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BOB PUTNAM"If this passes, it could, effectively, kill athletics," Lakewood football coach Brian Bruch said.
Parents, teachers and students will not be the only ones debating the proposal to move the starting time for high schools from 7:20 a.m. to 9:55 a.m in front of the Pinellas County School Board.
Coaches have something to say, too.
"If this passes, it could, effectively, kill athletics," Lakewood football coach Brian Bruch said. Bruch plans to attend tonight's meeting, which begins at 6:30, and board members expect a large crowd and lengthy debate.
"The vote is too close for me not to be there," said Bruch, referring to the seven-member board that is narrowly divided. "Hopefully, what I have to say will make a difference."
The biggest concern for Bruch and other coaches is practice. Currently, school starts at 7:20 a.m. and practices are held in the afternoon. Changing the starting time, however, would move practices to the mornings.
"When are we supposed to practice? 7 a.m.?" Pinellas Park girls basketball coach Dave Mauger said. "Yeah, that'll work. You'll never be able to squeeze a junior varsity and varsity practice in at that time.
"It's a terrible idea."
The reason for the proposed time change is the bus schedule, which has been altered because the number of students eligible to ride this fall has risen dramatically. The number of proposed schedules has been narrowed from seven to two.
The other option is to keep the starting time at 7:20 a.m., which is what Pinellas County superintendent Howard Hinesley said he will recommend because it causes the least disruption.
Still, coaches are worried.
"I about fell out of my chair when I heard Hinesley tell me about the possible new starting time," Seminole football coach Sam Roper said. "We've already been dealing with a lot of changes, and this could end up being a big mess."
During the past year, coaches have had to tweak their schedules after the school board agreed to move up the first day of school by three weeks. They also are bracing for the county's school choice plan that begins in August.
But the starting time could be the biggest alteration to their plans.
"The later time creates just a ton of problems," Bruch said. "Most of my coaches are volunteers who can come in the afternoon. They probably won't be able to be there in the morning.
"Not only that, but now I have to find a way to get these kids here, which will be a big headache because activity buses could be eliminated. Then I have to shower them and feed them before they start school.
"The varsity players will find a way to do it, but I don't know about the junior varsity ones. And once you don't have junior varsity, you don't have varsity. And therefore, you effectively kill high school sports."