BTF

I'm a fan of two non-conference games.

Who knows, time will tell. It would be a major blow to 8 of the 10 teams in the conference if it doesn't materialize. Currently, only two benefit. And if a new deal is struck, neither one of those teams will be hurt. It's a win for eight. A wash for two. There are no losers.

College football has the same problem that 6a Indiana football has. In order to win the national championship, you have to be better than Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, and Ohio State. The chances of being better than all four are slim. At least one of those teams will have a strong season. You'd have to catch them all on an off year in order to win. The chances of that are low. The comparison is to Carmel, Warren Central, Ben Davis, and Center Grove. It doesn't do you any good to be better than just three of them if you want to call yourself champion. You have to go back over two decades to find a year where they were all down at the same time.

If this new format comes to fruition. Who they should schedule and why: 1. Snider vs Penn – at one time the best non-conference rivalry in the state. This one shouldn’t fade away. Penn leads 9-8, but they are 4-1 during the Yoeman/Tippmann era. Snider wants to right that ship against a program they have a ton of respect for. 2. Homestead vs Carmel – Homestead waxed the Greyhounds 27-3 back in 1998. But they are 0-4 ever since with the closest game a 21 point margin. The Spartans need another win to prove they belong with the big boys. Not to mention, the schools and communities are almost mirror images of one another (with the exception of size). 3. Carroll vs Valparaiso – They’ve never played one another. But I think this would be a good measuring stick for both programs. Nor would they meet again in the playoffs. Both programs appear to be on a level playing field and the drive is only 1.5 hours. 4. Dwenger vs Central Catholic (Toledo) – Indianapolis rivals Cincinnati, Fort Wayne should rival Toledo. Two cities of similar size separated by only 1.5 hours. Komets vs Walley is vicious. We need this in football too. A border war if you will. Like the Saints, Central Catholic is loaded with football tradition. 5. Bishop Luers vs Coldwater – Two great programs separated by 1 hour. Both are small schools and Coldwater is widely considered one of the most dominating programs in Ohio pound for pound. If Luers doesn't go after them, someone should. 6. Northrop vs Leo – Separated by 15 minutes and never met on the gridiron. This would be 5a vs 4a, but Leo is the better program. Northrop isn’t bad, they just play in a good conference. I think this could become a good rivalry. 7. Concordia vs Indianapolis Lutheran – The battle of the Lutherans. Only three in Indiana with the other being Trinity out of Semour. It’s 3a vs 1a, but I like it. I think others around the state would like it too. 8. Wayne vs Adams Central – It’s 4a vs 1a, but I think Adams Central would jump at the chance at playing the SAC’s southern most school. The question is, would Wayne go for this. I like the matchup, and at some point, we need to see some Fort Wayne schools take on the hard nosed football programs of Adams County. 9. South Side vs Indianapolis Attucks – Central Fort Wayne vs Central Indianapolis. I like it. Two struggling programs with similar demographics. 10. North Side vs New Haven – 5a vs 4a, separated by 8 miles, and have never played one another. Both programs seem to be of equal caliber. On the radar: Toledo Whitmer, Bishop Hartley, HCC, DAC, and any school from Lafayette.

So how do you determine an SAC champion then? I'm sure when Luers kids put on their uniforms, they expect nothing less than to win the SAC championship. They have a mindset of a winner.

Which part are you not a fan of? If it's the seating on the visitors side, no problem, sit on the home side.

This move is far more important to Carroll and Homestead than it is Snider. Those two programs have to endure 6a every single year, and this new format will prepare them for that. They deserve a championship, right? Luers has their 11 state titles thanks to a conference that prepares them for the tournament every year. Now maybe it's another programs turn to benefit. At the end of the day, this doesn't hurt Luers one iota. They'll still play Dwenger every year and one of the other big schools. With the two open dates, they have an opportunity to schedule programs just as good as Snider, Homestead, and Carroll. I don't think scheduling the likes of Hartley, Whitmer, or Chatard will hurt their chances of making deep runs in the tournament. I think the biggest winner in all this is ticket sales. Will I travel to the south end of town to see Luers take on Homestead? Highly doubtful. A team that I wouldn't normally get to witness in person like Chatard, Whitmer, or Hartley? Absolutely. Snider vs Penn, Homestead vs Carmel, Carroll vs Merrillville, and Dwenger vs Roncalli? Sign me up for those.

