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Which happens first?


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Any interesting question posed during the state finals game, thought it would be interesting to discuss here... 

 

A.) New Pal wins another state championship 

B.) Kyle Ralph is hired elsewhere. 

 

Embrace debate. 

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2 minutes ago, Olympian06 said:

A. 
 

Ralph is like Jesus Christ himself in New PAL. His wife is from there, he oversees almost the entire youth football program. He has such a deep relationship with that program and community, I would be stunned if he goes anywhere anytime soon. 

I figured this would be an early response. And this makes a lot of sense, but neglects the fact that Ralph has been considered and interviewed for other premier jobs in the state. 

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10 minutes ago, QB said:

I figured this would be an early response. And this makes a lot of sense, but neglects the fact that Ralph has been considered and interviewed for other premier jobs in the state. 

 I won’t pretend to know Coach Ralph  personally but I can say that the word “premier” means different things to different folks.

 I am not sure why he would leave at this point as he basically has the keys to the city and has the train rolling downhill...

Southern Hancock is one of the highest paying school corporations in Indiana  so I assume he is making good coin...

New Palestine has great demographics and facilities and is a growing suburban community...

The grass is not always greener on the other side... see Noblesville and Lawrence Central.

 Based on the above factors I believe New Pal is just getting started.

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9 minutes ago, QB said:

I figured this would be an early response. And this makes a lot of sense, but neglects the fact that Ralph has been considered and interviewed for other premier jobs in the state. 

Ralph doesn’t have to worry about the “politics” at New PAL as he would at maybe some of these other programs. Right now, New Pal is as good as anyone in the state. I would say IF he ever decides to leave, he would make his way back to St X. 

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4 minutes ago, Temptation said:

 I won’t pretend to know Coach Ralph  personally but I can say that the word “premier” means different things to different folks.

 I am not sure why he would leave at this point as he basically has the keys to the city and has the train rolling downhill...

Southern Hancock is one of the highest paying school corporations in Indiana  so I assume he is making good coin...

New Palestine has great demographics and facilities and is a growing suburban community...

The grass is not always greener on the other side... see Noblesville and Lawrence Central.

 Based on the above factors I believe New Pal is just getting started.

All great points, but at what point does he get bored playing an HHC schedule? If all this stuff was true then why interview at other places? For leverage? Just seems strange to say 100% its not happening when year after year he meets with other programs with openings. He very well could be a NP lifer, and I'm not saying he won't be, just think there may be more factors in play. 

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20 minutes ago, QB said:

All great points, but at what point does he get bored playing an HHC schedule? If all this stuff was true then why interview at other places? For leverage? Just seems strange to say 100% its not happening when year after year he meets with other programs with openings. He very well could be a NP lifer, and I'm not saying he won't be, just think there may be more factors in play. 

They are growing. They will not be in the HHC is 5-7 years because of growth.  Possible HCC or MIC future?

As far as Coach Ralph, it seems like he has this program going like Center Grove.  Oversee's the youth program, etc. 

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7 minutes ago, Staxawax said:

They are growing. They will not be in the HHC is 5-7 years because of growth.  Possible HCC or MIC future?

As far as Coach Ralph, it seems like he has this program going like Center Grove.  Oversee's the youth program, etc. 

He's built a great program, no doubt. It's incredible impressive the stuff he has done at NP. I think your right from a growth perspective as that area is set to explode over the next decade. It'll be interesting to see if that will be enough to get them into the HCC or MIC as they are still 1k or so students away from the smallest school in either of those conferences. Not to mention rival MV growing on the opposite side of the county which is closer in proximity to the HCC schools. Perhaps they consider getting out of the HHC for football only down the road, as it could be tough to compete in other sports that don't excel as well as softball or football at NP. 

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1 hour ago, QB said:

I figured this would be an early response. And this makes a lot of sense, but neglects the fact that Ralph has been considered and interviewed for other premier jobs in the state. 

Used as leverage?

Many coaches do this. 

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I always wonder how the teaching schedule fits into things... it is becoming more and more common at the mega schools for football coaches to have “cush” jobs from 7-3...

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3 minutes ago, Temptation said:

I always wonder how the teaching schedule fits into things... it is becoming more and more common at the mega schools for football coaches to have “cush” jobs from 7-3...

APC

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9 minutes ago, DannEllenwood said:

Used as leverage?

Many coaches do this. 

Absolutely they do, but how many times does that work/get out of NP range? I don't know the answer to that, but surely can't be more than a couple. 

7 minutes ago, Temptation said:

Oh, I’ve seen worse...

