BTF

I would love to see the Snider/Penn rivalry rejuvenated. Declining enrollment isn't doing the Panthers any favors, but the nucleus of the program remains strong. Those eight schools should take a serious look at that and make it more than just a pipe dream. I also think it would help with attendance. No one wants to see Snider take on South Side. Dwenger vs Elkhart would outdraw Dwenger vs Wayne by a mile. God knows attendance could use a boost since live streaming came into play.

And that's what they should do. The SAC in it's current form doesn't do Snider, Homestead, and Carroll any favors.

What I heard was hearsay. Not worth mentioning.

Agree. I'm ready for some NAIA!

North Side has a history of hiring guys who turn out to be good coaches, then they leave. I don't see North Side going for that. Historically, they've been competitive in the SAC. Not to mention the pasting they delivered to Snider in 2020. Also, historically, North Side probably beats Huntingtion North 80% of the time. Something has to give though with regard to the SAC. Some kind of restructure. Something could be in the works.............so I've "heard." If recruiting was as big of a problem at Snider that those on this forum make it out to be, the coaching staff over there would win the SAC every year and probably have 10+ 5a/6a championships. Do they get a transfer here and there like any other school? Absolutely. But it's not the problem people on this forum make it out to be. A wise man once told me to believe 1/3 of what you hear. Pulling the recruiting card is just an excuse for inferior programs to make excuses as to why they aren't any good. If your team stinks, the first place to look for a reason why is in the mirror. After that you can look at things such as enrollment and socioeconomics. I couldn't agree more. I've always felt, if the right coach came along, Huntington North could prosper. Maybe entrance into the SAC would do them some good. Whatever the SAC does, it needs to be something other than an "island" conference.

Wind chills in Fort Wayne on Saturday are suppose to be -20 to -40. How's it looking in Indy for Marian's home opener?

Marian's success came during years 4 and 5. For St. Francis it was years 2 and 3.

It's kind of hard to compare the NAIA to the FBS. Mainly because there is no Alabama. No one has been that dominant. There is a three way tie among the top NAIA programs over the last decade.............St. Francis, Marian, and Morningside. Go back two decades and it's Carroll, St. Francis, and Sioux Falls........in that order. Correction...............I think you have to give Marian the nod for top team of the decade.

To be fair, Valpo did hand it to the Cougars in 1999.............34-6. Also to be fair, that was only the second year of the young St. Francis football program. By year three, coach Kevin Donley had them competing on a national level.

St. Francis is 5-0 vs Division I (FCS)..............all blowouts. I'm not sure how Marian has done against higher level programs, but they are 8-7 vs St. Francis. Two solid football programs.

Come again? St. Francis beat Valpo that year 34-30. The Cougars beat Butler 56-37 the week before.

It's good quality football for sure. I remember one year, St. Francis waxed Indiana State. Beat them by a wider margin than Texas Tech did the prior week. It was 2005 I believe...............42-10.

Allen County - 379,000 Hamilton County - 338,000 Fort Wayne (city limits) - 270,000 -city limits doesn't include surrounding burbs.

That being said. Both Homestead and Carroll will have the facilities and resources to match any school in the state of Indiana. Now it's just up to the coaches to get them from being 3-star programs to a 5-star. I'm not here to criticize hard working coaches, but the reality is that neither program is in the upper 5% echelon...............which is where they need to be to be state contenders.

The Fort Wayne Metro is growing by about 2000 residents per year. Not staggering numbers, but definitely outperforming similar sized midwestern cities. With a ten-year job growth rate expected to exceed the national average, approximately 1 billion in downtown infrastructure over the next couple of years, and upwards to 50 million being dumped into FW's suburban schools Homestead and Carroll, the Summit City may not be as stagnant as you think.

You really need a link sent to you to verify that the last 25 record holders are black? C'mon

To say the least.

Hate to see you go DT. You provide good quality content on this forum. Unfortunately we live in a very sensitive world today where factual information is often misconstrued as racist.

Noted

Which part is unreal?

Snider and Dwenger will play for the first time ever in the postseason. Does that count?

Making it to semi-state doesn't necessarily equate to Top 4 in my opinion. Mainly because in any given year 4 or 5 teams from the Indy area would qualify for the Northern semi-state. But that's just the last two decades. Back in 93' though? You may have a point. Although they defeated the defending state champs in sectionals that year, they never really stuck out to me as a "great" team. Very good for sure. And it was that team, to their credit, that put Homestead (the farming community) on the map.

Homestead had some teams in 97', 98, & 02' (under the leadership of Cavacini & Wood) that were among the state's Top 4. They may have even done more in '19 had their "Trevor Lawrence" not been sidelined for the playoffs. Carroll has never been a contender, so it's kind of hard to say they "fell flat on their face." There is some truth to your comment with regard to Homestead though. They seem to have peeked as a good football program, but can't seem to get into the "great" category. Let's just say there is potential in those communities. It's up to Zolman and Dinan to get them to the next level. Even when Hawley and Isaacs were leading the way, Snider was only putting a state champion (big school division) caliber football team on the field once every four years.............mainly due to enrollment disadvantages. As their enrollment slides, coupled with the growth of Homestead and Carroll, it's going to be hard to hit that four year mark. Let's not write Snider off yet though, because four times in the last decade, they put together teams that could have challenged anyone (let's say Top 5 regardless of class)..........12', 15, 17', and maybe 16'. The 21' team might be worth paying attention to. "Tee off on me".........................it was a pretty good post, I don't see that happening.

Ouch! For the sake of Allen County and The Region, I'm hoping you are 80 years old or better. Seriously though, Homestead and Carroll have both the resources and growing enrollments........both now over 2400. Carroll is in the process of building an 8 million dollar football stadium and Homestead is starting a 169 million dollar facility upgrade. It's probably a matter of time before they overtake Snider and Dwenger as the kings of the SAC. Now the SAC just needs to get on board with stronger scheduling. Dwenger will always be Dwenger. Them Catholic kids are just tough. And they have a beautiful new 5 million dollar football stadium. Snider's enrollment is down from 2100 to 1800. FWCS's doesn't seem to be doing them any favors either. Although situated in a nice neighborhood, driving by the football/track facility reminds me of something you would see in Gary or Detroit. A rusty fence and leaning goal posts...........thankfully they get to get on a bus and play their games at Northrop. However, Snider's community and strong nucleus of administration and football coaches will keep them near the top for another decade at least.

It was my understanding that the kids who were in the Harding district were split up among New Haven, Woodlan, and Leo.