The real heroes of high school football are the players and coaches who put hours and hours of effort into this great sport. But let's not discount the voice of the fans, the ones who pump money into the athletic departments. And at the end of the day, football IS a team sport........coaches, players, and fans. The twelfth man is kind of important. It would be foolish of any league or athletic depart to not listen to the voice of the very fans who support them. Maybe the idea of a two division format originated on the GID and maybe it didn't. But you know what? Who cares. It's gained momentum. Congrats to the coaches and athletic directors for bringing this close to reality.

It's really the only way to crown a champion though.

Not sure why you think his post is funny. You don't think media, coaches, athletic directors, and players read this forum? I bet there are 40 readers for every poster. ................and music to my ears. Good move for the SAC.

Maybe it was his zero catches in his final game of his career against a 5'7" defensive back that derailed his score :).

ECC beat every opponent by multiple scores before bowing out to Crown Point. Sloppy fields play a factor unfortunately. One could argue that there were multiple teams better than Merrillville that year? ECC, Penn, Ben Davis?

I don't think Snider's ever played a game in Merrillville. They hosted the Pirates in 2012 for semi-state. Snider won 42-39. I also thought Snider traveled to Merrillville sometime in the 90's. But my research shows otherwise. Just two meetings between these two teams. Maybe more to come with Merrillville dropping to 5a. Yep, Jamel Williams. Stud.

Spuller Stadium in Fort Wayne. Merrillville was 12-1 that year. Tied with the 2021 team for the programs best record ever.

Semi-state. Snider's first real challenge of 1992. The game went to the wire with Snider scoring a late touchdown to win 14-7. Good defense that held the Panthers to their lowest scoring output of the season. Just a really stout team. Good running back.

History, for the sake of this thread, only goes back to 2002. From an outsiders perspective, 1992 was their best team ever.

Good catch. I remember Wright all to well. Not sure how one of his teams didn't win state.

Overall, I'm sure there's a strong correlation between stars given and the likelihood that a player will end up in the NFL. Not necessarily the case in Fort Wayne it appears. According to the rankings............1, 3, 9, 13, 15, 45, and Anthony Spencer have had the most successful NFL careers. Trai Essex, Vaughn Dunbar, Jason Fabini, and Rod Woodson were all 80's and 90's guys. Was there even a ranking back then?

Good stuff Temp! Most notable player left off the list............Jessie Bates. Arguably #1 in terms of performance. Two guys who were absolute men among boys during their high school days................Selwyn Lymon and John Goodman. Both highly ranked but never made it past the collegiate level. Not sure Lymon even played a down for Purdue. He got into some trouble if my memory serves me correctly. Rod Smith was also a man among boys. Urban Meyer didn't do him any favors at Ohio State. Probably would have been an All-American had he gone to IU or Purdue.

I'm not saying Kelly won't do it at LSU. In fact, my money says that he does. Like him or hate him, he's a damn good coach who's won everywhere he's been. He's not going to do it overnight at LSU, which is why I maintain that his chances in the next few years were better with the Irish. Notre Dame's 2022 class came in at #6. It may have been better had Kelly not left. The 2023 class looks to be in the Top 3. Kelly + Freeman + Rees + recent recruiting = a very high probability of competing for a national title.

Looking forward to it. Thanks for putting in the work.

Deep runs were commonplace for Snider through 2016. In 2017, they were one play from obliterating Carmel. The period of 2018 -2021 tells a different story though. Although Snider was down, Homestead and Carroll had some pretty high profile teams only to bow out to Indy in games that really weren't even close. Are the last four years just a phase or are they a trend? I'm leaning toward trend. The difference in my opinion is Westfield and Zionsville. Although neither is a 'johnny come lately', they've both brought their level of play up to an upper half 6a level. In the past, Carmel was the only team separating Fort Wayne from Lucas Oil.........and the occasional HSE & Fishers. Now you have Carmel, Westfield, Zionsville..............and still the occasional HSE & Fishers. More Indy teams are trending up versus down. And for that reason, I agree with your entire post. It's time for the SAC to see some Central Indiana competition.

2015

Notre Dame's talent level was at the highest in his 12 year career there. The chances of him winning a national championship sometime in the next four years was better at Notre Dame than it is at LSU.

He's done. I can't imagine an organization, their right mind, who'd hire the guy after what transpired Sunday. Then again, money is more important than integrity. We'll see who bites first.