OldSchoolLion

amen In what league/sport do over half of the teams make the playoffs? One could site the 40 bowl games, which are not really playoffs, per se. and we all know how much discussion there is about there being too many bowl games

Unfortunately, the best athletes are often the most stubborn and most likely to try to hide/minimize an injury. I know I did Over time, a coach can get to know a kid and when he lying. But that is harder with a newer kid. It is common to fight(martial arts) or powerlift with an injury, and you can absolutely further damage an injury, but those are individual sports. In a team sport, there is this element of letting down my team members which places extra pressure on the kid. And in football, because we play relatively few games compared to other sports, each game is really critical....and the kids know that. I just saw a study that about half of opioid overdoes involve people with chronic pain. Pro wrestlers I knew used to take them like aspirin. When I was younger, I used to tell myself that "I'll just take something" for the pain when I am older. I won't go near pain killers, but there are days the pain is so bad, it is tempting. If you are competing at a high level, which means you are doing it for many years, you ARE going to have serious issues, ie arthritis, joint replacements, etc, when you get older, unless you are an absolute freak of nature. It is a blessing to live a long life, but dealing with the pain for 30-40 years gets old, too. Kids don't think about stuff like this. It's really up to us to protect them.

I can understand the second thoughts. I figured because I was "careful," the aches and pains later on would not be that bad...and would not start until I was 60 or so. I really believed that as long as I was not experiencing injuries, I was not causing serious damage. BOY was I wrong. I knew I would have to pay the piper when I was older, but I never dreamed it would be this bad. One needs not be a doctor to figure out that the more reps you play/hits you take, the odds of permanent damage rise, especially on young joints. Look at how we restrict young pitchers now. Guess the challenge is determining the sweet spot for young football players.

Deerfield Beach will be opening up the season on national television. The Bucks will open the season on the road against Georgia powerhouse Buford High School on Aug. 31 at 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN as part of the Gwinnett vs. The Nation Classic Buford is a perennial state title contender in Georgia.

I just posted an article that covers this topic in a separate thread. Some have serious concerns about what these extended seasons are subjecting the kids to. Really interesting chart of the US and how many games each state plays.

Great article that fits with our discussions about playoff schemes. http://usatodayhss.com/2015/special-report-how-much-high-school-football-is-too-much

Some possible answers: -All of these schools have been around for at least 25 years. -All of these teams had a head coach who spent at least 15 years with the program and that coach's teams won at least 8 playoff games. Their names are listed below. What does this say about the importance of having coaches in place for a long time to build a program? -All of these teams have appeared in at least one state championship final. -All of these teams have played in at least 25 playoff games. -All of these teams have won at least 10 playoff games. -All of these teams have made the playoffs in at least 10 different seasons. -All of these teams have appeared in playoff games in at least 4 different decades. Interesting facts: -All of the coaches whose names appear below had a team(s) that appeared in a state final, with the exception of one-Don Drinkhahn of South Dade. -One coach's name appears twice below-Byron Walker....who had long tenures at Glades Day and American Heritage. -16 of the 36 coaches whose names appear below did not win a state title during their tenure, demonstrating how difficult it is to win such a title. -30 of the 37 schools are public schools, demonstrating that historically we have had coaches at public schools who stayed a long time...unlike some today. Name at least 4 things each of these 37 football programs have in common? *=Coach had at least one team at that school that won or tied in a state championship game American Heritage/Plantation - Byron Walker Astronaut - Randy Hallock Bartow - Paul Quinn* Benjamin - Ron Ream Bishop Moore - Matt Hedrick* Bolles - Corky Rogers* Bradford - David Hurse* Carol City - Walt Frazier* Chamberlain - Billy Turner Clewiston - Al Morrell* Columbus - Chris Merritt Coral Gables - Nick Kotys* Frostproof - Farris Brannen* Glades Day - Byron Walker* Hillsborough - Earl Garcia Lake Brantley - George Clayton Lake Wales - Rod Shafer Lakeland - William Castle* Leon - Gene Cox* Manatee - Joe Kinnan* Merritt Island - Gerald Odom* Milton - Hurley Manning* Naples - William Kramer* Niceville - John Hicks Palatka - Jim McCool Palm Bay - Dan Burke* Pensacola - Mike Bennett* Pine Forest - Jerry Pollard* Riverview - John Sprague St Augustine - Joey Wiles* St Thomas Aquinas - George Smith* South Dade - Don Drinkhahn South Sumter - Inman Sherman Tampa Catholic - Bob Henriquez Union County - Robby Pruitt* Vanguard - Phillip Yancey Wakulla - J.D. Jones

