Sandman

A few quick takes as we discuss the event: My guess is at least the host school (at HS stadiums) is making more than a regular season game (money up front is my guess). Otherwise, why would schools keep signing up? Event is obviously making money beyond that, or it would lack for a promoter. I have no problem with either. I do have a problem when what smells a lot like greed takes over an event as this has lately. If this is a marquee event then sell it as that, and play it over one weekend. Three weeks and dozens of sites is chasing the money. A Indy/Cincinnati HS rivalry, as I alluded to earlier, seems to be something organizers want to push moving forward. May be the best option to offer some (high profile) games. I'd rather see some early season in city matchups like.....

Remember these games well. I've posted on them in past threads about the current event. It was a big deal for the city as a whole and a lot of tickets were sold. It was kind of a first of its kind event at the time. It was also managed very well, although if the current heat guidelines were in place then, they'd have never finished the slate of games. Sidenote to your post, the Fairfield team that beat USA Today's No. 1 Berwick, went on to finish 5-5ish (maybe 6-4, maybe 6-5) but I think it was 5-5, and did not make the playoffs.

Great get. I love info like this. I would have triple liked your post if possible. Nice work.

You may be correct on both counts, as I seem to remember something along the same lines on the former. But, I thought Sheffield was older than Gooden and maybe his uncle? On the bolded, I know they grew up in the same neighborhood and were friends as kids. Not sure if they were at the same high school at the same time, but certainly seems logical. If they were, I would have been happy to pitch for that team.

I could be wrong on this, but isn't the Conner game a scrimmage? Listed date makes it appear to be a scrimmage and I know the teams have scrimmaged in the past. Can we assume Beechwood is still looking for one more regular season opponent, or is the Conner game on 8/14 the actual season opener?

FWIW, guy that brok the story for NOLA.com, reported on ESPN that Cal contacted the Pelicans about the position, they did not reach out to him. Money couldn't get worked out, sounds like that was a pretty quick stumbling block, and the Pelicans moved on. Why would Cal say he's interested in any other job until he take another job? Scenerio seems believable enough.

I get what you are saying, and get that you are looking closely at all the i's and t's. Your point is well taken, but I can't speak to it. I can say when it comes to logistics, the less classes in the state, the less travel for district games.

My guess is you know this answer. There was an initial realignment list sent to each school, which showed the possibilities (and plenty of discussion about it here). Maybe that could be a heads up? I don't know. Better question is, don't you think every coach near HHS and CCH's numbers were checking those numbers closely?

Dixie's enrollment placed them in 5A.

On venue and opponent, yes it matters. When Highlands hosted Moeller, X, and Elder their was certainly a buzz around the school and town that is seldom there (even for CCH lately).

Schedule says it all, the event is totally over-saturated at this point and has been for a few years. Without pinpointing match ups, some of these games won't even be a big deal to the home team despite the crosstown tag. I'd have zero problem with the watering down of the event if it somehow showcased more teams and players in a recognizable way, but it does not. It gouges fans of the schools for profit. Gamble stated that he'd like to see the Indy team's continue to be involved and develop some type of "rivalry" with the Cincy schools.

Seems to be an annual thread, and I give my two cents each time. Will do so along with with a couple post quotes to try to keep things easy to read and on subject.

Ru keeping folks posting in the off-season, nice job. I posted on this when the alignments were announced and expected a lot of feedback then, as I said the scramble to avoid HHS and CCH was on. Pretty sure I mentioned Scott moving down to 4A as part of the equation, but it was a while ago. Move has everything to do with avoiding being in a district with HHS and CCH, like avoiding the plague. Everything else is spin city and diverting. Several on here have nailed how much better it is to go lose to Trinity in the finals once every 10 years, than to play HHS and CCH in the playoffs ever year. 6A playoff format gives you that chance, and it built a lot of momentum for Simon, Ryle, and Dixie during their runs. And, they played it for all it was worth. Cooper fans in this thread are doing the same thing, beating their chests about going to a state final, and a final four in 5A. Not a thing wrong with that, except I'm trying to find which year they beat either CCH or HHS in the 5A playoffs. Were CCH and HHS in the same class as Cooper at the time? If not, I'm not sure how what they did in 5A matters regarding this thread. Nobody in NKY wants to be in the same district as CCH and HHS. To ever advance very far in the playoffs you not only have to be better than one of them, but both of them in the same year. Bravado aside, who really wants to roll the dice with that year in and year out? As for logistics, here's a simple answer, reduce the number of classes. That will take care of it quickly.

Genesis was top of the line for its time. Really can't speak of any system after that, as i don't know enough about any of them.

Pryor was good kid in the minute or two I talked to him. Basketball may have been his best sport. In football, he made a bad choice by playing quarterback at the next level. As a WR or TE he wouldn't be hoping to make a roster.

