Will the COC small survive?

[bullitpdq68]

With Holister leaving and a few others still looking can the COC small survive? I heard last night that Reeds, Marshfield, Bolivar and Rogers could be left out in the cold Big 8 is not an option. If that happens will the be allowed to move to the large and if so will they just realign and split again.

 

[Mitsurugi san]

What will happen to the remaining teams I do not know, but the Small COC as a whole is dead for sure...

 

[MoSooner69]

The next few weeks will be interesting. More shakeup coming for sure. The dominos have started to fall. Not sure anything is for certain except more announcements are on the way. (Not sure many things, including the Big 8, will look the exact same in the next few years)

 

[bullitpdq68]

The next few weeks will be interesting. More shakeup coming for sure. The dominos have started to fall. Not sure anything is for certain except more announcements are on the way. (Not sure many things, including the Big 8, will look the exact same in the next few years)

I heard from a pretty good source that the big 8 will not be changing. Heard that Lamar and Seneca and Cassville did not like looking at travel and no school could satisfy all three.

 

[CFHWHS]

Honestly no conference is going to survive in high school football...

 

[Pinochet]

Honestly no conference is going to survive in high school football...

Is that a comment about the demise of football or the going to 8 team districts where you play the final 7 games against those opponents, essentially killing the conference model

 

[CFHWHS]

It'll be 8 team Districts within 3 years. The decline will hopefully cease as we continue to educate coaches in heads up tackling and concussion awareness.

 

[bullitpdq68]

It'll be 8 team Districts within 3 years. The decline will hopefully cease as we continue to educate coaches in heads up tackling and concussion awareness.

You are still seeing schools add football. We will have several in the next few years.

Not sure I would like the 8 team districts, whats wrong with the playoffs that we have now?

 

[Pinochet]

You are still seeing schools add football. We will have several in the next few years.

Not sure I would like the 8 team districts, whats wrong with the playoffs that we have now?

From what I'm hearing with the 8 team districts, they are looking at taking the top 4 out of the district to go to the playoffs and move the season back to 10 games. Then the 4 district teams wouldn't have to turn around and play each other again until later rounds if they made it that far. It's the model you see in other states.

 

[Rock Hard Corn Frog]

It'll be 8 team Districts within 3 years. The decline will hopefully cease as we continue to educate coaches in heads up tackling and concussion awareness.

We have 8 team districts right now.

?

 

[COCfan1212]

We have 8 team districts right now.

?

What he is saying is that we would shift to the Arkansas model. The state would determine your "conference" and group them together. Conferences in football as we know them now would cease to exist

 

[Rock Hard Corn Frog]

What he is saying is that we would shift to the Arkansas model. The state would determine your "conference" and group them together. Conferences in football as we know them now would cease to exist

That would be a total disaster for a lot of schools. The COC as it is about to be set up is almost perfect for football for the schools in it. The idea that Webb City and Carthage would have to be a non-conference game in place of Webb City playing Marshfield is ridiculous.

 

[MIZ...ZOU]

That would be a total disaster for a lot of schools. The COC as it is about to be set up is almost perfect for football for the schools in it. The idea that Webb City and Carthage would have to be a non-conference game in place of Webb City playing Marshfield is ridiculous.

disaster for Webb maybe but they haven't lost in 8 conference years so what really is the difference? I would love to see it happen. First 3 games would allow teams to play whomever they want and the last 7 games would be district games.

 

[millerbleach]

What about a team Like Thayer? Is MSHSAA going to pay travel costs too?

 

[revno]

What about a team Like Thayer? Is MSHSAA going to pay travel costs too?

Is there another team like Thayer? That situation seems unique, they're stranded out there halfway to Tunica with no Class 1 options.

 

[millerbleach]

Is there another team like Thayer? That situation seems unique, they're stranded out there halfway to Tunica with no Class 1 options.

They are the most obvious but there are others that fit the mold. Cabool, Valle, Hayti, Joplin, Kickapoo, etc. Add in the limited opportunities to "play up" to challenge a potential team with high expectations and the notion of playing a schedule of teams mostly the same class has down sides too.

 

[MIZ...ZOU]

They are the most obvious but there are others that fit the mold. Cabool, Valle, Hayti, Joplin, Kickapoo, etc. Add in the limited opportunities to "play up" to challenge a potential team with high expectations and the notion of playing a schedule of teams mostly the same class has down sides too.

There would still be 3 games, prior to district play, to play whomever you want. you don't make huge concessions for what's best for 8-10 of 300+ teams.

