IHSA and Sterling in the South

illini14

Sophomore
Jun 12, 2014
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20 bucs says: if JCA beats naz and advances to the title game, next offseason the rule becomes, if you get to the title game 2 out of 3 years, you get bumped up...next season, we'll see JCA and Naz in separate sections...

a slight lesson in history.

years ago:

The edgy board and rumblings were never Public vs Private, it was north (north of 80) vs south (south of 80 to include morris).

Public schools and private schools alike were winning titles, but all from the north - and there were 5 then an acceptable 6 classes as the population in Will grew.

To remedy the disparity in the schools near the urban chi area, we got:

1. football enrollment (which was not that bad of thing).

when that did not work as expected we go the statement from the IHSA that, "the playoffs are not here to decide a true champion" not quite the quote, but that is near enough.

then came the ever changing IHSA playoff system.

2. eight classes
3. sometimes north south brackets, sometimes east west
4. the infamous quads
5. the multiplier based on an arbitrary number
6. the only private schools success factor
7. 7-8 1-32, but the rest aren't worthy.

I mean, what is going on here?

Hopefully, at some point 5A-8A will go to 1-32 seeding. 1A-4A is fine how it is, if you look at the qualifier map it works out well, schools are all over the state. Really at the 5A-8A level with how many Chicagoland area schools there are if you are going to complain about the far travel times for playoffs due to where you would get seeded in 1-32, you shouldn't field a team.
 

Bwm57

All-Conference
Sep 12, 2011
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the closest school among the southernmost northern 5A schools is JCA, not LWW.
Are we talking closest to Sterling or closest to Chicago?
JCA as the westernmost of the southernmost of the northern 5A schools is closer to Sterling while LWW as the easternmost of the southernmost of the northern 5A schools would be closer to Chicago.
I'm not sure if these results are the same if we are using a crow.
 

ramblinman_rivals165935

All-Conference
Jul 18, 2001
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You gotta understand, for rambling the only correct bracket is the one where the schools he supports don't have any tough games until they meet each other in the championship. The actual bracket is irrelevant to the crying, its merely the gun to begin the race.

I have already pointed out that this "north/South" thing is not accurate, it is just how we have simplified it. It has already been explained why it is reasonable that Sterling be put in the "south" bracket. That explanation is unacceptable to him as it doesn't help his conspiracy theory, so he can complain when he should be applying Occam's razor to his whole theory..


100% false.

I have already stated in this thread that I would have been silent if Rich Central and LWW were in the 5A southern bracket instead of Sterling and LWW. I would have been fine with such an arrangement; an arrangement that would have resulted in the same private schools being in the exact same bracket as they are now. How Bones thinks that would have resulted in the schools I support not having any tough games until the championship is mystifying.

What Bones fails to acknowledge is that if there is reason behind putting Sterling is in the bracket with those 14 central and southern Illinois schools, then it is completely beyond geographical reason to go east and south of JCA and put LWW in that same bracket. There is NO POSSIBLE EXPLANATION for putting LWW in the south bracket over JCA...other than to keep JCA out of the south bracket. He will not acknowledge that because he is a knee jerk apologist for the IHSA when it comes to decisions that they make that result in public school advantages over private schools. He will not acknowledge that the IHSA just purposely executive decisioned their way to ensuring that there cannot be an all private title game in 5A.
 
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ramblinman_rivals165935

All-Conference
Jul 18, 2001
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Are we talking closest to Sterling or closest to Chicago?
JCA as the westernmost of the southernmost of the northern 5A schools is closer to Sterling while LWW as the easternmost of the southernmost of the northern 5A schools would be closer to Chicago.
I'm not sure if these results are the same if we are using a crow.


Chicago has nothing to do with it. Bracketing is all geography or "general location" as the IHSA website states. As the crow flies, LWW is 90 miles east and south of Sterling HS, while the crow flies only 83 miles east and south of Sterling to get to JCA.
 

JCHILLTOPPERS

Senior
May 29, 2001
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You gotta understand, for rambling the only correct bracket is the one where the schools he supports don't have any tough games until they meet each other in the championship. The actual bracket is irrelevant to the crying, its merely the gun to begin the race.

