Bobref

Reminds of the kid who was losing the pickup game, so he takes his ball and goes home. And if by “boring,” you mean it’s too complex a concept for you to understand, I find myself agreeing with you for once.

That the cluster system, or it’s various permutations, was actually a “cluster ****” is not a reason to reject a “top 1/2” qualification format. In fact, the IHSAA had the right idea, but the implementation was poor. Not enough teams in the playoffs. In a “top half” system, that problem goes away. In a nutshell, if you can’t rate in the top 50% of your class, you don’t deserve to play for a state title.

I’ve got my handkerchief out, dabbing at the tears in my eyes at the great story of the 8-6 team that almost won a state championship. But as a counter to my argument, it fails miserably. First, last time I looked the last team left standing this year will be crowned the “state champ for the 2022 season,” not the “2022 single elimination tournament held at the conclusion of the season champ.” More importantly, whatever makes you think that CG’s team wouldn’t have made a playoff in which the top 1/2 of each class qualifies? This is simply a rehash of the “Northwood 2005” argument — that has been repeatedly debunked on these pages. Besides, perhaps if those early season games counted toward playoff qualification, CG would have found a way to win a few more. Nothing like urgency to bring out the best in a team. Too bad our system doesn’t provide for that sort of intensity all season, instead of just the last 6 weeks. A lost opportunity.

Wait a minute! Every time I bring up the desirability of a playoff qualification system, because the “all in” tournament devalues the regular season, I’m told I’m crazy because “every game matters,” and “there’s no such thing as a meaningless game.” The “all in” tournament breeds exactly the attitude described above … which makes Indiana high school football less than what it could be.

Correct. A lot of people think the travel limitations only apply when the Indiana school travels out of state. That’s incorrect. The travel rule, which is Rule 10-1, reads as follows: “The address of an out-of-state school participating in a Contest with a member School, as well as the site of such Contests, must be within six hundred (600) miles round trip travel from the Indiana state line and shall be sponsored or co-sponsored by a member School.” I’m on record as saying the travel rule constitutes an unwarranted intrusion on the rights of local school corporations to decide, on a case by case basis, what sort of experiences they want to offer students, including student athletes. A blanket rule like 10-1 is a blatant overreach by the IHSAA.

Some of these coaches are pretty smart guys. What I don’t understand is how anyone with half a brain can’t see what sort of attitude this treatment breeds. Combine this with promises of NIL deals and you are making it very difficult for these impressionable 18 yr. olds to avoid an entitlement mentality. The result is that the concept of “team” is lost. Football is the most demanding sport in terms of teamwork leading to success. @temptation’s observation above expresses it succinctly. That attitude is absolute poison in a program. It’s a pretty tough sell to get a kid to embrace the attitude that he’s a cog in the big machine, when everything else you’re saying and doing tells the kid the opposite.

I wouldn’t describe the Board as “dysfunctional” on the strength of this one decision. After all, they have other and bigger fish to fry than hiring a football coach. Still, this is puzzling. I’d sure like to know why the 3 board members who changed their votes voted “no” originally, and then reversed themselves.

There are now 26 separate lawsuits pending.

Perhaps you should. ND is #2 in the NACDA standings, 7 pts. behind Michigan after the winter sports season. https://s3.amazonaws.com/nacda.com/documents/2022/4/6/April7Overall.pdf. They trail leader Georgia in the Capital One Cup, by 6 pts., and Michigan by 5, tied for #3. https://www.capitalone.com/capital-one-cup/. The #6 finish by men’s lacrosse and the baseball team’s CWS appearance should get them some points when the Spring season is totaled up.

I wonder what their F/R lunch numbers are. 😂

Yes, I know they are slightly behind Michigan, and it’s undergrad enrollment almost 4 times their size. But that total is calculated at the conclusion of winter sports. UM’s so-so baseball season compared to ND’s CWS appearance should take care of that.

List of schools with a College World Series, March Madness and New Year's Six bowl berth in this school year: Notre Dame That's it, that's the list. Also, multiple nattys in fencing & women’s basketball, men’s lacrosse a perennial Top 10 ranking, and this season’s NCAA champ in the men’s 10K. Irish are currently 3rd nationally in the Capital One Cup standings, and 2nd in the NACDA Directors’ Cup standings. If they go deep in the College World Series, they could end up winning both. All that in a school with less than 9,000 undergrads. Whatever your feelings about the Irish, you’ve got to admit Jack Swarbrick has done a terrific job with the athletic dept.

Justice was done.

Ssshhhhh! The “fence” is a secret! I’m sure the writer of that story has been disciplined for letting the cat out of the bag.

Keep in mind there are a lot of kids they just can’t recruit due to admission standards.

I don’t think so. I wasn’t aware they offered him. They’re pretty happy with the Limar kid from Washington state.

Irish baseball takes 2 of 3 from Super Regional host and overall #1 seed in the tournament Tennessee to punch their ticket to Omaha.

Trying to remember the last in-state player the Irish recruited hard and didn’t get.

Yeah, I think we should play a few games before we throw dirt over the Warriors.

