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Meh.... On to winter sports for the vast majority of the athletes.

Found this when flipping around the dial. High school state champions play one another. Just watched the Washington state champ score a TD with 1 second left to beat the Georgia state champ. They’re playing at Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas, Nevada. Apparently, whatever it is about traveling more than 300 mi. from the state line that afflicts Indiana kids is not shared by kids from Georgia or Washington. … Or Florida and Arizona, who also participated. How great would it have been to see Center Grove in a game like that? Maybe someday Indiana will be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the modern era.

I am not against playing out of state opponents. I am not a fan of playing in these after the season "showcases"/"tournaments"/whatever they are called. I like your post Yucca.

Does Matt LaFleur get enough credit as the head coach of the Packers? Boy is he good. His “management” and leadership skills are 2nd to none.

Who is going to pay for the transportation, lodging, meals, etc. for such an extravagance?

I don't think it has to be widespread or all-in. The experience would be phenomenal for kids.

The amount of $ Meyer spends on PR has to be more than many make in a lifetime.

Well #28 finally got loose and it looks like he has saved the game.

Love Eddie Murphy’s comedy. Those were the days.

That article doesn't make me upset that those kids, coaches, and administrators gutted out a rough year. Football can take a lot... but it also gives a lot. Those players are among a select group of people with the guts and will power to overcome rough circumstances. I did enjoy how they used Mater Dei as the bar for participation. They dressed about 100 players against us with only 1 freshman (kicker). Linton has great numbers for a public school... we usually have between 45-55 players. CC is just a few students above the 1A/2A line. Their unique situation with distance and poverty probably makes it even tougher to keep kids involved. Lets break down some things on this "list". This is from someone with almost no direct knowledge of Crawford County... so take it for what it is worth. It is probably fair to make comparisons to similar programs. Eastern Greene and Forest Park both started their programs around the same time. Enrollments are close, but Eastern probably compares better in regards to lacking a good size town... I'm also guessing their poverty rate is higher than FP. In the first 10 seasons... CC had 11 wins; Eastern had 21 wins; FP had 35 wins... Coaching seemed to be the biggest factor. CC had a revolving door... Eastern finally got their feet on solid ground by year 7 or 8... FP came out with a good coach (they have only had two in 14 seasons). 1. Chronic lack of competitiveness- I'm not sure this should be addressed specifically... all the other things directly impact this. 2. Chronic staff turnover- Forest Park had 2 experienced coaches for the first 14 years of their program... there is consistency. They also were able to grab an experienced coach in the beginning to help establish the program. Eastern has had 8 coaches in 19 years (Coach Lorig got the program on its feet, but didn't coach in its 1st varsity season). It wasn't until Luke Dean took over that progress was made. He was a young energetic... almost an arrogant coach, but exactly what the program needed. He seemed to focus on a feeder program and his teams competed. Paridean comes in and reaps the benefits of a strong Junior/Senior class to guide them to a couple really good years. Good coach + a few good classes = success. It didn't hurt that they were one of the biggest 1A teams during their deep tournament runs. Since then, they have struggled. Crawford County has had 6 coaches in 15 years... I didn't recognize all the names, but I wonder if they were young, energetic, experienced, etc... Or were they stop gap coaches. Hard to gain credibility with your players and the community/school that way. 3. Low numbers- This could be a couple problems. How does distance effect participation numbers for their teams at all levels? What does feeder program look like? Are they losing good athletes to other schools? Is the coach good at recruiting athletes? I'm guessing their feeder program is attached to another league, which means they may only be fielding 1 team. Are players being developed? In an area that may not have many former football players, what kind of coaches do they have in place at the youth level? Is there conformity in what they do on offense and defense? So many questions 4. Poor administrative support- It sounds like there is at least a base level of support, but most of us know fielding a team is not the same supporting the team. What does the field and practice facilities look like. What about the weight room? Do they have a weight lifting class? If not... they should. Is there work to tie the program together from top to bottom (elementary)? 5. Poor community support- This is a tiered issue. Showing up is a part of that.. but not always the most important. Does the community support kids playing all sports? Are there qualified coaches to fill out the varsity staff, JH staff, and youth league? Is there an effort by the school to make football a community unifying event? Is the community open to the vision of the coach in terms of plays/strategy? 6. Lack of coordinated feeder system- A coach having to go over plays over and over until their whole team is there is hard to read. Maybe they need to start their offense at the youth league level and build on it every year. Of course, that would require a coach to stick around for awhile. Being small... I'm guessing they feed into a bigger league or travel around and play other small schools. Do they participate in a few school affiliated tournaments at the end of the youth season? 7. Strong apathetic attitude towards football- It isn't just losing that creates this... it is all of this stuff wrapped up into one. We now have COVID to deal with on top of the general apathy some kids have. 8. Competitive consolidation- Who could they possibly merge with. It is a rural school. Any kid that would have the means to travel to a better program... probably already has... or they just didn't buy a house in CC school district. I would look to play as many 1A or struggling programs as possible. A few wins could help if other things are in place. 9. Merger consolidation