Ironton Out Of SEOAL?
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MTSWNGRVSG
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Zanes-Vegas
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I don't know if "second guess" is an appropriate term. Sounds too negative, almost foreboding.
I think, at least for the four newbies, that a re-evaluation of the decision is prudent and necessary now that we've had a couple years (almost) playing in the league.
If Ironton is taking THAT approach, even if publicly so, then so be it. If it is merely someone's personal agenda, then I don't think it's wise.
Quite obviously, eight thread pages later, this has not been a very good PR move by the Ironton board.
I think, at least for the four newbies, that a re-evaluation of the decision is prudent and necessary now that we've had a couple years (almost) playing in the league.
If Ironton is taking THAT approach, even if publicly so, then so be it. If it is merely someone's personal agenda, then I don't think it's wise.
Quite obviously, eight thread pages later, this has not been a very good PR move by the Ironton board.
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hilltopkid
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gahs4ever wrote: What year was it that Jackson gave game film of Ironton to an Ironton playoff opponent even though Ironton was a fellow SEOAL member at the time? Early 80s? Perhaps 1980?
thats not surprising, that happens ALL the time. Especially when there are coaches on different staffs that are friends. Not saying I've done it, or would ever consider it.
It's just part of the game, and one example of coaches networking.-
MTSWNGRVSG
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I am going to go out a limb and say that there could be some of the original members that are now questioning the moves and regret it but will not leave the league. Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for because you may get it. Heck the new SEAOL was the best thing that could happen for Chillicothe Athletics for the long haul.
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hilltopkid
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mtswngrvsg wrote:Heck the new SEAOL was the best thing that could happen for Chillicothe Athletics for the long haul.
good point,regardless of peoples comments about Chilli running from the OCC w/ their tails between their legs. Truth is, they would've been kicked out this year due to being too small.
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NYBuckeye96
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Besides the new members questioning membership, I think the older members would also need to evaluate things as well. It seems to me that more schools are in the SEOAL simply because they have nowhere else to go then are there because they actually want to be there.
If fans are not traveling well to away games for any school in football or basketball, that will be a huge factor in if a school stays or not. Football and basketball have to make enough money to carry all of the other sports at each school.
With Athens gone, I think Warren is now the unanimous weak link in the SEOAL. I don't see how Warren can ever turn around its football program in the SEOAL as it exists today. And since Ironton, Portsmouth, Chillicothe, and Zanesville all have traditionally had great basketball programs, I think Warren's basketball program will struggle in the long run as well.
I would say any program in the new SEOAL that goes a decade without a major championship will be seriously considering leaving the league at the end of that decade.
If fans are not traveling well to away games for any school in football or basketball, that will be a huge factor in if a school stays or not. Football and basketball have to make enough money to carry all of the other sports at each school.
With Athens gone, I think Warren is now the unanimous weak link in the SEOAL. I don't see how Warren can ever turn around its football program in the SEOAL as it exists today. And since Ironton, Portsmouth, Chillicothe, and Zanesville all have traditionally had great basketball programs, I think Warren's basketball program will struggle in the long run as well.
I would say any program in the new SEOAL that goes a decade without a major championship will be seriously considering leaving the league at the end of that decade.
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Zanes-Vegas
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I would say any program in the new SEOAL that goes a decade without a major championship will be seriously considering leaving the league at the end of that decade.
Interesting comment right there. I don't disagree with it, really, other than you may be rather conservative in using "decade." I think that, these days, it would be maybe half that time for a lot of schools.
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fighting_falcon
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buckeye96
Why Warren. Why not Jackson, Marietta, Gallia. They may compete better in football than Warren right now but not basketball. Actually I don't see any of them winning a football title in the ext five years if the league stays the same. Of the four I see Warren competing with the big boys better than Jackson (do the even play basketball), Gallia, or Marietta.
Other than maybe you wanting Warren in the TVC your logic doesn't make any sense.
Why Warren. Why not Jackson, Marietta, Gallia. They may compete better in football than Warren right now but not basketball. Actually I don't see any of them winning a football title in the ext five years if the league stays the same. Of the four I see Warren competing with the big boys better than Jackson (do the even play basketball), Gallia, or Marietta.
Other than maybe you wanting Warren in the TVC your logic doesn't make any sense.
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Zanes-Vegas
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hilltopkid wrote:gahs4ever wrote: What year was it that Jackson gave game film of Ironton to an Ironton playoff opponent even though Ironton was a fellow SEOAL member at the time? Early 80s? Perhaps 1980?
thats not surprising, that happens ALL the time. Especially when there are coaches on different staffs that are friends. Not saying I've done it, or would ever consider it.
