Ok, i'll be the bad guy here... a hypothetical player who scores 35 goals and has 20 assists for a team that is 14-2 versus a schedule that includes only one team with a winning record is not necessarily an All State player! Nor is a player who was the "heart and soul" of a team who finished with a 6-10 record. Just because you have a good player on your team and they play well against your schedule does not mean they are an All State player.
Yes, the committees should be made up of coaches from the best teams b/c #1-they are most likely to show up to the meeting and have productive discussion #2-they most likely played a schedule that included the widest variety of teams and thus saw the most players and #3-if they are the best teams, they most likely had the best players!
I have been involved in this process for a long time, and i think the SCHSSCA does an excellent job of selecting committee members who are going to be able to speak to the widest range of players.
This is not about giving every kid an award... All State is about picking the best 18 players. The top 1-2 players off every team in the state may not deserve to be in the conversation! Yes, if the 5th best player on a top level team is better than the #1 player on a below average team, then the 5th best player should make All State! The coach from that #1 player does not necessarily deserve to be on the committee b/c they most likely did not play a schedule that allowed them to see a variety of other players. Go on SCSoccer.com and look at schedules.
Look at 2A boys.... every team ranked in the top 10 at the time of the meeting was represented with a player on the All State team. There were 2 selections from teams without coaches at the meeting... but there were only a couple of players nominated from schools not represented. In fact, Whale Branch did not nominate their GKer who is in the Clash. There were 7 coaches at the meeting. The committee members saw every player from a non-represented school play and agreed via discussion that players not selected were not worthy of All State.
Before you criticize All State, know that most likely multiple coaches on the committee saw that player play and agreed that they were either All State material or not.
Very well stated, Jason!
Believe it or not, the All-Star and All-State committees are very seriously constructed and it takes a lot of time to recognize annually deserving coaches/members to be a part of the process. This is not a fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants protocol and I believe the folks that have participated in these events can vouch for that notion.
However, there is no doubt that some coaches have a really tough time "deciding" who is All-State from their squad(s). But, that is why a panel is necessary to make that decision.
Just like the NSCAA motto says,
"Learn. Participate. Belong".
