Why are private schools competing against public schools in high school sports? The question often asked by athletes, parents, and fans of high school athletics in North Carolina has a hard to pin down answer. While the current system has been in place for many years, fans, coaches, and student athletes often raise questions about the fairness of these competitions.

Watauga High School’s Track and Field is an institution. State, regional, and conference championships are just a few of the honors that the program holds to its name, with storied successes both past and present. Just this past year, Watauga’s men and women’s teams both took home 2nd place in Outdoor Track, while the women finished as champions in the Indoor Track season.

They’re on the field every home game with the football team. They practice 6 hours a week, have 3 team officers, and a coach. And yet, this team is not officially a sport, not Varsity, and not JV. Officially, it’s only a club. Despite all of this, the Pacer Team remains an enthusiastic community, working hard to improve themselves, each other, and hopefully provide some school spirit. The Pacer team is a school dance team that performs at every home football game throughout t

The fastest growing sport in America has come to Watauga. It’s not soccer and it’s not ballet. It’s flag football, the sport with more strategy than tackling. Though the sport is brand new to the high school and the world, there has been no shortage of students who are willing to give the sport a chance.