Hilltop,
Networking or not, who cares about the friendships. Who comes first, your League or your friends from outside the League?
Back when I was in school, the school I attended doesn't thank much about Jackson, but would of never did that to the Ironmen, due to the two being in the SEOAL together at the time. If a coach would of did that AT Wellston, he may of been fired.
If Jackson did that in the 80's that's low. Especially to a fellow League Team. No wonder they got pounced by Ironton after that season. If I was Lutz, I would of tried to run the score so high up on them they might thank twice the next time they pulled a back-stabbing act like that to a fellow league team. Who was the Jackson Coach then?
I guess times have changed.
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fighting_falcon
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Zanes-Vegas
While Football at Warren has decided to be absent the past few years many of the other sports continue or began to feel success at levels never before. Warren boys bball may not be on the same level as Zanesville and Chilli but the girls program continues to be at or near the top every year. In basbell the boys teams has been very solid these past few years. The boys soccer team, the cross country teams going to state, the softball team and track teams always battling for league titles, district and regional titles.
While football has been down during the same period other sports have raised the bar for themselves and others that follow.
While Football at Warren has decided to be absent the past few years many of the other sports continue or began to feel success at levels never before. Warren boys bball may not be on the same level as Zanesville and Chilli but the girls program continues to be at or near the top every year. In basbell the boys teams has been very solid these past few years. The boys soccer team, the cross country teams going to state, the softball team and track teams always battling for league titles, district and regional titles.
While football has been down during the same period other sports have raised the bar for themselves and others that follow.
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Zanes-Vegas
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MTSWNGRVSG
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philthyphil
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Ironton board rescinds SEOAL vote
By Teresa Moore/The Ironton Tribune
Friday, January 4, 2008 11:49 AM EST
The Ironton Board of Education Thursday night changed its mind on dropping out of the South East Ohio Athletic League — at least for now.
The board voted 4-1 to rescind an earlier vote to pursue getting out of the league and seek affiliation with a new one.
Board members Tim Johnson, Robert Pleasant Jr., Jerry Rowe and John Wolfe voted to rescind the earlier call. Board member Bob Vaughn, who had proposed the idea last month, voted against the move to rescind.
The board did direct Athletic Director Mark Vass to develop a recommendation one way or the other on the matter and give it to the board at its Feb. 19 meeting. Vass attended the Thursday meeting and said there were both positives and negatives to getting out of the league.
He acknowledged that revenues from some sporting events has decreased since Ironton joined the SEOAL, and in some cases, athletes must travel long distances to play some games or matches. On the other hand, Portsmouth officials have indicated they have no intention of dropping out of the league and the two schools have a history of playing each other. He also said withdrawing from the league immediately could be costly since schedules are made in advance.
“There are pros and sons in every scenario,†Vass said. “The bottom line is what’s best for the program.â€
Vass said the district had three options: get out now, a move that would cost approximately $20,000, since some games are planned well in advance, or stay in the league and make some adjustments to expenditures.
“Obviously we can’t continue losing money,†he said.
Vass said in the 2003-04 school year, all athletics combined garnered approximately $172,000 in revenues. That figure was approximately 182,000 the following school year and approximately $156,000 during the 2005-06 school year. But in the 2006-07 school year, the first year in the SEOAL, revenues dropped to approximately $112,000.
A third option would be to see if Ironton could play only southern schools in the league, a move that would eliminate some of the long distance travel.
“I don’t know if other teams will go for it,†Vass said.
Rowe said he had voted for the motion to withdraw from the SEOAL because he was concerned that some athletes had to travel long distances in the middle of the week to play some games and this could impede school work.
“I’m concerned about what time kids get home and about them having an opportunity to study,†he said.
Wolfe suggested that maybe some games, especially any long-distances games, could be played on Saturday, thus eliminating lengthy trips after school on Friday night. Superintendent Dean Nance said he thought Saturday games might increase attendance at some games and therefore increase revenues. Vass said some schools have turned thumbs down on Saturday games in the past.
At a board meeting in December, Rowe, Vaughn and then-member Kathy Kratzenberg voted to pursue a plan to leave the SEOAL once the district’s contract is completed. But Kratzenberg’s stay on the board expired with the New Year and she was replaced by Wolfe.
The discussion on the SEOAL came at the board’s first-of-the-year organizational meeting. Johnson was elected president and Pleasant vice-president. With the exception of the January meeting, board meetings will be at 6 p.m. the third Tuesday on the month and be rotated among all the district’s buildings.
January’s meeting will be 6 p.m. Jan. 22 at Whitwell. Meetings will not be conducted at the First Baptist Church Educational Building that is now being used to house the sixth grade.
