Sounds like a bunch. Something must be wrong.

 

Apparently there was a thread about Dunbar. I hear that they have to share the entire field with the soccer teams, so they only get half of the field. If they go over they must practice on the baseball or softball field.

 

He may be wanting out. I have heard he has put in for at least 2 or 3 jobs.

 

David is a fine man, I wish him the best.

 

I wish Pikeville the best in finding a quality coach.

Apparently there was a thread about Dunbar. I hear that they have to share the entire field with the soccer teams, so they only get half of the field. If they go over they must practice on the baseball or softball field.

 

He may be wanting out. I have heard he has put in for at least 2 or 3 jobs.

 

David is a fine man, I wish him the best.

 

I wish Pikeville the best in finding a quality coach.

 

Sounds like a bad sit up.

The PERCEIVED success of the next Pikeville coach will really hinge on these things in my humble opinion:

 

1. First and foremost, can they get the numbers coming out back up. It would be very difficult for Pikeville to field a 60 man roster, but fielding a 45-60 roster is pivotal.

 

2. Belfry has became without hesitation the King of Pike County Football. In the past ten years the Pirates have dominated the series, put in place better facilities, made a much larger impact on the statewide level, established their feeder schools as elite, now host their OWN night of the Pike County Bowl, but what may be the most important.... Have became the media darlings of the area. Alot of Panther fans won't say so, but making the Belfry rivalry more competitive and more true to what it was in the 80's and 90's is critical.

 

3. One poster said winning state titles is an expectation, I don't think so. But, establishing themselves on the same stage as the other 1A title contenders is. Which means no more Second Round exits or Quaterfinal blowouts. State semi-finals and state final appearances will be vital.

 

4. The Pikeville community is EXCELLENT.. in fact you'd be hard pressed to find a more supportive community in the entire state (regardless of the sport being played). Making sure that the community stays close and active in this team, and not isolated, is another must. This may be the easiest thing considering how great it already is, but if someone takes this for granted it could be a fatal flaw to their career.

 

Great job, but a job that does come with existing expectations. In other words, i tjust can't be some Joe from the street, it has to be either a proven head coach with substantial experience, or an energetic young coach willing to devote alot of their life to making something happen.

The PERCEIVED success of the next Pikeville coach will really hinge on these things in my humble opinion:

 

1. First and foremost, can they get the numbers coming out back up. It would be very difficult for Pikeville to field a 60 man roster, but fielding a 45-60 roster is pivotal.

 

2. Belfry has became without hesitation the King of Pike County Football. In the past ten years the Pirates have dominated the series, put in place better facilities, made a much larger impact on the statewide level, established their feeder schools as elite, now host their OWN night of the Pike County Bowl, but what may be the most important.... Have became the media darlings of the area. Alot of Panther fans won't say so, but making the Belfry rivalry more competitive and more true to what it was in the 80's and 90's is critical.

 

3. One poster said winning state titles is an expectation, I don't think so. But, establishing themselves on the same stage as the other 1A title contenders is. Which means no more Second Round exits or Quaterfinal blowouts. State semi-finals and state final appearances will be vital.

 

4. The Pikeville community is EXCELLENT.. in fact you'd be hard pressed to find a more supportive community in the entire state (regardless of the sport being played). Making sure that the community stays close and active in this team, and not isolated, is another must. This may be the easiest thing considering how great it already is, but if someone takes this for granted it could be a fatal flaw to their career.

 

Great job, but a job that does come with existing expectations. In other words, i tjust can't be some Joe from the street, it has to be either a proven head coach with substantial experience, or an energetic young coach willing to devote alot of their life to making something happen.

 

Why did the last situation not work then- because of the reasons above or did they go that way when jackson took over- or has this been a gradual decline? Some people might interview if they know more about the timeline when these 4 things you stated declined.

Knute,

 

Alot of what I typed was, as I bolded, my perception. It's not my place to guess as to what impact those things had, if any, on CoachJ leaving for Ballard. But, these are things that will be critical to determing the "success" the next coach has. I base my observation on talking with people within the Panther community and noting what I have noticed.

