Montini fans and players cheer on the Broncos during last week’s win over Monticello during the Class 3A football championship at Hancock Stadium in Normal.
Scott Anderson/Shaw Local News Network
After watching last weekend’s IHSA championship football games, it’s time for a difficult discussion.
For decades, debates have swirled about where private high schools should stand in the athletic landscape competing against public schools. The recruiting advantage — and the vast 30-mile radius for that recruiting — never forged a comfortable relationship.
The optics from last weekend’s football finals didn’t help.
Anyone hoping private and public schools could continue coexisting in the same system came away sorely disappointed. Based on the flurry of commentary in the last week, we may finally be at a breaking point.
Don’t be surprised to hear renewed calls for private schools and public schools to compete in separate IHSA tournaments.
Private schools went 6-0 against public schools in last weekend’s football finals. They won a seventh title when two private schools (Nazareth Academy and Joliet Catholic) played each other in Class 5A.
The only public school to win a title was East St. Louis in Class 6A. The Flyers beat Geneva, another public school.
If seven state titles were the insult to public schools, the stream of blowouts were the injury. Private schools beat them by a total margin of 283-76, or an average of about 47-13.
I started hearing from prep football-following friends last Friday about the trend, and my phone continued to buzz all weekend. One texted me, “Are all high school sports rigged for private schools, or just football?”
It was a tongue-in-cheek comment (I think), but the point was clear. Frustration is boiling over.
Before reflexively blaming the IHSA, keep in mind there’s nothing the governing body can do without directive from the membership. Member schools are responsible for putting new proposals forward, and the schools then vote whether or not to implement the changes.
Through the years, some proposals have become part of the bylaws. The IHSA implemented a multiplier of private school enrollments to boost them into higher classes. And a success factor was created to further bump the enrollments of top performing private schools.
But what can you do about Loyola, which has won three straight Class 8A titles? Multiply and success factor the Ramblers all you want, and they’ll still be in 8A. If you boosted Mt. Carmel, another three-peat champion in 7A, would it really struggle that much more in 8A?
For the folks wanting the ultimate change — separate state tournaments for private and public schools — the most disturbing part about last weekend was twofold. It was the continued dominance of programs like Nazareth, Mt. Carmel and Loyola, combined with the outlier success of Chicago Christian and DePaul Prep.
Chicago Christian never had been in a title game before, and DePaul hadn’t been in a football final since 1980 when the school was known as Gordon Tech. It makes you wonder what private schools will emerge in the future before the IHSA is allowed to “success factor” them.
While some proposals designed to thwart private school success were submitted to the IHSA this annual go-around, none received enough support to be included on the upcoming ballot for the member schools. So don’t expect change in the immediate future.
But whether it’s football, girls volleyball, wrestling, baseball or any other sport where private schools thrive, the grumbling won’t ease.
At some point, a proposal will be submitted to create separate state series for private and public schools.
Depending on the environment, push may finally come to shove.