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Steroid Testing /
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High school athletes could face steroid test
High school athletes could face steroid test, By: David DeKunder
Published February 4, 2007
GUADALUPE COUNTY — Three local coaches say they would favor the random steroid testing of high school athletes — if it is done for the right reasons.
A bill filed in the Texas House by State Rep. Dan Flynn of Van would require that each school district randomly select a number of high school athletes who would be tested for steroids.
House Bill 346 would allow the University Interscholastic League (UIL), the governing body for athletic, academic and extracurricular activities in Texas, to administer and pay for the tests.
The bill was referred to the House Public Education Committee on Thursday.
Flynn is not the only state legislator who favors mandatory random steroid testing of high school athletes.
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst came out in favor of it in late January.
Seguin High School athletic director and head football coach Jim Carson said he can see both the benefits and negatives of the random steroid testing proposal.
“To me, it is like a Catch-22,” Carson said. “I am not a big advocate of drug testing. If we are trying to exclude people, I am not for it. If it is a way to steer people on a better path, then I am for that. How the results are used will come under tremendous scrutiny when it’s all said and done.”
Former Marion High School football coach and boys athletic coordinator Phil Karrer said random steroid testing could be used as an effective deterrent.
“If [the athletes] knew they would get tested, it would deter them from probably using steroids,” Karrer said.
Navarro High School athletic director and head football coach Lin Havron said mandatory random testing could make it less likely that high school athletes would take steroids.
“If there was a threat of testing, it is easier for them to say no and save face [from peer pressure],” Havron said.
Havron said a random test would still be effective because kids would not know for sure if they would be the ones who would be selected.
UIL athletic coordinator Dr. Mark Cousins said many school districts in Texas are already taking matters into their own hands when it comes to mandatory steroid testing.
“We got over 127 schools that do steroid testing,” Cousins said.
In a survey of schools done by the UIL in 2005, Cousins said 80 percent of the schools that responded said random steroid testing should be made at the local level — not by state lawmakers.
If the random steroid testing were to be started, the Associated Press said it would be the largest in the nation at the high school level.
Cousins said more than 700,000 athletes participate in high school sports in Texas.
House Bill 346 would authorize the UIL to pay for the testing by implementing an admission fee at athletic events.
If the Texas Legislature decides to go through with the mandatory steroid testing, it would need to provide the funds to back it up, Carson said.
“If the legislator tells us we have to do this and doesn’t provide the money, I don’t think you will get a great response from the education people,” Carson said.
Cousins said estimates show that it would cost the UIL between $100 to $150 per person to conduct steroid tests. That is compared to a drug test, which costs between $25 to $50 per person to administer.
While Carson and Karrer do not recall catching any kids using steroids on their campuses, Havron said he remembers several instances at Navarro in which kids were caught doing them or attempting to do them.
The distribution, possession and delivering of steroids is prohibited under state law and can result in jail time or confinement in prison.
The only legal way a person can use steroids is if it is prescribed by a doctor.
Before they are allowed to participate, high school athletes and their parents must sign a form that prohibits athletes from using steroids illegally.
Karrer said there is one way to steer high school athletes away from steroids — communication.
“We just discuss it with them and the dangers involved [in steroid use],” Karrer said. “We suggest to kids that they eat healthy and do the right things. Our kids are good about talking to us about what is going on.”
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