 

CoachJ cannot be pointed at for none of the above issues, these have all been appearing since the Panther's hay-days with Hilliard Howard. Alot can be credited to the lack of longevity Pikeville has found at the head coaching position since Howard's departure: McNamee, Mayo, and now Jackson have all came and went.

 

In terms of numbers, as I stated Pikeville will never field a 60 man roster, the enrollment is not high enough, and most Pikeville kids are really involved in numerous endeavors and alternate sports as it is, which is definately a good thing. It also seems that in high school football, playoff success directly influences the number of kids out. As Pikeville has slowly faded from the deep playoff runs of the past, it seems as though the numbers have reflected it. Not to give the impression of recruiting, but it is also worth noting that over the past ten years the other county schools have made great strides in improving facilities and strengthening their programs, thus, kids who once lived in a position where they could commute to play at Pikeville (say kids from the Virgie or Mullins area), are now opting to stay at the county school.

 

The Belfry point I made has been illustrated by three factors culminating at once. A) As covered, Pikeville isn't the state power they once were B) Belfry's program continues to grow and get stronger C) The local media will naturally gravitate to the team making the most noise w/ the more engaged (and profitable) fan base.

 

The 4th point is not an issue that has changed much, but an issue that could easily be taken for granted.

Has there been any interviews?

What will Copley's role be next season?

Where did Coach Jackson go? I seem to remember something about him leaving but can't remember to be honest.

Ballard High school in Louisville.

Knute,

 

Alot of what I typed was, as I bolded, my perception. It's not my place to guess as to what impact those things had, if any, on CoachJ leaving for Ballard. But, these are things that will be critical to determing the "success" the next coach has. I base my observation on talking with people within the Panther community and noting what I have noticed.

 

CoachJ cannot be pointed at for none of the above issues, these have all been appearing since the Panther's hay-days with Hilliard Howard. Alot can be credited to the lack of longevity Pikeville has found at the head coaching position since Howard's departure: McNamee, Mayo, and now Jackson have all came and went.

 

In terms of numbers, as I stated Pikeville will never field a 60 man roster, the enrollment is not high enough, and most Pikeville kids are really involved in numerous endeavors and alternate sports as it is, which is definately a good thing. It also seems that in high school football, playoff success directly influences the number of kids out. As Pikeville has slowly faded from the deep playoff runs of the past, it seems as though the numbers have reflected it. Not to give the impression of recruiting, but it is also worth noting that over the past ten years the other county schools have made great strides in improving facilities and strengthening their programs, thus, kids who once lived in a position where they could commute to play at Pikeville (say kids from the Virgie or Mullins area), are now opting to stay at the county school.

 

The Belfry point I made has been illustrated by three factors culminating at once. A) As covered, Pikeville isn't the state power they once were B) Belfry's program continues to grow and get stronger C) The local media will naturally gravitate to the team making the most noise w/ the more engaged (and profitable) fan base.

 

The 4th point is not an issue that has changed much, but an issue that could easily be taken for granted.

These are very good points. I dont place the blame of our decline on Coach J. Alot of our problem has been the lack of player development in the LL program. I had a person who coached LL tell me 7-8 years ago that this was coming. Also our inadequecies in our off season conditioning programs were to blame as well and it showed whenever we played a good team. I dont care how good of athletes you have. If the players arent properly developed at the LL level and then properly trained at the high school level you might beat the Allen Centrals of the world but youll never beat the Beechwoods and Belfrys of the world.

 

As far as numbers go I think the most weve ever had that I can remember was 53 on the 89 state title team. The good news is that according to Copely there have been 51 participating in off season weights. That is definately a good sign.

 

As far as losing kids to the county schools one thing you left out is the rule that the county made in which only a certain amount of kids who are from the county can attend Pikeville. Even if a kid from out in the county wanted to attend school here theres a good chance he might not be able to. To be honest I dont know how the county schools get away with this. It sounds alot like restricting a childs right to get a better education to me but thats another thread in and of itself LOL!

