in my opinion. Most years it is debateable as to which site to attend games at, however, this year Williamsburg seems the clear cut choice, at least in my opinion. Obviously, if you are a fan of one of the schools playing in Salem or Hampton your allegiance will rest there, however, for a full day of football Williamsburg gets my vote. You've got one game featuring established programs that at the beginning of the season a lot of people thought were in the discussion for the best in class. The other game features two teams with great story lines. Should make for a great day of football that could only be improved with a weather forecast like we got at Liberty last year(not likely). Good luck to the finalists at all 3 venues for well played, safe games!! Hard to believe but, another season has flown by.
Williamsburg has it all.....
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My wife and I are staying overnight on Friday, and making a full day of it on Saturday. Her interest in football is far less than zero, yet she's been excited about this potential trip since the change in venues was announced. I agree that the best pair of games will be found at Zable Stadium. We'll miss the 3A game, as we'll be out walking around.....(sigh) compromises, and all that. If Salem weren't playing, I doubt I would attend the games at Salem Stadium, though I've gone in the past. For me personally, the 1A game doesn't hold much fascination this year, and (this is probably the safest place to bury this opinion) I think Appo will decisively defeat Richlands, who'll apparently be minus their star receiver.
I still one day would like to see the 6A title game, regardless of which teams are in it. I've never seen real top shelf teams at that level (at least, not for thirty years). I'd like to get a look at the best of the state's biggest boys.
I still one day would like to see the 6A title game, regardless of which teams are in it. I've never seen real top shelf teams at that level (at least, not for thirty years). I'd like to get a look at the best of the state's biggest boys.
@SpartanOfYore I'm most likely going to the 5A/6A games, I really want to see Westfield up close for once.
I realize that you said you have to walk around with wife... but if you could find a way over to Hampton for the 12:07 Highland Springs vs Stone Bridge Game and make it back to Williamsburg for the Dinwiddie / Salem game with plenty of time to spar. Division 5 is the best division in the state. HSHS is huge in terms of player size and has tons of athletes. Might be good to check out if you can figure out a way to negotiate with the wife. Good luck!
You should receive majors kudos from the wife for this one. The lights at Colonial Williamburg are spectacular this time of year and you can literally have one foot on the W&M Campus while the other is on this historical site. And I love history almost as much as Football.
Ton's of great places to eat and the outlet stores are only about 20 minutes away. Yorktown is right there, as is Busch gardens. Not too many ladies are gonna' turn down a weekend like this in exchange for a few hours of HS Football.
Enjoy it. Liberty has absolutely nothing to compare with the completeness and variety of this Williamsburg venue.
Only problem is that it is not in a central location. Games should be played at UVA
Three of the four teams in the state final have 3 and a half or four hour drives
Change is inevitable in all things. But the only current plans for ALL Championship venues is yearly review by the VHSL and that's as it should be.
UVA also has to WANT these mid-level games. I would guess they want the big ones and for those 5 and 6A contests, I would agree UVA is well suited.
Didn't know it was a yearly review!! A post above wants UVA, not bad for Nova, Tidewater or Roanoke area. Zable like said offers the most diversions for all. Richmond is ok but can UR stadium be acceptable, never been there. JMU is a possibility been there once for playoffs a while ago.
I don't see that as an issue. Teams will arrive Friday night and have plenty of rest. College teams are no different. Wanna' do long rides and have to leave tomorrow for another long ride, do minor league baseball.
You bunch of Wussies.
Oh, by the way, with some limits, no one really cares about the fans.
Funny, in New Jersey where there are 6 football classifications some of the smaller ones like div 3 (equal to our div 3) play the finals in Giants Metlife Stadium. Some experience. And UVA , a state university is less accommodating? Time to twist some arms real hard.
JMU is easily acceptable. UR has a new facility.
EVERTHING is reviewed yearly by the VHSL. They wouldn't be doing their job if they didn't. If there are issues this year at Zable, they will be provided a "hit list" of items that require correction. If not corrected, they will come under contract violation.
This is a business. All the answers are obvious if you think of it as such.
2 years is the normal contract. That is correct. But the VHSL can pull out at any time. Plus, it's not just the bidding. It's practically a lock that Liberty's bid for these games was the highest. They didn't get it and will probably not get it again in the foreseeable future.
Anywhere to see the actual contract- I would like to see the terms and conditions. After 42 years as an audit manager and controller I have seen a few and would be interested how it works.
Money and power is always the answer. You don't get Giant's Stadium without paying through the nose and getting a worthy return on tickets and concessions. Arm twisting has nothing to do with it.
Bring those numbers to UVA, they'll bid for it. No money. No games. Quite simple really.
Giants Stadium- old and new has been used for football finals for all classifications on a rotating basis since 1976. Bidding, ticket sales etc. is not the determining factor but the opportunity of a lifetime for players of all size schools. For the Giants it is part of their public relations and community involvement. It is not about profit. The finals are spread over 3 days and those not at Giants Stadium (their finals crown 24 teams) are all at one of several colleges including Rutgers. NJ has a state final for each of 4 regions in all 6 divisions. They do not have a single state wide final in each division.
