8-man state championship coming to Ohio

To me the ideal setup would be 32 teams and I think that's very attainable. Make up four regions of 8 teams and have a playoff. That would be 32 teams that probably have very little to be excited about now. It's just like any other sport - if someone doesn't have something to be excited about, it's not going to be successful.
 
I think many here are way overestimating the interest schools have in playing 8 man. Most schools view it as a last resort and something
they would do while rebuilding your program to move back to 11 man. With open enrollment schools know if they drop down to 8 man they will lose students to nearby schools that play 11 man and that cost the school district money.
 
CC Track Fan said:
I think many here are way overestimating the interest schools have in playing 8 man. Most schools view it as a last resort and something
they would do while rebuilding your program to move back to 11 man. With open enrollment schools know if they drop down to 8 man they will lose students to nearby schools that play 11 man and that cost the school district money.
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I could see this becoming a popular idea for smaller private schools who offer every sport but football. Perhaps the MOCAL schools of Granville Christian, Liberty Christian, Madison Christian, Shekinah Christian, Delaware Christian, Tree of Life and Northside Christian. I imagine there might be some interest in those schools.
 
CC Track Fan said:
I think many here are way overestimating the interest schools have in playing 8 man. Most schools view it as a last resort and something
they would do while rebuilding your program to move back to 11 man. With open enrollment schools know if they drop down to 8 man they will lose students to nearby schools that play 11 man and that cost the school district money.
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I wonder if the coaches would be paid similarly, or if it would turn into an almost parents volunteer type of thing. There's a lot of factors that could make this a short and unsuccessful experiment. I am seriously rooting for them though, there must've been a decent amount of interest to get this far.
 
LCL said:
I could see this becoming a popular idea for smaller private schools who offer every sport but football. Perhaps the MOCAL schools of Granville Christian, Liberty Christian, Madison Christian, Shekinah Christian, Delaware Christian, Tree of Life and Northside Christian. I imagine there might be some interest in those schools.
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I'll wager that the student body of Shekinah Christian would not be too into football.
 
LCL said:
I could see this becoming a popular idea for smaller private schools who offer every sport but football. Perhaps the MOCAL schools of Granville Christian, Liberty Christian, Madison Christian, Shekinah Christian, Delaware Christian, Tree of Life and Northside Christian. I imagine there might be some interest in those schools.
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Some of those schools have pretty decent soccer teams, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t want to potentially mess up participation in that.
 
CC Track Fan said:
I think many here are way overestimating the interest schools have in playing 8 man. Most schools view it as a last resort and something
they would do while rebuilding your program to move back to 11 man. With open enrollment schools know if they drop down to 8 man they will lose students to nearby schools that play 11 man and that cost the school district money.
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You talk to people at most schools?

This OHSFCA tournament is pretty clearly a stepping stone. Unless it is a complete failure, look for the OHSAA to create an 8-man division in another year or two, and then even more schools will go to 8-man.
 
According to an article published on cleveland.com, Ohio had 168,000 fewer school aged children this fall compared to 2010. I have watched the district I reside in shrink from 10 units (classes) in many grades to 7 in seven years. If your district is gaining population, it’s bucking the trend and probably in a high growth suburban area or gaining student population through open enrollment. There will be a real need for 8 man football and/or co-ops going forward. Hopefully, some programs will do what’s right by kids and make the move to a structure that allows them to be competitive. I’d think adding a championship structure only helps.
 
chs1971 said:
You talk to people at most schools?

This OHSFCA tournament is pretty clearly a stepping stone. Unless it is a complete failure, look for the OHSAA to create an 8-man division in another year or two, and then even more schools will go to 8-man.
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Obviously I don't talk to people at most schools. This is a discussion forum where people express their opinion I would have thought after all these years posting here you would have figured that out but guess not so I had to explain it to you.

The fact that there are only 6 schools playing 8 man is a good indication that schools do what they can to not move to that level. There will need to be way more schools start playing 8 man until the OHSAA creates a state championship for them.

Just because the coach's association creates a state championship doesn't mean OHSAA will follow. The track coach's association has been putting on an indoor state championship for many of years with hundreds of schools participating and OHSAA has not yet added the sport.
 
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CC Track Fan said:
Just because the coach's association creates a state championship doesn't mean OHSAA will follow. The track coach's association has been putting on an indoor state championship for many of years with hundreds of schools participating and OHSAA has not yet added the sport.
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Probably because it is the same sport as outdoor track. It would be like adding outdoor basketball or indoor soccer.
 
Rangerfan said:
Probably because it is the same sport as outdoor track. It would be like adding outdoor basketball or indoor soccer.
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I understand why it is not added just pointing out that just because the coach's association adds a state championship doesn't mean OSHAA will add it.
 
CC Track Fan said:
Obviously I don't talk to people at most schools. This is a discussion forum where people express their opinion I would have thought after all these years posting here you would have figured that out but guess not so I had to explain it to you.

The fact that there are only 6 schools playing 8 man is a good indication that schools do what they can to not move to that level. There will need to be way more schools start playing 8 man until the OHSAA creates a state championship for them.

