Fairness is the main issue here
Eight football classes. Four in basketball. Three in volleyball, and even cross country and golf.
Some might argue that the value of an Illinois state championship has gone the way of the U.S. dollar, but I get the IHSA's agenda.
They seek opportunities for more schools. School pride in achievement. Competitiveness. Everybody's a champion!
Yet they are sidestepping the elephant in the room.
If the IHSA really wishes equity in its state playoffs, it will introduce separate tournaments for public and parochial schools. Apples vs. apples, oranges vs. oranges.
Separate tournaments already are held in states such as New York, Texas and Maryland.
A study of Illinois state football title games the last 10 years shows the competition to be anything but.
In Class 6A parochial schools Providence, Mt. Carmel, Joliet Catholic and Carmel have beaten five opponents by a combined score of 215-33; parochials schools won Class 5A every year from 1998-2006; Driscoll and Montini have won the last six Class 4A titles by a combined score of 248-59.
Bring up Wheaton Warrenville South's win over Mt. Carmel in the Class 8A title game in 2006 or Glenbard North's upset of the Caravan in 2007 all you want, but it's an anomaly against an otherwise predictable outcome. Not every public program in Illinois is WW South, either.
Parochial schools haven't quite dominated sports like basketball and baseball in the same manner - they aren't the numbers game football is - but in volleyball they have won a wildly disproportionate 32 of the 64 state championships since 1977.
You can chalk much of that up to great coaches, great players and tradition.
But there is no questioning the clear advantage parochial schools enjoy drawing on talent from a 30-mile radius, compared to their public school counterparts that are limited by district boundaries.
No sour grapes here. If my son or daughter were to somehow find the elusive athletic gene in the Welge family, I'd consider sending them to a school like Benet or Montini for volleyball, football and a good education.
In my opinion, too, many schools are just destined to never play in a state final. Everyone is not a champion.
But if the IHSA truly believes otherwise, if class expansion is not just an excuse to pad the coffers with extra state finals revenue, a spade should be called a spade.
Take the next step. Put the apples with the apples and the oranges with the oranges.
<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=248523">Competition brings out best in public, private schools <span class="date">[11/7/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=248526">Going own way isn't the answer <span class="date">[11/7/08]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>