Ah yes the "sports performance coordinator" gig that is out there is much worse... 

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30 minutes ago, QB said:

Absolutely they do, but how many times does that work/get out of NP range? I don't know the answer to that, but surely can't be more than a couple. 

Ah yes the "sports performance coordinator" gig that is out there is much worse... 

Made up titles are the best.

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40 minutes ago, QB said:

Absolutely they do, but how many times does that work/get out of NP range? I don't know the answer to that, but surely can't be more than a couple. 

Ah yes the "sports performance coordinator" gig that is out there is much worse... 

Sorry. I don’t understand your question. 

41 minutes ago, QB said:

Absolutely they do, but how many times does that work/get out of NP range? I don't know the answer to that, but surely can't be more than a couple. 

Ah yes the "sports performance coordinator" gig that is out there is much worse... 

SPC.....big school near Indy?  

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2 hours ago, QB said:

He's built a great program, no doubt. It's incredible impressive the stuff he has done at NP. I think your right from a growth perspective as that area is set to explode over the next decade. It'll be interesting to see if that will be enough to get them into the HCC or MIC as they are still 1k or so students away from the smallest school in either of those conferences. Not to mention rival MV growing on the opposite side of the county which is closer in proximity to the HCC schools. Perhaps they consider getting out of the HHC for football only down the road, as it could be tough to compete in other sports that don't excel as well as softball or football at NP. 

The Hoosier Heritage Conference is a pretty tight-knit group of schools and nobody is going to leave the conference for football only. There's really no place to go at this point - the Mid-State is already at 8 teams and while NP plays a lot of those schools in other sports, it doesn't have a real rivalry with any of them. Conference Indiana is a poor geographic fit and the schools are all 5A/6A enrollments and either Marion County township schools or small-city schools. The HCC is also at eight teams and are all *very big* 5As or 6As.  

Coach Ralph has said *many times* how impressed he is with the quality of coaching in the league, and he just helped spearhead a youth football tournament for 4th-5th-6th graders at all HHC schools. Mt. Vernon, Pendleton Heights and Delta are all solid programs that are getting better. The conference will be very competitive next year. 

Now, it's hard to project a decade into the future, but it's not out of reach to see MV, NP and PH all topping 2,000 students given how quickly things are growing. MV's growth is explosive, PH's proximity to Noblesville and I-69 will likely lead to additional growth, and NP is in the beginnings of an explosion of residential growth that will likely increase high school enrollment by 250-300 in the next 4-5 years. 

New Palestine's a pretty good situation. Football-crazed community, very well-established feeder program, culture in place with kids buying in, a school that pays its teachers well, good administrative support, growing community. Why leave that to start over somewhere else? 

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3 hours ago, QB said:

If all this stuff was true then why interview at other places?

Every AD in the state with a job opening wouldn't be doing his homework if it didn't at least call. I don't know if that constitutes "interviewing." But there's a difference between taking a phone call. He can have pretty much any job he wants, and yet, he's stayed in NP for seven years. 

Meanwhile, two very high-profile coaches left MIC schools in the last five years to coach in the HHC, which tells you a lot about the desirability of jobs in this league and area of the state. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. New Pal isn't Mayberry - it's a growing, upper-middle class community 15 miles from downtown Indianapolis with a tremendous amount of community support and a passion for football. You don't find that everywhere. 

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3 hours ago, CaptainHook said:

This question every year for 5 years.  Sigh.

... longer than that. It's been a topic *every* offseason since they walked off the field at Columbus East in 2013, usually by people who don't know Coach Ralph, don't know his connection to the community, and assume New Palestine is some flash-in-the-pan podunk school that's a waystation to "bigger" programs. I'm not sure how much "bigger" you can get than winning two state titles in the second-largest class and being ranked #1 in the state in MaxPreps. "Bigger" is not always better. This isn't college football, where Alabama has deep pockets and can pick whomever it wants and then have access to the best players in the country. Because schools are 100% taxpayer-funded, "bigger" schools really can't offer much more in salary - especially given what NP already pays (which is among the highest in the state). Really, in the Indy metro, "bigger" is just going to a similar school that might have more students ... and if you're patient, New Palestine will be there enrollment-wise in a few years. Its development as a community is not dissimilar to Center Grove or Brownsburg, but the growth is coming about 20 years after those communities'. 

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12 hours ago, CaptainHook said:

This question every year for 5 years.  Sigh.

It is nauseating but is the ultimate sign of respect for Ralph...even if at the same time it’s is backhandedly a lack of respect for New Pal.

