Ozark Mountain Conference
- Thread starter AC100
- Start date
Agreed. Willard has no business playing down in the OMC. Neosho, I get where some of them are coming from. It's hard to get better when every game feels like a loss before it's even played. Move down to the OMC until schools are complaining about them like CJ complained about Nixa and Joplin and the Big 8 used to complain about CJ. Then you move up to where you really belong. Unfortunately it's not that simple to just hop between conferences, so I hope they decided to just stay put and get better.
As stated previously good facilities alone don't build good teams but it does help by showing community support and a desire to be more and put their money where their mouth is. The district has invested a ton of money lately in a lot of things not just sports facilities.
My other opinion is someone is going to lose and public schools go in cycles who is the top dog.
LOL nobody complained about CJ being in the big 8, that is false information, CJ just simply wanted out They thought they had out grown us and Jesse Wall made that clear, by going around telling everybody in the big 8 how $&*^ many of our facilities were Compared to CJ's.
CJ never dominated in football, Since 82 when we split into the Big 8 and Big 6 they only won 3 outright conference titles, and shared 5 other many of those three ways that is far from Domination. The last year they were in it Lamar won the title not CJ. Now their Girls program, yes they were very good, but it only made the conference better.
This is an interesting point, and one that was raised by one of the girls coaches in a meeting at CJ before they officially left the COC.
"Would we be looking to leave the COC if the boys were successful and the girls were the ones who were struggling?"
But wasn't that probably true at the time? Not saying it was smart to chest pound about it, but it was probably an accurate statement.
When CJ beat Lamar in 2013 and 2014, going on to win the conference, they absolutely complained.
Jesse Wall was correct. Carl Junction’s Jr. High facilities were nicer than 90% of the Big 8’s High School facilities at the time.
Probably not but the reason for that is conference really only matters for football. Most games the other sports play are non conference.
Look at CJs record for the last 5 years in the conference against Lamar. Wins and points will be in Lamar’s favor I believe.
CJ was only good their last few years in the Big 8. Those last few CJ Lamar games were great.
I cannot speak for Lamar, if they complained that is on them...I can only speak to the others.
This is the last ten years of the conference With CJ in it. Tell me who you think dominated, and why would anybody be complaining. I can go back further and show just how mediocre they were.
Yeah maybe depends? They got turf in what 2014? But their seating was small until they added on to the home stands. And they only got a new stadium because insurance paid for it after the 2006 tornado.
2004 MONETT, SENECA
2005 CASSVILLE
2006 MT VERNON finished unbeaten however did not play Cassville because of a death.
2007 MONETT, CJ, CASSVILLE
2008 MONETT
2009 CASSVILLE
2010 CASSVILLE
2011 CASSVILLE
2012 CASSVILLE
2013 Carl Junction
2014 Carl Junction
2015 Lamar
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Oh I’m not arguing that. Lamar was the more successful program during that period. I’m just saying when CJ beat Lamar in back to back years in 13 and 14, the “CJ is class 4, they should win” card got played by plenty around the conference.
From about 2013-2017, CJ had a crop of really good talent. Combine that with Buckmaster coming in, and the program was completely rejuvenated. Outside of playing Lamar, CJ’s starters were out of most Big 8 games by halftime. They weren’t competitive at all. If they had not run into Webb city in the district title game, CJ probably has multiple state title appearances in class 4 during that time period.
I understand why CJ’s admin felt like they had to get out of the Big 8, but I think they let that short burst of success get them out over their skis. As others have pointed out, they had not had any history of long term sustained dominance in the Big 8 in football.
For many of the schools maybe, But I think many were going todo it eventually. CJ just got a jump on it because the tornado in 2006 destroyed that old crap hole they called a stadium and track, had that not happened you have to wonder would they still be playing in that stadium?
The stadium is the biggest piece, but not the only piece. Most Big 8 schools didn’t even have a locker room for opposing teams to dress in.
The conference during that time was also a bit down which only made things look worse for us overall, cAssville Monett MV and Seneca were going thru rebuilding. I agree I think CJ was just thinking hey this rid is never going to end which for most with the exception of Webb it does.
Oh we know.... we have had to walk.... it can suck for sure. but that is home field advantage baby big 8 style !!!
To be fair it should be stated that CJ's new facilities erroneously omitted a locker room for the visiting team. I remember hearing a big kerfuffle about it.
Agree. And I think CJ looked at it like if we want to beat Webb in the playoffs, playing 7 or 8 cupcakes in the regular season is doing us a disservice. The problem is, CJ’s talent dropped off a cliff after that.
I was watching youth football when all of this was going wondering what happens when these kids get to high school (it was bad).
They already had a visitor’s locker room. It’s the junior high locker room (nicer than anything in the Big 8 by a mile), which was right by the stadium. They didn’t need one in the new facility.
I think it’s one of the main reasons why the program is where it is.
It’s no coincidence that the teams that were most successful at the end of the Big 8 years had heavy influence from the high school coaches and program through their youth development years. Buck came in and changed the system, but those boys had an IQ and a foundation for winning that was developed in youth football.
The irony is there are more male athletes in the younger grades at CJ right now than their are female.
Coaches Gosch, Wall and Carter had a lot to with those youth teams. So did Coaches Neria and Drake.
And they had a HC who was committed to teaching the same schemes/terminology that the high school program was using, while others were unsuccessfully trying to run exotic college systems. He set those boys up for success when they entered Jr. High and High School.
5 people isn’t “they complained”. Enjoy the conferences with schools your size. Looks like CJ was mainly good based on level of competition and playing smaller schools huh?
All schools should be in a league with similar sized schools and now CJ will be for the first time in 20 years.
There are schools in your conference now that are bigger than CJ was back then. They just aren’t beating you or giving you a good game for more than a year so you’re not complaining about it. Yet.
I’m digging at a dick. There’s nothing personal with a majority of you. I figured this was clear, and regardless it helps you down the line to play bigger schools as a smaller school.
That’s good. Digging at a dick though. This isn’t about the majority of you.
Wasn’t being a dick about anything. That’s just the truth.
Nah. Hearing some bitching is far different than the community as a whole bitching. Hardly anyone was super worried about CJ in Lamar or about any school in the conference. (Regarding size or anything of the like) It’s a great conference with a lot of competition most years. A wonderful conference to be apart of. There’s higher goals then winning the conference. That’s the truth. You’re casting a blanket over everyone, I’m correcting. It is what it is.
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If you are a class 2 or 3 school in SW Missouri you should aspire to be in the Big 8. Reeds should have stayed.
Didn’t say everyone and didn’t say only Lamar. Said there were plenty. I’m glad you’re the expert on the pulse of the Big 8.
Completely agree. A step down for Reeds. They can be the big dog with some smaller schools and make themselves feel good. Really disappointed in this move for them.
