is to play a sport, I almost want to give that person a pass.

 

For those that have actually attempted to transfer and did so honestly, saying it was for sports, this blog is not about you. Heck, it is not even about transfers or certain folks in the stands that have made attending youth and prep sporting events, in many cases, miserable. It is once again about legislation aimed at changing the rules for transferring.

 

If not for the rules in place, as I said last year about this time, those hundreds of transfers I have seen would be in the thousands. Why, then, am I bringing it up again?

 

Last month, near the beginning of the 2023 session of the West Virginia Legislature, Senate Bill 262 was introduced. It sure smells a lot like Senate Bill 586 that Senator Ryan Weld, R-Brooke, introduced last year that led to my previous blog. It should be noted that the lead sponsor again this year is Weld.

 

No offense to Weld. I do not know him. I would not know him if he walked into my office. And, as I said in 2022, I am certain his intelligence level dwarfs mine and that his intensions are honorable despite what I think of the legislation.

 

Allow me to eloquently state exactly what I said when the bill summary last year as “athletic eligibility of transfer students” to this year’s “allowing students to transfer schools and retain athletic eligibility” summary. It stinks.

 

In 2022, I contacted probably two dozen coaches, former coaches, administrators, and athletic directors in this county, outside of the county, and a few outside of the region before running the blog to get their thoughts. After my blog ran, I have never had as many in that same group contact me directly – and a near 100 percent agreement on being against the bill I might add – on anything I have ever written.

 

I should be clear one coach, whom I respect tremendously, did support the legislation to allow for a specific hardship situation to be eased by a transfer done easily as opposed of going in front of the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission (WVSSAC). While we disagreed with the legislation, I totally understood his rationale. And the good news is the student-athlete in question was granted the transfer by the SSAC.

 

I digress.

 

What Senate Bill 262 will do, if passed, will create a wide-open recruiting platform of teens and a high school transfer portal. You know it. I know it. The coaches, ADs, and – if you forced them to drink a truth potion – the lawmakers supporting this know it too. Even for those who say this is different because the NCAA transfer portal is currently unlimited and this is only a one-time thing, it is a hollow argument.

 

If this becomes law, next year the legislation would allow any student-athlete to transfer once during or after ninth grade and it would not impact their eligibility. This has disaster written all over it.

 

For those who say recruiting is taking place now so what’s the big deal? There is a whole lot of illegal activity taking place in all walks of life, but that is never grounds for shrugging one’s shoulder and deciding, “well, not much we can do so let’s just make it legal.”

 

Last year it was actually said in the Senate that most transfers were based on academics. The comment was laughable.

 

Even for those who believe it provides opportunity for college scholarships, particularly in a rural setting to a bigger school, it is misguided thinking in my mind.

 

Let me assure anyone, if you can play, they will find you. I am pretty sure it does not get much more rural than Circleville, West Virginia, and know that Travis Harper made it all the way to Major League Baseball in 1997, which means he was a senior in high school about the time the internet kicked off.

 

Yet, they found him. While I still recall some stories about kids slipping through the recruiting cracks in the past, in today’s online world the odds of it happening are amazingly slim.

 

I digress again.

 

I am certain there are those who think I am not involved deeply enough with high school sports to make an informed decision. Perhaps the Legislature should check with a group that represents schools and athletics, like the aforementioned WVSSAC. I would think it would be wise to hear what that group thinks and give it some weight.

 

The state senators did. WVSSAC Executive Director Bernie Dolan sent a letter to state senators opposing the bill. In the MetroNews article, that quoted WSAZ TV, Dolan said it would “upset the spirit of competition and hurt academics.”

 

He was quoted as saying the SSAC feels that “it’s not a great idea, academically, to be changing schools unnecessarily in the middle of your high school career.”

 

Dolan is 100 percent correct, but he did not take it far enough. It is also not a great idea athletically, which is the spirit of this legislation.

 

But why aren’t lawmakers listen to Dolan? The man charged with representing schools statewide through their membership is telling you, for the second year in a row, this is a bad idea, and no one is listening. The worst part is Dolan is representing the folks in the trenches – the coaches, administrators, and athletic directors – and pointing out they, too, do not think this is a good idea.

 

Apparently, those voting for it believe they know more than Dolan and the people he represents. They do not.

 

As for cries about how current rules are not fair, and that some kids may get to play at schools with better coaches, facilities, and training that will get them better scholarship opportunities, the mindset – once again – is a stage for failure.

 

Life is not fair. Sports has served as the ideal platform to prove that. Very few student-athletes will end every single high school sporting event with a victory. Transferring to a school that gives you the best shot at getting that final victory probably will not change that scenario.

 

I do not know if this legislation passes what schools will see kids leave, and what schools will see kids going to them. I do know there is a real issue if student-athletes head to schools strapped by overflowing classrooms. Has that been thought out? The bill itself is two pages long and does not address it. Maybe it will be amended if addressed by the next step in the process.

 

As of Friday, Senate Bill 262 is sitting in the House Education Committee. It has been there since it was introduced to the House of Delegates on Jan. 26.

 

I hope the bill does like student-athletes should do in almost every circumstance. I hope it does not transfer out of the committee.

 

Editor's Note: After the WVSSAC photo, the second picture is of Senator Ryan Weld, while bottom photo is of WVSSAC Director Bernie Dolan.