 

[MGHS]

I think their will be a major fight to not have state controlled Conferences/Districts do to travel and budget. And let's not forget the history of some conferences......sure some change happens do to schools either having large enrollment increases compared to old conference mates, but in those conferences where things are stable they will not want to change and will not before it.

 

[HoopsTournament]

I think there are a small and Loud group of people that want to get rid of conference but it isn't happening.

 

[MGHS]

I think there are a small and Loud group of people that want to get rid of conference but it isn't happening.

I agree, small but vocal group who are motivated to try and control and usher in a system that they feel would allow every team to rise to their high water mark in a easier manner.

 

[LHSTiger81]

"play whoever you want for the first 3 games" sounds easier than you might think. We have an open slot, this year because we couldn't get "anyone we wanted" let alone anyone, period to schedule a game with us.

 

[squeal_like_a_pig]

That's because everyone is getting tied into bigger conferences and no open weeks. If everyone had weeks 1-3 open then I am sure it might even help your scheduling.

As for the small COC it will be interesting in 2 years when the remaining 5 schools can't schedule any Large COC (schedule full with addition of Joplin) Ozark Conference (could be full if Central is added) and only 4 guaranteed games with each other in a 9 game schedule.

 

[MoSooner69]

not sure how much of a difference the Large COC will make.. The majority of them did not cross-schedule any way.

 

[MIZ...ZOU]

not sure how much of a difference the Large COC will make.. The majority of them did not cross-schedule any way.

Branson, Republic, Ozark, Neosho, and Willard are all playing a COC small school this year.

 

[bullitpdq68]

That's because everyone is getting tied into bigger conferences and no open weeks. If everyone had weeks 1-3 open then I am sure it might even help your scheduling.

As for the small COC it will be interesting in 2 years when the remaining 5 schools can't schedule any Large COC (schedule full with addition of Joplin) Ozark Conference (could be full if Central is added) and only 4 guaranteed games with each other in a 9 game schedule.

With just 5 schools left in the COC small and 9 currently in the large why don't they just add them all together and then split them evenly again? That would make two 7 team conference.

 

[Rock Hard Corn Frog]

With just 5 schools left in the COC small and 9 currently in the large why don't they just add them all together and then split them evenly again? That would make two 7 team conference.

Well if they do that in football based on enrollment then Webb City and Carl Junction would be in the COC small and I'm certain neither wants to do that.

 

[MoSooner69]

Branson, Republic, Ozark, Neosho, and Willard are all playing a COC small school this year.

I was only looking at the small and going by history. Of the seven teams AT LEAST four did not play a big COC school last year. (Reeds Spring, Hollister, Buffalo, Catholic)

 

[bullitpdq68]

Well if they do that in football based on enrollment then Webb City and Carl Junction would be in the COC small and I'm certain neither wants to do that.

Not that I don't agree with you, but how do you leave your conference members out in the cold like that?

 

[MoSooner69]

Its not like they left on a whim, though. They had been in talks for a while.

 

[dew610]

For those wanting the Arkansas style setup I am going to have to disagree wtih you. The only Arkansas rule I like is that they start football season during football season not the first of dadgum August (sarcasm intended there). I am from the oldest conference in the state and none of us SCA schools could afford to travel all over the state should we have to stay in our own class. Someone mentioned Thayer (and Cabool for that matter) is in the middle of nowhere and that is very true. They have to go to the far west of the state for districts and a few yrs back was going to the far east. West Plains is in the same seat though a much bigger town. Their closest district opponent now is Marshfield 90 miles away. If they had to play only C4's then they'd wind up all over the state. Yes they can afford it more than the SCA schools but you still got angry parents of kids coming home at 3am at the earliest. So I say leave things the way they are

 

[MIZ...ZOU]

Texas and Oklahoma do it as well. It really makes more sense to me. It give all people common sized opponents and scheduling flexibility in the first 3 games to play whomever you want.

 

[mosofan]

I lived in Georgia for several years, and they did it that way too. However, I didn't like it. There were some schools that were always right at the cutoff between classes. They might be class 3 for two years, then class 4 for two years and keep switching back and forth. They might also be near the geographic line between districts, and might move between the two districts every 2 years. The school district we were in was in 4 different classes or districts over an 8 year period, with completely different schedules every 2 years. I hated it, because it was so difficult to build true rivalries. That's why I like the conference format ... you can build longstanding rivalries much easier.