How are you an audit Manager and Controller for all those years and dispute money and power as the answer? There is gain here. this is not philanthropy. This is business.
If was all for profit only the largest schools would participate and nobody could afford to run a Pro football stadium for several days with some games attendance only 2-3,000. There is a difference between a for profit business and a non-profit organization. And yes, some Pro football teams do some "philanthropy" for the local communities.
UR's stadium is probably nicer than Liberty and that's saying a lot. I've never been to a football game there but I have been to a lot of basketball games at the Robins Center and I see that they're locker rooms are a very long walk from the field. Don't know if that's a con but I'd think it would be one for some people . Parking isn't that bad. If they can hold 8000 people for the annual VCU/UR basketball game, it can hold 4000 for football. UR is in a very prosperous neighborhood so I don't know how accepting they would be of outsiders coming in. As long as they don't move it to ODU I'm good. Parking is a pain in the tail and traffic is atrocious.
Care to explain how in one breath you say "money and power is always the answer" and in another post you offer that "it is practically a lock that Liberty's bid was the highest"? One statement would seem to contradict the other or at least make it an either/or proposition.
Liberty had already cost the VHSL lots of legal,fees over the years in their continuous fighting. Most recently, the suit to allow LCS entry into the VHSL family of public schools. Forcing The VHSL to,rewrite their bylaws about allowing admission to Private Schools and having to come up with special rules that would help maintain some semblance of parity with the Publics. The deep pockets of LU made it impractical for the VHSL to fight the litigation (money). So LCS is now part of the VHSL.
When contract renewal time came, the committee remembered. I have no access to the actual bid totals but no amount of money was going to buy this bid for LU. This was now about the power, LU had granted the VHSL by joining and they exercised it. Then smartly changed the 6A/5A venue at the same time so LU could not sue for "double standard". Which they certainly would have done.
You make a good point about the apparent contradiction. You're a very smart individual. LU forced a settlement because it would cost too much for the VHSL to fight it (money). Then, the selection committee exercised their power and let LU know there's a new sheriff in town.
The philanthropy in this case is conceived on ROI.
This is not to discredit true philanthropy whose sole purpose is to give back to and serve the community through Charitable contributions, Grants and Scholarships. Nothing is expected in return but the best efforts of those that utilize the funds.
Do you think the NFL's Head's Up or the 60 for 60 Programs are philanthropy? Think money and power and the answer is clear.
Do you really think the Giants and the Jets (MetLife is co-owned by the two) expect to turn a profit on that behemoth when they open it for a few games of high school football? I doubt it. It seats 80,000+. I doubt they fill it once even if all HS game ticket sales were combined. Hell, folks in that area don't support college football. You think they're gonna come out for high school ball? They MAY break even but that's about it. It's purely for good public relations. Which, incidentally, is good business.
Interesting theory. I think the power part is relevant but, in a slightly different manner. The VHSL ultimately decided to settle the lawsuit, however, cost of litigation was a secondary factor. The reality was they had already determined there were few, if any, other private schools wishing to follow LU's lead and LU's inclusion under the rules constituted a nonevent. Furthermore, with the school classification, concession to remove student reclassification and limits on transfers LCA would not be a statewide threat to competitive balance in the money sports and probably not any sports so spending further money on litigation would not provide a real return and the small amounts spent prior on pretrial and summary judgements were realistically viewed as a sunk cost. The change of venue considerations arose out of complaints from some Fairfax school forensic teams regarding an upcoming competition. Moving the LU site and Cville site were convenient to address these concerns, cover any bias allegations and in the process send that power message as a byproduct. This is the explanation I received from people close enough to the process to have at least an informed opinion.
Even harder to get a ticket.
Yes, the wait list is longer than the Redskins ever was.
See if @DanvilleSportsHead can get us in a luxury box. I think we can swing the cost.
So, power was the answer, even from the well informed. How unexpected.
i cannot speak with authority on the final decisions within the VHSL on the LCS admission. I can say that the Chairman of the of the reclassification committee says litigation money played a MAJOR role in the decision process concerning LCS. He was not part of that committee but I believe him.
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This actually will be one of the best 1A games in Salem since Essex/Altavista. The 2 best teams in 1A are playing for a title (2 very evenly matched teams). 2A might be lopsided, 3A will be lopsided, 4A will be lopsided, and 5A potentially could be lopsided.
Holy cow, don't ever gamble on anything or you'll lose your house.
Those 1A and 2A games couldn't have been worse to watch. Anyone in Williamsburg or Hampton got 2 amazing football games each, although I think I'd be heavily disappointed in the 3A fan if only because who expected defenses to actually be successful in either game.
Hard to believe SR went from averaging in the playoffs over 50 points to a tough 20. Incredible win by Blacksburg, not only a totally improbable state Championship ( first since the late 1980's!!) but they validated every 5-5 team getting into the playoffs. Can their magic now rub off VT in the bowl game?