OT: D1

[IUPbigINDIANS]

PIAA just ruled and Aliquippa is moving to 5A

That's hilarious.


Next year PSAC

[EyeoftheHawk]

PIAA just ruled and Aliquippa is moving to 5A

That's hilarious.


Next year PSAC

But Southern Columbia gets to stay in AA forever. What a joke.

[Bart]

Southern Columbia product Julian Fleming to Penn State from Ohio State thru the portal.

[Ship69]

PIAA just ruled and Aliquippa is moving to 5A

That's hilarious.


Next year PSAC

Has any rationale been given for it? I'm not saying it makes sense, but they must be doing it for a reason or they'd just move up every team that won a couple of championships. Do they have transfers coming in or something. Of course there is no Class 7A to move St. Joseph's Prep into.

[IUP24]

Has any rationale been given for it? I'm not saying it makes sense, but they must be doing it for a reason or they'd just move up every team that won a couple of championships. Do they have transfers coming in or something. Of course there is no Class 7A to move St. Joseph's Prep into.

Mike Warfield, the head coach at Aliquippa, said, "We'll show up on Friday night at the stadium at 7:00 and play whoever."

The PIAA's rationale is that they are listed as having 23 transfers within their program (they have about 40 students who play football). The deeper context is that only 2-5 of those individuals are actually transfers into the district. Aliquippa is an economically depressed area. It's a terrible district academically. Nobody is moving their family into Aliquippa. What is being reported is that Aliquippa will be appealing this and that their fight is based on having a large faction of their student body that moves in and out of the district regularly due to their home environment. Warfield was on 93.7 The Fan last night and discussed that their school has a high number of "transient students," who, at no fault of their own bounce between living with different family members for a variety of reasons. Sometimes those family members live in the Aliquippa school district, sometimes they do not. For many of these students, the only constant is football.

I can see how the principle of an unstable home life be used can be leveraged by the powers that be to say that Aliquippa is "recruiting." I just don't believe anybody is willingly moving to Aliquippa, regardless of how good the football there is.

[IUP24]

But Southern Columbia gets to stay in AA forever. What a joke.

I'm reading that the reason Southern Columbia is getting around this whole transfer thing is because they have some "vocational school" distinction. If that's the case, that's hilarious.

[IUP24]

Transfer portal update for many of you... I know many were quick to talk about the crazy number of Pitt football transfers...

One player (just one - that's not a typo) has transferred to a Power 5 program. The others are still searching or ended up in the Group of 5 or FCS. Two wanted to come back to Pitt and were denied by Narduzzi. Two others were welcomed back by Narduzzi.

So let's pump the brakes on creating a story about the mass exodus of good players leaving Pitt. With the exception of Sam Okunlola, the "good" players who you would want to come back, are coming back. As I told everyone when that became a conversation, it should have been a non-topic. No significant losses overall. They were 3-9. Let anybody leave that wants to leave.

[iupgroundhog]

Mike Warfield, the head coach at Aliquippa, said, "We'll show up on Friday night at the stadium at 7:00 and play whoever."

The PIAA's rationale is that they are listed as having 23 transfers within their program (they have about 40 students who play football). The deeper context is that only 2-5 of those individuals are actually transfers into the district. Aliquippa is an economically depressed area. It's a terrible district academically. Nobody is moving their family into Aliquippa. What is being reported is that Aliquippa will be appealing this and that their fight is based on having a large faction of their student body that moves in and out of the district regularly due to their home environment. Warfield was on 93.7 The Fan last night and discussed that their school has a high number of "transient students," who, at no fault of their own bounce between living with different family members for a variety of reasons. Sometimes those family members live in the Aliquippa school district, sometimes they do not. For many of these students, the only constant is football.

I can see how the principle of an unstable home life be used can be leveraged by the powers that be to say that Aliquippa is "recruiting." I just don't believe anybody is willingly moving to Aliquippa, regardless of how good the football there is.

Those arguments don't make sense to me. If there are a lot of transient students moving IN and OUT of the district that doesn't explain the positive football outcome. My guess is that they are exploiting the social environment to produce the football powerhouse. It sounds to me as though they are providing special attention to athletes' official domicile status. It may not look like the transfer world that normally would come to mind in other situations.

On the other hand, maybe there is something in the water in Aliquippa.

