09/06/2019
This is the PCC Commissioner,
There have been a few emails sent to and received by the PCC regarding our initial partnership with our neighboring league OCJAFF...
I have decided to post an open letter here for clarity. We at the PCC believe in the greater good of Youth Football and want nothing but the best for both PCC conference, and OCJAAF
PCC had a two-part agreement with OCJAAF. PCC invited OCJAAF Cheerleaders to attend PCC’s JAMZ Cheer Clinic this past August and to our (upcoming) PCC Cheer Competition (scored by JAMZ) in November 2019. OCJAAF was a no-show to the JAMZ Cheer Clinic, and we anticipate they will no longer attend our Cheer Competition in November 2019.
PCC & OCJAAF also had an agreement to play each other’s BYE's in the BEGINNING of the season. OCJAAF changed that agreement and wanted us to play all season long, which then created more BYE's for the PCC... My Chief Deputy Commissioner and I discussed it along with our scheduler (one of my Association Presidents), and I made a decision to accept the additional BYE’s in the middle of the season we didn't have in our own schedule, to help accommodate our 'partner' league... I own that decision as the CEO of the PCC, and knew I might have feedback from my own board of presidents who would then have BYE’s they did not need.
However, on Tuesday, September 3rd, 2019 (Just Two Days Ago) we learned that OCJAAF PW division (12U) teams had eleven (11) children playing who were 13 year old players on one team, seven (7) children playing who were 13 year old players on another team, and the President of one of their associations had already disclosed there were five (5) 13 year old players on his 12U team team.... It should be noted that my board had accepted the disclosure of the five (5) players who were 13 years old, and we were prepared to play that team.
The other two teams failed to disclose their true 13-year-old player count, and actually didn’t disclose it to us. It was discovered by one of our coaches, when the coach of the team who has seven (7) 13-year-old players answered the question asked of him by one of our coaches. I then received a call from the President of that coach, and I contacted OCJAAF staff. The team with 11 children playing who were 13 years old did not immediately disclose the 13-year player count, instead issued reasons why that information was unavailable over and over. By the end of the day, they finally acknowledged there were 11 children playing who were 13 years old.
My concern was why keep it a secret until you are pressed hard and repeatedly for an entire day for the truth? Only because one of the OCJAAF coaches disclosed to a PCC coach, there were kids over the age limit on the team in massive numbers of 11 and 7, did we find out before we showed up on game day to play. Why not disclose that up front, as the coach with 5 players who are 13 did?
I knew my board would ask the question. “How can you play with 11 or 7 players who are 13 years old players, on a division whose weight chart does not allow?”
I called an Emergency Board of Presidents Meeting Wednesday night, September 3, 2019 at 8:30PM. I informed our board of the newly found information, and they voted in the majority not to play our 12U kids with that many 13-year-old players on a given team.
In addition, our board of presidents decided to complete our schedule immediately without OCJAAF included. Our new (Version 8) schedule was completed and delivered to me by our scheduler (one of our Association Presidents) immediately, as we as a Board had a concern that once we told OCJAAF we would not play their 12U division, they would withdraw from our agreement to play one another altogether; which turns out, is exactly what happened. Since that date, we have not heard from the Commissioner at OCJAAF, however we have been contacted by numerous members of the OCJAAF family asking why PCC pulled out of the agreement...
In the spirit of transparency, the PCC never pulled of the agreement, the Commissioner of OCJAAF decided to not play us in any other division because of our decision not to play our 11, & 12 year old children with large numbers of 13 year old children on a given team. We did however, plan for and secure other outside conference games for our teams to play for the remainder of the season.
In addition, the PCC bent over backwards to help OCJAAF have a completed schedule, and again, We Took BYE's We Otherwise Would Not Have Had in Our Schedule for 2019... The PCC only needed help in WEEK 1 to avoid BYE's... But we were prepared to, and had agreed to take BYE's throughout the season, in order to help out a neighboring league...
Currently, with our new PCC only schedule, after our week 1, we no longer have BYE's in our Flag thru 10U and in our 14U divisions... Our 11U division only has two (2) teams, so we have now partnered with other conferences to fill their BYE's with our two (2) 11U teams.
Moreover, here at the PCC we believe in decisions that help the Greater Good of Youth Football, Not Just PCC... If you have heard any other version from anyone else, you have been misinformed. I keep all forms of written communication between PCC & OCJAAF and am very sure of what I have written here and now.
I am sorry if OCJAAF will have BYE's and scheduling difficulties... But it is not PCC’s fault.
Currently, we are on REVISION 9 of our schedule, as we kept trying to accommodate OCJAAF. We are basically back to our original draft schedule, with two (2) BYE's in our WEEK 1 schedule...
I wish everyone the best in their upcoming season, and if there is anything the PCC can do for you, please feel free to send a message and we will do our best to get back to everyone in time. Our schedule is complete now however, and baring the acceptance of a new association, we only have possible games in our 11U division. Thank you for your time. Have a great season and see you at the top!
Best Regards,
Theo Cooper,
CEO & Conference Commissioner
