Fort Mill officials discuss a season without youth tackle football
Despite ballooning youth sports participation, Fort Mill youth may have played their last organized recreation-league football game.
“I don’t think we’re going to offer tackle football this year,” said Brown Simpson, the town’s parks and recreation director.
Simpson and other town officials met online Friday afternoon as the town park and recreation committee. The virtual meeting was held due to COVID-19 social distancing measures that impact a host of town programs from the suspended spring sports campaign to upcoming summer camps and fall leagues.
Yet it isn’t coronavirus threatening tackle football in Fort Mill. It’s a larger trend.
“One of the things that we have seen, a downward trend in is tackle football,” Simpson said.
Three decades ago, the Leroy Springs Recreation Complex routinely fielded at least six teams. Last season the town had three. Those teams played with others in Lancaster County to form a league. Simpson said Lancaster County and Rock Hill offer tackle football programs, which would be an option for Fort Mill youth.
The decline in tackle football participation comes as town population and overall recreation play experience explosive growth.
“Soccer is probably our biggest numbers we’ve got right now,” Simpson told the committee. “Our baseball numbers increased tremendously. Also our softball, basketball numbers have grown. Flag football has grown tremendously.”
The winter basketball program in town alone had 1,200 players and 120 teams this past season. There was discussion Friday of adding a third basketball season, while other sports from tennis to lacrosse came up for discussion in how to anticipate growth.
“This is all discussion,” said Fort Mill Town Councilwoman Lisa Cook. “We’re not voting on anything.”
A variety of those and other recreation items should come up for discussion May 11 when town council holds its own virtual meeting.
The growth of so many sports — flag football, lacrosse, soccer — that use the same type of field also impacts programs. The decision to focus on flag football rather than tackle comes down to community interest, which Simpson sees impacted by national safety concerns with tackle football.
“Tackle football is under a microscope right now as far as concussions,” he said.
If Fort Mill goes to only flag football, it would remove tackle football which once was a popular offering. In 2016 the Tega Cay recreation department dropped tackle football for flag only. The city had its decision written up in Sports Illustrated as “the town that doesn’t tackle.”
At that time, Tega Cay officials said they had concern for player safety and saw enough interest in flag football to make the full transition. At the time, Simpson said tackle football remained a popular option in Fort Mill.
