Expanded Playoffs Don't Fix Problem
Last updated Saturday, January 26, 2008 6:15 PM CST in Columns
By Kurt Voigt
THE MORNING NEWS
SPRINGDALE - A few tidbits as basketball season starts its home stretch of action and other spring sports ready themselves for action:
* The possibility of Class 7A expanding its football playoffs from eight to 12 teams was written about here two months ago.
Recently, the Class 7A schools followed through with their discussions - meaning that 12 of the 16 schools in the class will make the playoffs each year. The top two teams from the 7A-Central and 7A-West Conferences will get byes in the first week of playoffs, which will expand from three rounds to four.
Believe it or not, there is a benefit to the change, though it's still mind-boggling that Arkansas actually has a classification with only 16 teams rather than a minimum of 32 that existed until 2006.
The benefit is that the Class 7A football playoffs will no longer end on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, a weekend when the casual high school football fan has better things to do than watch a game. In each of the past two years, the Class 7A championship games have had poor attendance - both because of the timing and the fact that two West teams were in the game in Little Rock each time.
However, the change isn't a permanent fix to the apathy that has taken hold in the state's largest classification. Until there are once again 32 teams, including schools from all over the state, the Class 7A champions will continue to feel more like regional ones rather than statewide.
* The first of the much-celebrated Springdale Five has seen his playing days come to an end.
Bartley Webb, the left tackle for Springdale High's 2005 state championship team, recently "retired" from college football. Webb, who took part in the 2006 U.S. Army All-American game in San Antonio and has been on scholarship at Notre Dame the past two seasons, underwent shoulder surgery after this past season.
The injury was severe enough for Webb's career to come to an end, though he will continue on scholarship at Notre Dame and help as a coach.
Webb was one of five Springdale seniors on the 2005 team to sign then Division-I college football scholarships. The others were tight end Ben Cleveland, quarterback Mitch Mustain and receivers Andrew Norman and Damian Williams.
Another senior from that team, Matt Clinkscales, signed a full scholarship at then Division I-AA Central Arkansas. Also, a host of juniors on that team, which finished 15-0 and as high as No. 2 in national polls, signed with Division-I schools the following year.
* One of the best things about high school basketball is how little classification size matters.
If a small school has just two or three quality players, it can compete on any level. If it has a full starting five that can play, it can beat anyone.
Last season, you would have been hard pressed to find an objective observer who thought the Class 4A state champion Huntsville boys couldn't have competed with or beaten any Class 7A school around.
This year, a pair of area girls high school teams have taken up the cause of big isn't always better. Both Class 3A Shiloh Christian and Class 4A Huntsville had fine seasons a year ago that came up short - the Lady Saints in the championship game and the Lady Eagles in the first round of the regional tournament.
Both entered the 2007-08 season on a mission to atone for a year ago, and neither has disappointed. In fact, the best game of the season could come in coming days if Shiloh and Huntsville can settle on a date for a rematch of an early season matchup.
The Lady Saints won the first time, but it would be interesting to watch a second time - especially considering both could go on to win state championships this season.
About this columnist
Kurt Voigt is The Morning News Preps Editor and author of "Year Of The Dog: One Year, One Team, One Goal," the story of the 2005 Springdale Bulldogs. Kurt writes a weekly column on prep sports in our area.
Reader Comments (No comments posted.)
The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsibility of their authors. The Morning News does not review comments before their publication, nor do we guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by our comment policy. If you see a comment that violates our policy, please notify the web editor.
Not already registered?