... a few years back, a Texas senator introduced a bill to limit the number of teams making the playoffs in Texas..interesting reading. http://lubbockonline.com/opinion/2014-12-25/our-view-uil-should-tweak-playoff-rules-response-sen-perry-s-proposal

young man is listed as 6'4" 290 junior tackle Chaminade could have 5 senior OL next year, with 4 around 300 lb or better

Just for kicks, I broke down Class 4A Region 1 Raines(13-1), West Nassau(10-2), Marianna(5-5) and North Bay Haven Academy(5-5) made the playoffs during the regular season... Rutherford(3-7) beat North Bay Haven Academy(5-5) Gadsden County(3-7) easily beat Marianna(5-5). Marianna(5-5) easily beat Rutherford(3-7), Walton(3-7) and S Walton (3-7) Walton, S Walton and North Bay Haven each had 3 big losses to 1A schools, and some of those were to mediocre 1A teams. North Bay Haven barely beat 1A Sneads(1-8) 15-14 All but 1 of Gadsden County's losses came to a 5A, 6A or 7A teams. Fernandina Beach finished 5-5-1 and had a reasonably difficult schedule. Gadsden could argue they are "deserving" based on difficulty of schedule. North Bay Haven had a very weak schedule and still struggled. So, I could see an argument for Raines, West Nassau, Marianna, Fern Beach and Gadsden County to be "deserving" teams, and even might be a stretch. Any of the other teams in the region...no way. How can a 4A team having multiple blowout losses to 1A teams be considered a playoff contender? during the regular season. NBH made the playoffs and Rutherford did not. If someone wants to debate that this is unfair, it blows up the new playoff system

This year, 16/34(47%) 1A teams year made the playoffs and now we are looking at 24/34(71%) making it. 64/164(39%) 1A-4A teams made the playoffs this year and now we are looking at 96/164(59%) making it. I am trying to think of some other league/sport where well over half of the teams make the playoffs??? 8A was arguably the most competitive class, ie the most parity. 32/89 teams (36%) made the playoffs. If ever there was a class where one could say come competitive teams did not make the playoffs, 8A could make a case. 47% of 1A made it and we are saying some deserving teams got left out. Something seems terribly wrong if we can justify that for 1A-4A classes and not the higher classes as well.

1A-4A playoff games were substantially less competitive... Breakdown of playoff games 1A-4A First fraction represents # of playoff games decided 14 or more points, second fraction represents # of playoff games decided by 28 or more points 4A - 12/15, 9/15 3A - 12/15 , 7/15 2A - 12/15, 9/15 1A - 14/15, 6/15 Total - 50/60 games(83%) were decided by 14 or more points Total - 31/60 games(52%) were decided by 28 or more points Breakdown of playoff games 5A-8A 8/31(26%) playoff games in 8A were decided by 28 or more points and 17/31(55%) games were decided by 14 points or more...much lower percentages. 11/31(35%) playoff games in 7A were decided by 28 or more points and 16/31(52%) games were decided by 14 points or more...much lower percentages. 8/31(26%) playoff games in 6A were decided by 28 or more points and 17/31(55%) games were decided by 14 points or more...much lower percentages. 6/31(19%) playoff games in 5A were decided by 28 or more points and 13/31(42%) games were decided by 14 points or more...much lower percentages.