[IUP24]

Those arguments don't make sense to me. If there are a lot of transient students moving IN and OUT of the district that doesn't explain the positive football outcome. My guess is that they are exploiting the social environment to produce the football powerhouse. It sounds to me as though they are providing special attention to athletes' official domicile status. It may not look like the transfer world that normally would come to mind in other situations.

On the other hand, maybe there is something in the water in Aliquippa.

How does this even make sense if they are saying half of their student population is like this? You're assuming that they are encouraging transient students who are athletes to be IN the district during football season? That's a pretty bold statement to make.

Nobody has any idea what the home situations of some of these students are.

And to be clear, Warfield made clear that their "best players" are not transient students and said that he could prove that. He also indicated that of the actual "transfers," two of them never played a single snap. I'm doubtful they'll win their appeal, but it's hilarious that they are in this position only because they voluntarily wanted to play 3A football instead of 1A football, which is what their enrollment is. Aliquippa has about 30-40 kids coming out to play football every year. They shouldn't be playing North Hills, Penn Hills, etc.

Regarding the water in Aliquippa... They've been good long before the PIAA got involved with handpicking who they wanted to promote/relegate among high school football classifications. But remember... It was always Aliquippa's decision to play up two classifications voluntarily.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Transfer portal update for many of you... I know many were quick to talk about the crazy number of Pitt football transfers...

One player (just one - that's not a typo) has transferred to a Power 5 program. The others are still searching or ended up in the Group of 5 or FCS. Two wanted to come back to Pitt and were denied by Narduzzi. Two others were welcomed back by Narduzzi.

So let's pump the brakes on creating a story about the mass exodus of good players leaving Pitt. With the exception of Sam Okunlola, the "good" players who you would want to come back, are coming back. As I told everyone when that became a conversation, it should have been a non-topic. No significant losses overall. They were 3-9. Let anybody leave that wants to leave.

Pitt is unfortunately a non-topic even in Pittsburgh so I don't think you have much to worry about on that front.

[IUP24]

Pitt is unfortunately a non-topic even in Pittsburgh so I don't think you have much to worry about on that front.

But the number of players leaving the program via the portal were a topic here. So I'm just providing an update to give context.

[iupgroundhog]

How does this even make sense if they are saying half of their student population is like this?

WHO is saying that?

You're assuming that they are encouraging transient students who are athletes to be IN the district during football season?

I'm not assuming anything. I am suggesting that and I think there is a strong likelihood of it.

That's a pretty bold statement to make.

Doesn't seem like a bold statement to me.

Nobody has any idea what the home situations of some of these students are.

Somebody probably does. If you dig deeper into the domicile history of the players versus non-players, given the "transient" scenario, I think it's conceivable that they are taking advantage of that environment.

And to be clear, Warfield made clear that their "best players" are not transient students and said that he could prove that.

Keep in mind that Warfield is the football coach.

They've been good long before the PIAA got involved with handpicking who they wanted to promote/relegate among high school football classifications.

I can remember great Aliquippa teams from the 1960's and '70's.

[Ship69]

WHO is saying that?


I'm not assuming anything. I am suggesting that and I think there is a strong likelihood of it.

Doesn't seem like a bold statement to me.


Somebody probably does. If you dig deeper into the domicile history of the players versus non-players, given the "transient" scenario, I think it's conceivable that they are taking advantage of that environment.


Keep in mind that Warfield is the football coach.


I can remember great Aliquippa teams from the 1960's and '70's.

What I find hilarious is that they're just fine with leaving schools such as Harrisburg Bishop McDevitt, which blatantly recruits, in 4A. At least the Mid-Penn Conference has finally moved McDevitt into the upper football division in the conference, where it belongs, in the latest realignment.

[iupgroundhog]

What I find hilarious is that they're just fine with leaving schools such as Harrisburg Bishop McDevitt, which blatantly recruits, in 4A. At least the Mid-Penn Conference has finally moved McDevitt into the upper football division in the conference, where it belongs, in the latest realignment.

Right.

I think the Aliquippa situation deserves more scrutiny. Everything I can find on the topic is just the reaction from Aliquippa. Is there an official statement from the PIAA? Aliquippa claims it's just because they are too good for their classification. Is that true?

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Right.

I think the Aliquippa situation deserves more scrutiny. Everything I can find on the topic is just the reaction from Aliquippa. Is there an official statement from the PIAA? Aliquippa claims it's just because they are too good for their classification. Is that true?

Their actual classification would be 1A.

If they were in 1A, they would win weekly 100-0.

That said, 1A to 5A is quite the jump.