Wausau East football wants conference change

• Wausau East asking the WIAA to join the Great Northern Conference
• Wausau East is the smallest school in the VFA-North conference
• During the football season, the Lumberjacks suffered 18 injuries and were outscored 311-61

WAUSAU - Brad Peck stood near Wausau East's sidelines, soaking in the late August Friday evening and the Thom Field atmosphere abuzz for the start of another high school football season.

The Wausau East principal watched the Lumberjacks go through warm-ups for the season opener against Marshfield for a few minutes before the Tigers squad ran out from their locker room and onto the field, a seemingly endless parade of 82 players that dwarfed East's varsity roster of just over 30.

"I could see the number of players we had compared to Marshfield, that is where I became concerned," Peck said. "I knew our guys were going out there playing both ways and getting tired, and that is when players are more susceptible to injury. ... As a principal, I saw that as a serious safety issue for a lot of our players."

How were East's 33 players — the smallest varsity roster in the Valley Football Association-North Division — going to be able to compete through the nine-week regular season? The majority of the roster consisted of "iron man" players — kids who played both offense and defense plus special teams during kickoffs and punts.

That night, Marshfield rallied for a 19-14 win over East, scoring the go-ahead touchdown with 42 seconds left in regulation, and East had only one notable injury, a player who suffered shoulder problems and ultimately was sidelined 10 days.

But by the end of the season, Peck's concerns were proven justified. The Lumberjacks went 0-9, losing five games by at least 33 points. And worse than the record, to Peck, was the physical toll the season would take on East's players.

Through the course of the winless season, 18 Lumberjacks suffered injuries more serious than the typical bruises and welts a player endures — some season-ending, ranging from a sprained or strained ankle to a broken leg to concussions. East made it through just one game without a serious injury.

In week eight, Appleton North trounced East 49-0 and sent two Lumberjacks to the sidelines with concussions.

“We had games where we had more concussions than points. That’s not right,” said Steve Immel, whose son Steven is a defensive end and center for the Lumberjacks. “That’s not a competitive environment and that’s not a safe environment."

Peck doesn't believe the competitive outlook or the health of the Lumberjacks will get any better in the VFA-North. He is among a group of parents and school officials who now think the only answer is for East to leave the division for the Great Northern Conference, which features similar-sized programs.

The Wausau School Board approved the proposal to formally call for the change with an unanimous vote Monday. It is not as simple as that, however, as the move would have to be approved by the WIAA, and there is no guarantee that will happen.

East athletic director Greg Harvey remains hopeful.

"We just are asking (the WIAA) for a serious consideration of our situation," Harvey said.

The case for change

On Nov. 23, East school officials and parents went before the Wausau School Board's Education Committee with a proposal to address the problems with the East football program and call for a move from the VFA-North.

Harvey and Peck sat at a table in front of the board members and made their case, referring to a four-page letter that Harvey had produced and presented to the board as well. Three East parents and two Lumberjacks players were in the crowd, listening to the short presentation to the board.

"This is not a 'woe is me' thing. Our players that do participate battle as hard as any athlete in the conference. There are just not enough of them," Harvey wrote in the letter. "We have done all we can do but we are now at the point where simple preservation of our teams is at risk."

Now that the School Board approved the request on Monday, the proposal will be forwarded to the WIAA for consideration. There it will join a similar request the district made in the fall of 2014, to move all its sports teams to the Great Northern Conference.

The WIAA still has not ruled on that request.

The new proposal is limited to its football program, but other sports programs at the school face the same participation problems as they did in 2014. The boys varsity hockey program began the season with 17 players, eight of whom are freshmen. Wisconsin Rapids, by comparison, has 27 players on its varsity roster, and Merrill and Stevens Point are the only other schools with fewer than 20 varsity players. Both schools have 18.

"We feel as though this (seeking a football-only conference move) is our best approach to take at this time, and it is consistent with the approach other member schools have taken as part of a multi-step process toward full realignment," Harvey wrote in the letter to the board.

The Lumberjacks made the WIAA postseason in 2011 and '12, but have taken a step back since — a giant step. The Lumberjacks have won a total of four games during the past three years, and this season were outscored 311-61. East had the smallest varsity roster in the VFA-North Division, 17 players fewer than Kaukauna, which was the next largest with 50 players.

Most troubling of all for Peck and for East parents, the team lost three players to season-ending injuries and had six recorded concussions.

“We watched what was taking place (on the field), and as a principal, I can tell you I am very, very concerned about the safety of our students as well as the welfare of our students and the welfare of our football program,” Peck said.

East senior Levy Treinen, who played running back on offense, defensive back on defense and was a member of the special teams, suffered two concussions and an injured ankle in the nine-game season. Treinen said injuries are part of the game, and he does not think the size of the opponents or the conference is really much of a factor. But he does believe that fatigue borne of playing almost every down in every game is.

"There are times that (playing both ways), you are just tired out there and are going against fresh guys on the other side who are giving 100 percent," Treinen said. "You just don't have that left in you. With my ankle (injury), I hadn't been off (the field) for pretty much the whole half when I twisted it in the Appleton East game. Honestly, on that play I was so tired that I just stopped and got tackled."

Immel has believed for a few years that East should move from the VFA-North. This season just deepened his conviction.

"We ask a lot of our student-athletes, and I think in return it’s only right that we give them an opportunity to be in a conference where they can compete," Immel said.

