Varsity Kansas - The Blog

Dodge City’s football team is still in the hunt for a 6A playoff spot, no matter what we say.

In Sunday’s paper, our district standings listed Hutchinson, Goddard and Garden City as all being alive in 6A-District 8. And that’s true. We also listed Dodge City (0-2 in districts with a -26 points differential) as being eliminated.

And that’s false.

Here’s how Dodge City can get in: The Red Demons must defeat Goddard by at least 13 points. Hutchinson must defeat Garden City by at least 13 points.

That would make Hutch the first District 8 qualifier at 3-0. Second place would be a three-way tie between Garden, Dodge and Goddard at 1-1. They would all have point differentials of -13.

First three-way tiebreaker is head to head among the three schools. All were 1-1 against one another.

The next tiebreaker is victories against teams in your class and higher. So in 6A, Goddard and Dodge would each have three wins over 6A teams (Goddard beat Campus, Derby and Garden City; Dodge beat Wichita South, Wichita North and Goddard under this scenario). Garden City would have beaten only two 6A teams (Derby and Dodge) and would be eliminated.

So, with only two teams remaining in the tie, the next tiebreaker becomes head-to-head meeting, and Dodge would’ve beaten Goddard and would be in the playoffs.

Whew. So it’s possible.

Give our statistical guru Gary Karr some slack, though. From the moment we put the paper to bed on Friday night, he’s working feverishly on getting district standings in the Sunday paper. For years, he had to worry only about one team reaching the playoffs from each district. With two, the final-week scenarios aren’t so clear-cut.

– Kirk Seminoff, sports editor and infrequent poster

Many teams will fund-raise through the course of a year, hitting it especially hard right before the season starts. They might do it through selling cookie dough (my personal fave!) or through ads in programs or through discount cards.

Northwest’s boys basketball team has taken a different tactic — the Grizzlies will work for  donations. In an e-mail that coach Eric Hofer-Holdeman sent to a variety of people — including yours truly — he writes that his players will rake leaves, clean storage rooms, put up Christmas decorations, dust, vacuum, paint. All for the low, low sum of $5 an hour.

I could work those boys for a week! Alas, I think there’s some sort of conflict of interest there, so I won’t be hiring them. But I like the idea anyway.

Now if they were selling cookie dough ….

I don’t know if you all saw it, but Kansas State had a walk-through at East High last week — check it out here in our own Jeffrey Martin’s K-State report. It also has news on Arthur Brown visiting LSU for his latest official visit. For more on that, check out Jeff’s K-Stated blog. He’s got the hook-up with Brian Butler and the Browns.

Just heard from Brian Schooler, the dad of Collegiate junior Alex Schooler, 6-foot-5, 245-pound tight end-defensive end who is starting a round of unofficial visits this weekend. Schooler’s heading to Michigan this weekend, where he’s been invited to run out of the tunnel with the team when the Wolverines play Minnesota.

They plan to visit Georgia Tech on either Nov. 17th or 24th, likely the 17th. November 3rd will likely mean a trip to Arkansas for the South Carolina game. EDIT: Now, these dates are tentative (thanks Seth for pointing out that Nov. 3 would be a second-round playoff date for Collegiate. I called Brian Schooler, who said this is only tentative and “obviously” if Collegiate keeps winning, they won’t go to Arkansas.) My note here is, I don’t know an athlete around that would mail it in with a chance to play in the playoffs.

“We’re trying to get to one of Texas Tech’s games. They’ve been bombarding him,” Brian said.

Alex has been to three Kansas State games and really likes the Wildcats because he knows the coaches so well, Brian said.

He has been playing hurt, though. He broke his right hand against Haven and is playing in a shoulder brace now, too, so he’s mainly on defense.

As I said on an earlier post, I can’t believe how the fall season has sped past. We’ve already finished two sports in girls tennis and girls golf. Volleyball and cross country finish up this weekend, and soccer is on its way out. Shoot, take a look at next week with soccer quarterfinals and the beginning of football playoffs. And don’t even remind me that basketball practice starts in about three weeks.

But here’s my attempt at wading through all the stuff to point out what shouldn’t be missed this week. If I do miss something, comment on the blog. That’s what it’s there for.

Let’s start in soccer: Regional pairings, which can be found here in breaking sports, are out. The second round games on Thursday and Friday are the most interesting, although Northwest and Maize on Tuesday looks like a good game. That winner will play at Southeast on Thursday. Which second round game is one you want to see? I’d choose Southeast vs. Northwest or Maize and a likely matchup with Trinity and Andover Central.

Onto volleyball: In Class 6A, Goddard is the area’s lone shot at winning a title. So good luck to those Lions. In 5A, Valley Center has an extremely tough draw. Not only are the Hornets (22-14) the No. 8 seed, but they are in the same pool as the state’s top two ranked teams — Bishop Miege (38-1) and St. Thomas Aquinas (35-2). Only the top two teams come out of pool play. Now, Newton (38-2) has a chance. This is a very talented, experienced team and the Railers should definitely make it to the semifinals. The only problem? They likely will face either Miege or Aquinas in the semis.