I have already pointed out that this "north/South" thing is not accurate, it is just how we have simplified it. It has already been explained why it is reasonable that Sterling be put in the "south" bracket. That explanation is unacceptable to him as it doesn't help his conspiracy theory, so he can complain when he should be applying Occam's razor to his whole theory.

It's a tiresome dance every year to twist every matchup into some ploy to make private schools play in the qtr finals instead of the championship for which they've all been anointed. But alas it is a two step we still engage in.
Bones I need a thumbs down button for this post of yours.
 

belviderebucs11

Redshirt
Jul 13, 2013
194
10
12
I'm pissed about sterling being in the south and JCA being in the north. It changed my outlook for the Bucs tremendously. Now instead of playing a CPS team they get Marian then if they get passed them some how they get JCA and then not to mention they get passed them Nazareth is waiting. If for some weird way the Bucs make it past all three teams I'm calling it now they will be winning state. Do I see that happening? No I don't. I don't see them making it past Marian after the last few games.
 

Snetsrak61

Senior
Aug 16, 2008
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LWW is going to have to travel rd 2 to Triad 255 Miles followed by a 246 mile journey to Centralia. 1000 miles in 2 weeks. Ouch.
We'll any round 2 and quarter predictions become inherently less certain. LWW could also end up with a manageable trip to Peoria. Or another home game. But any two north schools would run into that possibility. LWW and Rich Central would have ensured a long trip.

I'll check when I get home, but LWW and JCA in the south avoids any real long trips in Rd1 but did make a lot of trips a little longer.
 

Snetsrak61

Senior
Aug 16, 2008
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Also I really don't get the logic that Rich Central is the second logical choice. It's slightly lower southern positioning doesn't make up for its East positioning comparatively to both sides of the bracket.

No good way and any system with a value or subjective judgement is always gonna make someone upset. There is literally no such thing as consistency because you can also always make a argument for quads in the current rules.
 
Oct 22, 2011
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hicago has nothing to do with it. Bracketing is all geography or "general location" as the IHSA website states. As the crow flies, LWW is 90 miles east and south of Sterling HS, while the crow flies only 83 miles east and south of Sterling to get to JCA.

I still do not understand with the brackets as they now are , why LWW would not play SHS in the first round. The travel between the 2 schools would be via 100% Interstate, approx. 115 miles which is a very easy 2 hours. The distance between Sterling and Metamora is approx 90 miles, combination of 2 lane and 30 miles of Interstate, about 1hr and 45 minutes travel time. Limestone, Washington, Metamora and even Dunlap for that matter are members of the same
conference. I would believe though that a mix could be generated to include Peoria Central, Normal University, Decatur Eisenhower and Champaign Central which would allow sufficient first round combinations without tremendous travel. The winner of LWW/SHS, could then have a second round game in Peoria and if possible continue on South as now destined.

.The brackets had to be balanced however the methodology and the players seem suspect.
 

gdub86

Sophomore
Oct 26, 2015
128
182
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I wrote something earlier and should have went into more detail with it since I think most skipped past it. If the IHSA would have drawn a true north/south line, the north bracket would have looked like this:

1 Westinghouse vs 16 Glenbard South
8 Tinley Park vs 9 Sterling
5 St. Laurence vs 12 Belvidere
4 King vs 13 DuSable
3 JCA vs 14 Vernon Hills
6 MCC vs 11 Sycamore
7 Naz vs 10 Payton
2 Lindbolm vs 15 Solorio

In that case, MCC, Naz, and JCA are all in the same half fighting for the semi spot anyways. Moving Sterling south did nothing to manipulate that. I wish the IHSA would explain but the only thing that makes sense is by switching out Rich Central and Sterling, Marion is no longer having a 500 mile round trip for a first round game. So everything else remains the same except the outlier school takes the spot of the 2nd furthest south team which was Rich Central. Yes there could be some major travel in further rounds but 500 miles for a round 1 game was probably not going to happen if all it was going to take would be swapping 2 teams.
 

