BLACKGOLD2007

22 hours ago, Footballmomma said:

It’s just kids with hearsay I guess. But at one point and time Valpo gave Hamilton southeastern on there MaxPreps schedule for this upcoming season. And now it seems to be that it’s the year after. As I said anyone correct me if I’m wrong. Please. My son right now is homeschooled but he loves Hobart football. We are trying to find the right fit for him. I don’t necessarily like the coach staff at Hobart. Nothing against the as role models just the game planning aspect. We are leaning in enrolling him at Andrean or merrillville. 
 

Andrean is top notch academics. And solid athletics! But word is merrillville is returning everything they had plus some and are 100% on par for that state championship game. Plus they have a lot more diversity. I think I’m gonna end up letting my son decide but I’ll be here all year. I graduated from Griffith so I know all about region football 

Penn is not very forthcoming to people not directly involved in the program. With the Valpo series stretching back to 1996 I just assumed this was a game that would continue to go on for years to come. Penn picking up Merrillville helps them see speed, but they need to pick up teams that compete at the 6A level and are from Indy. 

Playing 5A Valpo and now 4A Mishawaka don't come off well, while other 6A programs are testing themselves against the best of 6A. Carroll, Snider and Homestead are leading the way in testing themselves. 

Penn's schedule is weak and will be weak, until changes are made. 

10 minutes ago, BTF said:

Makes sense. 

Our Strength of schedule is going to be a Dinosaur size pile of crap...Good times. 

4 hours ago, BTF said:

Your estimate looks pretty accurate. They'll separate the Fort Wayne teams. My feelings aren't hurt as a fan, it just provides for some interesting matchups. What's Penn doing in 2027? Snider's contract with East Noble expires after 2026. This old rivalry needs to renew itself. Both teams have one hell of a path to go through to meet in 2024. 

Unless Penn convinces the NIC to find schools to add or drops the 7 game conference schedule, Penn will likely be playing Valpo and Mishawaka weeks one and two for the foreseeable future.

Maybe Coach Pete, will not care about upsetting people and send the JV to play the SB schools. 

Well, I am bored here at work trying to keep myself awake at the moment. So, I have been trying to figure out who the 16 North Schools will be with some of the changes that have been made due to enrollment and success factor.

Warsaw went down and Snider moves up. Harrison has joined 6A and Cathedral remains in 6A as well. 

With Snider moving up, this could be an all Fort Wayne sectional. 

Sectional 1 could easily be Portage, Harrison, Lake Central and Crown Point.

Sectional 2, 3, and  4 are where some changes may come about. 

Possible outlook for Sectional 2: Penn, Elkhart, Carroll and Northrop 

Possible outlook for Sectional 3: Snider, Homestead, HSE and Fishers

Possible outlook for Sectional 4: Carmel, Westfield, Noblesville and  Maybe Zionsville. 

Penn and Elkhart make things muddy with them sitting in the middle of the state. If Valpo would have moved up We could have seen Valpo and Portage back in sectional 2. The Fort Wayne schools are almost interchangeable in regards to placement in either sectional 2 or 3. In Sectional 4 for me it is hard to know which schools will likely be labeled a Northern school since they are all so close. 

11 hours ago, psaboy said:

Yea, I saw that Warsaw dropped to 5A after I posted. They could be a player in 5A, if they have players coming back. 

Warsaw will be the new Mishawaka of 5A North, with Mishawaka dropping down to 4A. 

Has anyone seen the new sectional groupings?

19 hours ago, Gipper said:

Which brings me to:

 

Andren-Linton

Crown Point-Carmel

Penn-Center Grove

Homestead-Columbus North

Brebeuf-Reitz

Western Boone-Rushville

Adams Central-Lutheran

 

I would love to see Penn add these three teams to future schedules. 

Maybe one day. My dreams will come true...maybe one day. 

16 hours ago, Goose Liver said:

If the portal to Hell opens with the two Red Devil teams meeting what happens when a Blue Devil and Red Devil team meets? (asking for a friend)

"Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together - mass hysteria."

