And those schools aren't drastically different from Bishop Eustace Prep and St. Augustine Prep.
They need good sports teams. They need visibility. They need school spirit. They need old graduates to come back - and to bring their checkbooks.
These schools have been attracting and developing top players for years. They've been winning games and creating excitement for years.
But it's different now. It's not just about hanging banners and filling the trophy case.
It's about survival.
Look around. Look at the state of the economy and the state of private education - people out of work, declining enrollments in high schools, shuttered Catholic grammar schools across South Jersey.
What happens in three years, when high schools start truly feeling the impact of the loss of those feeder schools? In five years?
"I've never seen it this tough," said St. Augustine coach Paul Rodio, the school's director of development. "I've never seen it this competitive out there."
It's crazy competitive among private schools these days. There's a rapidly shrinking pool of prospective students - thanks to the economy and sky-high property taxes and the church's self-inflicted wounds - and there's an air of near-desperation as enrollments decline and the Diocese of Camden down-throttles on its commitment to subsidize education.
These schools need to attract students, so they stress their academic standards and their faith-based curriculums and their computer labs and science clubs and service organizations.
Also, their football teams.
Plus their basketball, baseball, softball, and lacrosse teams.
Just look at the investment in facilities. Camden Catholic, Bishop Eustace, Paul VI, and St. Augustine installed new artificial-turf surfaces on their football stadiums in the last five years.
