Well it's simple. Do you want your Hornets to be able to compete deep into the playoffs and play for state championships or not? If the answer is yes, then as a North team you should want crossover games.
In DVII you did not have to be 10-0, 9-1 or even 8-2 to make the 8-team playoffs. As a matter of fact, 5-5 teams make it almost every year and even a 4-6 team made it a few years ago. So a loss or two in week 4 & 5 wasn't going to damage your chances at a playoff spot in the 8-team playoff system and you have even more wiggle room now that it will be a 12-team playoff. If you go back and look, you will see years where four 4-6 teams would've made the DVII playoffs in this region if there were 12 playoff teams.
Now, if you go undefeated in league play (like Malvern did last year) and win the North you are going to be in the playoffs. The question then becomes are you prepared to compete in the playoffs? The answer last year was painfully no.
But let's not stop there. Let's look at what it takes to compete at the state level. To win a state championship last year in DVI or DVII you were going to have beat quarterbacks like Mitchell Hays (New Bremen), Myles Blasingame (Coldwater) or Beau Brungard (New Middletown Springfield). Well, which quarterback in the IVC North would've prepared you for any of those guys?
That's why crossovers should be so valuable for the IVC North. Because Malvern could've played against Gabe Tingle, Garrett Newsome or Cam Blair. Those crossovers gave you a chance to play against teams that would be similar to high level DVII & DVI schools. Would you probably lose? Sure. Do you think DVII Marion Local cared when they lost to Division III Bishop Watterson a few years ago and then went on to win state? Do you think DVII Minster cared when they lost four games in a row to higher division league opponents and then went on to win the state title in 2017?
The point is if you want to have high goals you have to play high level competition and the crossovers could provide that for North schools. You actually have an advantage (the chance to play DIV or DV schools) that very few DVII schools in the state have. Why wouldn't you want to use it your advantage?
I'd say the exact opposite for the South. If Ridgewood or Garaway wants to win a state title, playing a North team in weeks 4 & 5 isn't going to prepare them to play Ironton or Kirtland. So the South schools should be fighting to eliminate the crossovers IMO.
I would agree that the way crossovers are done isn't the best. I'd set it up so the top two programs in the South play the top two programs in the North every year, the middle two programs in the South play the middle two in the North each other and the bottom two in the South play the bottom two in the North each year,
You make week 4 a home game for all North teams and week 5 a home game for all South teams so everyone is on track to get five home games.
You have enough data to classify the teams and you update every few years. It's one of the advantages the MAC has. They schedule so all of the top teams play each other (for competition) and so that all of the bottom teams play each other (for program building) If you look it at right now, your three "pods" would be something like this
Ridgewood & Garaway vs. Malvern & Buckeye Trail
Indian Valley & Sandy Valley vs. East Canton & TCC
Tusky Valley & Claymont vs. Strasburg & Newcomerstown
I'll just finish by asking you a simple question. Would you trade losses to Ridgewood and Garaway in weeks 4 & 5 for wins in the playoffs in weeks 11, 12, 13, etc?
Lol.