NFHS Network Rooted in Our Back Yards

August 28, 2014

By Jack Roberts
MHSAA Executive Director

Throughout my nearly 28-year tenure with the MHSAA, I have been a consistent and outspoken critic of our national organization, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), whenever it attempted an initiative that I saw purposed more for its own promotion than as a needed service for its member associations and their member schools.

When its strategy for service was to promote a “national presence” for the NFHS, I objected. I have never felt that national tournaments or national telecasts would be of the slightest benefit to 99 percent of the MHSAA’s member schools; and worse, I have always believed that those initiatives would tend to corrupt the one percent involved.

So it may have come as a surprise to some of my colleagues in this state and my counterparts across the country when I became an early advocate of the NFHS Network and now serve as the network’s first president.

The definitive difference between the NFHS Network and earlier talk of national tournaments and telecasts is that the network’s thrust is local, not national. In fact, it’s hyper-local.

The heart of the NFHS Network consists of the season-ending tournaments of statewide high school associations across the U.S. The NFHS Network produced Internet broadcasts of at least the culminating contests for most of the sports sponsored by most of the three dozen state associations contributing content during 2013-14, the network’s first year of operation.

While state high school associations provide an immense potential for content, there are only 51 member associations of the NFHS, in contrast to the coast-to-coast pool of nearly 20,000 member high schools these associations serve. It is this local content through the School Broadcasting Program that gives the network its legs. The aggregation of all this content is the magnet to draw media partners, sponsors and subscribers; and it is this local emphasis that attracted my support of the concept, and now my service to the network board of directors.

School sports is first, last and always about local teams. And it’s not just high-profile sports and varsity teams; it’s just as much about lower profile programs and subvarsity events.

There are more school-sponsored football games in Michigan during one week than there are NFL games across the U.S. all season long. There are more school-sponsored basketball games in Michigan during one week than there are NBA games across the U.S. all season. And we serve two dozen other sports as well.

Together, the MHSAA and the SBP can provide enough live and on-demand Internet programming to provide MHSAA.tv with authentic high school sports broadcasts 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days each year. And those who subscribe to Internet broadcasts on MHSAA.tv have access to content from the local school and state association level from coast to coast and border to border.

The success of the NFHS Network will not be “made-for-TV” national-scope tournaments or matchups between teams with the most highly recruited players. Our success will come from the aggregation of thousands of typical local rivalries that are played all school year long in every nook of this state and every cranny of our nation.

At least while I’m involved, the NFHS Network will be true to the mission of school-based sports and uplift the values for which educational athletics have always stood.

For years, school sports have stood apart from non-school sports as the preferred brand of youth sports because we offered letter jackets, pep assemblies, pep bands, marching bands, cheerleaders and homecomings. Going forward, school sports will also stand apart from other youth sports because of the NFHS Network.

This Week in High School Sports: 3/5/25

By Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

March 5, 2025

In this week's edition, we review recent MHSAA championship events for skiing, team wrestling and competitive cheer and award Game Balls to three four-time champions from the Individual Wrestling Finals.

MI Student AidThe 5-minute program each week includes feature stories from MHSAA.com or network affiliates, along with "Be the Referee," a 60-second look at the fine art of officiating.

"This Week in High School Sports" is powered by MI Student Aid, a division within the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP).

Listen to this week's show by Clicking Here.

Previous 2024-25 Editions

Feb. 19: Antonio Gates selected to NFL Hall of Fame, Scholar-Athlete Award details - Listen
Feb. 12:
MHSAA officials in Super Bowls, Ice Hockey Tournament primer - Listen
Feb. 5:
MHSAA Tournament broadcasts, growth of girls sports in Michigan - Listen
Jan. 29:
2024-25 Scholar-Athlete Award finalists, 1958 Hall of Fame matchup - Listen
Jan. 22:
Salem legend Dena Head, MHSAA's Sam Davis selected to Wrestling Hall of Fame - Listen
Jan. 15:
MHSAA.com history, officials recruitment news - Listen
Jan. 8:
MHSAA Basketball Tournament schedule, 2023-24 attendance report - Listen
Dec. 18:
Ice Hockey season underway, Representative Council presidential succession - Listen
Dec. 11:
2024-25 MHSAA Winter Tournament schedule, inaugural girls wrestling team title - Listen
Dec. 4:
11-Player Football Finals review - Listen
Nov. 27:
8-Player Football Finals review, 1975 Football Finals recollection - Listen
Nov. 20:
8-Player Football Finals history, Southwest 10 Conference Legacy officials - Listen
Nov. 13:
"Flashback 100" series, flashback to Escanaba's football championship - Listen
Nov. 6:
Boys Soccer Finals, Lower Peninsula Cross Country Finals review - Listen
Oct. 30:
2024 Football Playoffs, Lower Peninsula Boys Tennis Finals review - Listen
Oct. 23:
Lower Peninsula Girls Golf Finals, Upper Peninsula Cross Country Finals reviews - Listen
Oct. 16:
MHSAA Football Playoffs primer, MHSAA/Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete Awards - Listen
Oct. 9:
National High School Hall of Fame, Upper Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals - Listen
Oct. 2:
MHSAA record book, 2024 Boys Soccer Tournament schedule - Listen
Sept. 25:
NFHS Network streaming, DeWitt's high-scoring football matchup - Listen
Sept. 18:
Cheboygan broadcaster Mike Grisdale, Michigan's national participation ranking - Listen
Sept. 11:
MHSAA baseball stars in MLB, 2024 Boys Soccer Tournament - Listen
Sept. 5:
Highlighting MHSAA record setters, 50th Football Playoffs - Listen
Aug. 28:
MHSAA Summer Olympians, "Century of School Sports" celebration - Listen