This topic kind of took over the "8-man football changes coming" thread. Thought maybe it would be best to start a new thread. We've been down this road before on this forum, but the D3 addition opens a new aspect of the conversation. UNL has said Memorial Stadium will not be available for a 3rd day. Officials at the NSAA have said they don't see it feasible to have 4 games in one day. That brings us to a crossroads...what do we do with 8-man championship games? Is it just D3 that needs a home? Or do we move them all? If we move 8-man, do we move everything?
Positives to playing in Memorial Stadium
-Its the best facility in the state.
-For some it is a dream come true
-It allows PBS to provide excellent TV Coverage
Negatives to playing in Memorial Stadium
-Huge venue seems to make the crowd less impactful. It appears the stadium is empty, even though there are several thousand people there.
-NFHS rules apply to HS FB in Nebraska, but UNL's goal posts are narrower (all college goal posts are narrower). Same with hash marks. In 2006 Valentine had a PAT clank off the post in overtime. It was the difference in the game. We would never even consider this in basketball, playing on a different size goal.
-The western part of the state is always on the road
-Playing a state championship game at 10:45 in the morning is pretty anticlimactic. That is necessary to get 3 games in per day.
I'm interested to see what happens. Realistically I don't see anyway the finals leave Lincoln. I think they should, but I am usually in the minority on that among adults. NSAA has to make some decisions about where some state finals are played. The 6-man game in Kearney is awesome. I dont anticipate that leaving. Maybe a day of 8-man moves out there? From a geographical standpoint that might make sense. I think a larger percentage of the make-up of 8man schools comes from west of Lincoln. That said, if playing at Memorial Stadium is such a perk I don't think it is fair to deny the 8-man kids that opportunity. Almost need a rotation where one year the A, B, C1, C2 finals are in Lincoln and the D1, D2, D3, D6 finals are in Kearney. Next year it flips.
Positives to playing in Memorial Stadium
-Its the best facility in the state.
-For some it is a dream come true
-It allows PBS to provide excellent TV Coverage
Negatives to playing in Memorial Stadium
-Huge venue seems to make the crowd less impactful. It appears the stadium is empty, even though there are several thousand people there.
-NFHS rules apply to HS FB in Nebraska, but UNL's goal posts are narrower (all college goal posts are narrower). Same with hash marks. In 2006 Valentine had a PAT clank off the post in overtime. It was the difference in the game. We would never even consider this in basketball, playing on a different size goal.
-The western part of the state is always on the road
-Playing a state championship game at 10:45 in the morning is pretty anticlimactic. That is necessary to get 3 games in per day.
I'm interested to see what happens. Realistically I don't see anyway the finals leave Lincoln. I think they should, but I am usually in the minority on that among adults. NSAA has to make some decisions about where some state finals are played. The 6-man game in Kearney is awesome. I dont anticipate that leaving. Maybe a day of 8-man moves out there? From a geographical standpoint that might make sense. I think a larger percentage of the make-up of 8man schools comes from west of Lincoln. That said, if playing at Memorial Stadium is such a perk I don't think it is fair to deny the 8-man kids that opportunity. Almost need a rotation where one year the A, B, C1, C2 finals are in Lincoln and the D1, D2, D3, D6 finals are in Kearney. Next year it flips.
