itiswhatitis

Well said, my friend. Well said.

Put that thing smack in the middle of the county.

Linton has the North End Zone kids. There is always a bunch of them playing football there during a Miner home game. They are all pretending to be Miners. I know I have heard many Miner players say they used to play in the North End Zone when they were little.

That's bold! I think you are the only one who has picked them. Hoping for a good game and hoping its close throughout. Just how a title game should be,. The 2 best going at it and leaving it all on the feld.

I've enjoyed the discussion that has been going on the past few days. And NO ONE has been disrespectful. That is what has been so great about it. (For me) It's always great to talk with other fans. I seriously doubt most of the Mater Dei fans would have posted much on here this week if this topic hadn't been brought up. I have a great respect for Mater Dei and their fans. Most of them are well informed and articulate. It has been a fun week chatting. Now it is less than 12 hours to game time. It's really a shame they aren't allowing fans in the game. There is nothing like a playoff game at Roy Williams Field. It is ALWAYS electric and the Miners feed off of that energy.

I was using 75 because someone else said they had the roster in their hand and that was the number they quoted in their post. Don't know the source they were using. I do know the integrity of the poster and they wouldn't exaggerate or lie.

I agree that coaching has a lot to do with success. However I feel that numbers are the start. Even coaches who are considered the best still need numbers. The more you have, the better off you are. It's a good problem for a coach to have a choice between 4 running backs vice one or 2. Even with success, I see numbers as how a program is sustained. I get that some kids want to play for a winner. and some feel it's a waste of their time to play for a team that doesn't have any success. That's the mentality of teenagers. I have just as much respect (and sometimes more) for those who still play on teams and still put in the work who aren't as successful. I've been to Linton games and seen kids on the other team play and just admire their "game". You could tell they were the best player on that team and would sometimes wonder how they would be on another team. I suppose that happens all across America and not just in Indiana. And yes, I may sound like a homer, but Linton does have a successful program, but most of it has been in 1A. Coach Oliver and his staff are too good not to figure out how to start winning in 2A. It's only going to be a matter of time. Once you start winning some sectionals, the rest will follow. There's usually that one class that comes along and puts down that foundation for the program to build on. I've seen it happen and not just at Linton.

I have never once bashed on Mater Dei for their numbers in any of my posts. I just find it amazing that a school that small can have 75 on a roster when NO ONE goes there to play football and they haven't won a lot of titles. I give them kudos for their participation, but (LOL) still say it's an advantage over other schools their size. That isn't bashing, just a fact. Who has a better chance at winning the lottery? a person with 75 tickets or one with 40? Eh, maybe that wasn't a great analogy. LOL

Your math is quite a bit off there Uncle. Linton NEVER has 25 out for football in a class. You look at this year's roster. There are 42. That is an average of 10.5 per class. The senior class only has 5. And when you consider the Freshmen are playing on JV to be able to have a JV team the reality of the situation is there isn't enough for a freshman team. So those are not just "my words". I realize it isn't another school's fault for another school's numbers. My point to this whole discussion was how many "extra" numbers that MD gets over other schools. 75 on your roster (and someone posted that will be bigger now that freshman season is over. So you average 25 per class if you don't count your freshman. If you think about it, that is superior numbers over a lot of other schools. You may argue that numbers don't equate to wins, but it gives a team an advantage over choices of who you can draw the talent from. Not to mention having most of your starters playing only one way. In small school ball that is huge. Your team stays fresher for 4 quarters especially with the linemen.

Well of course injuries are a concern. I just meant they are lesser of a concern due to having such a large roster.

75 - 42? Who usually wins that "fight"? As I said, they have their numbers and why they can be successful against some of the bigger schools. When you are only looking for 22 starters, having 75 to choose from is a big advantage over most other schools, even some bigger classes. I get they play one of the toughest SOS in all of 2A but they are best prepared to play that SOS than most 2A teams. And yeah I get they have a great head coach but it starts with the numbers. MD has them. Anyone else in 2A with a bigger roster?

No I understand that kids want to go where their parents/family members did. And it's just a coincidence that some of them happen to play football (but so many?). Sorry you can tell I am STILL not buying it. You get your numbers even having to share with other schools. It is what it is. Other schools need to figure out a way to get around that imbalance if that's even possible.

But depth and injuries are of no concern to MD because they always have the numbers. You know saying that you have a better work ethic or a better attitude is hogwash. There are lots of teams with a great work ethic and attitudes. You get no argument from me that MD can compete with bigger schools. Their SOS and record against that SOS is a fact and proves they can. All I have been saying is they get more numbers than most other 2A programs. You dress 75 for cripes sake! Pretty dang impressive for a 2A school and even some 3A and 4A schools.

Okay so you get what I'm saying about the numbers. It can and does make a difference. Freshman season? What's that? Most 2A schools don't have enough to make a freshman team. My old high school in Ohio had a freshman team, a JV team and a varsity team. But we had 1200+ students. It was weird moving to Linton after I retired from the Navy and seeing such a smaller school with football. At my old high school it was a HUGE deal for JV players to get picked to dress with the varsity on Friday night and IF you saw the field in mop up time well it was like being made king for a night. Freshmen NEVER dressed with the Varsity. Here, JV get to play a lot including freshmen during mop up time on Friday nights. At least they do at Linton.

