Does anyone have any knowledge of this? I know nothing of this ball, and it might be great, but looking to see if anyone has background info. I am concerned that we will be using a new ball from a company for our state playoffs that doesn't even have soccer listed as a sport they produce products for (or lacrosse & volleyball)... What's next? Golf balls, tennis balls, cheerleading pom-poms? I am hoping this might be some kind of an April Fools joke...

(From our AD: No one is quite sure if this means playoffs only, state championships only, or what. It does not appear to regular season games however. Pennsylvania had already signed a 4-year deal last year.)

It seems the SCHSL has signed a deal with Rawlings constituting the use of Rawlings balls through “all SCHSL districts extending through the SCHSL inter-district finals in baseball, boys/girls basketball, football, soccer, softball, volleyball and boys/girls lacrosse.” (Read press release below.)

Rawlings inks 4-year deal with South Carolina High School League in new athletic partnership
Includes designation as the "Official Ball" of League

ST. LOUIS, MO - March 31, 2015 - Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc. a subsidiary of Jarden Corporation (NYSE: JAH), today announced a new 4-year agreement with the South Carolina High School League (SCHSL), establishing Rawlings as the Official Ball of the organization effective July 1, 2015. The new partnership covers all SCHSL districts extending through the SCHSL inter-district finals in baseball, boys/girls basketball, football, soccer, softball, volleyball and boys/girls lacrosse.

"Our partnership with the South Carolina High School League is truly exciting as it pairs our latest premium products and technologies with South Carolina's premiere athletes," said Greg Bialis, Vice-President of Team Sales for St. Louis, Missouri-based Rawlings. "We're looking forward to building a strong, collaborative relationship with the SCHSL and its members that will allow the Rawlings brand to be well-represented in the state of South Carolina."

"The South Carolina High School League's new partnership with a sports brand as reputable and established as Rawlings is an exciting venture we are thrilled to embark upon. As they bring 125 years of expertise in producing the most high-performing sports equipment for athletes, the SCHSL will continue to make bold moves with iconic partners such as Rawlings," said Jerome Singleton, SCHSL Commissioner. "We're confident that all SCHSL member schools and athletes will be impressed with the level of product quality and performance resulting from our newly-formed relationship with Rawlings."

In addition to the product portion of the agreement, Rawlings will provide marketing support to the SCHSL as it pertains to their digital communications, public relations, promotional, social media, events and advertising efforts.

Singleton continued, "It is our goal to maintain a reputation of greatness within our region and throughout the nation. SCHSL athletes and member schools as a whole strive to be an asset to the communities in which they reside. We are proud to partner with an elite, reputable company such as Rawlings."

The following Rawlings products will be utilized as part of the SCHSL agreement:

Soccer
SCHSLSB1050

If you follow @SCSoccer on Twitter you will see my comments from yesterday:

I don't know when our illustrious "leaders" will ever learn!

Rawlings Soccer Gear

But does it have the NFHS stamp on it?

This is flat out silly in my honest opinion. The ball should be addressed this summer and at Fall rules meetings.I have seen the soccer balls and to say they were from this decade is ridiculous. I think soccer players deserve better. I can not speak for the other sports though. I know in my baseball playing days Rawlings had a great product.

Here is a pic of the soccer ball from PIAA.

[img]http://cdn1.bigcommerce.com/n-yp39j5/hnc...80.1280.jpg?c=2[/img]

From the website: http://www.teamsportsmans.com/rawlings-piaa-soccer-ball/

Who is going to pay for these balls if they are to be used in the playoffs? High School league or the schools? We have never heard of this from our AD about using special balls.

If this is like the current contract with Spalding, then it will only impact the SCHSL State Championships and not playoff matches. It doesn't go into effect until 7/1/15, so I am sure we will hear more about this at the SCACA Summer Clinic.

Has anyone played with this soccer ball? Do we know if it is any good?

Several years ago, we played with a Premier League ball that cost $100+ and were told it was not good enough for the HSL because it didn't have the stamp on it. Ok! Good enough for the BPL, but not the SCHSL. I had to laugh.

What a joke. I hope that in my lifetime the SCHSL has divisions for individual sports or at least a head man who is open to change and keeping up with the times.

How old are you?

40 on some days. 15 on other days. Technically - 25. That's why I say in my lifetime.

I spoke with Shell Dula, SCACA Executive Director, this afternoon and he informed me that SCACA has had a long-standing sponsorship with Rawlings over the years and that Rawlings has contributed more than $8,000 to the Bettis Herlong Scholarship fund, which equals 16 scholarships for students of SCACA coaches.

Rawlings will send some balls for our use at our two summer all-star games as test models.

Dillards Sporting Goods here in Anderson was able to get me a match quality Rawlings ball. It is not a bad ball. It is molded and looks good. Only issue during practice is that it is light and too cushioned for a striker's liking. But if everybody is using it then it will be fine. I will post a picture of it later.

I agree CJ. We used one the other day in training and it's not bad, much better than I thought it would be. Hopefully, Rawlings will continue to improve their soccer products because of this new arrangement.

Does it have the NFHS logo on it?

Yes it does.

Jerome just sent out a message saying that it will be used in all sports for all rounds of the playoffs except.... Football. Football can still use whatever they would like....

Jerome is a fink! Always has been and always will be. For football (of all the Rawlings products) not to be a part of the landscape of this new deal wreaks! I doubt Rawlings has contributed enough money to the SCHSL to offset the cash cow that their retail partners will reap the next few years. Whenever there is change just follow the $. I couldn't care less what ball teams use as long as they are pumped up and enough to play with for a game. But to be mandated that we have to use a certain product is awful!

Reminds me of this move by NCAA.

http://www.wilson.com/en-us/soccer/news/official-ball-of-ncaa-soccer-championships/