St. Rita fans........
- Thread starter feeto
- Start date
Because it's in their backyard.
Great academics and with football on the upswing why go to 79th St or 64th St. I get the family traditions part
Great academics and with football on the upswing why go to 79th St or 64th St. I get the family traditions part
There are no "gimme feeder schools or programs" for any school - Catholic or otherwise. Beyond the parishes, the youth programs are all fair game - just ask the Andrews, Sandburgs, Lincoln-Ways which are all in very solid areas about losing kids from the Bobcats, Pioneers, Falcons, etc. to Provi, JCA, Marist, Marian Catholic, BR, etc. Even parishes in a school's backyard have to be worked very diligently. Queen of Martyrs still sends a lot to SR and Marist even though BR is supposedly the obvious choice. The better coaches and admissions reps know this and don't take things for granted or else they end up looking at a lot of empty desks come placement test day. Even hosting the local grammar schools to play their home games at the HS stadium is not a given. If the coaches at the grammar school programs are partial to a certain HS, they will favor that school, attend that school's jamboree, pass out the shadow and open house flyers for that school, etc. There's nothing wrong with that - it's called competition. BR and Marist should look to protect the parishes and programs in their backyards because these have become the areas where the better football programs are left - every school wants the same kids from the same programs. Why wouldn't these schools tout that they are "in the neighborhood"? What other schools offer the ability for grammar school and younger HS age kids to walk to the campus for a Friday night game and walk home? You leverage your strengths if you want to be successful.
Umm exactly
Everything you have stated has been going on for years and will continue to go on. My point is BR was as appealing as it is now in my opinion so they shouldn't lose the QofM or MHR kids like they did a few years back. Rota has had a strong hold on Q of M for years and the coaches there bleed red and blue so they push Rita. The difference now is Rita isn't winning and Rice is. Rice goes after kids were they didn't back in the day. It's not as easy for Rita and MC at those grammar schools like it use to be. Competition is always good and brings the best out of people. The problem was Rice didn't even throw their hat in the ring until Oconnell and now Badke were there. It's a different ball game and those two have more rice way more appealing to a neighborhood so to me it's a no brainer
Everything you have stated has been going on for years and will continue to go on. My point is BR was as appealing as it is now in my opinion so they shouldn't lose the QofM or MHR kids like they did a few years back. Rota has had a strong hold on Q of M for years and the coaches there bleed red and blue so they push Rita. The difference now is Rita isn't winning and Rice is. Rice goes after kids were they didn't back in the day. It's not as easy for Rita and MC at those grammar schools like it use to be. Competition is always good and brings the best out of people. The problem was Rice didn't even throw their hat in the ring until Oconnell and now Badke were there. It's a different ball game and those two have more rice way more appealing to a neighborhood so to me it's a no brainer
We agree. I was just making the case that it's still hyper competitive. And yes, the O'Connell+Badke+McCarthy+Frasor combination will be very tough to beat from an athletics standpoint, just as the Brown+Dunne+Sefcik+Nolan will be from Marist for boys. Marist and Rice's academics are strong. The ACT average scores, National Merit results, etc. are all strong. That said, each is strong in some areas and less so in others and in the end, it's usually a wash between the two so they should be able to attract the best of those in the area who will consider the investment of a Catholic school environment.
It's all different strokes for different folks
Coed is good for so kids and a bad idea for others.
I think the one thing that really hurts marist is playing in the ESCC. Kids from the neighborhood don't want to plays st viator or Benet. They obviously been doing ok though
Coed is good for so kids and a bad idea for others.
I think the one thing that really hurts marist is playing in the ESCC. Kids from the neighborhood don't want to plays st viator or Benet. They obviously been doing ok though
I wholly disagree. SR didn't need those schools (Martyrs; Christina; Cajetan; Fisher, Bernandette; Redeemer; Christ the King) up until the early 90s or so. They could strike out on all those schools and still have a ton of kids from the grammar schools located between 35th & 87th and Ashland & Narraganset.
