Whats 1a and 2a got to do

[imasoftballer]

VG you have always said your piece about magnet schools and open zone schools and I have always agreed with you on the points you make in that regard. But I don't think I have ever heard you say that those same advantages exsist for private schools. Admit they have advantages over small rural private schools, just as I have admitted that open zone schools have advantages over those who do not have such zones.

[VolunteerGeneral]

Posted by imasoftballer:

VG you have always said your piece about magnet schools and open zone schools and I have always agreed with you on the points you make in that regard. But I don't think I have ever heard you say that those same advantages exsist for private schools. Admit they have advantages over small rural private schools, just as I have admitted that open zone schools have advantages over those who do not have such zones.

 

softballer...I don`t think it matters about open zones. My contention is that all teams should be treated equally. If the TSSAA says it is an unfair advantage then so be it. Let`s do something about it. The split ignores the fact that there are public schools with open zones and smells of hypocrisy.That`s what I don`t like. I`ve always said that this is nothing more than a vendetta against private schools. And I`ll stand by that statment until more the TSSAA proves otherwise.

[RHSfan]

VG,

 

Your post concerning working the system was very well said. It got late and I had to call it a night before I could explain it to robjim. Judging from robjim's post, he now understands what Imeant by 'working the system'.

 

The reason I use single A as the classification to describe my dissatisfaction with the current public/private issue is because single A, and to a certain extent double A, is where the problem currently resides. BUT, you are correct, if the rules are flawed, fix them for everyone. Although the problem does (will) affect all classifications, it is more prevalent in single A. A large 4-A or 5-A school's athletic teams can only get so good. I doubt that any 5-A school can field a team that is 5 times better than most other good 5-A schools, but a single A school that is working the system under the current rules can be 5 times better than other good single A schools, so the problem with the flawed rules is going to be more profound in single A (and maybe 2-A) than in other classifications.

 

RHSfan

[robjim]

RHSfan, no I don't understand what you mean by "working the system", and I still did not find in your other post where you said how the 1A publics where going to get better. You said they were, but not the details.

[RHSfan]

robjim,

 

I don't recall posting that the 1A publics would get better. I posted:

 

"The 1A publics probably aren't going to do anything to get a great deal better just because of a split, you see, they were dealt a stacked hand also; no matter how good their team is, better athletes can not be drawn to them as is the case with several private schools. The public schools have the athletes they are dealt and can get no more. By splitting the public and private schools, the public schools will not be better, nor will they get better just because of a split. They will just have a chance to compete with like schools at the state level. The public schools just want to put the apples in the apple basket and the oranges in the orange basket.

 

I don't mean to imply by my post that public school athletic teams do not wish to better themselves. Rockwood HS has an outstanding coach who is always working to better his team. I am sure there are many others. But no matter how good a team the Rockwood coach builds up, he will never be able to attract other good athletes outside his area the way private schools do. Notice, I didn't say recruit, I said attract. When a private school builds up a powerhouse team, the better athletes from around the area are attracted to it. Playing for a powerhouse team may get an athlete more exposure than playing for a so-so team.

 

The split has nothing to do with getting better, it just has to do with correcting flawed rules."

 

Notice, I said " the public schools will not be better, nor will they get better just because of a split"

 

Working the system implies just what VolGen posted. A private school that wants to build a powerhouse baseball (or any sport) team starts by hiring a proven coach. That coach begins building up the program and as it becomes more successful, it become more attractive to athletes in the area who wish to play for a successful team. The more success the team has the more attractive the school becomes to other good athletes. The more other good athletes the school attracts, the more successful their program becomes, and on, and on, and on. This is not recruiting........it is attracting. It is not illegal........it is 'working the system'. Most rural single A public schools do not have this option. VolGen speaks of open zones, no zones, magnet schools etc. that do (or will) have this option, but those schools are not rural single A publics. I wish our coach had this option, working within the system and within the rules to build a better team, but he doesn't. Why should his team be forced to compete on the state level against schools that can attract the best athletes to form powerhouse teams, when he can't do that for his own team?

 

As you state, the rules haven't changed. Some private schools just figured out that to make a better team you just attract better athletes----this is called 'working the system'. Most rural single A publics can't do that, they just have to work harder to become better, and there is a limit as to how much they can improve. There is no limit on how many great athletes some private schools can attract.

 

To answer your question in a nutshell, the public schools will not be any better after the split, but they will be better off by playing like schools on the state level.

 

RHSfan

[Edited by VolunteerGeneral on 2-28-03 3:56P]

[Edited by VolunteerGeneral on 2-28-03 3:57P]

 

[RHSfan]

robjim and VolGen,

 

A good example of a school working the system is USJ. I just noticed on the Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association website, USJ is ranked 7th overall in the state. Ranked above them are 4 triple A schools, 1 double A school, and 1 Divison II school. If I did my math correctly, that means USJ, a single A school with an enrollment of only 316 students, is better in baseball than 108 other triple A schools, 106 other double A schools, 106 other single A schools, and 35 other Division II schools.

 

Theirs (USJ) is a successful program that has attracted a multitude of excellent athletes.

 

What size zone would you imagine that USJ pulls from in order to get that great baseball team? I agree with some of the other posters that it is not necessarily the size of the pool, it is the ability to attract a handful of the very best athletes to a successful program.

 

RHSfan

[pujo]

Some of these pitchers makes great quaterbacks. Once they gain a reputation in any sport,the kids will come and keep coming. Keep an eye on CAK in football,they have desided to build a program. They now have everything but the atheletes ,the atheletes will come. May have already attracted a few.

[TheEgoHasLanded]

Can't we all just get a long?

[pujo]

A truce it is. I get a little bored and enjoy the debate. Learned alot over the past year. I think everyone has. Can,t waiit for football season.

[robjim]

Pujo and RHSfan, I know I've been ingnoring you both all week-end(and I have the ignorance to do that), but been out of town over the week-end. Gotta work the clock for CPA the next 4 days (regionals-4 games a nite). So when everything settles down, we take up where we left off. I've enjoyed the civil discourse and look forward to continuing.

[imasoftballer]

Correct me if I'm wrong but the TSSAA has not done anything as of yet, other than taking a vote. I also think that many will agree that Carter is on the non-split side. So, I don't think the TSSAA has a vendetta aginst them, it is the small rural schools that do. And the private schools must be a big problem for the higher classed schools to not want them either. There must be a reason that 3A schools and higher do not want to play little ole private schools. What do you think that reason is? Really.

[Edited by imasoftballer on 3-3-03 10:38A]

[pujo]

BA showed everyone the potential of the small private schools. If they take advantage of the system as a few of them are,they can compete at any level. The CPA and Riverdale game will define it pretty well.