GHSA executive committee to meet Monday morning in Macon

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          Some meetings of the GHSA’s executive committee are eventful, some not.

          Monday morning’s gathering at the Marriott Macon City Center has a fairly routine agenda covering a variety of sports and issues.

          And then amid the list of committee proposals – likely to be tweaked after Sunday’s assorted committee meetings – is the R word:

          Reclassification.

          “Will meet to continue process towards reclassifying member schools for 2020-21 school year.”

          The two main topics have gone back and forth as far as the speculation of support.

          Affecting Central Georgia programs has been the possibility of further segregating Class A programs by putting private schools and public schools in regions with only like schools, matching the regular season with the postseason.

          That could very easily lead to a defection of private schools back to the GISA, a topic that has been discussed by leaders of Macon private schools FPD, Tattnall, and Stratford.

          The bigger-picture topic is to return to six classifications.

          GHSA executive director Robin Hines supports both plans, writing in the February newsletter that, “The GHSA office is proposing a move to six classifications to improve travel, scheduling, decrease costs of travel, define attendance zones for all schools, and a complete public/private region split in Class A.”

          Also up for discussion is the regular debate on how to count out-of-district students.

          The meeting comes shortly after a four-stop GHSA tour of the state to give association membership and the public a chance to listen and ask questions.

          Monday’s meeting, which starts at 9 a.m., is open to the public.

          There is a proposal for all transfer students to complete a form approved by the principal and coach at the school a student is leaving.

          “On the form, the former coach should be able to declare whether or not the student left the program in good standing.”

          If not, the proposal states the student should be “denied automatic eligibility” and be reviewed as a hardship case.

          The basketball committee proposes the use of a 30-second shot clock. Cost will likely be a major topic of discussion, with the need for two shot clocks and another person at the scorer’s table to manage the clock.

          It also proposes the player-control restricted arc, the half-circle near the basket in the lane to help officials better determine blocking/charging fouls.

          The softball committee proposes expanding the regular season to be 30 games.

          The soccer committee suggests returning overtime to the last format of two 10-minute periods and then penalty kicks, or to one where the first team to score in an overtime wins.

          Among the other proposals on the agenda:

          * Allow home-school students to participate in GHSA activities for the member school in whose zone they reside

          * Allow fall baseball tryouts using one of two schedules;

          * Games against teams playing non-region schedules won’t count in the power ratings systems.