By CRAIG HALL
Hall about it
After introducing the concept of how to save sports for primarily public schools in yesterday’s column, I decided to take all this a step farther.
In my view, the OSSAA no longer adequately represents public schools. It is time for those schools to form a new association.
Because I am such a nice dude, I will volunteer to be commissioner. Commissioner Craig — or dictator, if you prefer.
Private schools could join, but they would have two choices: compete in a separate division, which I prefer, or follow the same rules as public schools. No recruiting. No athletic scholarships. No favoritism.
Cascia Hall is no more important than Bokoshe.
I favor four-team districts based on enrollment and geography, with five-team districts where necessary. Schools would not be assigned to districts to balance power rankings.
Whatever district a school plays in for football would also be its district for basketball, softball, baseball, volleyball, cross country, soccer and other sports it offers.
All teams would make the playoffs. District results would determine seeding, with neighboring districts paired for the opening round. In a four-team district, the fourth-place team would face the champion of the neighboring district, while the second-place team would face the third-place team.
When a five-team district is paired with a four-team district, the champion of the five-team district would receive an opening-round bye. The remaining eight teams would play opening-round games. Additional bracket arrangements would be needed to accommodate the five teams remaining after that round.
Slow-pitch softball is toast. Volleyball would be played in the fall and fast-pitch softball in the spring.
Schools without football would be divided into two classes by enrollment, then placed in geographic districts of four or five teams. Those districts would remain the same across the sports each school offers.
For example, Cameron, Howe, Whitesboro and Wister could form a district. Schools would face nearby opponents of reasonably similar size, and every team would advance to the playoffs.
If a school does not offer volleyball, wrestling or another sport, the district schools that do offer it would compete and advance to the playoffs.
All playoff games would be played at neutral sites. A participating school should not receive home-court or home-field advantage simply because it has the larger facility.
There would be no exclusive playoff streaming contract with an organization such as NFHS. Schools that want to stream their games should have that opportunity through the state championship.
State football championships would be broadcast on public television, following Arkansas’ example, where the football finals air on PBS. I would like to see similar coverage for championships in other sports.
Football championships would not automatically be played at UCO. Sites would be selected to give both schools a fair trip. A team from southeastern or western Oklahoma should not have to drive four hours to face an opponent located 30 minutes from the championship site.
Playoff tournaments would be held throughout the state instead of being concentrated in a few locations.
I realize finding enough neutral facilities could be challenging. In southeastern Oklahoma, possibilities could include larger facilities at Spiro, Wilburton, Hartshorne, Southeastern Oklahoma State University and Connors State College, depending on the sport and availability.
Under my preferred plan, public and private schools would have separate districts and playoffs. They could still schedule one another for nondistrict games.
Again, if a school is Class 2A in football, it would also be Class 2A in basketball and its other sports. Smaller geographic districts would reduce the need for southeastern Oklahoma schools to travel to Tulsa for district games.
District games would be played at the end of the regular season. Sports other than football would use home-and-away district schedules.
Promotion and relegation would be based on football results. Win your football district, and your school moves up a class the following season. Finish last, and it drops a class. That classification would apply to every sport the school offers.
Oklahoma does not need two divisions each of Class 6A, Class 2A, Class A and eight-man football. My proposal would have Classes 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A and A for 11-man football, with Class B for eight-man teams.
I understand some people would miss playing the state basketball finals at State Fair Arena. But if Howe and Pocola reach the championship game, sending both schools and their fans to Oklahoma City makes little sense.
Let them play at a suitable neutral site closer to home, such as Spiro.
Transfer rules would also be straightforward. A student transferring to a school would have to actually live in that district to be immediately eligible.
Otherwise, the student would sit out the remainder of the current sports season and become eligible for the next sport. A student transferring during football season, for example, could become eligible for basketball or wrestling.
Keeping administrative costs down would also be a priority. My goal would be playoff admission of about $5 per person or $10 per family.
Families should be able to attend without spending a small fortune.
The accompanying proposed Class 2A alignment shows how the football districts could work.
In the opening round, the champion of District 2A-16 would face the fourth-place team from 2A-15. The champion of 2A-15 would face the fourth-place team from 2A-16. Each district’s runner-up would face the other district’s third-place team.
Those four winners would advance to the next round. The two remaining teams would then face the two survivors from the other paired districts in their area.
Each area would produce two qualifiers, giving us eight teams in the state tournament.
State tournament sites would be selected for the teams involved. Oklahoma City might make sense in one year. Ardmore, Ada or another centrally located community might make more sense in another.
Polls would have no role in playoff seeding. District results would determine the bracket.
Rankings are fun, but a team’s postseason path should not depend on opinions from people who may never have watched it play.
The two classes for schools without football would still have some enrollment differences within districts. Geography would remain a priority, and every team would make the playoffs.
A school that struggles in one sport might excel in another. The goal would be nearby competition, consistent districts and a postseason opportunity for every team.
And yes, I realize that some teams, such as Pocola, are shown in 2A, instead of A, but this is just for informational purposes. We will get to the other classes, but the main thing is we won’t do the divided classes, there will be Class 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A, A and B (for eight-man football). 2A and A don’t need to be split into two divisions, that is watering down the competition.