Probably so he could throw to this guy: https://www.si.com/college/notredame/recruiting/notre-dame-football-recruiting-dream-offer-for-five-star-brauntae-johnson Notre Dame Is The "Dream School" For Elite In-State Athlete Brauntae Johnson Notre Dame is the dream school for Brauntae Johnson, who is just now starting to build a bond with the Irish staff Notre Dame has historically had a fence around the state of Indiana. There has been an occasional misevaluation but simply put, the program needs to land every player that they want in the state. In the 2024 class, there is an in-state talent who ranks as one of the top players in the 2024 recruiting class. Following his performance at this weekend’s Irish Invasion, the Irish staff extended an offer to Fort Wayne (Ind.) North Side athlete Brauntae Johnson. That offer from Notre Dame held a lot of weight for the Indiana standout. “Getting the offer, for me, was a very good feeling,” Johnson said. “They have always been my dream school and are right in my home state.” Early on, recruiting can be an eye-opening experience. For Johnson, he has been taking everything in stride. He is learning a lot, very quickly. “Recruiting has been good really,” Johnson explained. “Right now, I am just getting my feet wet with it. I’m just learning as much as I can.” Heading into the Irish Invasion, Johnson hadn’t had a ton of contact with the Notre Dame staff. That looks to change quickly. “Before the camp (the staff) came to my school a couple of times,” he said. “Other than that, I wasn't in contact as much with them as I will be now moving forward.” With an evolving offer list, Johnson is begging to garner a ton of national attention. With the obvious love for Notre Dame, they should be considered the early favorites. It will, however, not be without a fight. “I would say that Notre Dame, Indiana, Wisconsin and Cincinnati are doing the best job right now,” Johnson said. “It’s been great getting to know so many great coaches.” When you have a nationally ranked recruit in the state, Notre Dame has to close on them if the fit makes sense. They made the first move this past weekend. Johnson is currently rated as a consensus four-star recruit and the No. 1 player in the state of Indiana for the 2024 recruiting cycle. 247Sports has the talented two-way athlete ranked as a five-star recruit and the No. 30 overall player and No. 4 wideout in the country in the 2024 class. Although every major recruiting platform ranks him as a wide receiver, the Notre Dame staff prefers him on the defensive side of the football. The 6-3, 170-pound athlete has an expanding offer list of prospective schools. Aside from the recent offer from the Irish, Johnson also boasts offers from Wisconsin, Purdue, Minnesota, Cincinnati, Iowa State, Indiana, and Kansas among others. In seven games as a sophomore, Johnson led the team with 29 receptions and three touchdowns, while finishing second in receiving yards with 297 yards. He is also a talented return man for North Side, averaging 33.1 yards per kick return. Johnson also recorded 29 total tackles and forced four fumbles on the defensive side of the football. Johnson is also a standout basketball player that averaged 18.8 points and 9.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore. He averaged 17.3 points per game and 6.5 rebounds as a freshman for North Side.

Notre Dame football recruiting video: https://www.onefootdown.com/notre-dame-football-recruiting-news-recruits-national-signing-day/2022/4/11/23020799/this-recruiting-video-from-notre-dame-football-is-outstanding-fighting-irish-nd-news-watch-hype This will get your blood pumping this morning.

My husband and I went through the McDonald's driveway window and I gave the cashier a $5 bill. Our total was $4.25, so I also handed her 25c. She said, 'you gave me too much money.' I said, 'Yes I know, but this way you can just give me a dollar back.' She sighed and went to get the manager who asked me to repeat my request. I did so, and he handed me back the 25c, and said 'We're sorry but we don’t do that kind of thing.' The cashier then proceeded to give me back 75 cents in change. Do not confuse the people at MacD's. We had to have the garage door repaired. The repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a 'large' enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute, and said that we had the largest one made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, 'You need a 1/4 horsepower.' I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4 and he said, 'NOOO, it's not. Four is larger than two.' We haven't used that repairman since... I live in a semi rural area. We recently had a new neighbor call the local city council office to request the removal of the DEER CROSSING sign on our road. The reason: 'Too many deers are being hit by cars out here! I don't think this is a good place for them to be crossing anymore.' IDIOT SIGHTING IN FOOD SERVICE. My daughter went to a Mexican fast food and ordered a taco. She asked the person behind the counter for 'minimal lettuce.' He said he was sorry, but they only had iceberg lettuce. I was at the airport, checking in at the gate when an airport employee asked, 'Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge?' To which I replied, 'If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?' He smiled knowingly and nodded, 'That's why we ask.' The pedestrian light on the corner beeps when it's safe to cross the street. I was crossing with an 'intellectually challenged' co-worker of mine. She asked if I knew what the beeper was for. I explained that it signals blind people when the light is red. Appalled, she responded, 'what on earth are blind people doing driving?!' She is a government employee..... When my wife and I arrived at a car dealership to pick up our car after a service, we were told the keys had been locked in it. We went to the service department and found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver’s side door. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. ‘Hey,' I announced to the technician, 'its open!' His reply, 'I know. I already did that side.' STAY ALERT! They walk among us, they breed, and they vote…....

When’s the next election for the “No” voters? 😉

Agreed. That’s why this could be such a devastating blow to the program.

Well, it’s a nice opportunity to throw some federal funds in the direction of local PDs, and for some cops to make some easy overtime. I suppose you’re against “The War On Drugs,” too, just like @Muda69? 🤣😂