Wow… it’s incredibly unsettling to be at a funeral where the parents are burying one of their children

No amount of money will smooth the pain

And at that dollar amount the likelihood of bankruptcy taking place in order to abscond the settlement is pretty high

SiuCubFan8 said:

Welp I was wrong about them having a shot to beat SF….yikes.

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Don't feel bad. I did too and that was a total embarrassment. I wish the game was here and played at noon. That way I would have missed it because I was at my son's house and didn't see any noon window football. Then for some reason I just had the game and Red Zone on, forgetting I could have seen the whole Bills, Rams game. Whiffed on that completely.

Notre Dame -7.5
Penn State -9
Texas -11
Ohio State -7.5

I would say Vegas thinks its top heavy.

Should be 8 team bracket with no byes.

To everyone complaining that the bracket is "top heavy", have you watched any other playoffs in sports history? That's pretty much all sports. How many classes in IHSA this year did most people here have narrowed down to 2 or 3 contenders before a single regular season game had even been played?

To me, 16 teams would be good. Eliminate the byes, and top 8 host the first weekend. Or, like I think other levels do, 24 teams, with 8 byes and first 2 rounds are hosted at higher seed. I would like more conference champions to be given a shot though, similar to March Madness. I don't need an expanded playoff so the 6th place SEC team gets a chance to do what they couldn't manage to do throughout the regular season.

The unfortunate reality though, is no matter what 'perfect' playoff system that could happen, the constant change of conferences/"Power 2"/transfer portal will just make things messy. I've already seen posts today of players on current playoff teams (Georgia and ASU, might be others) announcing they are in the portal. I'm sure they are low on the depth chart players (but maybe not?), but still leaving a playoff team.

Great coach and, like ND's Hennesy, a profoundly decent man.

You can learn a lot about a coach and a man by observing his sideline demeanor, especially when a late call goes unfairly against him, costing his team a state championship.

Question: Can a ref reverse himself on the field when he knows he blew a call? Does he do the right thing, or does try to maintain an aura of authority?

HotBeer said:

I agree with all of this. My question is WHY did Dierre Hill (or literally any student in the building) choose to go to Althoff? Sure, they "went out and got him" - how?

Private schools cannot "simply" get kids to come from up to 30 miles. So my questions is what would entice Dierre Hill to go to Althoff?

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I think this was a very good and thought out post. It certainly explores the nuance and how it is not as reductive as privates "recruiting" a player by paying for their tuition. I think it begs the question of creating a culture at a private school vs creating a culture at a public school. Are there differences? I think the answer is yes. Do these differences equate to an advantage? That is the question of the last 20 or so years.

I was thinking about one difference after watching the state championship games. Coach Lynch talked about how he knew Jack Elliot was going to be the next Mt. Carmel QB when he saw him in 7th grade. I can't remember the exact quote, but that was the gist of what he said. I thought about how he had a great QB that won state titles, and then he found the heir apparent when he was in 7th grade effectively bridging the gap with two straight state title winning QB's. A public school cannot look for potential gaps in their roster and fill it by looking for the heir apparent. They have to coach whoever is in their community. This is not to detract from the phenomenal work ethic of Elliot or the development he undoubtedly received by a heisman finalist coach. It is just acknowledging that Mt. Carmel already had a plan to replace their state caliber QB when he was a junior with a 7th grader who would bridge the gap once the current QB graduated. Which is not a feasible strategy for public schools

ramblinman said:

This once in a blue moon title that Althoff just won is unacceptable to public school fans. They are quick to discount it because it galls them so much that a private school won 1A for the first time after the last 17 straight titles being won by public schools.

Pathetic.

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It is truly outstanding that you constructed a straw man arguments with many assumptions and completely disregarding many of the factors and nuance for why people are upset about the private/public debate and then end your post with "pathetic" even though you are arguing against no one and didn't make a good point.

That is pathetic in my opinion.

danlavalle23 said:

ACC
Big 12
Big 10
SEC
Mountain West ( Washington State and Oregon State to be included)

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I wish, but I don't see the MW being much different than the AAC or most of the other non power leagues.