By Teresa Moore/The Ironton Tribune
Friday, January 4, 2008 11:49 AM EST
The Ironton Board of Education Thursday night changed its mind on dropping out of the South East Ohio Athletic League — at least for now.
The board voted 4-1 to rescind an earlier vote to pursue getting out of the league and seek affiliation with a new one.
Board members Tim Johnson, Robert Pleasant Jr., Jerry Rowe and John Wolfe voted to rescind the earlier call. Board member Bob Vaughn, who had proposed the idea last month, voted against the move to rescind.
The board did direct Athletic Director Mark Vass to develop a recommendation one way or the other on the matter and give it to the board at its Feb. 19 meeting. Vass attended the Thursday meeting and said there were both positives and negatives to getting out of the league.
He acknowledged that revenues from some sporting events has decreased since Ironton joined the SEOAL, and in some cases, athletes must travel long distances to play some games or matches. On the other hand, Portsmouth officials have indicated they have no intention of dropping out of the league and the two schools have a history of playing each other. He also said withdrawing from the league immediately could be costly since schedules are made in advance.
“There are pros and sons in every scenario,†Vass said. “The bottom line is what’s best for the program.â€
Vass said the district had three options: get out now, a move that would cost approximately $20,000, since some games are planned well in advance, or stay in the league and make some adjustments to expenditures.
“Obviously we can’t continue losing money,†he said.
Vass said in the 2003-04 school year, all athletics combined garnered approximately $172,000 in revenues. That figure was approximately 182,000 the following school year and approximately $156,000 during the 2005-06 school year. But in the 2006-07 school year, the first year in the SEOAL, revenues dropped to approximately $112,000.
A third option would be to see if Ironton could play only southern schools in the league, a move that would eliminate some of the long distance travel.
“I don’t know if other teams will go for it,†Vass said.
Rowe said he had voted for the motion to withdraw from the SEOAL because he was concerned that some athletes had to travel long distances in the middle of the week to play some games and this could impede school work.
“I’m concerned about what time kids get home and about them having an opportunity to study,†he said.
Wolfe suggested that maybe some games, especially any long-distances games, could be played on Saturday, thus eliminating lengthy trips after school on Friday night. Superintendent Dean Nance said he thought Saturday games might increase attendance at some games and therefore increase revenues. Vass said some schools have turned thumbs down on Saturday games in the past.
At a board meeting in December, Rowe, Vaughn and then-member Kathy Kratzenberg voted to pursue a plan to leave the SEOAL once the district’s contract is completed. But Kratzenberg’s stay on the board expired with the New Year and she was replaced by Wolfe.
The discussion on the SEOAL came at the board’s first-of-the-year organizational meeting. Johnson was elected president and Pleasant vice-president. With the exception of the January meeting, board meetings will be at 6 p.m. the third Tuesday on the month and be rotated among all the district’s buildings.
January’s meeting will be 6 p.m. Jan. 22 at Whitwell. Meetings will not be conducted at the First Baptist Church Educational Building that is now being used to house the sixth grade.
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Tigercannon71
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Zanes-Vegas
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Tigercannon ...
My take is this -- the original motion to get out was a knee-jerk reaction. Frankly, it struck me as being rather dubious, and perhaps a personal agenda on the part on one person.
The way you're supposed to do it is STUDY it, then make an EDUCATED decision.
Give Mr. Vass the time he needs to pull the numbers together ACROSS THE BOARD and then make a decision from that ... not on a whim.
My take is this -- the original motion to get out was a knee-jerk reaction. Frankly, it struck me as being rather dubious, and perhaps a personal agenda on the part on one person.
The way you're supposed to do it is STUDY it, then make an EDUCATED decision.
Give Mr. Vass the time he needs to pull the numbers together ACROSS THE BOARD and then make a decision from that ... not on a whim.
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NYBuckeye96
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philthyphil wrote:
Vass said in the 2003-04 school year, all athletics combined garnered approximately $172,000 in revenues. That figure was approximately 182,000 the following school year and approximately $156,000 during the 2005-06 school year. But in the 2006-07 school year, the first year in the SEOAL, revenues dropped to approximately $112,000.
Wow, that is a major drop off in revenue! I'm curious to see if other SEOAL schools lost revenue as well? I guess that is why "fantasy leagues" are just that - fantasy. If the fans don't travel and you lose so much money, what's the point???
I'm assuming fans from DeSales, Belfry KY and whoever else Ironton used to play must have travelled well? At least better than the SEOAL schools?
If gasoline prices continue to increase, I'm guessing fan attendance at away games will decrease for all schools, especially if the games are far away.