DANVILLE — With a new vision and a new coach, Schlarman Academy was hoping for change in the upcoming football season.
But with a lack of players, the Hilltoppers were forced to cancel their season recently.
“We had to cancel our season for the upcoming year,” Schlarman Athletics director Erin Forsyth said. “We had some players transfer out and we lost some participations. It is a sport not many kids come out. (Schlarman football coach Glen Rowell) set us up for a lot of opportunities in the next year, but our numbers are way down to safely go forward.”
“We made a decision that was best for the program and that was moving forward,” Rowell said. “The numbers weren’t there and the guys that came was working hard, but we didn’t want to put our boys into a situation when the numbers were not enough and it wasn’t going to be enough.”
Rowell said that while the effort of those who came out at first was good, the number of them was the culprit.
“We had 6-7 boys came out during the summer, but we still had to have numbers and reserves, so it was best for the program,” Rowell said. “I got a lot of support form the administration and parents, but you can’t make anyone play football. It may be a hard spot to build the program from the feeder system and it felt good for the moment. I felt the love and felt the support from the AD and the principal and there is love from both sides.”
Forsyth brought in Rowell in May to help build the program up.
“We brought coach Rowell in this year before his summer and asked him what could he do in the next few months,” Forsyth said. “He tried his hardest and he did a lot of good things It is not the end of the program, but I don’t see us moving safely for the season.”
The forfeit of the entire season is the first for the program in years, but the last couple of years had seen the injuries and lack of players take affect.
“Last year, we played a JV season , so every game was JV and before that, we played a varsity run and had some injuries and had to forfeit the rest of the season,” Forsyth said. “The last couple of years are a tough road and with the size of our school, it is difficult. You need a pretty good roster and it is hard to do that with the size of our school. You look at places like Judah Christian and (Danville) First Baptist and they have a hard time fielding teams in football.”
Forsyth said that in the next year, the school will do whatever it takes to get a full team on the field next season despite the recent past.
“We are small and as much as we want to hang on to the past and the traditions, it is hard to let go and close the chapter on this,” Forsyth said. “Unfortunately, our size does not support a team at this time, but it gives us time to rebuild and see what our options are at that time.”