After reading a bit of the Frederick Douglass thread, one poster said was possible like a 3 to 5 loss season. In your opinion, would you rather play a few cupcakes during the season, mostly cupcakes during the season or a tuff schedule from beginning to end?
2021 Belfry would be a good example of a team starting a season 0-5 or a 2022 Pikeville team starting a season 0-2 and then winning a championship in the end. I think the season with the right coaching adjustments make or break a team. I know any team can schedule a tuff opponent but are they actually ready to face that type of competition. The reason I say not any team, you got teams that are just trying to get a winning record let alone make a run at the district or deep playoff runs. But if you are a team making the deep playoff run, do you load the schedule?
10-0 Regular season or 5-5? RPI at home or RPI on the road?
I like a loaded schedule myself. Hazard may have done just that for example with there schedule.
Thoughts?
If a team is a legit state title contender I like a loaded schedule and who cares about that regular season record. Nobody cares if you win the first 12 to 14 games if you lose your last game. Only 2 of 6 state champions finished the season with undefeated records this year. Iron sharpens Iron.
Now if you aren’t to the level of a state championship team or are a young team I believe those teams should schedule competitive games early with progressively more difficult opponents.
I think there are different levels to how a team should schedule. I see the logic behind playing a tough schedule but it needs to be realistic too and a team shouldn’t punch too far out of their weight class as this benefits no one. RPI also changes the way teams think about scheduling too. I think this is a pretty good way to approach scheduling assuming there are 4 locked in district games:
For a team that is wanting to compete for a state championship play 3 teams that are equal and would be a toss up, 2 teams that are slightly better than you but you could still beat, and one team that would be considered an upset if you beat them.
For a middle of the pack team, 3 teams that are equal, 2 teams that are slightly better, and one team that you are a heavy favorite against to build confidence.
For a bottom of the pack team, 3 teams that are equal and 3 teams that are slightly better but you can beat.
I agree Blaze. If there’s no stipulations, I’d rather be 5-5 at the end of the regular season and know without a doubt I was at the minimum a toss up from being a state champion.
That being said, there’s no reason for a team in full rebuild mode, or a team that is simply struggling to field a team to put together a schedule that gets their teeth kicked it for half the season.
The top 10 in each class doesn’t seem to change much from year to year. Most of the time it’s the same teams in some variation. 1A for example…
Raceland, Pikeville, Hazard, and Paintsville are generally top 5 teams. There’s no reason for them to schedule anyone below them to simply “build confidence”. Their schedules should consist of teams that can give them a ball game. Not to say they schedule trinity every week because 1A can change drastically with one or two injuries, even among the top tier teams.
(02-27-2023, 08:25 AM)Scotty_Bronson Wrote: [ -> ]I agree Blaze. If there’s no stipulations, I’d rather be 5-5 at the end of the regular season and know without a doubt I was at the minimum a toss up from being a state champion.
That being said, there’s no reason for a team in full rebuild mode, or a team that is simply struggling to field a team to put together a schedule that gets their teeth kicked it for half the season.
The top 10 in each class doesn’t seem to change much from year to year. Most of the time it’s the same teams in some variation. 1A for example…
Raceland, Pikeville, Hazard, and Paintsville are generally top 5 teams. There’s no reason for them to schedule anyone below them to simply “build confidence”. Their schedules should consist of teams that can give them a ball game. Not to say they schedule trinity every week because 1A can change drastically with one or two injuries, even among the top tier teams.
In the last 7-8 I would have put Paintsville in that top level but now they have fallen to the middle of the pack and need those confidence building games. It will be weird not playing them this year after the heated rivalry we had in the past decade.
Pikeville has been ahead of the curve in scheduling for a while and Raceland is starting to get there now. I think both teams followed my formula and that will play off in the long run. I think it speaks volumes for both programs that high level 4-5A teams like Johnson Central and Highlands would even consider playing against them.
I think it depends on the stability and the position your program is in. If you are a Pikeville with a solid program that has a winning tradition, go with the tougher schedule. If you are building a program and your program doesn't have a winning tradition, I think a few cupcakes are in order.
Don't overthink it, just schedule tough but competitive games. Playing way above your weight class to build experience is just as bad as scheduling cupcakes to build confidence. What can be gained from playing a higher class team that will beat you 100 times out of 100? The real experience comes from battling in tough, close games. A team like Lynn Camp isn't going to magically become competitive because they get beat by 100 by Frederick Douglass every year.
Beyond that, try to schedule games that are going to test you offensively and defensively every week. You're not going to be prepared for the playoffs if you're going up against an inside veer 10 times during the regular season.
(02-26-2023, 10:08 PM)Bull got out! Wrote: [ -> ]After reading a bit of the Frederick Douglass thread, one poster said was possible like a 3 to 5 loss season. In your opinion, would you rather play a few cupcakes during the season, mostly cupcakes during the season or a tuff schedule from beginning to end?
2021 Belfry would be a good example of a team starting a season 0-5 or a 2022 Pikeville team starting a season 0-2 and then winning a championship in the end. I think the season with the right coaching adjustments make or break a team. I know any team can schedule a tuff opponent but are they actually ready to face that type of competition. The reason I say not any team, you got teams that are just trying to get a winning record let alone make a run at the district or deep playoff runs. But if you are a team making the deep playoff run, do you load the schedule?
10-0 Regular season or 5-5? RPI at home or RPI on the road?
I like a loaded schedule myself. Hazard may have done just that for example with there schedule.
Thoughts?
With me saying 3-5 loss season doesn't mean they are not championship caliber team. Think about this, Douglass has had cupcakes city of lexington and district play (we can all agree to that) and that has hurt them deep in the playoffs when they faced teams like S. warren, Owensboro etc etc. Last season 5A was down with Scott Co not the same in the past, BG was talented but very young and should content this season, S. warren and Cov cath were down compared to their championship years. Douglass finally broke through, which was great for them. I'm not saying FD can't or won't compete with the top 6A teams, just saying it won't be an undefeated or 1-2 loss season like they are use to having.
I think your team needs to be battle tested when the playoffs come around. Iron sharpens Iron.
I'd much rather be a 5-5 state contender than a 10-0 team playing a cakewalk schedule. Teams need to have that experience when your back is against the wall after being "punched in the mouth a few times."
If you never face adversity it will be hard to get the kids back in the game mentally when something negative happens. (Fumble, INT, Going down 2 scores..etc)
If I'm in 3A or above, I'd try to challenge myself with all my non-district games with a contender. 1A or 2A can be a bit trickier. The margin for error with injuries and just being beat up at the end of the year is so much smaller. Might look at one or two breathers if that's the case.
Whatever schedule has you playing your best ball come round 1.
If you have depth and know your a team full of studs. taking on the best of the best each week only keeps your team focused and sharp. playing teams you know your going to beat by 5+ touchdowns every week. kids get lackadaisical when this happens. on the flip side if your team has a couple really good players but not a lot depth behind them i would like to schedule one or two really good teams outside the district to test my guys and use as a measuring tool to see how far they have developed. then the rest of my non district schedule i want cupcakes to keep my guys healthier and with RPI rankings and the new playoff format the cupcake wins benefit you more then a tough loses to a good teams
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