D2 have has it ever been this low

[highschoolfootballnut]

• I dont think I have ever seen the bottom so low as this year These teams are 14 wins and 200 losses Is just one of those years or are some of these schools just not being smart and should consolidate?

• Elwood (3-19), 37.0455

• Dorchester (1-19), 36.7500

• Eustis-Farnam (1-19), 36.5000

• Red Cloud (2-17), 36.4737

• Potter-Dix (2-15), 36.3529

• St. Edward (2-18), 36.1000

• Cornerstone Christian (3-12), 35.8000

• Ewing (1-20), 35.7143

• Stapleton (0-17), 35.4706

• Sioux County (0-13), 35.3077

• South Platte (1-15), 35.0000

• McPherson County (0-15), 34.8000

• Elba (1-18), 33.9474

 

[runningback43]

Personally I think there is a lot of bad basketball in this state period right now. Even some of the teams that have decent records aren't very good. 20 years ago basketball was a lot better than it is now.

 

[hailvictors2]

I am always amazed at the guys that think because you have a bad basketball team or a bad football team it means you should consolidate or co-op. There is more to a public school district than HS basketball, believe it or not.

 

[sportsjunkie2030]

Talked with a veteran NSAA basketball official a few weeks ago, he told me this is the worst he has seen Nebraska HS basketball in his 20+ year career.

 

[Artfour3]

I was curious what the girls' records of those schools were. See if maybe just one of those years where boys were down but there are some athletes in the school. You guys know at the D2 level teams are more up and down; a little less consistent. Sometimes a team may suffer from having low boy enrollments compared to girls.

Elwood - 12-12

Dorchester - 10-14

Eustis-Farnam - 0-21

Red Cloud - 18-5

Potter-Dix - 17-3

St. Edward - 1-20

Cornerstone Christian - 1-14

Ewing - 20-4

Stapleton - 3-16

Sioux County - 14-5

South Platte - 10-10

McPherson County - 2-13

Elba - 1-21

Conclusion: Many of the girls teams look to be better. A couple schools are struggling in both.

 

[ClkTwr2011]

Talked with a veteran NSAA basketball official a few weeks ago, he told me this is the worst he has seen Nebraska HS basketball in his 20+ year career.

I agree with this official's opinion. Sure there are some really good teams around, but for the most part I tend to see the same thing. 10-15 years ago, if you were winning 2/3 of your games, you were a fundamentally sound team that didn't make many mistakes and likely played very solid defense. Today, 14-7 at this point in the season is likely a sign of a team that is just really not very good.

It isn't the athletes, commitment, or anything like that. It is the evolution of the game.

 

[SPbObRT]

i would have to agree with the veteran official, both boys and girls basketball is bad, it's hard to watch, it's hard to officiate and it's hard to coach because the kids don't want to put in the extra time to get better. how many people see kids shooting around and playing pick up games at the park, school, fitness center, very few they would rather play xbox or playstation or whatever the hell it's called these days then actually go out and work and try to get better. it's going to get worse before it gets better i can assure you of that.

 

[HappyTrail3200]

Could this be a direct result of the weakening ag economomy in the state where kids in small towns are having to spend less time on sports and more time helping on the farm (a lot of the teams on this list are found in the panhandle/SW Nebraska area which are some of the most rural areas of the state that are also some of the least agronomically productive parts of the state)

 

[highschoolfootballnut]

Could this be a direct result of the weakening ag economomy in the state where kids in small towns are having to spend less time on sports and more time helping on the farm (a lot of the teams on this list are found in the panhandle/SW Nebraska area which are some of the most rural areas of the state that are also some of the least agronomically productive parts of the state)

I am thinking not but who knows, I am think more nothing out there anymore, one family has 5000 acres instead of 5 families, the farm economony was only good for two or three years, its been in this same place for 20 plus years

 

[viewfromthebooth]

Some of those schools are already co-oping with other schools in football because of numbers but feel they can make it work for basketball. And they may not want to co-op because the girls numbers are fine. They evidently have their reasons. McPherson Co. and Stapleton were co-oping a few years ago but split. And I know there has been talk of them rejoining.
Or maybe Exeter-Milligan (19-5) didn't get the memo that teams begin with "E" are supposed to have bad records. For some stupid reason I noticed there were 4 teams that begin with the letter E. Throw in the only other D-2 team, Emerson-Hubbard with the 4 listed and they have a combined record of 8-99. I blame the alphabet.

