Holmdel Hornets and Pop Warner as deserving as Toms River in Little League

BY JOE FAVORITO

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

ON N.J. SPORTS MARKETING

On Friday the undefeated Holmdel Hornets may complete a journey that is almost unprecedented in youth football in Central Jersey. If the Hornets defeat the North Rockland Raiders the team will earn a berth in the Pop Warner Football Championships, to be held at Disney's Wide World of Sports next weekend. Despite the storybook season for these young kids, their coaches and their families, there is not the media coverage or local outpouring that surrounds a similar run by local Little League teams like those legendary ones in Toms River have made over the years to Williamsport. Why is that?

There is no doubt that football, at least on the NFL and college level, has in many ways supplanted baseball as the national pastime. Brands and media flock to the sport like never before, and TV ratings for the sport far surpass baseball on a weekly basis. Now baseball is doing just fine thank you overall, but football has captured a fascination with the American public and continues to thrive at the top level.

Even on the high school level, football and it's Friday Night Lights push is king in many areas of the country, and networks in local regions like News 12 and MSG Varsity have found ways to re-capture the game and its stories even in a crowded market like New York. Yet youth football is counterpositioned in many eyes compared to youth baseball.

While Subway spends a good portion of brand money to link with Little League, there is no national branding platform for Pop Warner that transcends the media. Maybe that's not a bad thing though. Maybe Pop Warner is still discovering its possibilities, and the complexities of football, along with this ultra-busy time of year do not lend itself to the coverage or accolades of Little League. Maybe its because the football player really emerged more with physical maturity into high school and the similarities to the higher level of the game don't surface until later on.

Yet the dedication of parents and young people, from players to cheerleaders to volunteers, is just as high in a community for football as it is for baseball, and maybe higher in some respects. Youth football is a five day a week commitment at the least, while baseball in many respects may be just a few days. The lack of games, one a week, for a restless group of young people may also not lend itself to a higher interest level as well. Football remains weekly, while baseball is a multiple game, multiple week season. There may also still be a bit of a stigma associated with the violence of the game and young people, while baseball still has its pastoral beauty and bonding experiences deeply embedded in American culture.

For even more New Jersey sports, visit the NJNR Press Box

Yet for all that, late fall football goes on and maybe a new tradition has started down at the Jersey Shore. Maybe if the Hornets win Friday, there will be some brands that will take notice of the thousands headed to Disney next weekend and their buying power, and will find a way to put some marketing dollars towards a very committed group. There is no doubt that Little League has history and smart business practices on its side.

However it is interesting to see that for all its top level might, football still has a ways to go at the grassroots. Maybe that push can be helped with an upstart group of youth and coaches from right here in Jersey.

Joe Favorito has over 24 years of strategic communications/marketing, business development and public relations expertise in sports, entertainment, brand building, media training, television, athletic administration and business. Visit him at JoeFavorito.com.