The sad reality is that this is likely heading to a 12 team tournament with 4 Big Ten and 4 SEC guaranteed spots, one group of five champion, and three at large (likely ACC and Big 12 champ plus one more).

Either that or the more dramatic proposition (and most likely ending point for all this) where the Big Ten and SEC stop sharing the revenue entirely and create their own 8-16 team internal playoff, relegating all others to an NIT type event of their choosing.

EdgyTim said:

Please show me where I said that a 1-32 for all clases would solve anything....I suggested that the IHSA put it in place for all classes with the hope of getting the best two teams into the state title game.....simple as that. As far as pub;lic/private put it to a member wide vote and be done with it. After 30 plus years of having to deal with the same issue and arguments literally every single day of my life....I'ver had enough. Either put up or shut up and let the chips fall where they may.

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The request you made in your first sentence is fulfilled by your second sentence. You ask to be shown where you said 1-32 seeding would solve anything. Then, your very next sentence states you hope 1-32 seeding will solve the problem of uncompetitive championship games.

Your frustration with the never-ending debate over the public/private situation is understandable. That frustration results, at least in part, with you writing: "Either put up or shut up...". Several of the posters to this board have responded over the years by offering very comprehensive proposals to address the issues. They have, to use your words, "put up". However, they have done so with the understanding they are among the least influential individuals having an interest in the matter.

You, on the other hand, have some level of connection with quite a few high school coaches in the state of Illinois. Have you ever thought about submitting a comprehensive solution/proposal yourself, "putting up" so to speak? You could develop your own proposal or adopt one of the several excellent proposals that have already been posted to this message board. As a man of some influence, you would be providing an opportunity for Illinois high school football to be improved, as you have already done in so many other ways. Developing your own proposal may be a larger commitment than you would want to make, but forwarding (to one or more coaches) one of the proposals that have already been posted would only take an hour or two out your busy schedule. Doing so could potentially prove hugely beneficial. It is understood that the coach(s) would not likely be authorized on their own to submit a proposal to the IHSA membership, but they could work with their athletic director and principal to do so.

Letting the chips fall where they may is more easily done after one has made a good faith effort to solve a problem.

I don't like byes at all but 32 teams seems like too many. For now 16.

ignazio said:

Private schools have not finished first or second in either boys or girls bowling in IHSA history.

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Shameful.

Level the bowling alley!

PowerI66 said:

who do you count as the 5th "power" conference?

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ACC
Big 12
Big 10
SEC
Mountain West ( Washington State and Oregon State to be included)

danlavalle23 said:

CFP is Flawed.
The NCAA should allow a “Seeded” 32 team national playoff with no byes.
Reduce the regular season to 9 conference games only.
To qualify, you need to rank in the top 5 of your Power 5 conference. This will also force Notre Dame to join a conference.
If you get to the championship, you would play 5 additional games.
The first round byes are screwing up the playoff.
Power 5 x 5 teams = 25 out of 32
The remaining 7 spots will be at large for the smaller conferences to have a chance.
The brackets would bring in a staggering amount of money.
Furthermore, you will eliminate the “NFL opt outs” for the Bowl games. Who wants to travel to a Florida bowl game to watch your team play without their star athletes since the fear an injury before the NFL combine. The NCAA can “set aside” some of the money generated from the tournament and buy insurance policies for injury for the NFL prospects who fear injury in these games. (Slippery Slope?)
This would eliminate all the bs.
Kick 10% of the revenue “sharing”to the bottom tier of the D-1 schools who depend on the revenue for their ass kicking of the major schools.
IU 77-3 Western Illinois
IU 52-14 Charlotte
Ole Miss 76-0 Furman
Ole Miss 52-3 Middle Tennessee State
No one wants to pay to see those games nor risk injury against these pansies
Since Ole Miss has no chance, GO IU!

If the IHSA can facilitate a 32 team playoff, I think the NCAA can facilitate the playoffs 100 times better.

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who do you count as the 5th "power" conference?

Private schools have not finished first or second in either boys or girls bowling in IHSA history.

