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Realignment time!
January 29, 2008I have to admit I am not one of those people who sit down for hours and map out all 32 districts for each classification -- call them mock realignments, if you will.
Maybe I have a life. Or maybe I am not obsessed with something that will affect me personally for the next two years.
But I do enjoy this time of year because uncertain anticipation drifts through the air.
Before I give my two cents' worth on our area realignment, I have to share my thoughts on the UIL realignment.
I have checked out some Internet message boards lately -- searching for enrollment numbers of certain schools, not to chime in on possible realignment strategies.
And some of these people crack me up. They really do. It seems like someone always has a nephew who works for the UIL. Or maybe it's a sister-in-law. Or maybe they reference a reliable source.
Anyway, these web posters just KNOW that the cut-off for Class A is _____. Or they know these five teams will be in the same district. Or than know this school will definitely drop down.
Folks, I promise you this is a bunch of bull. Heard of the CIA? They are the ones who thought the UIL about secrecy. No one but a selected few people in the entire state will know the realignment's configuration until 9 a.m. Friday.
So until then, let me tell you what I know.
Bowie submitted 419 students, and the 3A cutoff two years ago was 415. There is usually at least a 5 or 10-student increase among all classes each year, so unless things get quirky, Bowie will go down to 2A.
Olney submitted 205, while the Class A cutoff was 194 in 2006. In the past few realignments, there has not been an increase in Class A that has been more than 10 students.
So most likely, Class A will grow to 199 or 204, and the Cubs will be one of the smallest 2A schools in the state.
Saint Jo is the other team on the move. They will play Six-man, which was decided on in the fall. The Panthers, on a 20-game losing streak, could have done last realignment because they were below the 100-student mark. I guess no wins over two years will change your mind.
The rest of this blog contains scuttlebutt picked up while talking with area coaches the past few days and months, plus common sense, which is not always a given when the UIL is involved.
3A: The UIL has said it will try not to have 4 and 5-team districts. That means at least one new team is headed to 6-3A.
Burkburnett, Hirschi, Iowa Park and Vernon should stay together, but here is where it gets tricky. Graham could stay, but since Bowie should drop, who is the fifth?
Maybe Breckenridge, who was in this district a couple of years ago. And who knows, maybe Graham will be needed to fill out the Abilene Wylie-Sweetwater district, especially if Clyde drops.
If that happens, maybe someone like Decatur and Bridgeport join the fold. Personally, I say keep the five area teams together, and add Breckenridge.
Another thing to keep in mind. To have all these six-team 3A districts, it would not surprise me if there is at least one empty district in each region. The only other way to get more 3A schools would be to stretch the cutoffs in both directions, but I do not think that is the answer.
2A: It was nice having all of our area 2A schools in the same district these past two years. My gut tells me this won't be the case much longer.
Holliday, Henrietta, City View and Olney probably stay together, because there really is not another area for them to go.
Jacksboro could stay or go back to the Paradise-Boyd district it has been a member of recently. And somebody told me today that whenever Valley View is 2A (they have gone back and forth, and should go back up on Friday), that Nocona goes east.
Bowie should end up with the WF area schools, but I guess they could go the Boyd-Paradise route, too. And what about Alvord and Chico?
My guess, and it's only a guess: Childress comes back this way (which if drugged with truth serum, any current 9-2A area coach would tell you they are praying this does not happen) and joins Holliday, Henrietta, City View, Olney and Bowie.
Maybe Jacksboro and/or Nocona is still around, too. And maybe everyone goes back to being in Region I.
A: If you read my column on Monday, it lamented the breaking up of District 9-A. Here is why the inevitable will happen.
Haskell is going back to A, and I have been told that Stamford should, too. Those schools are closer to Munday than current district foes Petrolia and Windthorst, so the Moguls could be grouped in Abilene. Seymour could also go that route -- one would think the two rivals would stay together.
Petrolia has been grouped with the likes of Muenster, Collinsville and Era before, and since there should be some holes in 11-A (Valley View goes up, St. Jo plays 6-man) the Pirates could go that direction.
So could Windthorst and maybe Archer City. Or maybe those schools go south, with the likes of Santo and Perrin-Whitt, like they have in the past.
And what about Electra? Don't ask me. Might they join Munday and Seymour. I also think Quanah probably stays out west.
Six-Man: There's only a couple of developments I would like to touch on.
We will have two more Six-man teams in the area, because Saint Jo is dropping and Byers is starting up a program. Also, Forestburg will begin a real schedule after starting up football last year.
And Northside, which won the first Div. II title two years ago, could go up to Div. I. It is going to be close -- they turned in 60 and will be in the fringe area.
That is all I got. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens on Friday.
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