 

[chad767]

Records of six class A schools are combined 24-131

 

[coffeedrinker11]

Interesting that a lot of these schools are from the panhandle. Is there any connection to availability of the "elite" programs where the kids spend their summers playing ball? Omaha has numerous, Norfolk has several, Sioux City, etc. Kids on these teams are playing more basketball in one year than many of us did in four years of high school. Just a thought and question.

 

[runningback43]

Some of the programs that have good records this year aren't very good in my opinion either. I've seen some teams that are 14-9 this year that would have had a hard time winning 6 games 20 years ago. Basketball just isn't very good in this state right now.

 

[highschoolfootballnut]

Some of the programs that have good records this year aren't very good in my opinion either. I've seen some teams that are 14-9 this year that would have had a hard time winning 6 games 20 years ago. Basketball just isn't very good in this state right now.

agree 100%

 

[br4life]

Interesting that a lot of these schools are from the panhandle. Is there any connection to availability of the "elite" programs where the kids spend their summers playing ball? Omaha has numerous, Norfolk has several, Sioux City, etc. Kids on these teams are playing more basketball in one year than many of us did in four years of high school. Just a thought and question.

Growing up and playing ball in Northeast Nebraska, and now living in the Panhandle for the better part of the last 8 years, the style of play and the competition are contributing factors to weak Panhandle basketball...the style of play is much slower and the skill in which the game is played seems to be falling way behind schools to the East. It's hasn't always been this way, but the decline is becoming horribly noticeable, especially the last season or two. You still have great participation at most of these schools, but the level of development is way behind. I've been able to speak with coaches out here who understand the glaring issues and are trying to find ways to get their kids in to the gym more or find skills camps for their kids to attend, but many don't want to or are having to get jobs over the summer. The other issue is simply finding competitive opponents. The gap in "large" schools to "small" schools out here is huge so most of the C-1 and larger schools are trying to fill their schedules with D-1 and D-2 schools just to complete a full season, or they are left playing the same few schools multiple times a year. Unfortunately it does no good for the bigger schools to play schools who have an 8th or 9th of the enrollment of their opponent. The way it used to be compensated for was by scheduling teams from South Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado, but SD and Wyo are making it harder to schedule games across state lines. I don't know what the solution is but basketball seems to be falling off a little bit out here

 

[bballindependent]

I believe the lower classes (especially D2 this year, which is just not good at all besides the top two it appears) are getting worse because kids who are strong from some of these small towns get recruited by towns around them that are having more success at the time. I want people to know I have been around the game closely the last 20 years in Central Nebraska, and love great basketball. People are scared to talk about recruiting in the rural areas, but it is just as bad, if not worse than the city. I also isn't just the Parochials, to me it is the Coaches involved with some of the schools. Schools are losing more kids and students are losing pride in their sports because the best players in schools are leaving as 8th graders and freshman to go towards schools that have "more success". Oneills best players this year, Thramer and Appelby, both have ties to Ewing originally before "leaving" for O'neill. St. Paul has had players in the past with ties to Elba, but then "left" for St. Paul. Dorchester has kids who "leave" for Friend or Crete. Riverside (D2) best player is Prososky, who was from St. Ed and was there until he started high school before "leaving" for Riverside. So 4 of the teams mentioned in the original post all have kids get picked away by other schools/coaches. It is easy to convince a kid with a struggling High School as an 8th grader that they would be better somewhere else, and I think some are taken advantage of. Some coaches are turning these lower classes into being a cutthroat recruiting mentality, but in the end 95% of the time in lower classes the best athletes are going to win a lot of things. In lower classes, think of how many teams you watch that if they lose their best player, their record would change substantially
With all of these kids, the parents and or coaches sometimes are deciding where the kid would fit best, rather than letting them find their own success. You can't make great athletes magically appear at some of these schools in D2 that are struggling. So when one kid leaves a town or school, it can set it back a long ways. So as much as people say the basketball is bad, I disagree. In Class A-C2 this year, there will be some great basketball down at state. D1 has some strong teams, and D2 there is no need to really pay attention until finals. I come from the Class D ranks when I went to high school, so it is hard to see how bad some of the product has become, but then I see now how a transfer can be so much more impactful in lower classes. Look at when Johnson from Aurora went to High Plains. I definitely understand why some kids transfer schools in these areas, and there are legitimate reasons (More exposure, Better Facilities, Class Size, Etc.) However, the NSAA needs to keep an eye on recruiting in all parts of the state, because the impact it can have on some communities and schools is far greater than a transfer in the Metro or Lincoln.