DePaul is currently going gangbusters in the LP/Lakeview/North Center parishes. In decades past, most families at St. Josephat, St. Bens, St. Alphonsus, St. Clement, etc. never considered Gordon Tech and it was either (with minimal exceptions) schlep up to Loyola, over to Ignatius, public selective enrollment, or move. Now those parishes are sending 50%+ of their 8th graders to DP. A friend who is a teacher at a public grade school in the area as well says all her 8th graders want to go to Depaul.

HotBeer said:

I agree with all of this. My question is WHY did Dierre Hill (or literally any student in the building) choose to go to Althoff? Sure, they "went out and got him" - how?

Private schools cannot "simply" get kids to come from up to 30 miles. So my questions is what would entice Dierre Hill to go to Althoff?

This seems to be the missing link in this entire conversation. People like to cry foul of the ability of private schools to go "get" talent. And they do! They also have to "get" every other student in the building. So what factor drives these athletes to go to private schools?

It obviously varies by situation. Most athletes are not getting scholarships, some certainly are. But even then, you are now on par with the public option from a cost standpoint. Is it facilities or proximity to home? Almost always no to both, at least in the Chicagoland area and likely Belleville as well. Academic opportunities? Public schools almost always have a broader course catalog, more advanced programs, etc.

So what is it? My opinion, as I have posited numerous times in this thread, is that if you asked most football players, they would tell you its because they want to be 1) coached by great coaches 2) play at a school that takes football seriously at an institutional level (they might word it differently) and 3) Play great competition (perhaps a CCL-specific reason).

These are all the exact advantages that get dismissed by the "it's unfair" crew, who will just say they go "get" players, presumably with big sacks of cash.

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All good points.

Additionally, people seem to have very short memories around here. Althoff got bounced in the quarters in 1A and 2A the previous two years, both times by public schools. Prior to that, they failed to qualify for the playoffs for three consecutive years. Prior to that, they made the finals in 2012 and 2015 where they were beaten both times by public schools. You have to go all the way back to 1989 for the last time Althoff won a title game over a public school prior to this past Thanksgiving weekend.

This once in a blue moon title that Althoff just won is unacceptable to public school fans. They are quick to discount it because it galls them so much that a private school won 1A for the first time after the last 17 straight titles being won by public schools.

Pathetic.

Alexander32 said:

Using quarterfinals would be feasible if the way seeding is done would be improved. However, as seeding is currently done, all too frequently teams that are not particularly good stumble into the quarterfinals based on an easy path, like playing Chicago Public League teams in rounds one and two.

The main objective is preventing relatively powerful programs from having the multiplier waived. The use of the semifinal measure (during the previous five years) will prevent that. For example, it would prevent Marist and St. Ignatius from dropping down to 6A next year, and prevent Brother Rice and Fenwick from dropping down to 5A. It is possible under the current system that even IC Catholic might drop down to 2A (if they make the playoffs); that too would be prevented with the use of the semifinal measure.

EdgyTim seems to think 1-32 seeding, while using the current algorithms for the multiplier and success factor, will solve the problem. He points to the fact that Mt. Carmel and Nazareth will be moving up one class. He is in for a rude awakening. When the teams I've mentioned in the second paragraph move down as much as to two class levels, the complaints will be just as loud.

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Please show me where I said that a 1-32 for all clases would solve anything....I suggested that the IHSA put it in place for all classes with the hope of getting the best two teams into the state title game.....simple as that. As far as pub;lic/private put it to a member wide vote and be done with it. After 30 plus years of having to deal with the same issue and arguments literally every single day of my life....I'ver had enough. Either put up or shut up and let the chips fall where they may.

corey90 said:

Public school kids don’t choose there respective public school. They go to the public school in there district where they live. Only way they can choose is if the parents move them.

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Yes, they "choose" their respective public school in lieu of their private options, when and where those options exists.

Obviously parents have a huge hand in this. But yes, the best football players at, for example, LWE, are choosing not to attend Providence. The best football players in Westmont are "choosing" to attend literally an Catholic school instead of Westmont High. Etc. Etc.

