Marion Center at Chestnut Ridge

[ham55]

They'll be sporting that coveted D-5AA championship medal around here in about a month though!

[fleaflicker]

I do hope Ridge's football team is forced out of the ICC. It would force them to play better teams, a more difficult schedule, and would more prepare them to play high quality teams in the playoffs. Losing a tough game to Bellwood, Forest Hills, or Bedford is better preparation for the playoffs than totally dominating Tussey Mountain, Everett, Claysburg, or Moshannan Valley. The latter gets more points and a higher playoff seeding, but the former gets the players more mentally ready to make a longer run into the playoffs.

[ham55]

The LHAC won't take Ridge back. They won't let them back in because they'd be afraid to get stuck again and stranded in trying to find a team to replace them with. Ridge had thier shot. They blew it.

[fleaflicker]

Ridge would be stuck then. Maybe they could find a way into Tyrone's conference, whatever that is. I honestly forget. If the ICC forces Ridge out, and the LHAC won't take them back, and Big 6 (is that what it's called) won't take them period, could Ridge just schedule games as an independant?

[Gunner18]

good luck with that, most conferences are already locked onto a schedule...although im sure altoona wouldnt mind giving up a road trip to erie to travel to fishertown

[CRLionDawg]

Yeah they could become an independent just like Notre Dame. Maybe they could lock up a huge TV deal as well. Sorry, just being a SmartA.

One thing is for sure change is inevidible.

What would serve the CR crowd well is to sit down and decide what exactly they want to accomplish. Because frankly the place they find themselves is exactly where a number of the decision makers want to be. Success in the post season isnt on their wish list.

[Opinionguy]

Thank you Dawg. At least someone from CR realizes what is going on.

[Lonewolf]

Ridge in Mountain Conference next year opposite of Tyrone. Just my opinion IF they are forced out of the ICC. Any thoughts?

[Lefteyelouie]

I was guessing the same thing. Its really the only place that I can see them being able to go. It would definately be a step up in competition.

[foghorn]

I know you haven't been bashing the kids. Just everybody else that tries to deflect a little of the criticism. I'm simply talking about the here and now. The schedule the kids are given and play. I'm sure not going to sit around my house and tell my kid that he should be ashamed of the 8-2 record he and his buddies put together.

Opinionguy, you make Ridge's schedule and the injustice it causes other teams seem like one of the great problems of modern society.

As I've mentioned a dozen times before, I'd love my kid to be playing in the LH, but a decision was made and that's what we have. Maybe I should have protested at that time, but when your kid's in sixth grade, you don't tend to have grand visions about a stellar future football schedule.

And I'll tell you what. I'm sure not going to stand up in front of a school board or be part of a movement to get rid of a coach because the schedule was too easy. This was a guy who was on the hot seat a few years ago, but was given a vote of confidence by the board and administration despite public protest. What did he do? Go 22-7. If he had gone 7-22 and maybe murdered a few babies along the way, then things would be different.

You guys give way too much credit to the CR school administration and school board for making decisions about sports. To be honest, most of the time they seem to publicly stay out of that business as much as possible. Whether that's good or bad is up for debate. It would be great to have a master plan for sports that would put Chestnut Ridge on the high school sports Olympus. The only problem is that there are way too many school officials and boards around that seem to think their top priority is putting out the best-equipped, best-looking, most-successful sports teams possible -- even though the freaking algebra books in their districts are 20 years old. That's one thing I've learned in 29 years of teaching and coaching and talking to hundreds of people in just about every school in the region.