Cross country: There’s nothing like the state cross country meets — everyone pray for dry weather. Bishop Carroll is definitely a favorite on the boys side in 5A, while Mulvane is the fave in 4A.

And now for football: This week is always interesting because it’s the final week of districts, there are games on Thursday night, as well, and there are plenty of teams desperately trying to make it to the playoffs. Of course, there are some meaningless games — two teams that are 0-2 in districts (i.e. East and South). And even those games that match up two 2-0 teams — it just doesn’t have the same climax that it did before because both will advance. Sure, to win is important in seeding, but there’s certainly not as much desperation.

Thursday’s games:

East at South. Yes, this is a meaningless game. Arthur Brown may not play in this game, either, because of an ankle sprain (which kept him out of last week’s game, too.) I guess it will be interesting to see how many yards Bryce Brown can rack up for the Aces. He’s currently at 1,647. He needs 126 yards to tie his City League rushing record from last year (1,773 yards).

Andover at Andover Central. An Andover win puts the Trojans in the playoffs. Andover Central’s already in. Augusta at Rose Hill. This game is important for Augusta, which still has a chance. Andover has 3 points, while Augusta has minus-12. Augusta needs help from Andover Central and needs to win big. It won’t be easy, though.

Independent at Collegiate. Both need a win to advance. Collegiate definitely needs to play well after its debacle at Garden Plain last week.

Mulvane at Belle Plaine. Mulvane’s in and will end Belle Plaine’s chances (it needs a win to advance) because the Wildcats finish the regular season 9-0.

Here’s a look at Friday’s games:

Liberal at Carroll. Both are in. Carroll wins.

Manhattan at Heights. Heights needs a win to get in and needs Junction City to beat Emporia. Count on both happening. But if Emporia upsets Junction, it comes down to points.

Southeast at Derby. There was a time when this game meant a trip to the playoffs (before the current system when half the state’s team advance). Now both are in.

Maize at Northwest. District championship is on the line. Both are in. Yawn. But there should be some excitement — can Northwest’s defense stop Maize quarterback Garrett Gould and receiver Brett Soft? It’s an interesting matchup.

Dodge City at Goddard. Goddard must have a win here, but Hutch plays Garden City, which is also 1-1 in district. So Goddard not only gets some help from Hutch, it has all tiebreakers with Garden City.

Kapaun at Newton. District championship on the line. Nothing else.

Hays at McPherson. Mac’s in and has all the momentum after beating Great Bend last week.

Smith Center. Expect yet another shutout. Wait a second, Smith Center doesn’t even play this week. Still.

Alright, so you’ve made it this far in this loooong post, disagree with me, think I’m the smartest sportswriter ever? Let’s hear what you have to say.

Did this fall sports season fly by or is it just me?  But here it is time for boys soccer to begin its postseason. Check out this for the regional pairings for games that begin tonight.

We haven’t had many discussions on soccer on this blog, so let’s start one here. My guess is we’ll see Heights, Southeast and Derby all advancing to Thursday’s regional finals. But who will they meet. Will Southeast see Maize or Northwest? How about Derby, will the Panthers play North or East (I’m picking East). And then there’s Heights, which will play either Dodge City or Garden City. You have a pick, let me know.

In Class 5A, I’m counting on McPherson (16-0) to come out of Region I, and how could anyone discount Liberal in Region II? I should hear from some Liberal fans soon — they’ve been pimping their soccer team all season long. In Region III, Kapaun looks to be the favorite, but let me know if you think Great Bend or Winfield could upset them.

In Class 4A, I would say it’s a toss-up for Andover playing either Independent or Rose Hill. At the same time, Rose Hill has such a strong tradition, that could easily come into play. I’m picking Andover Central to play at W. Trinity, but who wins that game? That’s a tough one.

Let the soccer convo start.

Sadly, I have nothing better to do than look through some of your comments on a Saturday night. Of course, if you’re looking through my posts tonight, you’re in the same boat. Let’s commiserate together.

Anyway. Here are a couple I latched onto.

From Jim, regarding Carroll’s football CL title:

“Ok maybe BC did win the city leage title, but tell me how a 5A school can make into the playoff playing the likes of Ark City and Winfield. Is BC part of the AVL or the City leage or both? I have always thought it funny that BC and KMC are 5A and in the AVL and can still win the City Leage title. Both KMC and BC should be 6A and not play schools that don’t have a chance of winning, the same goes for Derby, all of these schools should be 6A. Just a thought on my part, but way to go BC.”

 Thanks to Fanatic for the following response to that post:

“Uh Jim………What?”

This is from Rikrok regarding how we do things. (A refresher — I gave him an idea of how we usually treat postgame interviews because the point had been made that we only talk to the Browns when they win, not when they lose.)

“Talk to more players and fewer coaches, period.

Coaches give the same tired quotes. I’d rather hear what the actual participants on both sides have to say.

And dump the template for postgame interviews. That’s stupid.”

 Thanks for your response.

