BDGiant93 Posted February 27 Posted February 27 (edited) https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/02/27/ihsaa-football-new-palestine-will-play-img-academy-in-week-8-of-2026-high-school-football-season/88903089007/ IMG Academy is coming to New Palestine! Edited February 27 by BDGiant93 1 Quote
Coach Harvey Posted February 27 Posted February 27 (edited) Week 1 ain't too shabby either. Should be fun! Schedule Tweet Edited February 27 by Coach Harvey 1 Quote
Indiana Fan Posted February 28 Posted February 28 4 hours ago, Coach Harvey said: Week 1 ain't too shabby either. Should be fun! Schedule Tweet Week one is a much much smaller school. Not fantastic football, but they have proven they can win none the less. Lived up in that area a bit. Very low level high school ball from that school. Now IMG, pretty cool! Quote
Coach Harvey Posted February 28 Posted February 28 2 hours ago, Indiana Fan said: Week one is a much much smaller school. Not fantastic football, but they have proven they can win none the less. Lived up in that area a bit. Very low level high school ball from that school. Now IMG, pretty cool! They have essentially the same enrollment as Chatard and just won a State Championship. New Pal being a mid 4A in enrollment school, I wouldn't call that a "much much smaller school" 2 Quote
JustRules Posted February 28 Posted February 28 Good challenges for New Pal. Those should be fun experiences for the team and prepare them even more for the tournament. Good for them for not being afraid to play anyone. Quote
23andCounting Posted February 28 Posted February 28 I can get on board with IMG vs Ben Davis, Warren Central, Carmel, Brownsburg, or Center Grove. But this is a little head scratching being that New Pal is a public 4A school. I think they're going to get waxed and run the risk of an injury or two if they are throwing their guys out there playing on both sides of the ball against the best players in the country. But that's just my dumb opinion as an observer from the stands. That being said, Kyle Ralph has balls......I like that. New Pal is sending a message that they'll take on anyone at anytime. It tells me that Ralph isn't satisfied with where his program currently stands, and he's hungry to make his team better by any means necessary. Is there a better benchmark than IMG? Cathedral will feel like chump change after playing IMG. They'll certainly be battle tested. I wish the program God speed and a bit of luck in this one. I'll be rooting for them. Quote
Coach Nowlin Posted March 1 Posted March 1 one of the main factors of injury prevention is weight training and conditioning. New Pal in that department stands tall in the state. 5 Quote
23andCounting Posted March 1 Posted March 1 11 hours ago, Coach Nowlin said: one of the main factors of injury prevention is weight training and conditioning. New Pal in that department stands tall in the state. I was in pretty good shape at one time, but getting trucked by someone physically superior is still a painful experience. I've stated my opinion. Now it's time for the the Dragon's to send that message and make it clear.................we fear no one, and we're showing up to win. Good luck to them. Their schedule has come a long way in the past ten seasons. I don't know much about St. Francis out of Illinois, but it's a legit sounding name. Throw in a bit of East Central, Roncalli, and IMG, and you get a battle tested team that's looking to repeat in 5A. They've put East Central and Cathedral on notice. Should be another interesting season in 5A south. Quote
Frozen Tundra Posted March 2 Posted March 2 On 3/1/2026 at 7:45 AM, 23andCounting said: I was in pretty good shape at one time, but getting trucked by someone physically superior is still a painful experience. I've stated my opinion. Now it's time for the the Dragon's to send that message and make it clear.................we fear no one, and we're showing up to win. Good luck to them. Their schedule has come a long way in the past ten seasons. I don't know much about St. Francis out of Illinois, but it's a legit sounding name. Throw in a bit of East Central, Roncalli, and IMG, and you get a battle tested team that's looking to repeat in 5A. They've put East Central and Cathedral on notice. Should be another interesting season in 5A south. East Central will be back in 4A since they only earned 2 points (two sectional titles) over the last two seasons in 5A. 2 Quote
Muda69 Posted March 2 Posted March 2 New Palestine football has completely outgrown the Hoosier Heritage conference, even with the recent additions of Brebeuf Jesuit and Guerin Catholic. It would do well for the Dragons to leave and pursue an independent football schedule. 1 Quote
Impartial_Observer Posted March 2 Posted March 2 On 3/1/2026 at 7:45 AM, 23andCounting said: I was in pretty good shape at one time, but getting trucked by someone physically superior is still a painful experience. I've stated my opinion. Now it's time for the the Dragon's to send that message and make it clear.................we fear no one, and we're showing up to win. Good luck to them. Their schedule has come a long way in the past ten seasons. I don't know much about St. Francis out of Illinois, but it's a legit sounding name. Throw in a bit of East Central, Roncalli, and IMG, and you get a battle tested team that's looking to repeat in 5A. They've put East Central and Cathedral on notice. Should be another interesting season in 5A south. IMG is NOT HS Football. Congrats to New Pal I guess, I’m not sure why anyone wants to support that crap at the expense of education based sports, but to each his own. 1 Quote
