pinnacleyouthfootball.com Blog

Depending where you live makes a huge difference on how much it costs to play football in the upper valley. In fact, if you happen to live in Rigby the cost can be more than two or three times higher than someone who lives elsewhere. If you register your son to play in Rigby the cost will be $125 and that won’t even get you equipment! You have to write another check for $100 or you won’t get a helmet or shoulder pads! And why has the cost increased from $90 to $225 in one year? No one knows because it isn’t the parents right to know according to the people in charge. Just write the check(s) and shut up.

For years there has been no accounting for the costs of football all over the valley, that needs to change. The equipment and supplies belong to the communities that pay for them - and everyone who has ever written a check to the “old school” league should be able to see how their money is being spent. Not in Rigby. Ask for information in Rigby and not only will you be told “no”, you could be threatened verbally in a parking lot. Don’t think it hasn’t happened.

In fact, if you coached in the Pinnacle Youth Football league last spring the Director in Rigby won’t let you coach for the “old school” league. Why? Because evidently you have been banned by the leaders in Idaho Falls. Is that crazy? It’s a punishable offense to work with the youth in the spring? To help them improve? Become better players? Better men?

Here’s an idea; lets focus on the kids and put our egos aside. It doesn’t do our youth any good when adults act like they have IQs of about room temperature. We here at Pinnacle would never ban someone from coaching in our leagues because they coached for another league. Godfrey, how about we all grow up. It is about the youth right?

Start a baseball or a basketball league in Eastern Idaho and no one even mentions it. No one cares. Just another league. In fact the guys from the other leagues will even help you market yours. Start another football league, or tourney, or even a new camp and you could get hammered by the “old school” guys.

People worry about a lot of things - like not being in control. Or letting something grow. Or change. Perhaps become better. Evolving. The fear of not controlling every aspect of youth football in east Idaho has lead some people threaten, defame, and lie about those of us who would rather have the youth program evolve than stay, “The way we’ve always done it.”

They mandate that if you practice (that’s right practice) with another team in your league the head coach will be suspended for a game. (No joke, I know of a coach that happened to last year. The funny thing was that there were three teams involved and one coach got suspended.) We feel teams should be encouraged to practice together. They want all teams in an area to be equal, we feel every player should be able to play at their skill level and not be forced to play against far superior or inferior competition based solely on age.

The “old school” league also won’t allow any of the teams to play a game they didn’t schedule. They would have everyone believe they own everything; including the right to play football.

Let’s say your son is on a team and has a cousin who plays in Salmon. They decide it would be fun to play against each other and you, as a good parent, try to set it up. You call Salmon and they tell you that if it will work in their schedule they’d be happy to do it. You call our “old school” dictators and they tell you no. They might even say they can’t let you because of “insurance reasons.” If you found out (like someone I know did) that you can play without affecting the “old school” insurance and that you could get your own insurance (like Salmon has) and told the “old school” dictators you were going to do it anyway they would lay down the law. Play against Salmon and you’re done. Why? For the simple reason that they wouldn’t be in control.

Salmon made the decision long ago to play against whoever they wanted, and that is why they cannot play any of the teams in the “old school” league. But they get to choose who they play. Why can’t we play in more than one league? I would like my son to play teams from Montana. And Blackfoot. Pocatello. Utah. I hear I’m speaking blasphemy, don’t tell the dictators or they’ll call me a troublemaker or worse - again.

Youth football in Idaho needs to improve in both quality and quantity of games. Old mindsets of trying to keep all the teams “equal” while pretending to play for a championship is just silly. Basketball and baseball (two vastly inferior games in my opinion) figured it all out long ago. Create leagues and schedule games for the level of talent - either competitive or recreational. The entire concept of “A” and “B” teams was initially developed in baseball and continues with great success to this day. Basketball has also copied this model, the Premier League in Idaho Falls is not nearly the same as the local Parks and Rec leagues formed throughout the valley. So why not football?