Up until the early 90s, most of the top athletes from Mt. Greenwood/Beverly/EP schools were going to BR or MC; at least that is my opinion/recollection.
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Name one of those parishes that graduates more than 25 boys in an 8th grade class. If that's what SR is banking on,
Hit em high
Hit em low
Will be no more
Hit em high
Hit em low
Will be no more
We are all talking about the same thing unfortunately and have the same passion. We want the catholic schools to thrive with big numbers and winning football teams. The problem is the numbers just aren't there anymore. St Mary's star of sea was one if not the biggest grammar school on the Southside and now it's barely a float.
It's sad but in the end something has to give.
It's sad but in the end something has to give.
You are right. I don't have any answers. I think my alma matter, SR, is probably in the most difficult position to return to past football glory. But hopefully some creativity, hard work and luck will prove me wrong.
BR's new found success has nothing to do with the neighborhood kids, especially from the Catholic schools surrounding them. They have got all their difference makers from places they never got players from before. Borelli is from new Lenox smalling, lacy ,and valladay from Matteson Larry Washington is from HF. Both benns ,Houston ,and veal are from south Holland.
Shows that they are putting the scouting to work
At the roster that surrounds them. The OL/DBs/WRs
The southside conference is lacking overall.
Your point even furthers mine in the fact that they are going to get kids in the neighborhood and outside it. They aren't just opening the doors and hoping they come they are going to get them. That's the difference with Badke
Hard work and personality, face of the program
At the roster that surrounds them. The OL/DBs/WRs
The southside conference is lacking overall.
Your point even furthers mine in the fact that they are going to get kids in the neighborhood and outside it. They aren't just opening the doors and hoping they come they are going to get them. That's the difference with Badke
Hard work and personality, face of the program
I agree the badke and comany have been doing their job by bringing talent in the building. I think that they don't pay enough attention to their own back yard. Getting kids from places you never have before is great. But none of those kids parents are used to paying tuition and all of a sudden 12k a year is hard to convince someone to pay especially if they have a good public school option.
What are basing that opinion off of?
Across the board with athletics at Rice, the neighborhood is number one priority.
Especially OConnell and Badke living in the neighborhood. Let me know the next time you are at a Southside conference football game and don't see someone in rice gear representing the school.
Across the board with athletics at Rice, the neighborhood is number one priority.
Especially OConnell and Badke living in the neighborhood. Let me know the next time you are at a Southside conference football game and don't see someone in rice gear representing the school.
Years ago, looking at surrounding parochial schools was a good measuring stick. However, city workers who used to send their kids to Catholic grammar schools are sending them to public in order to save money for the rising costs of BR, SR and the rest. Also, I wonder how many Mustang Awards are being handed out these days. Back in the 90's it wasn't uncommon to have 20 Mustang award recipients per class. With shrinking classes, Rita cannot afford to offer as many because it would result in lost tuition money.
Side note to Septon34:
Don't fall for the oldest trick in the book from the MC and BR posters. They like to sow doubt around SR. Doubt is a very important emotion to peddle when recruiting. For example, when Lenti broke the winningest HS coach record a while ago, the reporter mentioned younger coaches that would have an outside shot of getting close to the record. The reporter mentioned Kuska and Lenti took the opportunity to plant seeds of doubt saying something to the effect of Well Todd's a good coach but he has a young family so who knows how long he would stay at St. Rita.
Sowing doubt in the recruiting game is an important weapon when you have parents deciding if they are going to spend close to 50k the next 4 years somewhere. When that type of money is involved, any doubts you can spread about other programs is a great tool.
They've used this message board plenty of times to sow the doubt. A couple of years ago it was the location when an incident happened at an off campus McDs. Another year, they had a thread about Kuska going to Lockport right around test time. Now they're going with the health of the program which is a great starter because it then brings up the location issue again.
