ok I see your point, two years simply just to be fair and play the same team once at home and once away.
Realignment
- Thread starter SimmonsRatings
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Used to kill me that schools would object to new conference alignments because of travel. And then they would schedule non-conference games that were over 3 hours away.
The issue for the travel is usually not football games but winter sports.
Varsity football makes the trip every other season on a Friday. JV on Thursday. Basketball makes the trip every season and possibly on a school night. I remember getting back to school from a playoff game on a Thursday night after midnight and still had to ride my bike home so I could ride it to school the next morning.
NCHSAA recommended that previously. I thought it was the best option. Schools, mainly ADs, were very opposed.
I think it was fear of unknown and probably more effort on their part. The reasons I heard were loss of rivalries and loss in continuity of opponents and taking the commonality away. All of these were thought to potentially hurt gates. I saw more rivalry potential with better gates.
Thats just lazy in my opinion , U can always hire another AD and split it up and also I think with Football ONLY it would still have rivalry imo because some team you would have no choice to keep together to due location or whatever like I could never see a situation where Mooresville/LN wouldnt be in the same conference IMO
I also prefer 2 year realignments but contracts can have a simple contingency clause addressing any issues related to realignments. Now whether any school would actually sign such a contract is a different story.
Realign every two years based entirely on ADMs. I don’t think the other portion of the previous classification was all that transparent except for the number crunchers.
Now just imagine your said 3A teams being half the size of the 4A teams I see around here. Hoke High, Pinecrest, Richmond Senior -- all with well over 2,000 students with Hoke closer to 2,500, put in a conference with Southern Lee with a population floating between 1,000 and 1,200
You do realize that NC isn't AZ and the students here can't handle drives like that for conference play, right?
There was one year where North Duplin had to travel all the way to Cherokee for an opening round playoff game.
I have never been a fan of the present 3A/4A Sandhills Athletic Conference. Unfortunately, I don't think any of the schools that were in the 3A Tri-County 6 conference even made an effort to appeal to keep that league together.
I am aware n FYI they used to do here in NC Crest and AC at one time in the same conference which about 60 ish mile trip so We have done it before so Idk why Travel is a issue and I believe it make for better competition and all because ex - Even tho people hate it The Imeck was the best conference for Mooresville/LN but Ofc money is always a concern so we got put in that sucky crappy 3A/4A conference and That was Worst decision ever when come to competitive/competition and also never help us in playoff either
Travel is an issue because the schools have to pay for it. It costs them money and many athletic departments are already strained financially. In alot of school systems the county does not pay for the schools travel. In some places they do, and it may not matter, but in many places it is on the school to pay for travel.
Also, travel matters in other sports because those games are more likely to be held on a school night. Who wants to get up and go to school after a 2 hour drive home from a Tuesday night basketball game?
For the record. Georgia does have 7A, and has roughly the same in population as NC. They went with the small conference model. If you look at 7A region 1, there are 5 schools and Camden County to Valdosta, Lowndes, Colquitt is roughly 2 hours.
Often fans, administrators, and coaches have 3 different things they are looking for in conferences.
Also, travel matters in other sports because those games are more likely to be held on a school night. Who wants to get up and go to school after a 2 hour drive home from a Tuesday night basketball game?
For the record. Georgia does have 7A, and has roughly the same in population as NC. They went with the small conference model. If you look at 7A region 1, there are 5 schools and Camden County to Valdosta, Lowndes, Colquitt is roughly 2 hours.
Often fans, administrators, and coaches have 3 different things they are looking for in conferences.
I have been to games at Valdosta and Colquitt. When Colquitt played at Valdosta about ten years ago they stayed in a hotel the night before, had three coach buses driving them, and a tractor trailer hauling the gear. Impressive. Great atmosphere.
I am not as up to date as I once was but I think GA has more schools. They moved the private into their own class in small schools when they went to seven classes.
What time is the bud getting back to the s cool after a January away basketball game is all part of the equation and a big reason I supported a football alignment separate from other sports.