                                                                    - Peter Venkman

On 3/21/2024 at 1:53 PM, tango said:

Don't know much about Penn... Who were the first two coaches getting the troops pumped up?     

The first was the strength coach....he was not there when I was. And the second is former Head Coach Yeoman. 

On 3/22/2024 at 2:07 AM, PDB26 said:

I wouldn't put too much stock into their "reaction". I don't recall our reaction being all that different when Cory was announced as head coach. We had a pretty simple team meeting in LGI A. There was no dramatic reveal, no hugging and cheering, and Cory didn't spend any time trying to fire us up. We wanted Cory to be the guy, he told us he was going to be himself, it was a relief when the announcement came, and it was business as usual from there.

Sure, but Penn wasn't trying to do a PR stunt at that time either. When you get the media involved and are clearly trying to make some huge reveal, the goal should be lets generate buzz...They did, just not good buzz. 

13 minutes ago, PDB26 said:

Really good point. Also, it's weird to be used as a prop for PR as a high schooler and the guys aren't exactly bouncing off the walls listening to the strength coach. 

@BLACKGOLD2007 I share a bit of the sentiment in that I don't care for handling our business through this type of contrived PR stunt––I have to believe this is Thacker's work. I'd expect a high school's PR misstep wouldn't be enough to affect your optimism given the number of your thoughtful and intelligent contributions to this board. 

The lack of energy and excitement from the players is what worries me. I hope I am wrong. I hope these kids want to play for him... I hope they set the world on fire.

I want to be wrong. But, if it is my announcement to the team, I wouldn't say something like I cant match this other coaches excitement. I get it, probably nervous...but you want to make a great first impression, even if the players are familiar with you. You are now the man in charge of the ship. Command that room with complete confidence and get the players excited to be in the room with you. 

https://www.wndu.com/video/2024/03/20/phm-video-announcement-new-head-football-coach/

Well let's just say....I am no longer optimistic..

Penn was thinking oh we will get a Marcus Freeman type reaction....they got...clapping. Watch this video....it is cringe and bad.

I grew up with the Stoner family. Went to church together. If my memory is correct, he is a Caveman. 

21 hours ago, BTF said:

His resume looks pretty impressive. I would say the pros are that championships seem to follow him no matter the sport. The con is that his defenses appear to be average. Good luck to him. 

This is going to be arguing out of both sides of my mouth here, so please allow me this moment.

Penn's D has never been the issue when it comes to competing. Why they give up so much in terms of numbers is when the Offense cannot generate a fart let alone a first down. Look at the games Penn has been blown out in within the last couple seasons. If you look at the numbers Penn's D spent most of the game on the field. Most of the scoring would occur during the middle to late periods. I don't blame kids for being gassed. 

The Crown Point game was hot and cold. Penn's D looked great for periods allowed the O to climb back into the game and then Crown Point would rattle off 14 quick points, leaving us to scratch our heads as to what happened. 

My one frustration with this current situation, is will he be his own coach and try to change the culture or is he going to just do what we have been doing for the last ten years? If he can change the culture and go get an OC that is hungry to develop a real offense I think Penn will be competitive again.  Time will tell, but I am cautiously optimistic. 

20 hours ago, jets said:

Now THAT is impressive. Do you have any idea if he will remain in those roles while taking the Head Coaching job at such a prestigious school?? 

Have not heard about who will be filling the OC and DC rolls. 

I am pleased to share with you that Pete Riordan will be recommended for Board approval to the position of Penn Head Football Coach.

 Coach Riordan has been an assistant coach on the Kingsmen Football staff for 20 years (most recently serving as Defensive Coordinator). He relocated to Indianapolis from 2007-2009 while his wife was in residency as a physician. During this time Coach Riordan served as assistant coach at Ben Davis for three seasons (2007-2009), the last two seasons as defensive coordinator.

