The Lake Worth football team has shut down its season because of a roster shortage, according to sources.
Lake Worth forfeited its Oct. 9 game against Jupiter and will forfeit its remaining scheduled games: Friday against Palm Beach Lakes, Oct. 23 against Palm Beach Central and its season finale against Boynton Beach.
The move to rookie head coach Levon Barnett Jr., a former Dwyer standout, didn’t ignite the struggling program as hoped.
A Palm Beach County schools spokesman confirmed the football program “closed down” because of low numbers, citing Oct. 7 as the date the district was informed.
In all, Lake Worth will have forfeited six of its final eight games. Previously, Lake Worth forfeited games against Santaluces and Dr. Joaquin Garcia when
its roster dropped to between 16 and 18 players.
The Trojans administration embarked on a heavy recruiting effort, some players reversed their decisions to quit and the roster increased to 28. Lake Worth returned to the field for two games in late September and early October against Dwyer and Wellington, losing by a combined score of 101-12.
Barnett referred all questions to new athletic director Tate Rowan, who replaced Frank Baxley. Baxley had engineered the hiring of Barnett, who had no previous head coaching experience.
Barnett hired a coaching staff of former Palm Beach County football standouts, all of whom were under 30 and had little coaching experience. Barnett, however, never got the chance to work with Baxley as he had planned.
Rowan, who came from Palm Beach Middle School, did not respond to messages from The Palm Beach Post.
A source said last week Lake Worth was hoping to play its season finale against Boynton Beach, a team that also has struggled this season with one victory.
Boynton Beach coach Tre Smith was informed earlier this week that Lake Worth’s season was over, so the Tigers replaced the Trojans with Olympic Heights on their schedule for Oct. 29. The Boynton Beach game also was removed from Lake Worth’s schedule on MaxPreps.
Forfeits to Palm Beach Lakes and Palm Beach Central will drop Lake Worth’s record to 0-9. Lake Worth’s player roster also has been removed from MaxPreps.
It is unclear whether the team will continue to practice.
By comparison, Jupiter has 100 players in its program, including 60 on varsity.
“It’s a tough spot for them,” Jupiter coach Josh Brooks said. “I definitely feel for them and their coaches. I see a lot of stuff their head coach is doing online. It looks like he’s doing good stuff with the kids. It’s hard when they have that small a roster. I feel bad for the players. It’s tough for the seniors finishing out their senior season.”
When Lake Worth returned to the field Sept. 28 after a monthlong absence, Barnett told The Palm Beach Post the experience had provided a lesson in perseverance.
“It was tough, but as long as you persevere, you can get through any challenges in life,” Barnett said. “Football can teach you about adversity and how to battle. There was adversity with the program, and I did a good job of keeping the guys’ spirits high.”
Declining enrollment at Lake Worth High was one factor in the roster decrease, but a handful of last season’s players transferred, including starting quarterback Erik Lee Jr.
Lee transferred to Park Vista along with his father, Erik Lee, who stepped down as Lake Worth’s head coach after last season’s 3-7 record. Erik Lee is now the offensive coordinator at a resurgent Park Vista.
When explaining the roster shortage in late September, Barnett pointed in part to the school’s demographics.
“I just feel like it’s the demographics,” Barnett said. “Lake Worth is not known for its football. There are a lot of Spanish kids and Haitian kids. They gravitate toward soccer and sports other than football. We’re still trying to change the culture around Lake Worth and get it to be a school where people want to play football.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Lake Worth football shuts down season due to roster shortage