Quick take on the new rule proposals: Removing the 5 second while dribbling call goes hand in hand with the reduction of the shot clock from 35 to 30. No 5 call in the NBA either, because there isn't time for idle bouncing. 10 second rule seems to be a poor choice. Allow the 10 second rule to restart after a dead ball, but keep the shot clock intact. If a team wants or has to waste 18 of their 30 second shot clock to cross mid court, they have to play faster thereafter. Not a fan of moving the arc to 4 feet. If you want to remove the charge from the game, then do it. Removing it foot by foot is stupid. Rules seem to be a bit of a overreaction to me. Every game doesn't need to end 81-80 to be a good game. Fans can always go watch hockey if they don't like the product. Seems like half a cop out to me. What's lacking most in the college game is players with ball skills. Make a wide open 14 foot shot, have five guys on the floor who can at least make the next pass, put guys on the floor who can at least dribble it twice without a turnover coming. All would go a long way to making the "flow" of the game better. I'd put part of the rule change issues back on the DI coaches. Either recruit better "players", or actually teach the "athletes" you recruit to have some sample of ball skills

I get it and like it. Clever enough.

Good get and good post. I appreciate folks who read other posts and either know facts or research what they are posting about. I already knew it though. Just threw his name in to add more power to my first post in the thread. Ripken won a WS in his second season, never again during his great career. Does that reflect poorly on his overall career?

Quick take after reading the article: Working without a contract makes part one of the complaint tough, but a letter similar to what BCG had at UK would suffice. Also, was he working under a year-to-year contract with the expectation of receiving a long-term deal? On the vacation and sick days, NKU dropped the ball on this. When you fire a employee who's been there as long as Bezold was, you know part of the deal is you pay the untaken vacation and sick time. Bad oversight (at best) on NKU's part. On camp pay, again without a contract, that's a slippery one. Assistants at NKU rely heavily on camp money to supplement their salary. Bezold obviously also gets a cut. Did he receive some money, but not what he believed he was owed. Did he receive no money, and if so for how many years? Did his assistants get the money they were scheduled to for camps? Lots of questions, and this could turn into another big black eye for NKU. I'm guessing a settlement is reached sooner rather than later, but you never know. NKU needs to stop finding its way into the news for financial issues rather quickly.

Highlands appears to be the clear cut favorite at this point. Pitching depth is a huge advantage. And the Birds can hit. Beechwood, CovCath, and Boone are in the mix. IMO it's going to take a great pitching effort to beat Highlands, as they are the best team on paper. Somebody's #1 is going to have to be dominant and win a 2-1 type game. Appears that CovCath is most capable of that.

You have everything right except the year. It was 90. Not positive on who Fairdale beat in the 91 finals, it was whoever beat Holy Cross in the semi's (maybe Tates Creek?) 90 Holmes team was one of NKY's best ever. Very good and incredibly deep. Dogs' seemed poised to go on a heck of a run in the Ninth Region with so many young kids part of the rotation. They didn't win another regional title the rest of the decade though. Hughes had a rough night in the finals, largely thanks to being guarded by a longer and more athletic player. Fatigue may have played a small role as well. If he shoots four less shots Holmes may win this game, and Fairdale was great. That's how good this Holmes team was. Hughes went on to Farleigh Dickerson. Fairdale goes down in history as one of the state's best teams ever (deservedly so) The 90 Holmes is largely forgotten. In a best of seven series, I'd take them over any team that has won the Ninth since though. A few of those series' would be quite interesting though.

That said, I will throw a few names out off the top of my head. NBA: George Gervin, Sidney Moncrief, Terry Cummings, Barkley, Mailman, Kevin Johnson NFL: Marino, pick a running back (Billy Simms, Earl Campbell, Erik Dickerson, Barry Sanders, very long list) guessing some hall-of-fame lineman didn't win a title, but alas they couldn't pass. MLB: You guys nailed a ton of them. Andre Dawson? Ripken? McCovey? Carew?

I like the thread, and agree with a lot of good names being thrown around. That said, I hate the premise of measuring an individual player's career based on how many championships won (or not won) in a TEAM sport. Ludicrous if you ask me. It's a team sport. It's about circumstances as much as anything. Marino in my mind is one of the best quarterbacks ever. I'm not sure how it's fault the Dolphins couldn't have run against the SEC in his time their, and their defense was brutal. Was he supposed to tackle and play halfback as well? Nolan Ryan won a title, but his best years as a pitcher were largely without even a playoff berth. Does that lessen how great he was in the 70's? Walter Payton won a Super Bowl, but his best year's were behind him. As great as he once was, Bears would have won in 85 without him. Should we hold him accountable because they didn't win it in say, 78? Steve Kerr won multiple NBA titles, does that make him a better shooting guard than Reggie Miller? I just don't think it's fair to measure how good a player was based at all on team championships.

One has nothing to do with the other. Poor axiom for an argument. The Reds almost have to trade Cueto by the deadline. No way they can afford him. This was the case regardless of Leake's performance. I doubt they can afford Leake at this point either though, so they will likely lose both. Leake should have been signed to a long term deal last year or in 13. They could have gotten him for half of what he'll get now. Leake isn't going to win folks many free pizzas, but he's a pro pitcher who stays healthy, works every fifth day, has a solid ERA, eats innings and keeps you in the game. And, he's still young. Underrated here for too long, someone else will be happy to pay him