Weighing the options

The proposal for a move from the VFA comes a little over a year after East and Merrill both initially petitioned the WIAA for a move to the GNC for all sports. Harvey said there has been no decision by the WIAA since the request was made.

“The WIAA, as I read the bylaws, they are not obligated to draft a formal response. But on the other hand, we are asked to go through a formal process to request realignment,” Harvey said. “You would think there could be at least a memo saying ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. Then there would be some finality to it.”

Deb Hauser, an associate director with the WIAA, in an emailed response to questions, disputed that the WIAA has been silent on the central Wisconsin petition.

"Merrill and Wausau East are both aware that their request has been heard," Hauser wrote. "However, it doesn't mean that their requests come before the current realignments I'm working on — three in southeast Wisconsin."

There is no timetable on East's request to move to the GNC for football, either. Harvey said GNC members seem to be open to it, however.

“We have taken steps to talk to members of (the GNC) and they have expressed that for football, they would be willing to take us in,” Harvey said. “Have we had that in a vote? No. But we took the time to go to a meeting (with the GNC schools).”

Merrill athletic director Rick Bonnell said he is open to the proposed move.

"They probably are a better fit in the GNC than the Valley," Bonnell said. "They would be the biggest school (in the GNC), but we wouldn't have a problem with it."

The Lumberjacks have the smallest student enrollment in the VFA-North with just 1,094 students. Appleton North has a conference-high enrollment of 1,800 students.

Merrill, which left the Wisconsin Valley Conference for football, is one of the largest schools in the GNC with a student enrollment of 881. The GNC also includes Antigo, Lakeland Union, Medford, Mosinee and Rhinelander for football, and the enrollment for those schools ranges between 446 and 840 students. Northland Pines and Tomahawk are part of the conference for all other sports.

Harvey said it is likely that East’s enrollment will drop below 1,000 by 2017.

“You can’t ignore the enrollment numbers. They punch you in the face,” Harvey said. “Especially when you are looking at your opponents and what (the numbers) truly mean in terms of you being able to compete on a regular basis.

“I know the WIAA is very reluctant (to realign). Their response is, ‘What do we do with everyone else (in the conference)?’ Dr. Peck and I can’t worry about that. We have to worry about our kids,” Harvey said. “I realize realignment is uncomfortable, but we have a real issue at our school that is putting us at a competitive disadvantage that requires us to be realigned in order to reestablish a competitive presence.”

East could leave the VFA-North on its own without conference or WIAA approval and become an independent program. However, that move would likely both result in struggles to fill out a schedule, and the program would also be ineligible for playoff consideration for four seasons.

The Lumberjacks also could elect to drop from a varsity program and just play a junior varsity schedule, or even go from 11-man down to eight-man football. The eight-man football program has been a popular move for some smaller schools dealing with enrollment or participation numbers. There were 22 eight-man teams in the state for the 2015 prep football season.

Harvey said neither option works well for East.

"I think I would consider eight-man football if we were a school of 200 kids," Harvey said. "We're going to be in the 900-student range so it would be kind of silly for us to play eight-man football against a program like New Auburn. It would be difficult for us to justify that."

East also could co-op with another football program, but Harvey has indicated that East would like to maintain its identity. The school could even suspend or drop the sport entirely if participation numbers continue to decline

"Ultimately, if you get to a point where your numbers are such that you just can't sustain a program, then you have to make those tough decisions," Harvey said. "Right now we can field a team and we are going to do that. Wherever that takes us, we will see."

Tim Johnson can be reached at 715-845-0731 or at timothy.johnson@gannettwisconsin.com. Find him on Twitter @timmyjo11.

Valley Football Association North Division

Student enrollment (varsity football players)

Appleton North 1,800 (70)

D.C. Everest 1,660 (81)

Appleton East 1,617 (48)

Kimberly 1,494 (72)

Appleton West 1.465 (63)

Wausau West 1,411 (66)

Kaukauna 1,119 (50)

Wausau East 1,092 (33)

East injury report 

Prior to the start of the season, East lost two starters for the season — one had recurring concussion symptoms and one broke his leg in practice.

Aug. 15 — Scrimmage at Chippewa Falls High School: One player with shoulder instability, missed three days

Aug. 21 — Game against Marshfield: One player with shoulder instability, missed 10 days

Aug. 27 — Game against SPASH: One player with concussion, missed 13 days; one player with ankle sprain/strain, missed two days; one player with shoulder sprain/strain, missed one day. 

Sept. 4 — Game against Appleton West: One player with ankle sprain/strain, missed one day; one player with knee sprain/strain, missed four days. 

Sept. 11 — Game against Appleton East: One player with shoulder instability, missed 16 days; two players with ankle sprains/strains, missed 14 and three days, respectively. 

Sept. 18 — Game against D.C. Everest: Two players with concussions, missed seven and 10 days, respectively; one player with knee sprain/strain, missed three days; one player with low back sprain/strain, missed one day. 

Sept. 25 — Game against Kaukauna: One player with knee injury, missed one day.

Oct. 2 — Game against Wausau West: One player with concussion, out for season; one player with knee sprain/strain, out for season.

Oct. 9 — Game against Appleton North: Two players with concussions, missed six and seven days, respectively; one player with shoulder sprain/strain, missed three days.

Oct. 16 — Game against Kimberly: No injuries.