Booty steps down as Sage Hill football coach

Abram Booty has stepped down as football coach at Sage Hill School because a great number of potential student-athletes for the program were not admitted to the private school, he said Monday.

Booty said he told the football team and the school that he would be resigning this past weekend. The program is left with low participation numbers – potentially 12 returners for the fall – and will pursue to compete in 8-man football, the school announced Monday.

Booty lasted one year at Sage Hill, where he was hoping to improve the participation numbers and build a strong team.

“The decision was made for me,” Booty said. “It was a good number [of student-athletes] that applied [at the private school]. I understand that it is a rigid process to be admitted.”

Booty also said Sage Hill is a, “great school,” with, “great academics.” He said he loved the team and the players.

Booty, a former NFL wide receiver who played at LSU, took over a 3-7 team that went winless in the Academy League when he became Sage Hill coach last year and led the Lightning to a 2-8 season, including a wild, 61-57 victory over La Puente Bassett in the season finale.

“We could’ve had something special,” Booty said of the potential student-athletes who applied at Sage Hill.

The Sage Hill football program began the 2015 season with 27 student-athletes and ended the season with 26, athletic director Megan Cid said. Nine football players are set to graduate from Sage Hill this spring. Two would-be returners notified the school they would not be coming back and three others weren’t fully committed to coming back, Cid said.

Sage Hill admits approximately 125 freshmen each year, Cid said.

“[Booty’s] goals and objectives for the football program did not align with what Sage Hill wanted to do,” Cid said.

Cid said she has started to research 8-man football and the process to become a team in 8-man competition. She is studying Calvary Chapel Downey, which recently made the move to play 8-man football, she said.

Because Sage Hill is a small school Cid believes the Lightning can make the switch to 8-man football.

“Our desire is to offer football at Sage Hill,” she said. “This is a step for us.”