 He will be Penn’s seventh head coach of the Kingsmen Football Team.

 Coach Riordan teaches Economics, Advanced Placement Economics and ACP Business at Penn. And as you may remember, he was recently named a teacher Impact Award winner for helping his students increase their test scores on their AP exams by as much as 20%. 

 The announcement happened earlier this morning when Coach Riordan worked with Athletic Director Jeff Hart, Strength & Conditioning Coach Matt Cates, and retiring Head Coach Cory Yeoman to surprise his players with the news. It was important for Coach Riordan to talk to the team first before making a public announcement. A public news conference is taking place at 2:00 this afternoon.

 In addition to coaching Football at Penn, Coach Riordan was a Junior Varsity Baseball Coach at Penn (2001-2003). Penn won the State Championship in Baseball in 2001. He served as the Boys Freshman Basketball Head Coach (2001), the season that the Kingsmen finished as State Runner-up. He was a volunteer assistant Football coach at Northridge for the 2000 season.

 Coach Riordan owns a state championship legacy. He played on the 1995 South Bend St. Joseph State Championship Football Team and was a three-year starter. Coach Riordan also played one year of Football at Wabash College. He earned a B.A. from Wabash and earned an MBA in Finance from Indiana University South Bend.

 Coach Riordan credited his high school coach, Frank Amato, for teaching the love and respect for the game of Football. He also credited former Penn Defensive Coordinator Don Monhaut for teaching the details and preparation of game-planning, and former Penn Head Coach Cory Yeoman for his unbelievable passion for the game.

 The P-H-M Board of School Trustees will officially approve Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker’s recommendation of Coach Riordan to this position at its meeting on Monday, March 25, 2024.

 Coach Riordan and his wife, Nicole (Penn Class of 1999) have two daughters who attend P-H-M schools.

 Please join me in congratulating Pete Riordan on his new position as the Kingsmen Football team’s new Head Coach!

Pete is a good man, and a good coach, I don't know if he is the correct pick for this program to bring them back to 6A relevancy. Time will tell. 

Just the continuation of the last ten years. 

Penn 6th largest school in the state....meh at football. Changes are coming!

fingers crossed. 

On 3/1/2024 at 12:36 PM, BTF said:

Gameday moxie is important. Throw in a little swagger. Without it, you're done. Let the kids have fun. 

I agree 100%, when I was playing...against local teams on the O-line we would tell the defense where we were going with the ball. We didn't care, we knew we would execute them to death and they could put all 11 players in the hole and we would still gain yards on them. 

The kids need to have that edge, but also they need to have the purpose. Under Gees it was always about the man to your right and to your left. I think that in the past 20 seasons there have been lapses in that mindset and it has pushed Penn down the totem pole of relevancy. 

On 3/1/2024 at 11:57 AM, SBFootballFan6 said:

That’s a good breakdown. Can I ask what do you think the change was the last two years?

I personally did not see a change from the coaches. But, there was more fire from the players. They held one another accountable. They were much more vocal on the sidelines even when their backs were against the wall. 

The teams prior to these two would not have put up a fight against Crown Point in regionals. 

I also think that Penn has gotten into this awful habit of, upperclassmen play... Man if my sophomore class is talented and can contribute in key areas the upper classes are weaker in, they need to be playing. This past senior class had kids starting (for the first time) that were better than the seniors starting the years prior. This is the first class I can remember that hasn't looked small. We had taller receivers and big strong tight ends. Our lineman had wide hips and could move people off the ball. Our D was athletic on the line and our backers were fast and able to make big plays. 

54 minutes ago, US31 said:

When Penn was part of the elite...they were at the top of enrollment.  No one was their size save a few MIC schools (e.g. Carmel, BD).

Growth around Indy has outpaced Granger....Penn is a very middle of the pack Indy Metro school now.  I'm obviosly biased....but there a few OC/DC's at those Indy metro schools that would be an excellent choice for a program that wants to beat those same types of schools.  