I guess my question is, "What are we really trying to accomplish by adding the 8 teams?" One could say, "it can't hurt," but what are the costs, both literal and figurative, of adding 32 playoff games each year...and is that cost justified? One of the "added" playoff games could be a long road trip, such as 1A Region 4 matchup. Do we really have that many good teams in 1A-4A missing out on the playoffs? Marianna, the #3 seed in Region 1 of 4A, beat Walton, S Walton and Rutherford all by 26 or more points during the regular season. One of those teams may well have been the team to face them in the first round this year under the new system. There are 116 teams in Classes 1A-3A. Under the new system, 72 of those teams, or 62%, will make the playoffs. In 9 of the 12 regions, 2/3 or greater of the teams will make the playoffs. We already have teams like 1A Jefferson County 4-7 and 3A Newberry 3-7 in the playoffs. Imagine 2 teams with 3-7 records playing each other in the first round. It will eventually happen. Breakdwon of Classes 1A-3A by region: 3A region 1 - 8 teams 3A region 2 - 9 teams 3A region 3 - 8 teams 3A Region 4 - 14 teams 2A Region 1 - 11 teams 2A Region 2 - 14 teams 2A Region 3 - 9 teams 2A Region 4 - 9 teams 1A Region 1 - 9 teams 1A Region 2 - 8 teams 1A Region 3 - 9 teams 1A Region 4 - 8 teams 3A region 4 - Are fans going to come out for such a game?

sorry, line in my previous post should have read... Similarly, of the 24 first round playoff games in Classes 1A, 2A and 3A, 9 were decided by 21 or more points.

I recently did a post asking "Whaddup with 4A?" and provided some information that brings to light the weakness of this class. Adding 8 teams to the playoffs would certainly benefit a Booker T, but adds a lot of not-so-competitive teams to an already weak playoff. Using this year as an example, the 2 additions to each region would have potentially been the following-see below. If so, that would mean that only 13/24 teams in the 4A playoffs would have had winning records. The 3 and 4 seeds all got blown out or beaten soundly in the first round of the playoffs this year. http://www.fhsaa.org/node/34194 Similarly, of the 24 first round playoff games, 19 were decided by 21 or more points. With the exception of Booker T, the other 7 teams would likely do no better. Ironically, Booker T is in the deepest region in 4A...arguably the one that least needs a competitive team added to the playoffs. In a matter of speaking, adding the 8 teams is simply prolonging the agony and taking away from the prestige of making the playoffs. Region 1 (North Bay Haven and Marianna made playoffs with 5-5 records) Fernandina Beach 5-5-1 A 3-7 team Region 2 (Keystone Heights made playoffs with 4-6 record) Mt Dora 6-4 The Villages Charter 5-6 Region 3 (Lake Placid made playoffs with 5-5 record) Cocoa Beach 5-5 (lost 35-6 vs Lake Placid; all 5 losses by 21 points or more) Mulberry 4-6 (5 losses of 22 points or more) Region 4 Booker T Washington 4-6 A 5-6 team

Yep...what I said below may just be a hint for that fourth answer ... We know all of those teams have been around for decades, which means they probably have appeared in playoff games for many decades...hmmm

We know all of those teams have been around for decades, which means they probably have appeared in playoff games for many decades...hmmm .

...high school situation involving questionable reporting http://kfor.com/2017/12/27/former-superintendent-who-resigned-amid-sexual-assault-investigation-to-receive-167000/

...better badbird, but still no cigar 1. I am not going there. I did hear that some young men on a certain team made their coach fire all of their male trainers and replace them with female trainers to make sure that a creepy male never lays a hand on them. 2. It is debatable whether one could say that Leon or South Sumter had a team this year. 3. That used to be true, but no more. A number of fans complained that white was "too political" because it was the same color as the White House, so neutral earth tones will replace. On that note, beginning next year, trigger warnings will be read aloud prior to each game to warn fans that they are about to witness an event that could subject them to disturbing violence and traumatize them for life. 4. We do not allow boys to play high school football in Florida-only young men and the occasional girl kicker.

