[Hoot Gibson]

Class 1A has never not been the weakest class and it never will be. The range of enrollment numbers between the largest 1A schools and the schools with the smallest enrollments has a far greater impact than for any other class. That ensures that the weakest teams in 1A will always be far, far weaker than the weakest teams in 2A or above. There is a point where a school's enrollment numbers are just not capable of producing a competitive football team and all of the schools that suffer that problem play in 1A.

Take Paintsville, for example. Paintsville will be a legitimate Top 10, and maybe even a legitimate Top 5 team this fall. Match Paintsville against the top team in any other class, and it is likely that the Tigers would lose by 40+ and the top team in 1A will be very heavily favored if they play Paintsville.

Paintsville has a great football tradition and the school has produced some outstanding college football players. Obviously, during most of the program's history, the Tigers have been well coached and blessed with some great individual talent. What the program has lacked is the depth that the top team in 1A has, and lack of depth is the direct result of small enrollment numbers.

Consider Fairview. The team has benefited greatly from transfers in recent years, but it would be very hard for a very small school to recruit enough talent to seriously compete for a state title. It is much easier for very small schools to compete in other sports than in football.