Cross Bones

All-Conference
Aug 19, 2001
52,804
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Bones I need a thumbs down button for this post of yours.
Perhaps, but its one hundred percent truth.
When I boil down all of these complaints and cries it all comes down to "We dont want to ever play anyone tough" and nothing more. And they also highlight an inability to step out of one's own shoes and see the situation from another perspective. Please show me where I am incorrect.
 
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ramblinman_rivals165935

All-Conference
Jul 18, 2001
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I still do not understand with the brackets as they now are , why LWW would not play SHS in the first round. The travel between the 2 schools would be via 100% Interstate, approx. 115 miles which is a very easy 2 hours. The distance between Sterling and Metamora is approx 90 miles, combination of 2 lane and 30 miles of Interstate, about 1hr and 45 minutes travel time. Limestone, Washington, Metamora and even Dunlap for that matter are members of the same
conference. I would believe though that a mix could be generated to include Peoria Central, Normal University, Decatur Eisenhower and Champaign Central which would allow sufficient first round combinations without tremendous travel. The winner of LWW/SHS, could then have a second round game in Peoria and if possible continue on South as now destined.

.The brackets had to be balanced however the methodology and the players seem suspect.
tj -- Putting the 1A - 6A brackets together is supposed to be about geography. Once those brackets are constituted, the pairings are determined by the teams' seeds and not by distance.
 

HHSTigerFan

Redshirt
May 29, 2001
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Ramblin says: There is NO POSSIBLE EXPLANATION for putting LWW in the south bracket over JCA.

Well, other than LWW is further south than JCA......
 

ramblinman_rivals165935

All-Conference
Jul 18, 2001
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Perhaps, but its one hundred percent truth.
When I boil down all of these complaints and cries it all comes down to "We dont want to ever play anyone tough" and nothing more. And they also highlight an inability to step out of one's own shoes and see the situation from another perspective. Please show me where I am incorrect.
Focus on the issue at hand and nothing more. Answer the two questions I posed to you earlier. All your boiling down is resulting in making a soup with ingredients that don't combine well.

We don't ever want to play anyone tough is the distasteful result of all your boiling down. I HAVE ALREADY SAID that JCA in the north, where they are now, is fine with me if the IHSA had put LWW and RC in the south. How that boils down to searching for an easy road to the finals is beyond anyone's comprehension other than yours.

And while we are on the topic, MY team is the #1 team in 8A with arguably the toughest road to the finals of any #1 seed in any class this year. Have you heard a single word of complaint from me on this? No, because I haven't mentioned it at all. I look forward to my team hopefully playing Stevie and HF in rounds 2 and 3. Again, this simply does not boil down to what you think it does.

One more time, Bones, try answering the questions I posed rather than trying to make a soup with a bad recipe.
 

JCHILLTOPPERS

Senior
May 29, 2001
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I'm pissed about sterling being in the south and JCA being in the north. It changed my outlook for the Bucs tremendously. Now instead of playing a CPS team they get Marian then if they get passed them some how they get JCA and then not to mention they get passed them Nazareth is waiting. If for some weird way the Bucs make it past all three teams I'm calling it now they will be winning state. Do I see that happening? No I don't. I don't see them making it past Marian after the last few games.

you see bucs, that is the argument many of us have been making for a long time. I'm not worried about JCA and Bronco and SHG...but unfair changes to their standing affects others...
 

HHSTigerFan

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May 29, 2001
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This might be the dumbest thread ever... the IHSA removed the northern school outside of the Chicago area (Sterling) and the farthest south (LWW).... and slid them into the southern bracket.. makes perfect sense..
 

pjjp

All-Conference
Aug 26, 2001
5,612
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This might be the dumbest thread ever... the IHSA removed the northern school outside of the Chicago area (Sterling) and the farthest south (LWW).... and slid them into the southern bracket.. makes perfect sense..

If it is the dumbest thread ever, your participation is just what's needed to dumb it down even further. You are the king of dumbing down a thread.
 

HHSTigerFan

Redshirt
May 29, 2001
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If it is the dumbest thread ever, your participation is just what's needed to dumb it down even further. You are the king of dumbing down a thread.

