A $62 million high school stadium comes at a bigger cost

SIGN UP FOR THE DAILY JWR UPDATE. IT'S FREE. Just click here.

Recently, Philip Beard Stadium in Buford, Georgia, made its national television debut on ESPN. The new $62 million facility, located 40 miles northeast of Atlanta, features 15 corporate suites, 10,000 seats and a 3,600-square-foot, state-of-the-art scoreboard. It's the perfect backdrop for a college gameday - but the stadium wasn't designed for an institution of higher learning. It was built for Buford High School football, and it isn't even the most expensive high school venue in the country.

The extravagance is emblematic of the changing landscape of youth football. As more money transforms the college version - much of which I've supported - the traditions and culture of high school football are becoming collateral damage. What's left behind is a commercial spectacle, far removed from the spirit of amateurism and community that should be preserved in youth sports.

By the numbers, high school tackle football remains an American sports juggernaut. In 2023-24, the most recent year for which data is available, 1.04 million students played, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. The next most popular team sport - volleyball - had 564,000 participants.

The influence goes well beyond the numbers. For athletes, high school football has long been an accessible means of learning teamwork, discipline and resilience. At its best, this level of the sport puts winning second.

Meanwhile, in the thousands of communities that host teams, the games serve as unifying events attended by classmates, neighbors and families. As the seasons play out, shared experiences forge local identity. The persistence of popular art about high school football - think "Friday Night Lights" in all of its permutations - is a reminder that the sport fulfills a craving for connection.

Nonetheless, big-time college football has always cast a shadow over the high school game. Athletes in search of the next level of competition and a scholarship view it as the ultimate goal. Coaches, keen to see their star players advance, emulate college plays, techniques and development. The focus on excellence usually benefits the entire team - from the star to the walk-on.

But that balance between the team and the elite prospect is starting to shift. As college athletes have acquired the right to be paid (via NIL) and transfer freely to new schools, top-tier coaches have become less focused on recruiting from high schools. Instead, they're scouting other college teams for experienced players willing to transfer in exchange for better NIL payments (and, often, more playing time).

The consequences are stark. Some high school coaches estimate that Division I college programs have only half the roster spots available for their graduates compared to the pre-NIL and transfer portal era. As recruitment slips, athletes are moving to high schools with coaches and facilities that impress scouts.

In California, for example, 17,068 athletes changed schools in 2024, a record high. Last year, the body that oversees Texas high school athletics estimated that as many as 15,000 athletes could move into or between its sports-centric high schools. And in Georgia, 5,916 athletes transferred during the 2024-25 season, prompting the Georgia High School Association to tighten its rules.

As teams focus on recruiting top-tier transfers, walk-ons and other players seeking a traditional high school football experience are pushed aside. What was once an activity intended to instill values in any interested student has shifted into a form of professional development.

Winning, once a secondary value, has become essential for attracting recruiters. So has investing in attention-grabbing sports facilities that enhance training programs. The source of funding for stadium-building underscores a loss within the community. Buford's was financed by local taxes, which could've funded parks, recreational initiatives and transportation.

I suppose some could call it a sliver lining that ticket sales will bring in revenue to help the school's athletic department; so, too, will the opportunities for businesses to hawk goods to fans. Tom Beuglas, the athletic director at Buford High School, said in an email that the new stadium "has had a huge impact (increase) in sponsorship because local businesses want advertising on the huge scoreboard."

It's a proven business model. Just look at Texas, the beating heart of America's high school football obsession. It's home to at least 10 high school stadiums that cost at least $50 million to build. In 2025, it also happened to be home to 42 of the top 300 high school football recruits in the nation, the most of any state, according to On3, a college sports news site.

Buford High School would love to emulate that success, and the new stadium should help it get there. But - residents and high school football fans everywhere - should be asking themselves a couple of questions: Who truly benefits from this money-driven version of the game? How important is it for football to still serve as a shared civic asset that strengthens bonds and shapes young athletes as people, not just players?

The answers to these questions will evolve in the coming years. But Buford's new stadium already stands as a permanent monument to a new way of thinking about high school sports - one driven by money, which makes the game less accessible. The community may still be part of the story, but it's no longer at the heart of the story.

Minter is a Bloomberg View columnist. He is the author of "Junkyard Planet: Travels in the Billion-Dollar Trash Trade."

Previously:
• The NCAA does not deserve an antitrust exemption
• College football's new playoff is already a loser
• $2,000 college football tickets may be the new norm
• March Madness as we know it faces extinction
• Private equity and college sports can make a good team
• Baseball fans should root for gambling's expansion
• PGA merger with LIV Golf is only the beginning
• Farmers are fighting for our right to repair our iPhones
• This column may, or may not, cause an allergic reaction
• There's one Trump idea even libs should like