The GCKA Football Advisory Board would like to welcome our newest members Commissioner Billy Fannin, and Assistant Commissioner Kevin Gallagher. Kevin was the head coach of our Senior D1 Knights last season and Billy was an assistant on his staff, helping lead the D1 Knights to a championship season. Both bring many years of playing and coaching experience from multiple levels of football as well as previous experience in running youth football organizations in the past. We are excited to add them to the GCKA Board and look forward to working with them to help give you and your children the best youth sporting experience possible!

Information on some 2019 changes:

Football Rules and Guidelines

Team Size:

1. In 2016 our objective was to create as many teams as we could. Lesson learned, we had some teams that barely finished the season with enough players. In 2017, we balanced the teams and finished 46-24 overall.

• More is not always better – but we must balance team size with Coaches and playing time.
• The Advisory Board has agreed to target team sizes for 2019, and will attempt to adhere to that goal.
• In 2019 the MINI OCC will be adding a D1 and D2 Senior Division to the 5/6th grade levels. This division will help create parity and equal competition throughout the league.
• SIBLING RULE - In 2019, the Advisory Board has voted to omit the sibling rule from football for siblings outside of the division. Those siblings/step-siblings playing in the same division will be placed on the same team only. Siblings playing in different divisions will not be guaranteed the same "color" unless they are drafted that way.

Returning Senior Division Players:

2019 Senior 5/6th Division Draft Rules

All players must attend at least one night of players evaluation.

1. All Senior Division players will be redrafted in 2019.
2. There will be no Senior Division "returning" players in 2019.
3. Players selected for D1 will be offered by Wednesday, July 17th.
   1. Those players who "turn down" a D1 offer will be placed into a supplemental draft managed by the Football Advisory Board.
4. D2 players and those supplemental drafted players will be notified prior to Sunday July 21st of their team.
5. Players not attending will be placed into the “Supplemental Draft”

1. Supplemental Draft – The draft managed by the football advisory board that will place players to team to ensure parity and equal competition. Players placed in the Supplemental Draft will be those who:

                                                              i.      Do not attend player evaluations, and are not a “Protected Player

                                                             ii.      Those players who turn down D1, even if that player is a “Protected Player”.

For example: Player X’s father was designated to coach on the Sr. Black Knights. Player X was offered a D1 position and refused the opportunity. Player X will be placed into the Supplemental Draft, and his father will have the option to coach on the team Player X is selected to play on.

“Protected Players”

1. Senior Division Coaches may still designate players as “Protected"
   1. Limited to 2 Coaches children or near relative.
   2. A team may declare 1 non-coaches’ child as "Protected".
   3. If a "Protected " player is offered a D1 position, the expectation is that the player accepts that position. Any "protected player" that has not turned down a D1 offer must be declared to the advisory board by 11:00PM Wednesday July 17th.

                                                         i.      If the player turns the D1 offer down, that player will be placed into the supplemental draft regardless of their status – “Protected” or not.

                                                       ii.      The Advisory Board will place that player and Coach on a team to ensure parity and equality and avoid "team stacking".

1.       Team stacking is defined as coaches of teams who create an unfair competitive advantage by placing seasoned players onto a single team with the sole intent and purpose of creating an unfair advantage to win.

a.       Coaches should not tell players “Don’t come to evals and I’ll draft you”

b.       Coaches should not tell players “Don’t try your best at evals – so that we can draft you”

If GCKA Youth Football is deemed as stacking a D2 team, we will be removed from the Mini OCC.

Returning Mini and Junior Division Players ONLY:

IN DIVISION ONLY, a player can return to their previous team if they so choose to do so. If a player determines not to return to their team, they must select that on their application and will be placed in the draft, with NO guarantee that the player will not be drafted back to their old team.

A player that was a "Protected Player" in the previous season, and is staying within the division is now classified as a "Returning Player".

Players may return to the team they were on the previous year, as long as the following criteria is met:

1.  

   • The player is remaining in the same division.
2. • The player has registered prior to the first scheduled evaluation period, and draft.
   • The player has selected on their registration form that they wish to return to their previous team.

Any player not meeting the above criteria, who is not a “Protected Player” is not guaranteed to return to their team and could be placed into the draft, or any future supplemental or blind drafts for selection to a team

Everyone asks "what are our fees used?" - $110 of the $150 is just on facility cost, referee fees, and insurance.

Here is a breakdown of the cost for one football at a very high level: