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Lake Placid and Avon Park seek SSAA football membership; Sebring coaches urge caution
Summary
Lake Placid and Avon Park officials asked the Highlands County School Board to place a membership item on the next meeting agenda to join the Sunshine State Athletic Association for football, citing reduced travel and better competitive balance. Sebring coaches warned the move could change schedules, raise transfer risks and shift transportation costs.
Lake Placid and Avon Park high schools asked the Highlands County School Board on Thursday to put a membership item on the next agenda to join the Sunshine State Athletic Association (SSAA) for football, arguing the association would reduce travel and create more balanced matchups for small programs.
Kevin Tuning, principal of Lake Placid High School, told the board the SSAA is a football-only association with public and private divisions that requires member schools to play a minimum of three SSAA opponents; annual dues are $500 per school, and playoff gate receipts are split between the two teams rather than retained by the association. “It focuses on promoting good sportsmanship and fair play for participants while maintaining a level playing field,” Tuning said.
Supporters said the SSAA’s admissions process — which considers school enrollment, roster sizes and four- to five-year roster trends and includes roster verification through a Bound/home-campus-like system — is…
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