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The public school verses private school battle is now going full steam ahead. With several public schools pushing to get a new football playoff system here in Arkansas, coaches, fans, and many others around the state are awaiting the final vote that is coming up this August.

http://arkansasvarsity.rivals.com/showm ... 07&style=2

Let me start by saying I am not a big fan of Shiloh Christian, but I think something needs to be brought up:
In the Shiloh vs. Berryville game last October, the Saints played 4 different players at QB. The starting QB, Frazier, only threw 6 passes, completing 2, both for TD's. Late in the game, Shiloh was using offensive and defensive linemen in the backfield.
I really think Berryville is sending the wrong message to their kids by not playing the Saints. For one, there's the rule that a forfeit (which is what this would be) automatically disqualifies a team from post-season play.
I think the thing to do would be to move the school up to 5A to take the place of Siloam Springs, when the Panthers move to 6A. Shiloh would be in the same conference with the likes of Alma, Greenwood, Harrison, Morrilton, etc.

Texas already does this, but it's Texas. You got a gillion more private schools. They have their own 1A-5A classifications. Only 2 private schools in Texas play in the public school playoffs and they are all boy Catholic schools in Houston and Dallas. They have to play at the largest 5A public school level regardless of enrollment.

Public and private play during the regular season in TX but only in non district (conference in AR.) games. Ark doesn't have enough private schools to make a serious playoff bracket "meaningful." Our state playoff system is already watered down enough with this IDIOTIC 7 class system. What MORON(S) thought AR needed 7 classes. JUST STUPID!!! In some sports you only have to be better than 15 schools statewide to win state. WOOO HOOO!

Well...in 6A and 7A there are only 16 teams each so that is true for all sports....

Now...we all know Shiloh never recruits.....they just are fortunate to have a small but very talented student body.......however, the talent remarkably is really only football related to a large degree....

How many private schools in Arkansas play football?? The Arkansas system could work just like Texas and do just fine. IMO......The AAA really seems to have some wack jobs running the system b/c this new idea of having the private schools play in public school conferences and then have their own playoff system is insane.

If the parents that send their kids to private school are that dead set on not putting their kids through public school then I see no other way than to just have a seperate conference and playoff system for the private schools, regardless of how many there are.

David McCollum had a great column on this the other day. As he stated, it's no more fair to lump the private schools together because places like St. Joe, Conway Christian, LR Lutheran, etc. are nothing like Shiloh, PA, and CAC. There are a small handful of schools people have a problem with, and that's the ones beating the bloody hell out of everybody.

Best I recall, there hasn't been longstanding clamoring for Catholic to have to split off. Why? Because they aren't an overbearing powerhouse. There's no wailing about Subiaco Academy, is there?

If there were an ample number of private schools in Arkansas where you could have a few divisions with schools on a pretty level playing field, that'd be one thing. As it stands, there's really no need for it.

You can increase the enrollment multiplier even more if you want, to get Shiloh and PA in even higher classifications, but then of course that still screws over the smaller schools if they have to abide by the same multiplier. I'm not sure what the legality of it all is, but maybe there's a way to move PA and Shiloh up in classification without affecting the others.

I don't know if that'd be the AAA taking a hard stance and denying those specific institutions membership if they don't agree to an arbitrary reclassification; or if the AAA could entice them with a gentlemanly offer (what you'd offer, I don't know) to kindly move up ... maybe tournament hosting guarantees or something. All of that seems pretty asinine though.

The easiest solution would be for Berryville to grow a sack and go play the game. I don't see the Cleveland Indians crying because the New York Yankees have so many more resources and a much higher payroll. Instead they just went out and embarrassed the Bronx Bombers in their billion-dollar house and made them like it.

Actually, not too long ago people were doing just that. And Subiaco is the only school I can think of where guys are shipping in, not just from across town or the county, but from out of state. They aren't winning any more, so people don't care now.


Well said and although it's professional sports - still a good analogy.

Rick Schaeffer has tried to make the professional sports comparison but didn't do a very good job of it. He did have one excellent analogy, but I can't remember it right now. It was something I've never really thought about in the argument - anyway, I agreed with it.

