This is an opinion piece.

With high school media days out of the way in most areas across the state and the season roughly three weeks away, it’s time for some football.

Before we get there, however, I spent three days this week listening to coaches and some players address what they believe is the current state of the sport.

Theodore coach Steve Mask — a Hall of Famer already with four state championship rings — said, quite frankly, that “It was in shambles.”

He eventually walked that back a little, saying he still loved coaching and still believed in what high school athletics in general means to students, schools and the surrounding communities.

“I’m the happiest sucker on the face of the earth today,” he said. “I’m in a great location, in a great town, with kids that I love. I’m not unhappy. But before I go out the door, I would like to do something to try to change it a little bit and, with blond hair and a little bit of age, you see some things. I’m not bitter. I just want to see it stop or at least slow down a little.”

The concern we heard the most about this week — from both younger and older coaches –— was the seemingly increasing trend of players transferring schools and the involvement of recruiting in some of those instances.

“I’m worried about it (the sport),” Mask said. “I’m not ready to retire. I’m not even close. I don’t think (UMS-Wright coach) Terry (Curtis) is either, but I am glad I’m on the back end of it. I am generally worried about it.”

The transfer/recruiting situation has been a hot topic for several years.

The spotlight definitely has increased with several high-profile stars (in several sports) either leaving the state to finish their high school careers or transferring to another in-state school this spring and summer.

It’s also not an issue reserved for high school student-athletes. In fact, it’s certainly more common and publicized on the college level with the NCAA Transfer Portal.

But, make no mistake, it is an issue in high school sports.

A pair of high-profile Mobile football players — Davidson running back D.J. Butler (a Coastal Carolina commit) and Baker quarterback Josh Flowers (a Mississippi State commit) — both said this week they have been approached repeatedly in their careers about playing for another high school though they didn’t name any particular school.

“D.J. has had his chance to go somewhere else,” Davidson coach Rick Cauley said. “He’s had people knock on his doors after games. He’s had coaches on the field trying to recruit him after games, but he comes back to us every day with trust and loyalty. I think it has worked out well for him. There is a lot to be said for sticking to the plan, putting in the work and earning the reward.”

Flowers said he is approached “all the time” about leaving Baker.

“I don’t want to leave the school I started with,” he said. “I wanted to stay here with my guys.”

Clearly, there are “innocent” transfers. Families move for one reason or another. Top programs sometimes “recruit themselves” with their on-the-field performance. But I think most people would agree that when third parties or even coaches from another school are actively trying to sway student-athletes or their families somewhere else, that isn’t right.

“It’s something that needs to be addressed quite frankly,” said Alma Bryant coach Bart Sessions, who has coached throughout the state in his career. “You are going to step on some toes when you do say that unfortunately, but those toes probably need to be stepped on.”

Has it been happening for a long time? I’m sure it probably has, but the comments by Flowers and Butler particularly this week hit me hard. It is hard to imagine either of those guys — so ingrained in their respective programs — playing for another school, but they certainly had their chances, it would seem.

I talk to a lot of coaches statewide. Some of them candidly talk about what they feel like is going on at other schools. Some say they just coach their kids and don’t worry about other programs, but when athletes themselves are talking openly about being recruited to another high school, it is a difficult subject to skip over.

And it shouldn’t be skipped over.

“Everybody talks about kids. Kids haven’t changed,” said Curtis, entering his 51st year as a coach and 25th as head coach at UMS-Wright. “They still want the discipline. They want the work ethic. They want the structure. They want all those things. Now I can’t say the same about the parents, and I can’t say that about these other guys out there trying to get involved in these kids’ lives.”

Jason Rowell, who grew up in Citronelle and is now back as head coach, said his team’s motto is #Lockthegates. In other words, he wants to do all he can to keep students who grew up in Citronelle playing for Citronelle High. On the surface that seems easy, seems right. Apparently, it’s not that simple.

Here are a few other thoughts from coaches on the subject:

St. Paul’s coach Ham Barnett: “I’m going to coach my kids, treat them like they are my own sons. If a kid or family is not happy and feels like the grass is greener, then they can go try that. … I want to play with kids who love St. Paul’s.”

Williamson coach Antonio Coleman: “I think every school deals with it, but I handle my kids differently. I am there to serve my kids. I treat them like family. If they do good, I reward them. If they do bad, they hear about it. Everything we do is family oriented. The kids don’t come to Williamson just to play football. They come to be coached and taught how to be successful in life.”

Faith Academy coach Jack French: “It hits me pretty hard. When you are around kids and get on the field, it’s still the same, but all that stuff boiling around in the background? None of it is probably what you would term as good. It’s just the world we are living in, and you have to deal with it.”

It’s not just prevalent in Alabama by the way.

Just this week, the Midsouth Association of Independent Schools ruled Hartfield Academy (Flowood, Miss.) ineligible for the MAIS Class 6A football playoffs, fined the school $7,500 and suspended two coaches from coaching games after St. Joseph Catholic School filed an official illegal recruiting complaint. Hartfield is appealing.

“We have got to recognize the elephant in the room,” Mask said. “We have to do something about the recruiting. We have to do something about the transferring. We have to say that it’s real and address it and not say we will worry about that later on.”

Saraland coach Jeff Kelly has heard the talk from many of his colleagues. “Some coaches may need to talk about it,” he said. “Some may not need to talk about it.” But they are all talking about it, some prompted by questions, some on their own.

High school athletics is still one of the purest levels of sports. How do we keep it that way as NIL and the transfer portal continue to change college athletics?

“They’ve just about ruined college football,” French said. “And it is trickling down.”

How do we stop it from trickling down?

Thompson coach Mark Freeman posted this message on social media on Friday as the subject has clearly heated up as the season draws near:

“Just asking! Rather than publicly or socially making accusations about other coaches recruiting why would you not follow the AHSAA advice? Your principal calls the principal of who you accuse, if no change, turn them in! Don’t hide!”

Mask said one answer may be to implement competitive balance for all schools, not just private schools. “That might slow some of it down,” he said.

I don’t know the answer or even if there is one.

Maybe it is the way it is and maybe it’s always been that way. I certainly remember a few transfers in my early years of reporting in north Alabama and the rumors and accusations swirling around those.

But, if you don’t think it’s an issue in 2023, don’t ask a coach.

Ask Josh Flowers.

Or D.J. Butler.

Thought for the Week

“Understand that the image you create of your future will look different than how it turns out, but God will still carry out His plan.” – Tim Tebow.

Ben Thomas is the high school sportswriter at AL.com. He has been named one of the 50 legends of the Alabama Sports Writers Association. Follow him on twitter at @BenThomasPreps or email him at [email protected]. He can be heard weekly on “Inside High School Sports” on SportsTalk 99.5 FM in Mobile or on the free IHeart Radio App at 2 p.m. Wednesdays.