 

[wsc-oline]

Could it be that these schools coop for football with low numbers but try to "give it a go" in bball since you only play with 5, and the girls have success so they do not want the girls to coop for bball just because the boys do? Or can you coop in just one?

 

[runningback43]

The Appelby kid is from O'Neill. His sisters all went to O'Neill for school. His Dad used to be the boys basketball coach in Ewing and is now the girls coach in Ewing, but they have always lived in O'Neill. Thramer kid is a different story though.

 

[bballindependent]

You are 100% right, and I even think Applebee's mom teaches at O'neill. Just was stating that I knew dad was somewhat connected with the Ewing Schools at some point I knew. I was just making the point that in these small classes one transfer can greatly impact an entire male/female sports program. And one kid who stays can have that same positive affect. Now if numbers are absolutely the issue (may not have a team) leaving to another school is a whole different story, and that may have been the case with Thramer also.

 

[runningback43]

His mom does teach at O'Neill and she used to be the volleyball coach. I believe Greg is originally from O'Neill as well.

 

[SPbObRT]

bballindependent APPLEBY has ties to Ewing, yes like being the principal there for quite some time now, so yes i would say he has ties to the school. he is from O'Neill so it is understandable that he still lives in his hometown and works elsewhere.

 

[ClkTwr2011]

I believe the lower classes (especially D2 this year, which is just not good at all besides the top two it appears) are getting worse because kids who are strong from some of these small towns get recruited by towns around them that are having more success at the time. I want people to know I have been around the game closely the last 20 years in Central Nebraska, and love great basketball. People are scared to talk about recruiting in the rural areas, but it is just as bad, if not worse than the city. I also isn't just the Parochials, to me it is the Coaches involved with some of the schools. Schools are losing more kids and students are losing pride in their sports because the best players in schools are leaving as 8th graders and freshman to go towards schools that have "more success". Oneills best players this year, Thramer and Appelby, both have ties to Ewing originally before "leaving" for O'neill. St. Paul has had players in the past with ties to Elba, but then "left" for St. Paul. Dorchester has kids who "leave" for Friend or Crete. Riverside (D2) best player is Prososky, who was from St. Ed and was there until he started high school before "leaving" for Riverside. So 4 of the teams mentioned in the original post all have kids get picked away by other schools/coaches. It is easy to convince a kid with a struggling High School as an 8th grader that they would be better somewhere else, and I think some are taken advantage of. Some coaches are turning these lower classes into being a cutthroat recruiting mentality, but in the end 95% of the time in lower classes the best athletes are going to win a lot of things. In lower classes, think of how many teams you watch that if they lose their best player, their record would change substantially
With all of these kids, the parents and or coaches sometimes are deciding where the kid would fit best, rather than letting them find their own success. You can't make great athletes magically appear at some of these schools in D2 that are struggling. So when one kid leaves a town or school, it can set it back a long ways. So as much as people say the basketball is bad, I disagree. In Class A-C2 this year, there will be some great basketball down at state. D1 has some strong teams, and D2 there is no need to really pay attention until finals. I come from the Class D ranks when I went to high school, so it is hard to see how bad some of the product has become, but then I see now how a transfer can be so much more impactful in lower classes. Look at when Johnson from Aurora went to High Plains. I definitely understand why some kids transfer schools in these areas, and there are legitimate reasons (More exposure, Better Facilities, Class Size, Etc.) However, the NSAA needs to keep an eye on recruiting in all parts of the state, because the impact it can have on some communities and schools is far greater than a transfer in the Metro or Lincoln.

I agree with this. As you said, it isn't all parochial schools. North Bend is one worth talking about as well. A couple years ago (don't really remember), their boys team included kids from Fremont, Dodge, and I believe Morse Bluffs. I am certainly not criticizing them because they are certainly acting within the rules. I am simply pointing them out to emphasize the fact that this is not just Parochial schools.

The migration from the larger schools to the smaller schools is sometimes a situation in which the kid just wants to play. Many times a star in Class D2 is a single year starter in C1. Or in the case of Fremont to North Bend, the kid may not even play Varsity if they stayed in Fremont.