Justin-Siena High School football found itself in the news over the course 48 hours in late April when one combines Rich Cotruvo and the program mutually parting ways and long-time assistant Brandon LaRocco replacing him less than 24 hours later.
On Cotruvo’s end, the Justin administration can say what they want but in my world, “mutually parting ways” is a euphemism for being forced out. Cotruvo, who has since become the football head coach at Terra Linda, piloted the Braves from a hot mess (26-69-1 from 1987-1996) to a powerhouse (144-74 with six CIF North Coast Section titles from 1997-2015).
LaRocco’s biggest challenge is not the Braves’ 2016 varsity team. Justin has more than ample talent returning led by quarterback Aidan Willard, who has given Oregon State a verbal commitment. Though the Marin County Athletic League is formidable at the top with teams like Marin Catholic, San Marin and Redwood, the Braves are talented enough to remain in the top-third of that league.
The Braves, however, have a long term issue that they have to address. For the better part of two decades, Justin had all three levels of football (freshmen, junior varsity and varsity). The JV season, however, was cancelled in 2015 because of lack of enough numbers. As a result, the MCAL has made the decision to do away with freshmen teams and go to a varsity, frosh/soph model. That example will apply to all sports, not just football.
“While having a freshman team for the past 10-plus years has been advantageous for our program, it has been harder and to sustain the numbers for three different levels, seeing as we have just over 300 boys in the school,” LaRocco said in a recent e-mail. “I couldn't agree with you more in the value of having high quality lower levels, it is fundamental to having sustained success. They provide the foundation needed for the kids to have success on the varsity level. I have spent a few years coaching the lower levels over the past 12 years, and I know the experience the kids have as freshman and sophomores play a huge role in whether they choose to continue on to the varsity level.”
What LaRocco utters is strongly relevant because if the Braves want continued prosperity, roster numbers will need to increase at that level. JV sports are often looked at as an afterthought. In my years as a sports reporter, I was always a cynic at parents who complained about JV sports coverage being minimal in the newspaper. Said parent would go from not giving a bleep about JV coverage to screaming bloody murder at the site of minimal coverage to back to not giving a bleep when their kid got to varsity.
I am of the mind that JV sports matter, just not for the same reason as varsity. JV sports are about development, with varsity, winning definitely takes precedence. How many high school athletic programs are judged by JV records? You couldn’t even get to one finger if you counted.
I have always believed that if a freshman or sophomore is ready to start and be an impact player on the varsity team, you bring that player up. That way those with lesser talent can get the playing time they need to develop. From there, you hope those players become viable contributors on the varsity.
Some parents would absolutely insist that their son or daughter that is a freshman or sophomore not go to the varsity team. My philosophy has always been that you play your best players on varsity, period.
If the freshman is better than the senior, he or she should start. However, if a freshman or sophomore is going to be brought up to the varsity, he or she should at least be a starter or get similar playing time that a starter would get. After all, you brought that player up to the varsity because presumably you believe that player can make an impact.
So when should a freshman or sophomore be brought up to the varsity? When should a junior be left down on the JV?
It’s about looking at the landscape of your program and asking yourself, will this player get the playing time he or she needs to develop sufficiently? How much of an impact will the youngster make?
Sometimes you can have a talented JV player that is ready to make an impact on the varsity as a freshman or sophomore, but he might play a position where the varsity team is already stacked with talent.
Also, if a junior is going to ride the pine on the varsity team, he or she would be best suited to playing and dominating as a JV player, if for no other reason than to increase their confidence.
Another question is, say a freshman or sophomore is ridiculously dominant on the JV level — will that player become disinterested because success comes so easily?
It’s a crapshoot, but one common denominator I keep coming back to is that if a freshman or sophomore gets elevated to the varsity, he or she should not just be along for the ride.
At the JV level, winning is all well and good, but coaching the JV teams are more about getting players ready for varsity by developing fundamentals and the right approach to the game.
If winning and proper development are happening, then you’ve got the best of both worlds. However, if a JV team is winning the majority of its games but getting away with fundamental mistakes against inferior competition, then success is Fool’s Gold.
By no means am I diminishing the importance of JV sports programs because, after all, they are the future.
One common argument I hear is that “JV kids work just as hard as varsity kids.”
True, they indeed do work hard but athletic programs are not judged on JV success. However, if Justin wants to sustain the success it achieved under Cotruvo, the onus falls on LaRocco and his coaching staff to strengthen the JV program.
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