CFP is Flawed.
The NCAA should allow a “Seeded” 32 team national playoff with no byes.
Reduce the regular season to 9 conference games only.
To qualify, you need to rank in the top 5 of your Power 5 conference. This will also force Notre Dame to join a conference.
If you get to the championship, you would play 5 additional games.
The first round byes are screwing up the playoff.
Power 5 x 5 teams = 25 out of 32
The remaining 7 spots will be at large for the smaller conferences to have a chance.
The brackets would bring in a staggering amount of money.
Furthermore, you will eliminate the “NFL opt outs” for the Bowl games. Who wants to travel to a Florida bowl game to watch your team play without their star athletes since the fear an injury before the NFL combine. The NCAA can “set aside” some of the money generated from the tournament and buy insurance policies for injury for the NFL prospects who fear injury in these games. (Slippery Slope?)
This would eliminate all the bs.
Kick 10% of the revenue “sharing”to the bottom tier of the D-1 schools who depend on the revenue for their ass kicking of the major schools.
IU 77-3 Western Illinois
IU 52-14 Charlotte
Ole Miss 76-0 Furman
Ole Miss 52-3 Middle Tennessee State
No one wants to pay to see those games nor risk injury against these pansies
Since Ole Miss has no chance, GO IU!

If the IHSA can facilitate a 32 team playoff, I think the NCAA can facilitate the playoffs 100 times better.

LHSTigers94 said:

There was no coaching or culture that would help Lewin compete with this years version of Althoff. Last year version yes, this years, no way in hell. Althoff had the ability to go get what they didn’t have to be successful. NO public school in 1a can do that. It has nothing to do with money, culture and coaching. They simply can get kids to come there from up to 30 miles. Very cut and dry.

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I agree with all of this. My question is WHY did Dierre Hill (or literally any student in the building) choose to go to Althoff? Sure, they "went out and got him" - how?

Private schools cannot "simply" get kids to come from up to 30 miles. So my questions is what would entice Dierre Hill to go to Althoff?

This seems to be the missing link in this entire conversation. People like to cry foul of the ability of private schools to go "get" talent. And they do! They also have to "get" every other student in the building. So what factor drives these athletes to go to private schools?

It obviously varies by situation. Most athletes are not getting scholarships, some certainly are. But even then, you are now on par with the public option from a cost standpoint. Is it facilities or proximity to home? Almost always no to both, at least in the Chicagoland area and likely Belleville as well. Academic opportunities? Public schools almost always have a broader course catalog, more advanced programs, etc.

So what is it? My opinion, as I have posited numerous times in this thread, is that if you asked most football players, they would tell you its because they want to be 1) coached by great coaches 2) play at a school that takes football seriously at an institutional level (they might word it differently) and 3) Play great competition (perhaps a CCL-specific reason).

These are all the exact advantages that get dismissed by the "it's unfair" crew, who will just say they go "get" players, presumably with big sacks of cash.

I love when sarcasm doesn't come across written word.

Gotta throw the big 😉 into these comments

colin2229 said:

A kid like that doesn't just transfer in without having first met with the coaches. No way they were surprised and didn't see this coming.

I have no problem with this. Parents should be able to send their kids to whatever school they want as long as they abide by the rules the IHSA sets out.

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No you are mistaken. The bus dictates all and that’s it.

ramblinman said:

Delighted? I'm sure. Surprised? I'm not as sure.

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Haven’t you been paying attention? The coaches line up at the curb the first day of school, anxiously waiting to see who gets off the bus. They have no way to know otherwise and they definitely do not see or talk to anyone before the bus.

daveje said:

I’m sure the coaches were surprised and delighted when the bus dropped him off. That’s the life of a public coach but sometimes the bus pays out big time.

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A kid like that doesn't just transfer in without having first met with the coaches. No way they were surprised and didn't see this coming.

I have no problem with this. Parents should be able to send their kids to whatever school they want as long as they abide by the rules the IHSA sets out.

daveje said:

I’m sure the coaches were surprised and delighted when the bus dropped him off. That’s the life of a public coach but sometimes the bus pays out big time.

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Delighted? I'm sure. Surprised? I'm not as sure.