For those wondering why City Section teams struggle to compete at the highest level with the highest level sports of football and basketball, the CIF Transfer School, which prevents schools from building teams of any type, is You could also blame Commissioner Vicki Lagos for enforcing the rules. A star team that has pushed Narbonne, Hawkins and others into trouble in the past.
After the nine basketball players' names appeared in the City Section's transfer portal after their paperwork was submitted by Palisades High School in the fall, they quickly caught the attention of Lagos.
She and her staff have a policy of visiting schools that accept multiple transfers in a particular sport to ensure that CIF rules are being followed, rather than allowing schools to police themselves.
She gathers administrators, coaches, and parents in the same room and reviews the required paperwork. It happened at the Palisades, where four players were denied eligibility for violating the rules regarding contact before registration (recommendation: not announcing the arrival of players who are not officially registered).
Mr. Lagos and his staff have accomplished the seemingly impossible task of forcing schools and parents to follow CIF rules. The same cannot be said for the Southern Division, which has 560 schools and continues to rely on the schools' own surveys. And one wonders why the Southern Section has a problem with recognition, rightly or wrongly, with rules repeatedly violated by students using solicitations and false addresses.
Spokesman Tom Simmons said the Southern Division has sent investigators only twice in the past two school years. Who knew parents and coaches were so strict about following the rules?
Kudos to the city section for working with the Los Angeles Unified School District and telling aspiring coaches that the rules apply to everyone. The knowledge that someone is watching closely should motivate you to follow the rules. If you follow the rules, you won't make an all-star team with players from other schools.
Yes, it caused damage to the city department. Nowhere can you find a basketball team that has ever beaten an elite team in the South. The football team is 0-9 in state championship bowl finals since 2017.
But that doesn't mean all is lost. In basketball, a record three teams from the city qualified for the state championship game. Chatsworth boys are in Division IV, Verdugo Hills boys are in Division V and Granada Hills girls are in Division III. Chatsworth and Granada Hills were left out of the Open Division team due to competitiveness. They got to Sacramento and played great in the playoffs against similar opponents. They never would have progressed this far at a higher level. Therefore, following the rules can lead to competing for the championship.
Once again, the City Division is about to be put to the test. Narbonne has acquired three high-profile soccer transfers from Orange County. Look forward to future visits.
The truth is that City's team plays by the rules, but some opponents don't. Other sections should not just take the word of schools eager to have championship teams, especially when in-state transfers will be nearly 17,000 in the 2023-2024 school year. We need to make the rules more thorough. Football transfers are already piling up, with multiple transfers taking place at top programs.
Just as officials focus on rules for each season, the CIF must also focus on when a school accepts multiple transfers. This doesn't mean there's fraud going on, but it's certainly a red flag that shouldn't be ignored. The CIF will begin evaluating priorities for the future of high school sports this fall.
Otherwise, switch to a college sports transfer portal model where players are paid, transfers are unlimited, and education-based sports are limited to the Ivy League.
At the very least, change needs to happen, and following the city department's policy of visiting schools with multiple transfers from the same sport is a starting point.
Imagine if the state's largest southern section did the same thing. Suddenly there may be a perception that the rules are being followed.
Last month, the city again refused to allow the Birmingham and El Camino Real soccer teams to participate in the state playoffs following a brawl after the championship game, demonstrating that they are not afraid to enforce the rules. showed that. Outdated results.
If you want to change perceptions, you have to act. Branches across the state are paid handsomely to run high school sports. It is time to intervene so that others can be confident that there is a level playing field when it comes to transfers. The status quo is unacceptable.