UPDATE:
He was referring to how the LR School District works. If you want to go to Parkview (an arts magnet school), you don't have to live in the district boundaries. What's the difference? And I'll throw in: If you live in Pine Bluff, are a minority, and want to attend White Hall HS, then you can certainly do that ---- or the other way around. What's the difference? No one is complaining about the sudden influx of minorities on the WHHS team.

The multiplier is fine the way it is. I think it's actually a little high, but the private schools are still competing/beating the competition. If your team sucks, practice more; lift more weights; get better. It's not like Berryville was going to win the state championship anyway.

Well there you go. Folks only get riled up about it when they're winning. When they're the whipping boy, well by all means ... glad to have ya.


I think it's all much ado about nothing. If there's a problem, it's very minor and nothing drastic needs to be done. It's really not that uneven a playing field anyway – what the public schools won't readily admit is that many of them do every bit as much recruiting of athletes as the private schools do.

Shiloh Christian has released a statement on this matter

http://arkansasvarsity.rivals.com/conte ... CID=943516

Pretty solid response right there. I'm not going to watch the entire game on their Web site, but basically Berryville got it handed to them by the first string and the Shiloh jv guys. Suck it up and move on. Or quit playing altogether.

Wake up politically correct America. You will lose at some point in life. Stop playing sports where people don't keep score. Stop playing games where kids are safe even if they are thrown out. Not everyone deserves a trophy.

If you get beat by 65, don't freaking cry about it, especially when the teams JV running back has 131 yards rushing and the winner was 1-3 passing for 5 yards.

Unbelievable. I would like to propose that Berryville start its own league of whiners and losers. Let's take a vote on it. Everyone who votes for the proposal can join you in the WCHLSWSOOL (We can't handle losing so we started our out league).

It's not even like Berryville is a good team. They finished just 3-6 against non-private schools and were playing the state champions! They were the same 3-7 in 2007 and didn't play Shiloh. In this millennium, they've had three wining seasons and one winLESS season.

This is a good idea, but I much prefer the name

People
United
Supporting
Success
In
Every
School

That's exactly what they want the AAA to do (especially the AD/head coach from one of the schools you mentioned).
In my opinion, I think the AAA has this all wrong. A select few private schools want their athletic programs be at the top level of the high school classifications (no matter how much enrollment they have). The reasons are they get to play at the highest level and win at the highest level. By doing that it brings in more prestige for their program and, of course, having more prestige will attract better student/athletes attending the school. Many of the administrators, coaches, and parents of these athletes hope by playing on a prestigious winning team and playing a the highest level of competition will help their kids get scholarships from big time schools. Getting those big time scholarship offers just add even more prestige to their programs.

So my point is, instead of increasing the classification level of these so called rogue programs, maybe the AAA should (instead) either take the multiplier away or decrease them to one level lower than their enrollment numbers allow. Then, by doing this, it will stop all this questionable recruiting of the better players because they would be competing in a lower classification where the lower competition could hinder their abilities for higher level college scholarship offers, thus hurting the prestige of the program. Obviously, beating Conway, Springdale, or LR Central is much more prestigious than betting Mayflower, Hector, or Bearden. Maybe once it is determined that recruiting is not happening anymore, then they can go back to their proper level of competition.
Unfortunately,some of the smaller schools would have to suffer during the process, but I think it would help eliminate recruiting athletes to some of these schools. I think if they did that and if the AAA declared scholarships as being prohibited it would make the playing field more equal. The key move would be to do both of these actions and not just one or none.
If you only take scholarships away and not decrease the level, then some of the parents of these kids will just be paid under the table from rich boosters and you're really not accomplishing much. But if you take away both, then the prestige is lower and the motive to pay under the table is not as attractive as it once was. Sorry I beat the word "prestige" to death, but that is what it is all about for these select few programs.

My goodness, look at Greenbrier HS. I can't remember the last time they had a winning season. Their program is pitiful but you don't see the parents and admins having a cow over it. Sounds as though Berryville wants declarations made that will assure them of a winning program. If "we can't beat you on the field then we'll beat you in the committees".

Wow, what a pansy ass way of trying to improve your record.

"You can't expect my 4th team QB to fall down on the ball when he gets his minutes to play in a game; it's up to the defense to tackle the offense."

Paraphrasing Former Texas Coach Freddie Akers