NC high school association votes to sanction two new varsity sports. What we know
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- NCHSAA voted to add girls’ flag football as a sanctioned high school sport.
- The NCHSAA Board voted Wednesday to add boys’ volleyball as a sanctioned sport.
- NCHSAA will host state championships for both newly sanctioned sports.
North Carolina will be getting two new high school sports.
The N.C. High School Athletic Association Board of Directors voted Wednesday to add girls’ flag football and boys’ volleyball to its lists of sanctioned sports. The NCHSAA will host championships in both sports.
The board voted 9-8 to sanction flag football and then voted 13-4 to start the sport in the fall — with an NCHSAA committee to determine season-length and playoffs — after a rigorous discussion with a few members wanting to wait a year to create an official state championship.
“We get 30-something years in our field,” board member Bryan Tyson said in defense of adding the sport immediately. “These high school girls get four.”
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will now change girls’ flag football from spring to fall, beginning in the next school year.
The Carolina Panthers have helped make a big push for girls’ flag football in the Carolinas, starting with a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools league several years ago. That league culminates with a big final day at Bank of America Stadium.
Currently there more than 40 states are offering girls’ flag football, according to the NFL and the National Federation of High Schools. Among those, 20 states have sanctioned the sport, and are offering playoffs and state championships, including California, Florida and New York.
During its spring meeting, an NCHSAA committee reported to the board that 135 teams were playing flag football this spring. That is about 30 percent of the membership.
Boys’ volleyball, like girls’ flag football, is rapidly increasing in popularity in some parts of the state. The board voted 10-7 to add the sport in the spring of 2027. Tyson said Queen’s University in Charlotte has been reserved by the N.C. Volleyball Coaches Association to host a championship with proceeds benefitting the NCHSAA.
Ten years ago, there were four boys teams playing, according to Sarah Conklin, the Weddington High club coach and a longtime organizer of the sport in North Carolina. Today, there are more than 120 schools playing, or about a quarter of the NCHSAA’s membership.
Last year, 36 states sanctioned boys’ volleyball, according to the American Volleyball Coaches Association, and the NFHS reports that participation in the sport has grown — from 43,000 athletes nationally in 2005-06 to nearly 96,000 in the 2024-25 school year.
Board votes against shot clock for basketball
The board voted against a proposal to allow a shot clock to be used during scrimmages, invitational tournaments and special events next season.
Use of the shot clock would’ve been voluntary by participating schools.
Currently, 32 states use a shot clock nationally.
There was vigorous discussion among board members about using the shot clock with some asking how many schools had a clock or the personnel to run it.
One member said if a clock was made mandatory, it could cost schools $5,000 to $6,000 dollars to install them, plus training for a person to use it.
Board votes against reducing playoff fields
The board voted 10-7 against a proposal to reduce playoff fields from 48 to 32 teams beginning with the 2026-27 school year. This would’ve applied to 1A through 7A classes in all sports. Football would not have been affected in 2026.
Board member Tyson expressed concern with taking action during Year 1 of the NCHSAA having eight classes for its playoffs, moving up from four.
NCHSAA commissioner Que Tucker said many low-performing schools are choosing to not accept playoff berths, including 19 for softball and seven for baseball in the most recent playoff brackets completed.
Board member Ericia Turner, athletic director for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, said some schools have also expressed concern with traveling long distances for blowout first round games, particularly with gas prices being so high.
“The number of opt-outs we’re seeing has been an inordinate number since the first playoffs,” Tucker said.
Other board actions taken Wednesday
In addition to adding the new sports, the Board voted:
— To sign a new 10-year agreement, through the 2036-37 school year, with Teall Properties to help with marketing for its state championships. This passed 17-0.
— To require all head coaches to complete a youth mental health and first aid training program every three years. An initial recommendation to require this for all coaches, including volunteers, was revised to not burden many assistant coaches and volunteers who are non-faculty coaches. This passed 17-0.
— To make the NCHSAA, via the DragonFly app, the official reporting source for any data collection, including information used to provide arguments for sanctioning sports, in order to provide consistency and availability for all members. This passed 17-0.
— To make participating in or hosting an unsanctioned event — in or out of the state — a Level 3 infraction. Level 3 violations forces schools to forfeit any game(s) played in the unsanctioned event. This passed 17-0.
— To require a five-man officiating crew for junior varsity football (passed 10-7).
— To require two officials for every mat in dual team wrestling playoffs beginning in the third round, and to require two additional officials for each individual regional wrestling tournament, up from one official (both passed 17-0).
— To allow divers and swimmers to participate in two events per day instead of one (passed 17-0). And to align the girls’ wrestling playoff schedule with the boys’ to avoid competition gaps (passed 17-0).
Note: The board did not vote on a proposal from the Four Rivers conference to allow two schools to form one team in specific sports when they cannot form a full competitive team due to limited participation or declining enrollment. Also, a proposal to extend boys’ and girls’ tennis seasons by one week failed 16-1.
This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 1:22 PM.
