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52 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, April 28, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 27, 2005 ADs mull reshaping of prep classifications By DON HUNT Mail Tribune How complicated can it be to add another classification to Oregon high school sports to even the playing fields? Plenty, it turns out. The state’s athletic directors convened in Sun River on Monday and Tuesday to hash out their ideas on the issue and pass them on to a redistricting committee, which will forward a final plan to the Oregon School Activities Association in the fall. If adopted, the new arrangement would go into effect in the fall of 2007. At first, there was a push to add a fifth classification to narrow the enrollment gap between the "haves" and the "have-nots." Few would argue that Roseburg’s football team has a huge advantage when it lines up against a school like Klamath Union, which has less than half the enrollment. Advertisement But then someone concocted a six-classification blueprint. Now comes word of a hybrid plan in which there would be five classifications, along with two divisions in each conference at the new Class 5A level. "Right now, I can tell you the hybrid plan is where we’re leaning," said South Medford athletic director Dennis Murphy. "I believe when we took a (straw poll), 66 of the 72 athletic directors (who are aligned at the current Class 4A level) said they could support that plan in some form." Here’s an example of a hybrid plan as it pertains to Southern Oregon: Roseburg, North Medford, South Medford, Grants Pass and Crater would form Division I of a new 5A conference, while Marshfield, Ashland, Eagle Point and Klamath Union would form Division II. The top two or three teams from each division would advance to separate playoffs. Teams from the two divisions would have the option of playing one another in games that wouldn’t affect playoff positioning. There are two 5A hybrid plans in the works — one with eight districts and one with nine districts. Former Klamath Union administrator Ray Crawford submitted a more straightforward five-classification plan to the athletic directors in Sun River. Under Crawford’s scheme, Redmond would join the two Medford schools, Roseburg, Grants Pass and Crater in a 5A district, while Ashland, Phoenix, Eagle Point, Hidden Valley, North Valley, Henley, Mazama and Klamath Union would form a 4A district. "It’s gotten to be a convoluted mess," said Murphy. "It’s as clear as muddy water." Fortunately, the redistricting committee has another six months to advance its final plan to the OSAA for consideration. The OSAA could choose to stand pat, but most of the smaller and medium-sized schools favor going to a fifth classification. "This is a complex issue that has no simple solutions," said Boyd Bjorkquist, the North Bend High athletic director who is on the 12-member redistricting committee. "It’s not a one-size-fits-all proposition." One stumbling block is geography. Bringing Bend or Eugene schools into a Southern Oregon league, for example, would add considerably to travel costs and time issues. Many parents wouldn’t want their children coming home from a basketball trip at 1 a.m. on a weeknight. "There are a lot of issues, but I think what the main emphasis has been is to create a competitive balance," Bjorkquist said. Bjorkquist has seen firsthand what competitive balance can mean. North Bend has flourished on the playing fields since its enrollment sank low enough for it to drop from the 4A to the 3A level three-and-a-half years ago. The school’s football team has been in the playoffs each year since the switch, and the girls basketball team won the state title last March. "Winning lifts school spirit and the self-image of the kids," said Bjorkquist. "We had some success stories before, but not like we do now. "I think it’s the desire of just about everyone I’ve talked with to close the gaps in enrollment that exist right now. And you can’t do that without restructuring." Another item discussed at the AD meeting was to limit football teams during daily doubles on how long they can practice on hot, humid days. A heat index, which factors temperature and humidity, would be used. If it rose above a certain level, teams couldn’t work out for more than three hours in one session or more than five hours in one day, with a minimum three-hour break between their two practices. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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