There is a lot of buzz out there about this year's selection of teams competing for the state championship. Of note is the open game between the "best" teams from north and south. Many feel that De la Salle is the top team, but the selection committee picked Grant from Sacramento instead. The committee said that strength of schedule was the determining factor. That is almost laughable.
One other slight of note is in the small school division. 2-loss Hamilton was chosen as the north representative over undefeated Modoc and one loss St. Vincent. Were it not for the "must win section" criteria, Ferndale would have been considered as well. I think everyone can agree -- especially fans and players from Justin Siena, that Ferndale is the best small school in the north.
Some are also complaining about 2-loss St. Marys from Stockton getting in over undefeated Encinal.
As it ends up, here are the matches for this Friday and Saturday:
Small School: Hamilton v. St. Margaret's
Div. III: Cardinal Newman v. St. Bonaventure
Div. II: St. Mary's v. Cathedral
Div. I: De la Salle v. Centennial
Open: Grant v. Poly
If you think about it, the NCS is represented by two teams and many would argue should have been represented by an additional two teams.
The selection process is like the BCS, only worse. The ballots cast by the 10 member selection committee are secret and are based on inaccurate information and tainted with bias. The south gets to field larger schools for each division than the north, the south hosts the games, everything is tilted for the southern teams. I really love small school football, and though I don't think they deserve to be there, I'll root like heck for Hamilton. I will root for all the teams up north.
I hope this process goes through a serious overhaul next year -- and that they add a Division IV championship. There's little chance Justin Siena, Salesian, Middletown, Fort Bragg, or any other Div. IV team that wins the section can make it to the championship game with the likes of Cardinal Newman out there. Once they have all five divisions set, then we can begin to work on a true state championship...
4 comments:
Hamilton was embarrassing. Too bad Ferndale didn't win their section. They were the best small school in the north.
Is there any chance Ferndale will compete in the Division V playoffs next year. It would be nice for the North to have its best small school team playing in the bowl game.
This "Mythical" State Championship Bowl system is not working. Teams need a chance to WIN their way into these Championship Games, not just wait around for the politics to play out.
Is it true that every state other than California and New Jersey have state championship tournaments?
I know California is a big state, but if Texas can have state championship tournaments... What is the hold up with us doing the same?
calpreps has put together a proposal of what the state championship tournaments would look like in California. The rankings are from the end of the entire season and not just the regular season.
www.calpreps.com/2008/state_proposal.htm
I agree, California should have a true state championship. I think there's a way to do it with the sections in tact. One thing that is really missing -- of they keep calling this crap a "state championship" is a division IV game. Is it fair that Justin Siena, Middletown, Fort Bragg and the like have to compete with teams like Cardinal Newman for the Division III invite?
I agree, Ferndale would not have been blown out like Hamilton.
I do have to eat some crow, though. Grant came through and pulled off a huge upset -- kudos to them.
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