From Wildcat Fan regarding the story on Mulvane’s football team: 

“This team is awesome - and yes, these kids deserve to have some Thunder after all of the heartache they have felt with the loss of Sam, Emmy Sue, Kyle and Lyndsey. It is a way to bring some closure to the tragedy and build friendships that these kids will remember long after they graduate. My son is a Senior and he is having the time of his life - and that is what High School is supposed to be all about. This is the stuff that movies are made about.”

This story seemed to resonate with quite a few people, judging by the comments made following the story — click here.

That’s all I’ve got, folks. Thanks for all the comments and keep me up-to-date on what’s on your mind. You can do that here or at joanna@varsitykansas.com.

Saturday’s sub-state action:
Valley Center defeated Carroll to advance to the Class 5A tournament, while Kapaun lost to Emporia. In 6A, Northwest lost to Dodge City in the finals.

Goddard continued its impressive run, beating Maize in the championship of its sub-state (also played in Dodge City. That always cracks me up because they have to drive so far to play a team that is minutes away.)

Not surprisingly, Newton advanced to the 5A tournament.

In 4A, Andover beat Circle in three games. It was an entertaining match to say the least.

This is a likely matchup in the Class 3A playoffs, and here’s a little insight offered from Collegiate coach Bill Messamore, whose team has been beaten by both.

“It’s interesting because I was thinking of the comparison between Hesston and (Garden Plain). I know it’s a probable matchup. I think Hesston  is very, very physical, and I think the speed of Garden Plain is just amazing. I think (Logan) Dold is the best running back I’ve seen since (Banks) Floodman (an All-State back in 2000 from Collegiate).”

Here we go with our weekly rendition of commenting on Friday night’s games.

Derby 34, South 0:  Derby’s in the 6A playoffs. Wow. Hard to believe the Panthers were 0-9 in 2005, 1-8 in 2006. Can’t get enough of this storyline, especially after a quality win over East. And — and! — Derby did it on the ground against South, proving this is not a one-dimensional team.

McPherson 26, Great Bend 19: Before all the Pups fans can jump on here and point out what idiots we are — WE WERE WRONG! Congrats on an extremely good win, especially being it was at Great Bend.

Junction City 26, Heights 14:  Heights had its chances here, but Junction City was too much. Heights still has a chance to advance, but it needs to beat Manhattan next week.

Garden Plain 63, Collegiate 0: Never been so glad to see a continuous clock in a game. Garden Plain absolutely dominated, did whatever it wanted against Collegiate in a game that was 56-0 at the half. After a gawd-awful long first half, the second half took, like, 30 minutes. (Yay!) I honestly believe the toughest work of the night for Garden Plain came afterward when all the players were responsible for stamping down divots in the newly planted grass. (This is not a knock on Collegiate, just a point on how unbelievable Garden Plain played.)

Goddard 21, Garden City 0: Garden City was playing without its best player — QB Brodrick Smith was  suspended for the game — but Goddard got a huge victory. The Lions still need a win over Dodge to get to the playoffs.

Andover 42, Rose Hill 38: What a game. Wish we could have gotten a blow-by-blow account from the home-team (Andover). Sounds like it was an outstanding game.

Andover Central 24, Augusta 7: Correspondent Jason Ault weighed in on this game with a similar feeling that I have after going to a game at Augusta — it’s so fun! The people in the press box are hilarious and it’s enjoyable to be there. Game was over in no time (less than two hours. Yay!) On the football side, Keaton LaBanca had a nice game for Central (130 yards on 22 carries) and the defense held the Orioles to just 51 first-half yards.

Carroll 52, Winfield 0: No surprise, Carroll rolled. QB Brett Steven was 10-of-12 passing and the Eagles scored on first six drives.

In other games: Mulvane rolls over Douglass; Andale does the same against Pratt and Independent did the same against Bluestem; Cheney loses again! Hesston and Marion cruise; Smith Center 72-0 over Osborne. Nice.

Carroll coach Alan Schuckman was actually asked that question Thursday night after East lost to Southeast, finishing the league at 5-2 and resulting in Carroll, which  was 5-1, winning the title.

I completely disagree that Carroll won this by the back door. Carroll did what it was supposed to do, winning five of its six City League games. East didn’t do what it needed to do, win six of its seen league games (the CL title is based on winning percentage because some schools — Carroll, Heights and Kapaun — only have six league games, while the others have seven).

So was this title — Carroll’s sixth in 12 years — less exciting because it came two weeks later?

“No, I don’t think so at all,” Schuckman said. “We really hadn’t talked about it much since we lost. Generally if you get a loss, you’re pretty much out of contention if you only have six games. Everything we’ve talked about is the district championship from this point forward. Last night we had our bonfire and pep rally, and kids were checking scores and getting texts and letting me know what was going on. I think they were pretty excited. I had a person tell me, how does it feel to back-door it into a league championship. I really was taken back because I feel like we played one of the toughest schedules in the league.”

 Schuckman  added:

“I remember one year we lost to Liberal (in district play) … we couldn’t run the ball because we had no timeouts left, and we ended up losing. Then we get on the bus and find out that North had beaten Northwest and it resulted in us winning the league championship. It put a smile back on my face…. Last night, my phone was ringing off the hook. People are pretty excited. It’s great for our kids.”