Message From the Executive Director …

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At the end of the day, there is only one way to judge the success of an interscholastic athletic program….participation.  That is true at not only the local school level, but also at the state association level.  The values and benefits gained through athletics have nothing to do with winning championships or being named all-conference or all-state.  Whether a student is a four-year starter or sits on the bench for much of her career, she is in a position to gain the same values and intrinsic benefits because she participates on the team.  Iowa has long been looked at nationally as a leader in interscholastic athletics in both girls and boys sports in large part because our participation is extraordinarily high when you consider our population ranks 30^th nationally.

For example, the number of participants in basketball ranks 18^th nationally.  In bowling, Iowa ranks 11^th nationally.  In cross country, we rank 17^th.  In golf, we rank fourth…behind only Texas, California and Minnesota.  Soccer ranks 25^th in participation, softball ranks 14^th, swimming and diving ranks 27^th, tennis ranks 18^th, track and field ranks 16^th and volleyball ranks ninth. 

To put these numbers in perspective, Iowa ranks 19^th in the total number of students who participate.    The 11 states with a larger population, but fewer participants than Iowa are Colorado, Arizona, Maryland, Tennessee, Connecticut, Kentucky, Oregon, Louisiana, Alabama, South Carolina and Oklahoma.

In terms of judging the success of interscholastic athletic programs in Iowa, participation numbers tell the story – we are among the national leaders in the raw numbers of students who participate, which is a credit to parents, coaches and our students, who see the value and benefit in athletic participation.    

The numbers are even more striking, when you consider Texas leads the nation in the raw numbers of participants with five times as many students participating in athletics as Iowa does.  Yet, their population is over seven times as high as Iowa’s.  California has five times as many participants as Iowa, but a population 12 times greater than ours.  The list goes on, with New York, Illinois, Michigan and Ohio having two times the number of participants as Iowa, but having at least 3.5 times the population of our state.  In fact, on a per capita basis, Iowa, along with Minnesota and Wisconsin consistently rank in the top three nationally in student participation in interscholastic athletics.

It is hard to compare sport programs from state to state.  Not only do population influences impact many of those comparisons, but weather does as well.  Arizona, Hawaii and California have some winter programs that aren’t very practical here in Iowa.  Nor can Iowa match the interscholastic skiing program offered in Colorado and Michigan.  But, there are some comparisons that are relevant to those of us in this state.

Only two states have a girls’ state basketball tournament outside the months of February or March.  Hawaii plays in May, and Michigan currently has a fall season and plays in late November.  Iowa teams are allowed 21 games.  23 states allow 21 or more games, while 21 states allow 20 games.  The fewest games are allowed in Nebraska, where they play 17.  Arkansas and Mississippi allow 28 games.  Around us, Missouri allows 25 games, Minnesota 26, Illinois 21 and Wisconsin 20.

Golf and Tennis seasons are essentially split nationally between the fall and spring.  Some states have some classes in one season, and some in another.  In fact, golf is split 25/25 when it comes to fall/spring.  20 states play fall tennis.

Soccer is another sport that has a wide range of seasons nationally.  California, Hawaii, Arizona, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi play state tournaments in soccer in February and March.  Texas is in April.  Obviously, climate has a great deal to do when seasons can be played.  Nineteen states join Iowa with a May-June state tournament.  The remaining 24 states that have soccer play toward an October-November state tournament.  South Dakota doesn’t have girls soccer.  Among our geographic peers, Minnesota is in the fall, with Nebraska, Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri in the May-June timeframe.

Swimming is another sport with seasons all over the board, with at least one state having their state tournament in October, November, December, February, March, April and May.  Missouri has a May tournament, Nebraska is in February, and Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota join Iowa in November.  Interestingly, of the 46 states which offer both girls and boys swimming, 33 run those seasons at the same time, while 13 follow Iowa with a split season.

Finally, softball is the most unique sport when compared to our national peers.  With our current 50 game season allowance, only Michigan, with 56 allowable games, plays more.  With our 2008 change to 40 games, Iowa will still allow more games than any other state besides Michigan.   Only four other states, Wisconsin (32), Texas (36), Illinois (35) and Louisiana (30) allow 30 or more games.

Our state tournament currently ends in August.  North and South Dakota and Wyoming don’t have state softball tournaments.  Oklahoma actually has 320 schools playing slow pitch in one season, and 415 playing fast pitch in another season.  Five states have fall tournaments.  40 states end in May or June. 

Hawaii has a February state tournament.  I suggest we all visit Maui in 2007 to catch a glimpse.

One of the most interesting comparisons to other states is looking at some of the sports that are available outside of Iowa.  Twenty seven states have competitive cheerleading.  Twenty five states have field hockey.  Thirty states offer gymnastics.  Ten states offer ice hockey for girls, including a 234 school tournament series in Minnesota.  Twenty three states have lacrosse, with 12 states involved in alpine skiing and 11 states offering cross country skiing.  Some other sports offered on a limited basis by a few states include badminton, crew, water polo, riflery, snowboarding and weight lifting.  Iowa has the only co-ed tennis and co-ed golf state tournaments in the nation.

While it is interesting to know what is happening around the country, we can never make decisions in Iowa based on what is happening in Michigan or Florida or even Missouri or Illinois.  We have to act with the best interests of Iowa students in mind.  Regardless of the number of games allowed, or when a season is played, based on the participation numbers we have in Iowa, it seems safe to assume we have the right combination to ensure the highest levels of participation our population can sustain.  The challenge for tomorrow is finding ways to gently tweak what we can control to entice even more students onto our fields and courts.