23andCounting Posted March 3 Posted March 3 42 minutes ago, Impartial_Observer said: IMG is NOT HS Football. Congrats to New Pal I guess, I’m not sure why anyone wants to support that crap at the expense of education based sports, but to each his own. It's not Kyle Ralph's fault that IMG exists. They're there, so he's taking them on. Probably the most ballsy thing I've ever seen a coach do. Not something I'd do personally, but it's his team. And so far, the amount of success he's achieved makes it a little hard to question his decision. Quote
Impartial_Observer Posted March 3 Posted March 3 6 minutes ago, 23andCounting said: It's not Kyle Ralph's fault that IMG exists. They're there, so he's taking them on. Probably the most ballsy thing I've ever seen a coach do. Not something I'd do personally, but it's his team. And so far, the amount of success he's achieved makes it a little hard to question his decision. Not at all my point, but sure. 1 Quote
BDGiant93 Posted March 3 Author Posted March 3 18 hours ago, Muda69 said: New Palestine football has completely outgrown the Hoosier Heritage conference, even with the recent additions of Brebeuf Jesuit and Guerin Catholic. It would do well for the Dragons to leave and pursue an independent football schedule. Independent means travel. Travel means money. Money is something in short supply in public education these days. 2 Quote
Muda69 Posted March 3 Posted March 3 1 hour ago, BDGiant93 said: Independent means travel. Travel means money. Money is something in short supply in public education these days. Then the New Palestine H.S. Booster Club can help foot the bill. It's all for gridiron glory, which is a worthy goal, right? Quote
BDGiant93 Posted March 3 Author Posted March 3 1 hour ago, Muda69 said: Then the New Palestine H.S. Booster Club can help foot the bill. It's all for gridiron glory, which is a worthy goal, right? I mean.......... Quote
Muda69 Posted March 3 Posted March 3 43 minutes ago, BDGiant93 said: I mean.......... Would the A.D.'s of Ben Davis, Carmel, Center Grove, etc. answer the call from the A.D. of a new independent New Palestine Dragon football program, who is looking to fill a competitive schedule? Quote
BDGiant93 Posted March 3 Author Posted March 3 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Muda69 said: Would the A.D.'s of Ben Davis, Carmel, Center Grove, etc. answer the call from the A.D. of a new independent New Palestine Dragon football program, who is looking to fill a competitive schedule? Our schedule is full through, I believe, 2028...I'm sure yes. There's less room on the Giants' schedule now that Weeks 2-9 are pretty set in stone. I believe Cathedral drops off after 2028. Edited March 3 by BDGiant93 Quote
US31 Posted March 3 Posted March 3 (edited) Does IMG pay to play? I'm confused on the monetary/finance comment above. If I was coach Ralph, I'd keep any of my better underclassmen away from the IMG folks Edited March 3 by US31 2 Quote
Coach Nowlin Posted March 3 Posted March 3 1 hour ago, US31 said: Does IMG pay to play? I'm confused on the monetary/finance comment above. If I was coach Ralph, I'd keep any of my better underclassmen away from the IMG folks There has not been one kid from New Pal who has been hurt in recruiting because he played at New Pal, so don't think anyone would have to worry about that. Quote
US31 Posted March 3 Posted March 3 31 minutes ago, Coach Nowlin said: There has not been one kid from New Pal who has been hurt in recruiting because he played at New Pal, so don't think anyone would have to worry about that. I'm not saying that at all.... Quote
Impartial_Observer Posted March 3 Posted March 3 2 hours ago, US31 said: Does IMG pay to play? I'm confused on the monetary/finance comment above. If I was coach Ralph, I'd keep any of my better underclassmen away from the IMG folks You think IMG does this out of the goodness of their heart, these are recruiting trips. Why doesn’t anyone in Texas schedule them? I’m sure they’d have no difficulty finding suitable opponents in Texas. 1 Quote
Coach Nowlin Posted March 3 Posted March 3 4 hours ago, US31 said: If I was coach Ralph, I'd keep any of my better underclassmen away from the IMG folks 2 hours ago, US31 said: I'm not saying that at all.... I guess, what does the 1st statement mean then? one would use context clues that you would NOT want underclassman near IMG staff etc because the opportunity to be lured to IMG, and the reason to go to IMG is because , SUPPOSEDLY, increase in offers and all that. So what am I missing? Quote
Irishman Posted March 3 Posted March 3 1 hour ago, Impartial_Observer said: You think IMG does this out of the goodness of their heart, these are recruiting trips. Why doesn’t anyone in Texas schedule them? I’m sure they’d have no difficulty finding suitable opponents in Texas. The Georgia High School Athletic Association has also barred any member schools from scheduling them. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.