A-AA State Soccer Tournament Format Proposal

[Canesoverhere]

So if you're a public school, and you lose, you're always a whiny, lazy failure? Interesting...

You guys seem to be missing the point by a long shot. No one's wanting anything handed to them. They're just wanting a level-playing field. Let me try to put it in terms that a private school can understand...

If an MLS team were suddenly allowed to play in with the private schools, who do you think would win? Do you think it would be fair? If your definition of fair is simply that each team has the same number of players per team, then yes. But do you not for a second, possibly believe that the private schools might get a tiny bit frustrated that they're having to play against professional teams with more money than them who can recruit the best coaches and the best players?

Again, it's hard for private schools to see the problem with the system when it's working so well for them. But I promise you, if you put the private schools in the public schools' position, they'd be complaining just as much...

 

Hmmm....isn't that what they did when they created yet another division such that the smaller private schools could also have a state championship trophy? I actually think they had to raise the game fees to attend the state matches to pay for all the additional trophies.

[Dawg64]

Instead of talking about public vs private how about having A/AA split out for the tournament? Is it more of an advantage to be able to pull your team from 1000 students instead of 160? How many times has an A team won the state tournament?

[Elmer]

How many times has an A team won the state tournament?

 

Multiplied or non-multiplied? I am not trying to be smart, but I don't know what the A to AA cut off is, and with the multiplier, it would make a difference.

 

So; 12 of the 16 schools in sectionals were public. 3 of the 4 schools in the state semifinals were public. 50% of the schools in the state finals are public. Yet, we still need a change?

[Redog]

Instead of talking about public vs private how about having A/AA split out for the tournament? Is it more of an advantage to be able to pull your team from 1000 students instead of 160? How many times has an A team won the state tournament?

 

I "think" they are doing the a/aa split for volleyball next year

[Redog]

Instead of talking about public vs private how about having A/AA split out for the tournament? Is it more of an advantage to be able to pull your team from 1000 students instead of 160? How many times has an A team won the state tournament?

 

Ask the A private schools that had to move up to AA to give the A schools a "chance." And ask A school, Clarkrange, in basketball that went undefeated, that hv a history of "transfers." Even though they did not lose a game, still aren't satisfied, because they "think" they are better than AA and AAA champion . They should move up to AA or AAA. Or be content to steamroll over A competition.

[movinonup]

Instead of talking about public vs private how about having A/AA split out for the tournament? Is it more of an advantage to be able to pull your team from 1000 students instead of 160? How many times has an A team won the state tournament?

 

 

 

 

Evidently so-----hence, the multiplier. Seemed fair when schools of 350 students were playing schools of 1150 in basketball and football. Just have a hard time understanding why it is such a good idea in team sports but then an awful idea in individual sports /dry.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="

[cnpitbull]

Multiplied or non-multiplied? I am not trying to be smart, but I don't know what the A to AA cut off is, and with the multiplier, it would make a difference.

 

So; 12 of the 16 schools in sectionals were public. 3 of the 4 schools in the state semifinals were public. 50% of the schools in the state finals are public. Yet, we still need a change?

 

 

Very interesting statistics. Does anyone know the ratio of public to private schools in the state? It seems like that would have a fairly big impact on those numbers.

[Blackchatt]

For the sake of transparency, I am new poster, middle school boys and girls coach at CCS. I have served as asst. the past four times our boys have gone to state. I offer this as a perspective, not a solution. On the boys side, we have lost twice to CAK in finals, Knox Cath and Alcoa in quarterfinals. We could respond by demanding we set up separate classification for Knoxville. I think AAA might agree. Rather, our answer is program. Hats off to Coach G and the Alcoa team for building a great public program and Coach G and CAK for building a great private program. As I worked up a scouting report in prep for match with Alcoa, I was most impressed with the quality of their program. Visit their soccer website. CAK has been a class act since I first met the team in Memphis in 2003. So, our response has been to develop a program that prepares our kids to compete at this level. After playing CAK 5 years ago, we recognized our technical deficiency. This shaped our middle school emphasis on technical development. Following the match with Alcoa this week, we responded by encouraging our players to add 5 pounds of muscle by next season. They are one physical group of players. Take CAK, Alcoa, Carter, Catholic, Loudon, Station Camp, USJ, FRA, and Ridgeway in years past, out of the mix, and what have we accomplished by winning a state title. We want to beat the best, public or private. So, let's focus on program.

