Indoor state meet time schedule

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psycho_dad

Well-known member
The time schedule for D2/D3 was much too long. Didn't look to see if D1 was the same, but I imagine it was. 8 minutes of dead air between the last heat of something and the start of the next event is 7 minutes too many. IMO
 
 
There was some delay but it was not that noticeable at the meet itself. And as a coach I appreciated having a set time schedule (as opposed to rolling) so that I can be exact in telling my athletes when they need to start warming up, how long they will have between events, etc.

One thing that I did not appreciate at the indoor state meet was the free reign that was given to college coaches to go anywhere they wanted whereas high school coaches (i.e., the coaches that are actually there to coach their athletes) that did not have a field athlete participating in the meet were only allowed in the grand stand. They admittedly became less strict about monitoring who was in the track area after the field events concluded and I understand the concerns about having too many people in the competition area; but it seems to me that allowing college coaches into the competition area is essentially just adding more spectators who have a vested interest in being there but who are not actively coaching or otherwise participating in the meet.

This is not to say that I observed any college coaches getting in the way or otherwise interfering with the athletes as they warmed up or competed, and I am happy that they are there and interested in recruiting our athletes to compete at the next level. It was just frustrating to have to sit in the grand stand and try coach/take splits for the early events (i.e., the 4x800) while watching 5 coaches from the same college team standing track side and essentially get a front row seat to just watch.

I also don't believe in identifying problems without offering solutions, so if I had a recommendation it would be to give each team competing at the indoor state meet one or two coaching passes allowing them into the competition area regardless of whether they have a field athlete or not. That would let the teams to decide where their coaches are needed most (i.e., whether they are needed to observe an approach in the jumps or to keep an over-anxious 1600 runner calm and focused before and/or during their race) without overcrowding the competition area. I also think that the college coaches should be treated as regular spectators like they are at the outdoor state meet. There are plenty of opportunities for them to observe and talk to their recruits from/in the grand stand and hallways and there is really no need for them to be the competition area.

Overall though, I thought that the meet was very well run in an unmatched facility for high school athletics (the location leaves a lot to be desired for those of us not from NE Ohio, but that's a different conversation).
 
As someone who's been both HS & collegiate coach in my long ago past, I would slightly push back on the college coaches relegated to the stands. Talking with potential recruits isn't the only job I did. It was also in spotting under-developed talent that stats on a page don't show you. Smart college coaches don't just go after the big ticket kids. Being closer up to the field events is important to make those evaluations.

That said, college coaches should be as much in the background as possible and keep talking with the kids in the grandstand or outside the competition areas unless approved by their coach &/or parents.
 
It's been a while, but I thought NCAA recruiting rules forbade talking to recruits until their competition was over for the day?
Don't know anything about NAIA rules.
 
Altor said:
It's been a while, but I thought NCAA recruiting rules forbade talking to recruits until their competition was over for the day?
Don't know anything about NAIA rules.
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I don't know anymore. Long time ago for my involvement.
 
psycho_dad said:
The time schedule for D2/D3 was much too long. Didn't look to see if D1 was the same, but I imagine it was. 8 minutes of dead air between the last heat of something and the start of the next event is 7 minutes too many. IMO
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Yes they built too much cushion into that schedule.
 
First, it was a great effort by the OATCCC, officials, Coaches and especially the kids. I was there the entire time for both days, and took it all in, but there were some things that may need work.
#1 - both days were much too long..... could get both meets done in the same day (Akron did it and the facility is smaller)
- few potential alterations like less time between events and starting the running events sooner (maybe 45 minutes after the start of field events)
- one of the reasons that more time was given may have been so that kids could double or triple easier, but that didn't seem to happen much more as there were still may heats not filled with 24 kids, but that's another concern...
#2 - not full heats/events.... I know that the top 24 who declare should get to compete, but with 4-8 in an event (1600) choosing to scratch prior to their race, some replacement procedure could be created.
#3 - There should be some allowance (conversion) for qualifying on the 200 meter track. easily done and milesplit has the conversion built-in. No brainer here.
#4 - Too many on the infield OR the wrong people on the infield.....no college coaches needs to be in the infield unless they are helping with an event.... only one high school coach should be allowed on the infield at a time.... Unless they volunteer to help with a field event
- some of those old officials need some help so younger people to put up bars, rake pits, retrieve implements would be nice and speed things along.
 
ENA2 said:
#3 - There should be some allowance (conversion) for qualifying on the 200 meter track. easily done and milesplit has the conversion built-in. No brainer here.
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No reason this isn't already in place. Colleges use it for their qualifications because everyone knows a 300 meter track is so much faster than a 200 meter track.
 
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