2004striker,
A coach can only work with 3 or fewer of his own athletes at a SCHOOL-sponsored practice during the closed season. He can coach a team clearly sponsored by an outside agency--a club, for example--as long as the outside team doesn't break the "75% rule." In other words, he can coach a number of his own players equal or less than 75% of the total starters for his sport. Soccer starts 11 players, so a HS coach can legally coach an outside team including up to 8 of his HS players.
The district facilities rule, though, states that a HS coach can't coach more than 3 of his school's athletes in the off-season ON DISTRICT PROPERTY in the off season, no matter if they are part of an outside team. This rule makes absolutely no practical sense to me...if the same coach is working with the same players during the same time frame, what possible advantageous difference would it make WHERE the training takes place? All this rule does is limit the available facilities for club and rec practices, which makes it harder for teams in communities with smaller training facilities to compete with teams in areas with large, well-established club practice areas. Seems this rule does more to promote disparity than equality among schools in the sport.
