Fair for a coach to do this?

Look at it as an opportunity to do some other events.

I'm pretty old and my father is even older and his father even older than that (RIP) and I can tell you that this is not "old school," it's just stupid. As a third generation coach I can tell you that this was not standard practice dating all the way back to WWII.

If there are freshmen and sophomores on your Basketball, Football, soccer etc. teams, you should bring this to the AD. It's discrimination and negatively affecting your athletic resume.

Well, if that's the case it's not really a fair situation but try to be patient, train hard and get faster. It's going to be exciting for you hitting the scene as a junior. Everyone is going to wonder where you came from but you have to keep up with it.

In the meantime try to do the right things. I've had freshman that have run a 53 and a 52 as a senior after they discovered partying and all of those great things that make you slow.

I had another kid who ran a 56 as a freshman and improved to a 49 by his senior year. He's in college now dropped soccer to train through the whole year and is now running a 47 and looking for more. He is not particularly talented but has worked as hard as any athlete I've ever had.

You'll have your moment. Keep your head down and work hard.

Change schools bro.

Probably a troll but if not, he is an idiot.

We achieved varsity status based on meet performance.

He probably does not want to burn you out. What efforts did you put forth in further communicating with him? I find it hard to believe that you have the "bigger picture" mentality that your coach might have. Use the extra down time to recover and go ask your coach about building your base over the summer for the Fall XC season.

PS: You coach has probably seen dozens of know it all hot-shots go down in flames...

Frosh wrote:

My coach is the old school my the books kinda guy that keeps tradition unless it is necessary for the team. I am a HS freshmen that runs a 53 400m which is 2nd fastest on the entire team. Since my coach is very oldschool he always tells me that I have to wait until my junior year to make varsity and that varsity should be reserved for the upperclassmen. I have been on JV all this season and it didn't bother me until he told me since I was JV I don't get to go to districts/ regional / state so my season is over at the end of next week. Is it right for him to do this?

1) I'm not a fan of what your coach is doing. If you can run faster than others, you should be able to compete as a varsity runner.

2) Don't mean to be disrespectful, but in your state and division, would a 53 400m even get you out of the district meet? In my kids' district last year (top 4 move on), the 4th place guy ran 48.87, and the 8th guy in that final ran 52.26. 53 wouldn't have even got you into the final. If a 53 wouldn't get you out of the district anyway, then you're missing just one race. Get faster and come back next year and maybe run faster than everyone on the team so that he thinks twice about this policy of his.

The NCAA did not allow freshman on varsity teams until 1968.In 1968, the NCAA allowed freshman eligibility in all sports, except football and basketball, and extended the rule to those sports effective with the 1972-73 academic year.This kid is in high school, so it's a little different, but it's not unheard of for freshman to be forced to wait to compete. However, I agree your coach is being unfair or stupid or old school.

Older School wrote:

I'm pretty old and my father is even older and his father even older than that (RIP) and I can tell you that this is not "old school," it's just stupid. As a third generation coach I can tell you that this was not standard practice dating all the way back to WWII.

If there are freshmen and sophomores on your Basketball, Football, soccer etc. teams, you should bring this to the AD. It's discrimination and negatively affecting your athletic resume.

"PS: You coach has probably seen dozens of know it all hot-shots go down in flames..."

If so, there may be a central reason behind the occurrences.

I go to a Maine class C school where the winning time was around 51 seconds I don't mean to sound like i'm full of myself but I feel like I won't be ready to race with people that are faster If I have to wait until junior year. I feel like I should at least get to do the 4x400 for varsity so we can go to regional this year and I can understand what the higher level meets are like. The only person I have seen who is a underclassmen who got put on varsity was a long jumper and that's only because we didn't have any other jumpers.

Yeah, the NFL doesn't allow high school athletes either but that is not what the subject of the thread is. In high school sports, it is not "old school" to ban underclassmen from varsity athletics. It may be done by a small minority of other control freaks but it is not, and hasn't been for 75 + years, the norm.

we didn't star the fire wrote:

"PS: You coach has probably seen dozens of know it all hot-shots go down in flames..."

If so, there may be a central reason behind the occurrences.

Impatience.

First, 53 is a solid Frosh-Soph/JV time. This would be stretching to make our frosh-soph final at the league level.

Also maybe he thinks it better to run for the win in the fresh-soph level than finish 15th in varsity at the trials and not even make the final.

Maybe he doesn't need you to run up on varsity.

Maturity is also a factor. Maybe you're not ready.

Maybe he doesn't like skinny, annoying distance kids... Who knows?

I would ask your coach. There's probably more too it than just being old school.

53 is not bad for a freshman, but at any league champ meet, regional, etc. it is not very good. If you want to run varsity, run a time that will force him to put you on varsity.

Your coach is dumb - "If a dog is gonna bite, he is most likely to bite as a puppy"

OP

It's a cop-out to say what he said (coach) any real coach puts the best athletes on the field that gives his team the best chance to win.

Imagine if every sport did that?

My best friend was the starting running back on our high school football team his freshman year.

When I coached high school XC and track I had "run offs"

Basically, trials for each event. I always said; "the fastest (number) are lining up varisty, and I don't care if they are all freshman.."

I ran faster as a frosh and had an old school coach. JV was where I was stuck even though I would have been league and division champ for varsity but not in the top 10 section wise. So I did multiple events to make it fun 400, 200, LJ, and threw the shot. Soph year we had a new coach and it was all business I was on varsity placing in the top three at a CIF section meet. Don't lose faith, have fun, and challenge yourself. If you are faster than varsity guys now imagine where you'll be at in another year. Two things matter most your mindset and the clock. Not the competition.

Where? I go to Greely. Thought I was the only Maine runner on this site.

Our varsity standards have been the same since I started coaching: 23.8 for 200m, 53.5 for 400m, 2:07 for 800m, 4:50 for 1600, 10:50 for 3200, regardless of age. The relays times are a little slower so some kids get on that way. Kids can also get a letter if they qualify and compete in County Champs meet. 53 is very solid for Frosh- I've never had that.