Just because the coach's association creates a state championship doesn't mean OHSAA will follow. The track coach's association has been putting on an indoor state championship for many of years with hundreds of schools participating and OHSAA has not yet added the sport.
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There isn't a 'level' in the OHSAA for 8-man. This is essentially SOIL's club teams. Completely outside the scope of the OHSAA. Which is part of the problem. For all the state tournaments the OHSAA runs, you'd think they'd have some type of benchmark for creating a playoff for an 8-man division. Either a set number of teams etc. Other states create the division and then fill in the teams afterwards.

A lot easier to get teams conducive to going with 8-man when there's already a division for 8-man with the ability for a state title at that level. A lot harder when the alternative is "eh, at least you're not playing soccer right now".
 
Football is football. Pull up some highlights and see the games are very simillar. They tackle, block, run and catch just like the eleven man guys. The barriers to eight man taking off in Ohio are travel and stubbornness. The stubbornness coming from the pressure from conference members and community members to stick with it.

You are telling me a kid from Russia or a Houston wouid leave his lifelong friends to transfer to a neighboring community with eleven man if their school started an eight man program? We are told repeatedly on this site that small town kids wish to stay with their childhood friends for the duration of their school years.

How many JV games have been canceled in recent years because a V team with a roster of 30 or less can’t field a JV team? Many schools in a numbers crunch could field a V and JV team at the eight man level. My home district had a D5 school cancel a JV game because of low numbers just this fall. Why not play JV games as eight man? Start taking away game reps and the numbers will continue to dry up the same as they did when schools began cutting freshman and separate middle school teams.
 
LICKING COUNTY FAN said:
It would for the most part take care of the number issues and allow for some schools that do not field a team to do so or send the kids who wish to play to another school so that they can do so. Works in other states.
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True, but 8-man also takes care of the numbers issues to some degree?

Actually, I see no reason both couldn't co-exist. Start an 8-man program or hook up with a similarly-sized school in the area.
 
queencitybuckeye said:
True, but 8-man also takes care of the numbers issues to some degree?

Actually, I see no reason both couldn't co-exist. Start an 8-man program or hook up with a similarly-sized school in the area.
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I agree no need for both. I like the Co-op suggestion much better.
CSP a team I follow in New York is three small schools that co-op and they are still in the smallest class in NY.
 
Captain Obvious said:
Football is football. Pull up some highlights and see the games are very simillar. They tackle, block, run and catch just like the eleven man guys. The barriers to eight man taking off in Ohio are travel and stubbornness. The stubbornness coming from the pressure from conference members and community members to stick with it.

You are telling me a kid from Russia or a Houston wouid leave his lifelong friends to transfer to a neighboring community with eleven man if their school started an eight man program? We are told repeatedly on this site that small town kids wish to stay with their childhood friends for the duration of their school years.

How many JV games have been canceled in recent years because a V team with a roster of 30 or less can’t field a JV team? Many schools in a numbers crunch could field a V and JV team at the eight man level. My home district had a D5 school cancel a JV game because of low numbers just this fall. Why not play JV games as eight man? Start taking away game reps and the numbers will continue to dry up the same as they did when schools began cutting freshman and separate middle school teams.
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Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch played 8 man, not too bad a player.
 
LCL said:
I could see this becoming a popular idea for smaller private schools who offer every sport but football. Perhaps the MOCAL schools of Granville Christian, Liberty Christian, Madison Christian, Shekinah Christian, Delaware Christian, Tree of Life and Northside Christian. I imagine there might be some interest in those schools.
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Grandview Hts played 8 man in the middle school for a couple years- I think they had enough last year to play 11 man but prior to that they played 8 man a couple years- so Grandview Hts I believe would look at 8 man if it became a OHSAA sponsored sport.
 
LICKING COUNTY FAN said:
I agree no need for both. I like the Co-op suggestion much better.
CSP a team I follow in New York is three small schools that co-op and they are still in the smallest class in NY.
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The Co Op idea has merits but there are definite issues to work out. School academic standards, School codes of conduct, finances, staffing, supplemental pay, end of year evaluations, hiring, union contracts, etc. I’m not saying these issues cannot be worked out but there are things that need to agreed upon.
 
fbrox said:
The Co Op idea has merits but there are definite issues to work out. School academic standards, School codes of conduct, finances, staffing, supplemental pay, end of year evaluations, hiring, union contracts, etc. I’m not saying these issues cannot be worked out but there are things that need to agreed upon.
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No. The co-op is just for a specific sports team. That's it. Nothing else is shared.
 
Crimson and Black said:
Is there a provision where a kid attends a high school with no football, to play for another school that does?
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If a student who lives in a public school district attends a private school, and the private school does not offer a sport the public school does, then that student may play that sport for the public school he/she otherwise would attend.
 
BirdDog10 said:
On another note, am I the only one that thinks a cutoff of 160 boys is ridiculous? Are these the same EMIS numbers that OHSAA divisions use? If so then all of D6 and a handful of D5 teams could decide to play 8-man.
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The 160-boy cutoff seemed a bit high to me as well.
 
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