Think how that looks to an outsider. Some of them STILL go to MD and play football yet NONE of them go to MD for football? So the ones who play football decide to play AFTER they get to MD? Sorry I don't buy that. Maybe some decide after they get there but NOT all. I get that it's a tradition with some families and why they would attend school there. But MD is going to get their share of football players. It isn't just a coincidence they end up there. That sounds like someone trying to sell "something". I originally started this conversation by saying MD gets an edge in numbers due to the amount of feeder systems. You can't change numbers. They are always going to be there. Oh sure they will go up and down depending on the population change. But in 2018, Evansville's population was 117,000+. And yes those aren't all parochial type citizens and yes you have to share with other private schools. I get that. But the chances go up that you will get more the more people that live there. Try starting a private school in a town with only 5,000. Not gonna happen.

That is just mind boggling. How in the world do they make that all work?!?

I totally get and appreciate the old school mentality. But will also say, 75 dressed on a 2a roster is HUGE. You rarely see that many at the majority of 2A schools. I believe coaching has a lot to do with a program being successful regardless of their numbers. Some of the things you have mentioned about MD you could also say the same about Linton. The biggest difference is the numbers and that I guess will never change. Bigger area, bigger numbers even if you have to fight other schools for them. It isn't that MD is the only school getting these kids. But it is the opportunity they have (just like the other schools) to sign them. They are going to get some of them.

No I understand that Llamas. That's why I said in an earlier post maybe 3 of them go to MD for football. I didn't think the entire class was all boys and they all played football. Give me a little credit here. LOL

Okay financial. And probably which school will give my kid the best education, too? Then as someone else mentioned, some kids go to public schools for their high school. I just wanted to say, "this has been a good discussion". I like chatting about certain topics and not getting into a fight over them and actually having a conversation. Thanks to all.

That must be one crazy household. I feel sorry for the parents trying to support 2 different athletes at 2 different schools but in the same family? How do you make that work? Yikes!

Oh I wasn't suggesting that MD was holding down their enrollment for athletics. It is just a bit mind numbing when you say, "8 feeder schools" vice only one. I can imagine the "recruiting" that goes on between the private schools to get those players from the 12 - 15 or 25 - 30 kids. I can imagine part of it is $$ and part of it is which school will give my kid the best education, besides the athletics. Still the numbers are much bigger for even one private school than a public school. And yes I know it was posted that some go to a public school. I can imagine that has ONLY to do with the sports.

Yeah I got the part about not all of them attend Mater Dei. Is that kind of a "political" thing? "Attend our school because it is better than the other guys?" Just wondered. Even still a portion of those go to Mater Dei and multiply that by 8 feeders and that still gives additional players to Mater Dei. Maybe I should say there is the "opportunity" to get more. At other 2A programs, they have only one grade school. Maybe that one grade school has 80 kids per class. Mater Dei with 8 schools and 25 - 30 kids per class is looking at the possibility of 200 - 240 more potential students. Yeah, yeah not all of them go to Mater Dei, but the "potential" is there and you know they get some of them. Other schools get what they get. No chance to pick up any extra players only from one grade school. I take it you don't like that suggestion? LOL

Parents at WRV have been wanting to add football for years as far back as the early 2000's that I know of. Bloomfield tried recently. They keep getting shot down. Apparently too many people still have a basketball only mentality or something like that. Or they don't want to spend the money. You know they should just consolidate all 5 schools and just called it Greene County. Of course that would put them in 3A or 4A for enrollment. But 5 schools into one would really boost ALL sports in Greene County and no more kids would have to leave one school to go to another for just one sport.

Hardly. Linton and Eastern Greene both have football programs. White River Valley, Bloomfield ,and Shakamak do not. They are the other 3 schools in Greene county. A VERY few kids who play youth football will transfer to Linton to play high school ball. VERY few. I have known of only a handful in the past 25 years. There were a few kids from Dugger (Sullivan county) who transferred to Linton after Dugger closed down and that is one of the reasons Linton had to stay in 2A (enrollment). It wasn't from the success factor.

Holy smokes! 8 different feeder schools?!? The majority of other 2A schools have ONE grade school. I noticed you put on there that some go to other schools. However "some" go to Mater Dei. Let's just say 3 kids in every class go to Mater Dei every year and play football. That is 24 more players they get than your average 2A school gets. They have the numbers every year over other schools especially in their sectional. I would think that is a main reason why they can stay so dominant. I thought I I read a comment that MD had 64 players on the roster this year. Most other 3A schools have half to two thirds that many. Don't take this wrong. I am NOT bashing MD for their success. I am just a bit taken back by their numbers and how they can stay 2A with enrollment and draw from 8 different feeder schools. Maybe my 3 is a high guess but I felt it was rather low. Only bringing this up for discussion and not wanting to start a fight. And thanks for the reply Wildcat1992.