The Kaysinger four

The number of Kaysinger Conference schools adding football continues to grow. Lincoln�s school board approved the addition of football on Monday, according to athletic director Marlin Hammond. The Cardinals will become the fourth football school in the conference when they start playing junior varsity and junior high football in the fall of 2009. Lincoln plans to begin varsity action in the fall of 2010, the start of the next Missouri State High School Activities Association two-year district cycle. �I�d say it�s been a popular choice,� Hammond said. �I think the community�s ready for it, and they are looking forward to it.� Lincoln will be the third Kaysinger school to add football since 2005. Northwest, the oldest of the Kaysinger football programs, will return to 11-man football this fall after spending the past two seasons playing 8-man. Hammond and Cole Camp coach Kevin Shearer weren�t sure whether the Kaysinger will be an official football conference. The number of teams needed to participate varies from conference to conference, and neither was sure if half the Kaysinger schools are enough under the conference�s by-laws. The football schools across the conference were thrilled to have another addition. �I�m very happy for them and their community,� Shearer said. �I think it gives our conference a little more validity that we�re doing a little bit of everything. It�s just another opportunity for kids.� Shearer, who helped launch football programs at Skyline and Cole Camp, said one of the biggest benefits to the conference will be scheduling. �You guys just covered the scheduling mess that is high school football,� Shearer said. �That sure simplifies it for us, at least on three different levels (junior high, junior varsity and high school). Anytime we get more schools in the Kaysinger � it�s going to help our program because it gives us more (to play for) than just what�s at the end.� In all, six schools in the conference will be involved with football. Along with the four teams fielding programs, La Monte and Green Ridge are part of cooperative sponsorships with other schools. The Vikings co-oped with Northwest for the next two years, meaning La Monte students can play football for the Mustangs. Green Ridge continued its sponsorship with Windsor. The two schools were the first in the area to co-op in football when MSHSAA allowed the possibility just over two years ago. Hammond said the other conference schools� participation weren�t a factor in Lincoln�s decision to add a program. He said the school was just ready to add football. �I�m a firm believer that it�s actually a school improvement program,� Shearer said. �It�s more than just athletics. It benefits everything from fine arts and band to just school spirit and everything.� The Bluebirds started their program in 2005 at the junior varsity level and became a varsity team in 2006. Sacred Heart�s program started last year at the JV level and will play its first varsity game this fall. Gremlins coach Martin Zerilli said the addition of another conference school should help motivate players. �Anything you can add, put in front of them to motivate them a little more, that�s always a good thing,� Zerilli said. �From my point of view, I think it�s an exciting thing. Like I said, I think the more conference games you can add � it kind of makes a good rivalry for the kids. I think that�s a good thing.� According to Hammond, the cost of starting the program will be shared between the community and the school. �It�s not given that the school�s going to have to pay this much and the community this much or visa versa,� he said. �Everybody�s going to have to help with that.� Hammond said the addition of football most likely means the soccer program is down to its last year. �We will probably drop soccer after that,� Hammond said. �That�s probably what�s going to happen.