 

We have 3, maybe 4 club players in any given year. Others are at that level, but do not play club. It is expensive for many of our families as well. Consequently, we looked internally to develop a comprehensive program. We developed team camps internally to keep expenses down during the summer. Our middle school coaches, myself included, strive to prepare players to be successful high school soccer players. This is difficult for public schools if they do not know their feeders, but possible when you have a good idea of who is coming your way and have middle school coaches that understand the goal is to develop players to compete at the HS level and are more committed to player development than middle school championships. For us, it is one of the keys to becoming and remaining competitive at the highest level. Club will never make it happen for CCS. 5 freshman received major minutes against Alcoa. Only one has played club in the past two years.

 

No one is addressing the fact that teams without club support are hurt by the TSSAA rule changes preventing fall open field and fitness work. For rural public schools to be successful, players must play together during the fall. Club players are the only players able to play out of season in an organized fashion.

 

Some talk about pay, fields. Our coaches are paid less, as are most in A/AA among private Chatt schools, than their public school counterparts, based on a comparison years ago as we tried to address low coaching pay. In terms of facility, our coaches have built our fields. We were given flat plains of clay. Coaches installed a sprinkler system and sprigged our game field and practice field. Our head coach for some 20+ years, David Stanton, prior to Coach Brower, actually built our concrete stands by hand with his players mixing concrete and pouring the sections in molds. It took the better part of a year. In the 80s, he built the first field on a dump. All of this work was done without additional compensation. The players actually walked the field after practice with buckets picking up rocks, glass, and digging up the occasional tire. The level of commitment and sacrifice has been incredible.

 

Parents matter. We have had to raise funds for the materials used in the construction of our facility and parents have toted rakes, mowers, buckets, and concrete. I am a product of Raleigh, NC soccer, Raleigh Sanderson (public, similar to Farragut) in the mid 80s. Our program dominated state for a decade during that period. Parent boosters built and maintained our practice facility and maintained our game field, actually going out every other day to move sprinklers during the summer and to cut the fields because the city's answer was a bush hog every three weeks. We benefited greatly from club in terms of talent, but the commitment the program demanded and expected led players to train on their own in the off season 3-4 days a week just to earn the honor of making the team and sitting on the bench. Parents sacrificed time and resources.

 

It all required great sacrifice and commitment. It still does, public or private. I believe this is mark of great programs regardless of classification.

 

All of this, and we have won one championship each, boys and girls, since I came to CCS in 1994. Nonetheless, I do not believe our players would trade the experience. The relationships, sacrifice, teams bonding, training to be champions, make for a successful program, not the number of championship rings.

 

What is the overarching goal for Tennessee soccer? I for one want Tennessee soccer to be top notch at the H.S. level and the ODP and club levels. Competition must be stiff, and programs top notch. I want players playing for D-1 schools, top NAIA, D-2 and D-3 programs, and competing for spots on our national teams.

 

Raleigh Sanderson hasn't won a championship since the early 90s after winning 11 of 13. Watch out CAK! /smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />

[akula21]

Blackchatt,

Congrats on being part of a great program and that post was spot on. I don't know how I missed it until today, but you are right about the commitment it takes from everyone involved. Although your story is especially impressive when I consider how nice the facilities at CCS were when I saw them. That is awesome. Keep up the hard work. I know you all will be back at state for many years. I just don't want to meet up for PK's in the first round again if we can make it. I aged too much that night. /smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile.gif" />