New fall ball coach advice

I have coached high school softball for five years now and am starting a fall ball team at the middle school level to help develop players for our high school team, which struggles. I am not sure of the "nuts and bolts" of the summer and fall programs as they compare or contrast to the high school programs. Do I need to have copies of birth certificates or emergency medical information or anything like that for the girls on this team?

Any advice would be great!

Cover yourself as MUCH as possible, maybe even with team insurance thru ASA or NSA.
Get releases and Medical Forms...all of it. Your goodwill may mean nothing if a parent heads south on you.

oharas said:

I have coached high school softball for five years now and am starting a fall ball team at the middle school level to help develop players for our high school team, which struggles.

Click to expand...

Kudos to you!

Ohar,

Make sure your state HS regulations will allow you to do that. Here in Texas that would be illegal if those middle school students fed up to your HS. You could only coach them during the summer. Not while school was in session.

If its allowed then good luck.

Elliott.

Yep, as usual Elliott is on the money. If you are in Ohio and the middle school team is sanctioned by OHSSA, you need to sit down with your AD and I think you will realize you can't be coaching them in the fall. Nor can anyone else if there are more than four girls from the same school.

If the Middle School has no softball team, the rules are different.

Oharas, You are under the same rules in MS as you are in HS if the MS is a OHSAA sanctioned team. You may coach them since you are the HS coach and they are MS students subject to these rules cut from the OSHAA rules which limits the number of players from their school:

4.21) The number of interscholastic fast pitch softball players from the same school
on a non-interscholastic squad is limited to four on the roster of that noninterscholastic
squad. A roster is defined as all the members of the entire
squad on that non-interscholastic squad.
Note: Graduating seniors who are participating on a non-interscholastic fast
pitch softball squad after their final interscholastic contest of the season in the
sport of fast pitch softball are exempt from this limitation.
4.22) There is no limit on the number of fast pitch softball squad members from the
same school participating on the same squad during the period June 1-July 31.
4.23) A player may continue to play with a non-interscholastic squad in a national
qualifying tournament in excess of the four player limitation after July 31
until the squad is eliminated but no later than Labor Day.
4.24) Non-interscholastic participation includes tryouts, training, practice and
competition.