...very clever, but I am terribly disappointed with you badbird. None of your responses were correct. 1. Coaches and some players on the sidelines do not wear helmets during games. 2. That used to be true, but not anymore. Aquinas' linemen ate all of their weights and somebody stole Frostproof's dumbell. 3. That used to be true, but the new transfer rules have impacted team mascots as well, so some teams have vacancies. Astronaut's war eagle has transferred to Wakulla. And Frostproof's bulldog went to Bolles(even the mascots are going to the private schools now!). Lakeland used to have a mascot, but the Navy took it back. 4. They all have coaches, not just a "coach." And at this moment, some teams do not actually have a head coach due to vacancies. Nice try though, badbird.

How Classification Changes Impacted Competition From 1985-1998, Florida had 5 classes. The 3 biggest classes were normally extremely competitive, and then there was big a dropoff to the lowest 2 classes. Pretty clear delineation between "bigger" schools and "smaller" schools. In 1999, Florida went to 6 classes. 3A-6A was extremely competitive. There was a pretty big dropoff from 3A to 2A, but 2A was still pretty competitive. Each class had approximately 70 teams and 32 teams made the playoffs. In 2003, Florida went to 7 classes, splitting 2A into 2A and 2B. 3A-6A was extremely competitive and then there was a big dropoff to the lowest 3 classes. Pretty clear delineation between "bigger" schools(3A-6A) and "smaller" schools (2A, 2B, 1A). 2A and 2B dropped from 32 teams in the playoffs to 16 teams. The other classes stayed at 32. Bolles and South Sumter, 2 of the top teams in 2A, both petitioned to be moved up to 3A for the 2003 season, weakening the class. 2A had 33 teams and 2B had 37. In 2002, there were no teams with losing records in the 2A playoffs. In 2003, 4/16 teams in the 2A playoffs had losing records and 2/16 teams in the 2B playoffs had losing records. A higher percentage of teams in 2A and 2B were making the playoffs than in the other classes. In 2005, Florida went to 8 classes, splitting 1A into 1A and 1B. Like 2A and 2B, 1A and 1B each had 16 teams in their respective playoffs. Class1A had 40 teams and 1B had 38. This was arguably the first time in history where the majority of classes were not deep. Arguably, 4 of the 8 classes(1A, 1B, 2A, 2B) were lacking depth of very good teams. In 2011, Florida added a Class 7A and 8A, and eliminated Classes 2B and 1B. In Classes 5A-8A, each class had between 76-93 teams and 32 teams made the playoffs in their respective class. Classes 1A, 3A and 4A each had between 36-38 teams. Class 2A had 52 teams. 16 teams made the playoffs in their respective classes in 1A-4A Below are playoff brackets from the “middle” classes in 2010 - 2A, 3A and 4A . Note the depth and some of the intriguing matchups. Compare these to the “middle” of today - 3A, 4A and 5A -less depth and less intriguing, in my opinion. Like 2005, the changes in 2011 arguably caused further dilution. http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2010-11/fb_2010_4a.pdf http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2010-11/fb_2010_3a.pdf http://www.fhsaa.org/sites/default/files/orig_uploads/sports/football/archives/2010-11/fb_2010_2a.pdf As 2A lost 2 of its best teams in 2003, weakening the class substantially , 4A lost two its best teams in 2017. Interestingly, Bolles was involved in both of those cases.

I'll share answers early next week.

Columbia When you had a question like this(Name four things....) on a test at Columbia HS, did you walk up to the teacher and ask him how many you had right so far, son? I head that school was easy Submit your 4 answers and we will see I will say, that Sharkbait feller is purdy smart and may be getting warm All of these schools have been winning football games for a long time. That's a good thing to know.

HINT: If you are very familiar with football in a certain area of the state, focus on the teams from your area. For instance, there are 6 Dade/Broward County teams on the list. There are 3 Polk County teams on the list. There are a number of panhandle teams on the list. Look for four things in common amongst those schools from your area, and hint, hint, the trends may be similar throughout the state. If you are familiar with Polk County football history, I can think of one thing that should slap you in the face about Lakeland, Bartow and Lake Wales?