tucker342
11-05-2003, 10:58 AM
If you think your state's way of deciding who gets to go to the playoffs if there's a tie is bad, listen to this:
http://www.press-citizen.com/sports/opinion/110203suchomel.htm
I thought this was football, not a spelling bee.
Friday, Regina did what it thought it had to in order to get into the state playoffs for the first time in 31 years.
But after celebrating a 24-20 victory over WACO, the Regals went home happy, and then went to bed sad after finding out their season was over.
Not because of a missed tackle.
Not for lack of a kicking game.
Not for anything on the field of play.
No, the Regals put the shoulder pads back on the shelf after being beaten by the alphabet.
Y'see, Regina and South Hamilton both ended up with identical 6-1 district records and the same average margin of victory in seven district games.
But because South Hamilton of Jewell comes after Regina of Iowa City alphabetically, the Hawks got the final at-large playoff spot in Class 1A.
Every year the Iowa High School Athletic Association flips the alphabet order. This year it was reverse alphabetical order.
Officially, it was the "J" of Jewell coming in one letter ahead of the "I" in Iowa City.
But the Regals would've been behind the letter, so to speak, even if they had compared South Hamilton to Regina.
So an offseason in the weight room, three weeks of two-a-days and a 7-2 record over nine weeks is diminished by a letter.
I don't know if that letter is scarlet, but the IHSAA should be.
Surely there are better tiebreakers that would've left a less bitter taste in Regal mouths.
Here are a few suggestions:
• Non-district record and/or non-district scoring margin.
• A quality win formula that gives points for victories over winning teams.
• Heck, even the old Big Ten method of giving the berth to the team that has gone the longest without a playoff berth.
• For that matter, a pie-eating contest would be more decisive.
Letting it all ride on the alphabet seems random and unexplainable.
South Hamilton, I'm sure, has a fine football team. I'm sure they felt at least a bit sheepish for sneaking in the back door this way.
But they probably feel they belong there, and aren't about to apologize for it.
To say that Regina was robbed is a bit unfair to the 16 good teams that qualified for the playoffs.
The true crime may be a system set up to punish good teams in good districts and reward good teams in bad districts.
The most points for margin of victory a team can earn for a win is 13 - a rule put in to prevent coaches from running up the score (which I thought the 50-point burn rule was for).
If there are two dominant teams in a weak district, they'll rack up 13 points in every victory (except when they face each other).
But a team stuck in a district with several good teams is at a disadvantage. Narrow victories over quality opposition end up hurting a team's chances of earning a playoff berth.
So what is the solution? Regina coach Chuck Evans suggested going to eight districts. That way, the state could take the champion and runner-up from each, as it does in Class 3A.
After all, tiebreakers are much easier to discern within your own district than halfway across the state.
But whatever happens, even if nothing does, it comes as little consolation to the 2003 Regals.
http://www.press-citizen.com/sports/opinion/110203suchomel.htm
I thought this was football, not a spelling bee.
Friday, Regina did what it thought it had to in order to get into the state playoffs for the first time in 31 years.
But after celebrating a 24-20 victory over WACO, the Regals went home happy, and then went to bed sad after finding out their season was over.
Not because of a missed tackle.
Not for lack of a kicking game.
Not for anything on the field of play.
No, the Regals put the shoulder pads back on the shelf after being beaten by the alphabet.
Y'see, Regina and South Hamilton both ended up with identical 6-1 district records and the same average margin of victory in seven district games.
But because South Hamilton of Jewell comes after Regina of Iowa City alphabetically, the Hawks got the final at-large playoff spot in Class 1A.
Every year the Iowa High School Athletic Association flips the alphabet order. This year it was reverse alphabetical order.
Officially, it was the "J" of Jewell coming in one letter ahead of the "I" in Iowa City.
But the Regals would've been behind the letter, so to speak, even if they had compared South Hamilton to Regina.
So an offseason in the weight room, three weeks of two-a-days and a 7-2 record over nine weeks is diminished by a letter.
I don't know if that letter is scarlet, but the IHSAA should be.
Surely there are better tiebreakers that would've left a less bitter taste in Regal mouths.
Here are a few suggestions:
• Non-district record and/or non-district scoring margin.
• A quality win formula that gives points for victories over winning teams.
• Heck, even the old Big Ten method of giving the berth to the team that has gone the longest without a playoff berth.
• For that matter, a pie-eating contest would be more decisive.
Letting it all ride on the alphabet seems random and unexplainable.
South Hamilton, I'm sure, has a fine football team. I'm sure they felt at least a bit sheepish for sneaking in the back door this way.
But they probably feel they belong there, and aren't about to apologize for it.
To say that Regina was robbed is a bit unfair to the 16 good teams that qualified for the playoffs.
The true crime may be a system set up to punish good teams in good districts and reward good teams in bad districts.
The most points for margin of victory a team can earn for a win is 13 - a rule put in to prevent coaches from running up the score (which I thought the 50-point burn rule was for).
If there are two dominant teams in a weak district, they'll rack up 13 points in every victory (except when they face each other).
But a team stuck in a district with several good teams is at a disadvantage. Narrow victories over quality opposition end up hurting a team's chances of earning a playoff berth.
So what is the solution? Regina coach Chuck Evans suggested going to eight districts. That way, the state could take the champion and runner-up from each, as it does in Class 3A.
After all, tiebreakers are much easier to discern within your own district than halfway across the state.
But whatever happens, even if nothing does, it comes as little consolation to the 2003 Regals.