This year's team will be fine. They will be competitive in all the Blue games. Hats off to St. Pats for capitalizing on Rita's mistakes, muffed punt, missed FG, dropped TD, dropped interception. But unlike last year when SR was spanked by Malvern, this team came out and won the second half 30 to 14. There are no moral victories when you are SR but this group has a lot of pride that won't let the season go without a fight. They have a number of HR hitters on offense. Defensively, there aren't any game changers but they'll have to just swallow their pride and blitz less leaving 3 or 4 deep and play bend but not break D. Make the other team of 15 to 18 year olds go 10 to 15 plays to score without making their own mistakes. The offense can and will score quick. Get ready for some 41 to 40 games.
SR is not going anywhere. They will be there until a senior class graduates 10 Rita men. Congratulations to BR and SL on turning their programs around and to LA, MC, and PC on sustaining their success for so long. We all are on the same side except for Friday nights.
Don't fall for the oldest trick in the book from the MC and BR posters. They like to sow doubt around SR. Doubt is a very important emotion to peddle when recruiting. For example, when Lenti broke the winningest HS coach record a while ago, the reporter mentioned younger coaches that would have an outside shot of getting close to the record. The reporter mentioned Kuska and Lenti took the opportunity to plant seeds of doubt saying something to the effect of Well Todd's a good coach but he has a young family so who knows how long he would stay at St. Rita.
Sowing doubt in the recruiting game is an important weapon when you have parents deciding if they are going to spend close to 50k the next 4 years somewhere. When that type of money is involved, any doubts you can spread about other programs is a great tool.
They've used this message board plenty of times to sow the doubt. A couple of years ago it was the location when an incident happened at an off campus McDs. Another year, they had a thread about Kuska going to Lockport right around test time. Now they're going with the health of the program which is a great starter because it then brings up the location issue again.
This year's team will be fine. They will be competitive in all the Blue games. Hats off to St. Pats for capitalizing on Rita's mistakes, muffed punt, missed FG, dropped TD, dropped interception. But unlike last year when SR was spanked by Malvern, this team came out and won the second half 30 to 14. There are no moral victories when you are SR but this group has a lot of pride that won't let the season go without a fight. They have a number of HR hitters on offense. Defensively, there aren't any game changers but they'll have to just swallow their pride and blitz less leaving 3 or 4 deep and play bend but not break D. Make the other team of 15 to 18 year olds go 10 to 15 plays to score without making their own mistakes. The offense can and will score quick. Get ready for some 41 to 40 games.
SR is not going anywhere. They will be there until a senior class graduates 10 Rita men. Congratulations to BR and SL on turning their programs around and to LA, MC, and PC on sustaining their success for so long. We all are on the same side except for Friday nights.
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The negative recruiting about SR and the neighborhood drives me nuts. The school is extremely safe, as it is secluded from the residential neighborhood. This is a big difference from 63rd & Claremont, where the school was right in the middle of the neighborhood, which had gotten very rough by the 80s. Even then though, the school did an excellent job of preventing incidents.
Equally important to the neighborhood being secluded is that SR offers private transportation. When I went to SR in the early/mid 90s, I'd say 95% of the kids took the CTA or walked to school. I'm sure it was similar the last few years at 63rd. With all the private transportation, parents don't have to worry about incident on the CTA stops. Also, students don't have to leave campus for after school activities. At 63rd, kids had to walk to Marquette or Lindbloom for practice, and that could get dicey.
The bottom line is that there is no evidence of higher safety risks at SR compared to any of the other schools. I realize society has progressed (and there is less macho), but SR kids in the 80s/90s actually took pride in going to an inner city school and it fostered a sense of toughness.
I disagree with that statement. My son just graduated from Rice played for Badke i don't live in the area and have had both of my children in Catholic school and have been paying tuition since they have been in school like alot of others on the team last year . that is a generalization and it is not accurate .
That's a great reason. Oh, wait, you didn't give a reason.
Disagree kids from south suburbs mostly go to public schools. There are a select few catholic grade schools in south suburbs like st Damian st Mike and St goerge. But majority of kids parents from the south suburbs are not used to paying tuition.
Depending on the particular suburb, the property taxes are higher than the P&I.
I am speaking of the kids on last years team at Rice . I know that what I said is fact as my kid played on the team and I got to know the parents on the team