And "No", I have no specific knowledge of any particular person applying for the Penn job.

I saw that Penn was still like top 5 or 6 largest school in Indiana. That is still bigger than most Indy schools.  This isn't a size issue that has defeated Penn. It was complacency and at time the lack of buy in from the players. 3 of the last 5 years, on the field and sidelines you could tell, NO ONE seemed to care. Coaches wouldn't do anything and the players were stone cold silent. The D would ball out for three quarters and then get torched in the fourth because the O did not know how to sustain a drive. O-lineman would come to the bench and just sit there, no one would challenge one another. That changed two seasons ago and carried into last season. This past senior class cared and it showed. Players would hold each other accountable on the sideline. 

I am not saying yelling determines passion, but when things are not going well or things are hard, and no one says a word...that scares me.

On 2/16/2024 at 7:25 AM, Football Guru 25 said:

Oh I am sure its obvious who is lobbying for it internally, and I'm sure if he doesn't get it he will jump ship with his school duties elsewhere and cause a stir....IYKYK!!  LBVS!!

There are several coaches going to take a shot at this position I'm sure.... and I feel who they decide on will shock people and there will be a change of culture and back to their winning ways of the 90's!!!       On that note where is Rosey at these days.... hmmmm!!!

The days of walking into games and the other team rolls over for you are long gone. Penn in my mind needs to get that chip on their shoulder. 

Rosey is in Cali last I heard. quit coaching so he could support his son's volleyball career. 

Scott Dreisbach, has head coaching experience or OC experience down in Texas if I am not mistaken. 

On 2/14/2024 at 8:23 AM, BSUKingsmen said:

I have little faith in the Penn AD Jeff Hart to make a good decision here. There are zero good options internally to fill the head coaching role, but one current assistant is politicking big time and it would be a travesty if he got it.

Is there any chance a 6A coach from the Indy area would be interested in taking on the opportunity?

I think Penn needs to take applications but also reach out to coaches to make sure they are getting the best candidate for the job. Don't be afraid to hear the word no. There are going to be people who are happy to stay in their current situation, but there will be coaches who will listen. 

I think it depends how they pitch the opportunity. Are we looking to bring the program back to it's old Glory, or are we just looking for a 20 year place holder that will win 9/10 games a year in a weak conference. 

12 minutes ago, BTF said:

I second that. No point in allowing weather to be a determining factor in the state championship.

Come on....could you imagine running onto Notre Dame Stadium's turf as a Senior at list any 1A or 2A school for your final game of football...

I know the post said 6A, but I think it would be interesting for any class.

3 hours ago, Frozen Tundra said:

Even if we entertain that idea, there’s a three and a half hour gap between the starts of games. Still not sure how you fit five in per day.

8:00 AM

11:30 AM

3:00 PM

6:30 PM

10:00 PM?!?!

You would almost have to move games to Thursday or to Sunday.

This means each weekend the State Finals occur the Colts will not be able to host a Thanksgiving Day game (if the games start Thursday) or would need to have a bye or play away on the Sunday after (if the games move to Sunday).

Thursday games:  1pm - 4pm - 7pm

Friday: 1pm - 4pm - 7pm

Saturday: 10am - 1pm - 4pm - 7pm

or 

Friday games: 10am - 1pm -4pm - 7pm 

Saturday: 10am - 1pm - 4pm - 7pm

Sunday games: Noon - 3:30pm. (this could even move forward to 10am so that players can get home in time for school on Monday).

12 hours ago, Coach Nowlin said:

sure about that? 

 

The job he held was at a school in Ohio. Gees had worked in Indiana previously. 

Are you eluding to something else, like Gees approached Penn? 

If they did the 8 team regional idea where the top two teams are seeded and the rest are a blind draw, then I would like to see a lottery type system....like the two top seeded teams draw first and the teams with the worst records have more balls in the tube to be selected than the better teams.  This will help prevent the BD v Brownsburg from happening. Idk, maybe this is dumb.