Of course, because I rarely agree with the CCL contigent here...
 

psspfan

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Dec 11, 2013
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Ramblin says: There is NO POSSIBLE EXPLANATION for putting LWW in the south bracket over JCA.

Well, other than LWW is further south than JCA......
that can't be an explanation because it doesn't hold for Sterling. It appears IHSA wasn't separating teams based on North- South, or at least not unless it made the top two private schools knock each other out prior to the Championship game.
 

psspfan

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Dec 11, 2013
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that can't be an explanation because it doesn't hold for Sterling. It appears IHSA wasn't separating teams based on North- South, or at least not unless it made the top two private schools knock each other out prior to the Championship game.
I guess what this whole thing says, IHSA Is NOT transparent in how they go about things. part of the problem with this group.
 
Oct 22, 2011
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I seem to have a knack for ticking people off but what the heck I may as well tick everyone off. This entire matter to me just does not make sense. Please remember out here drive distance is not like Chicago. Peoria is the second largest city in Illinois, outside of Chicago. There are interstate highways in all directions except straight North to Sterling. Bloomington is 40 miles away or about 40 minutes. Springfield is approximately 80 miles away or about 1 hour and 10 minutes, Champaign is approximately 90 miles or about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

There are 4 schools from the same conference, in the same class, located within around 15 miles of each other. 3 of the schools will play one or the other in the first or second round. To somewhat balance the bracket a school is brought down which has made the quarterfinals 5 times in 25 years though never beyond. However the 4th. school from that conference is sent way south along with a school from the Chicago area. There is another school located in Peoria, different conference, sent to a school 40 miles away. The balance of the schools within reasonable proximity to Peoria, say an hour or one and on half hours all play each other.

So yes, I agree Washington is a pretty clear favorite In Class 5A in-as-much as the Northern schools will all beat each other up before Dekalb.
 

godfthr53

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Sep 8, 2008
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I seem to have a knack for ticking people off but what the heck I may as well tick everyone off. This entire matter to me just does not make sense. Please remember out here drive distance is not like Chicago. Peoria is the second largest city in Illinois, outside of Chicago. There are interstate highways in all directions except straight North to Sterling. Bloomington is 40 miles away or about 40 minutes. Springfield is approximately 80 miles away or about 1 hour and 10 minutes, Champaign is approximately 90 miles or about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

There are 4 schools from the same conference, in the same class, located within around 15 miles of each other. 3 of the schools will play one or the other in the first or second round. To somewhat balance the bracket a school is brought down which has made the quarterfinals 5 times in 25 years though never beyond. However the 4th. school from that conference is sent way south along with a school from the Chicago area. There is another school located in Peoria, different conference, sent to a school 40 miles away. The balance of the schools within reasonable proximity to Peoria, say an hour or one and on half hours all play each other.

So yes, I agree Washington is a pretty clear favorite In Class 5A in-as-much as the Northern schools will all beat each other up before Dekalb.
I'll give you Washington +21 vs. anyone that comes out of the North. Beat up and all.
 
Oct 22, 2011
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In my prior post I said "3 schools who will play one or another in the first or second round" I should have said 3 schools who could possibly play one or another in the first or second round I apologize to Sterling which has a very fine team this year
 

HHSTigerFan

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May 29, 2001
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that can't be an explanation because it doesn't hold for Sterling. It appears IHSA wasn't separating teams based on North- South, or at least not unless it made the top two private schools knock each other out prior to the Championship game.

But of they went true north and south, wouldnt JCA still be in the northern bracket with Naz?
 
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psspfan

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Dec 11, 2013
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But of they went true north and south, wouldnt JCA still be in the northern bracket with Naz?
I was seeing it as, who is further south?, Sterling or JCA. therefore JCA would be south and Sterling North. are you seeing it different?
 

Bwm57

All-Conference
Sep 12, 2011
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I was seeing it as, who is further south?, Sterling or JCA. therefore JCA would be south and Sterling North. are you seeing it different?
PSS,
Yes, JCA is farther south than Sterling, but Rich Central is farther south than JCA and they are currently in North too.
So, if you went straight North/South you would swap Sterling and Rich Central, there wouldn't be any change for JCA they would remain in North.