Pittsford Panthers

Football and Cheerleading Club

Frequently Asked Questions

• When does football start this year?  August, 3, 2009 @ 6:00 p.m.
• What is the minimum age requirement to participate in this program? Your child must be 8 years old by August 1st. If he or she is not, they cannot participate.
• Do you offer a flag football program for younger kids? No. However, we are examining the possibility of adding flag football within 2 years. If you have any suggestions or insight, please email us.
• When does the season run? The season starts on August 3rd and runs through the first week of November.
• We didn’t participate in the Pittsford Panthers program last year. Are we allowed to signup during the preregistration period? No. Preregistration is only for returning players or new players with a sibling that completed the previous season with the program. All other registrants must wait for the open registration process in order to sign up.
• What is the open registration process? The open registration process is a period of time where anyone that does not qualify for preregistration process is allowed to sign up for the program. Depending on the number of available openings, this process may require a lottery.
• When is the open registration period? The open registration period is after the close of the pre-registration period. Depending on when pre-registration closes, this period is generally a few weeks after the official close of pre-registration. Please refer to the Pittsford Panthers web site for official announcements regarding open registration.
• Who is eligible to participate in the open registration process? Any child that meets the age and weight limitations and lives in Pittsford.
• What is the lottery all about? – If the number of pchildren signing up during open registration exceeds the available number of openings, a lottery will be held to pull names at random from those that signed up during open registration.
• My son/daughter wants to play with their friends on a particular team. Can they request that team? No. We pick kids at random and appoint them to the various teams that need to be filled. We intentionally avoid grouping kids so we can eliminate opportunities to “stack” teams.
• My son/daughter played on a particular team last season, but this season wants to move to the other conference. Can they do this? No. As with the previous question, the answer is we do not swap kids back and forth between conferences. Once you have been appointed to a conference, this is where you will stay for your duration of the program.
• What time are practices held throughout the season? In August, football and cheerleading practices run Monday – Thursday from 6-8PM, and Saturdays from 9-11AM. There may be circumstances that cause deviations in those plans, but changes are communicated well in advance. Once school starts in September, practice schedules change to Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays, (weekdays start at 6PM – 8PM, but as daylight diminishes, we scale practice times back during the week) Saturdays are still generally two hours long and start @ 9:00 am.
• How long are practices?  Both football & cheerleading practices last 2 hours per night/day during August. In September and October, practice times and duration may vary. For the most part, practice times are planned around the available light. Some families have both football players and cheerleaders to drop off and pick up, so we want to keep the logistical issues to a minimum and maintain the same times for all kids. There will be occasions that the cheerleaders may be asked to stay longer (for instance, if a cheer competition is approaching), but you will be notified in advance of these changes. Keep in mind that as daylight diminishes in the fall, so will practice times. Depending on how cloudy and overcast the fall days get, practices may be as short as 75 minutes long.
• When are games held? – Most of all league scheduled games are held on Sundays. There may be instances when a game is moved to a Saturday, but changes are communicated well in advance.
• Where are practices held? – New for 2009, all teams will practice on or near Barker Road Middle School. Your coaches will keep you informed of any changes to these plans.
• What is certification? – Certification is a process conducted by the AYFCL league to verify the accuracy of the rosters. Each child must be certified by a specific date or the child will be unable to play or participate in league sponsored events. Certification dates will be listed in the CALENDAR section of this website.
• Where are games held? – Home games are generally held at Pittsford Mendon High School.
• What times are the games on Sundays? – The start times are as follows: C team – 11:30AM; A team – 1:30PM; B team – 3:30PM (Keep in mind, A & B game start times are a general reference. The actual start time is dependent on the completion time of the previous game.) 
• How long are the games on Sundays? Each game averages ~ two hours, depending on the number of interruptions that might delay the game.
• We generally go on vacation in August. What is the impact to us if we are in this program? The Pittsford Panthers football and cheerleading club expects every participant to attend and actively participate in every practice and game. Attendance means arriving before the coach begins warm-ups and staying until the coach adjourns the team.  The Club stresses safety for all participants, and places high value on developing teamwork from the start. Teamwork is created best through demonstrated commitment to teammates, coaches, and oneself. Our attendance policy states that for August à players and cheerleaders are permitted to be absent, without explanation or excuse, from no more than three (3) practices during the period commencing on the first day of practice and running to the beginning of school.   Once School Begins:  Players and cheerleaders are permitted to be absent, without explanation or excuse, from no more that two (2) practices at any time commencing from the beginning of school through the last scheduled football game (players) or the league cheer competition (cheerleaders).  Players and cheerleaders are permitted to be absent, without explanation or excuse, from no more than one (1) scheduled league game throughout the season.

·        What is the nature of the family volunteer requirement? - This program is based on a 100% volunteer commitment from all of its members (coaches, board members, families). In order to support the program and run it to the standard that everyone has become accustomed to, each family is required to donate volunteer hours. These hours can be applied many different ways. Many of the tasks are fun and provide you with opportunities to meet new people, all with a common goal in mind à to provide the best possible program to the families, relatives and friends associated with Pittsford Panthers Football and Cheerleading.

• Does the program engage in any fundraising activities? Sometimes. We recognize today's economy is a challange for all and we are making a conscience decision to avoid multiple fundraising activities. Considerable board emphasis is placed on developing and maintaining an annual budget with the goal of keeping our costs in line. We do realize, however, that we need to do some fundraising or all costs associated with the program are placed on the shoulders of the parents.  

Updated Thursday, March 05, 2009 8:28 AM