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1 hour ago, Temptation said:

It is nauseating but is the ultimate sign of respect for Ralph...even if at the same time it’s is backhandedly a lack of respect for New Pal.

Very true.  I'd much rather have this than discussing an irrelevant middling program. I assume Coach Ralph isn't going anywhere,  but even if he eventually does I will just enjoy and admire what has been built in New Pal.

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15 hours ago, crimsonace1 said:

Every AD in the state with a job opening wouldn't be doing his homework if it didn't at least call. I don't know if that constitutes "interviewing." But there's a difference between taking a phone call. He can have pretty much any job he wants, and yet, he's stayed in NP for seven years. 

Meanwhile, two very high-profile coaches left MIC schools in the last five years to coach in the HHC, which tells you a lot about the desirability of jobs in this league and area of the state. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. New Pal isn't Mayberry - it's a growing, upper-middle class community 15 miles from downtown Indianapolis with a tremendous amount of community support and a passion for football. You don't find that everywhere. 

I'd consider "interviewing" as attending an interview at the school with an AD, which he has done. I'd say that's a little different than fielding a phone call. 

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16 hours ago, crimsonace1 said:

The Hoosier Heritage Conference is a pretty tight-knit group of schools and nobody is going to leave the conference for football only. There's really no place to go at this point - the Mid-State is already at 8 teams and while NP plays a lot of those schools in other sports, it doesn't have a real rivalry with any of them. Conference Indiana is a poor geographic fit and the schools are all 5A/6A enrollments and either Marion County township schools or small-city schools. The HCC is also at eight teams and are all *very big* 5As or 6As.  

Coach Ralph has said *many times* how impressed he is with the quality of coaching in the league, and he just helped spearhead a youth football tournament for 4th-5th-6th graders at all HHC schools. Mt. Vernon, Pendleton Heights and Delta are all solid programs that are getting better. The conference will be very competitive next year. 

Now, it's hard to project a decade into the future, but it's not out of reach to see MV, NP and PH all topping 2,000 students given how quickly things are growing. MV's growth is explosive, PH's proximity to Noblesville and I-69 will likely lead to additional growth, and NP is in the beginnings of an explosion of residential growth that will likely increase high school enrollment by 250-300 in the next 4-5 years. 

New Palestine's a pretty good situation. Football-crazed community, very well-established feeder program, culture in place with kids buying in, a school that pays its teachers well, good administrative support, growing community. Why leave that to start over somewhere else? 

I don't disagree with any of this.

Want to be clear in saying I think the answer is also "A" here.

I think NP is a top 10 job in the state, no doubt. I just wanted to spark discussion to see what everyone else thinks. I think the one difference between me and the rest of the group here is I'd put it at more 80/20 as Ralph being a NP lifer as opposed to leaving at some point when many seem to think its closer to 95/5. I just think eventually someone makes a Godfather offer or opportunity that he can't pass up. 

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16 hours ago, CaptainHook said:

This question every year for 5 years.  Sigh.

 

13 hours ago, crimsonace1 said:

... longer than that. It's been a topic *every* offseason since they walked off the field at Columbus East in 2013, usually by people who don't know Coach Ralph, don't know his connection to the community, and assume New Palestine is some flash-in-the-pan podunk school that's a waystation to "bigger" programs. I'm not sure how much "bigger" you can get than winning two state titles in the second-largest class and being ranked #1 in the state in MaxPreps. "Bigger" is not always better. This isn't college football, where Alabama has deep pockets and can pick whomever it wants and then have access to the best players in the country. Because schools are 100% taxpayer-funded, "bigger" schools really can't offer much more in salary - especially given what NP already pays (which is among the highest in the state). Really, in the Indy metro, "bigger" is just going to a similar school that might have more students ... and if you're patient, New Palestine will be there enrollment-wise in a few years. Its development as a community is not dissimilar to Center Grove or Brownsburg, but the growth is coming about 20 years after those communities'. 

I personally don't see Coach Ralph leaving New Pal any time soon for many reasons stated: wife's hometown, football crazed town, community support, administration support, facilities, growing community. 

That being said I feel if any school would be the one to lure him away it would be when Steve Specht retires or leaves Cincinnati St. Xavier. I would think they (St. X) would definitely be interested in Coach Ralph because he is a graduate, former assistant coach, and has had great success as a Head Coach. I think Coach Ralph could (will not say would) be interested because it is his Alma Mater (He is a member of the Long Blue Line) and for many reasons he is at New Pal: Football community facilities, etc. 

That however could be down the line quite a bit. I have always felt Coach Ralph is very comfortable where he is at for now.

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