 

IMO our program is at a crossroads. It wouldnt take much for us to be right back in our rightful place of contendeing for Titles in 1a. Or we could be just like the rest of those teams in our district. If the right coach is hired we will be back and it wont take long at all. If the wrong coach is hired we will sink even deeper. IMO this might be the most important hire in our programs history.

These are very good points. I dont place the blame of our decline on Coach J. Alot of our problem has been the lack of player development in the LL program. I had a person who coached LL tell me 7-8 years ago that this was coming. Also our inadequecies in our off season conditioning programs were to blame as well and it showed whenever we played a good team. I dont care how good of athletes you have. If the players arent properly developed at the LL level and then properly trained at the high school level you might beat the Allen Centrals of the world but youll never beat the Beechwoods and Belfrys of the world.

 

As far as numbers go I think the most weve ever had that I can remember was 53 on the 89 state title team. The good news is that according to Copely there have been 51 participating in off season weights. That is definately a good sign.

 

As far as losing kids to the county schools one thing you left out is the rule that the county made in which only a certain amount of kids who are from the county can attend Pikeville. Even if a kid from out in the county wanted to attend school here theres a good chance he might not be able to. To be honest I dont know how the county schools get away with this. It sounds alot like restricting a childs right to get a better education to me but thats another thread in and of itself LOL!

 

IMO our program is at a crossroads. It wouldnt take much for us to be right back in our rightful place of contendeing for Titles in 1a. Or we could be just like the rest of those teams in our district. If the right coach is hired we will be back and it wont take long at all. If the wrong coach is hired we will sink even deeper. IMO this might be the most important hire in our programs history.

 

The County/City sounds to me like they have a limited contract between the two. This allows students up to a certain number the ability to enroll from the county to the city and the ADA will follow. The county could ( and most have) do away with a limited contract and the ADA would not follow any students outside their district. Therefore you could go from some to none very quickly. Now obviously the city would have to require tuition for anyone outside the city to be able to educate those children.

As far as losing kids to the county schools one thing you left out is the rule that the county made in which only a certain amount of kids who are from the county can attend Pikeville.

 

Can you elaborate on this, mojo? I wasn't aware of a limit set by the County, but if there is one, I'd like to know the details.

 

Currently the City/County do have an agreement, but it is virtually a one-way deal. I've been told that there are as many as 250-300 county residents attending Pikeville schools, but that nearly zero Pikeville City residents attend the county schools, especially high school age kids.

 

What are the real numbers?

Can you elaborate on this, mojo? I wasn't aware of a limit set by the County, but if there is one, I'd like to know the details.

 

Currently the City/County do have an agreement, but it is virtually a one-way deal. I've been told that there are as many as 250-300 county residents attending Pikeville schools, but that nearly zero Pikeville City residents attend the county schools, especially high school age kids.

 

What are the real numbers?

 

 

Along those lines,

 

I'm assuming Pikeville is an independent school discrict?

 

Does the county release the state money to Pikeville for the county kids not in Pikeville's district to attend Pikeville?

 

Can county kids pay tuition to attend Pikeville?

Yes, Pikeville is an independent district.

 

If I understand it correctly, the County releases the funds so the students don't have to pay the tuition. And the agreement is reciprocal so any City kids can attend County schools tuition free also, and the state money will follow.

Can you elaborate on this, mojo? I wasn't aware of a limit set by the County, but if there is one, I'd like to know the details.

 

Currently the City/County do have an agreement, but it is virtually a one-way deal. I've been told that there are as many as 250-300 county residents attending Pikeville schools, but that nearly zero Pikeville City residents attend the county schools, especially high school age kids.

 

What are the real numbers?

 

The 250-300 attending Pikeville isn't really any different than any other southern Kentucky schools that have this type agreement. I don't know the details of this agreement and I am not saying one is right and the other is wrong but what you have has been standard for many many years. However, with the decline of population in this area and a tight budget which has been the case for the last several years schools are doing what they can to hold on with limited resources. Many school districts have opted to do away with these contracts in hopes of more students coming back. Which in turn bring more money to their districts. Breathitt Co. and Harlan County are the last two that at some point did away with the limited contract all together. Harlan County however signed another limited contract after several years of fighting. Declining population is only going to cause these type contracts a thing of the past.