Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Saturday, Dec. 16, 2006
Tackling the football season's length
Friday, December 15, 2006
By Mike White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Matt Freed, Post-Gazette
Because of Jeannette's run to the PIAA title game, Terrelle Pryor and the rest of the Jayhawks' basketball team will open its season this week without a single practice.
Click photo for larger image.
Jeannette High School quarterback Terrelle Pryor's has all the symptoms of a teenage body that has been banged and battered playing in 15 football games since September.
His right knee is sore. His legs are stiff and achy and he would like to spend a day just sleeping.
Pryor and his teammates will play their 16th -- and final -- game of the season tomorrow in the PIAA Class AA championship. They will be joined by WPIAL mate Upper St. Clair, which will play in the Class AAAA title game tomorrow night.
Despite the aches and pains, Pryor doesn't believe the high school football season needs to be shortened.
"It's just all about having fun, that's all," Pryor said. "Go ask all the kids. They'll tell you it doesn't need to be shortened. Everyone loves football. It's a great sport."
All eight teams in the PIAA finals today and tomorrow will be playing their 16th game, the equivalent of an NFL regular season. Except for one year when snow postponed the title games one week, this is the latest the PIAA championship games have been played. Teams will play football games one weekend and will open holiday gifts less than 10 days later.
The PIAA added an extra week to the season for every district in the state this year. The WPIAL has been playing
a 16-game schedule (regular season and playoffs) since 2004. The WPIAL received a two-year waiver in 2004 from the PIAA to start its season one week earlier than the rest of the state so it could have four weeks of playoff games.
Some critics say the season, which began Sept. 1, is too long. Many other states had their championships last weekend or two weekends ago.
However, the PIAA might cut it's 16-week season next year. The PIAA football steering committee will vote on a proposal that would shorten the length of the season to 14 games. If the football committee approves the measure, the PIAA Board of Control must still vote it into the bylaws for it to take hold.
Adults will make the decisions on the length of the season. Everyone from school administrators to coaches is quoted on the debate. But what do the players think? A sampling of comments from a few teams shows they have no problem with the long season.
"When you're winning, it's nice to play longer," Jeannette receiver-linebacker Davonte Shannon said. "Maybe if they kept the length of the season the same, but maybe started a week earlier, that would be better because it overlaps basketball season a lot now."
All of Jeannette's basketball players are on the football team and the basketball team hasn't practiced once. West Middlesex, a Class A football finalist in Mercer County, is in the same situation with its basketball team.
"I wouldn't start football any earlier," Pryor said. "With basketball, I would just maybe start that a little later."
If you count two preseason scrimmages, this is the 18th game of the season for teams that have made it to the PIAA championships.
Upper St. Clair receiver Taylor Everett said practice is harder than ever at this point because of the toll on the body. "But when you think about what you're playing for, you just play through it. It's not too long. It's definitely worth all the work."
Upper St. Clair running back-linebacker Dane Conwell said, "You only play high school football once, so why not play as many games as you can?"
While the athletes look forward to the long season because it is a measure of success, what about the basketball or wrestling coaches fretting about not having his team together?
"The complaints are coming from the schools who go deep in the playoffs," PIAA executive director Brad Cashman said. "Right now, [the current system] impacts basketball and wrestling, and to some extent, swimming and diving."
Pryor said: "The kids who say the season is too long are the kids who lose. If they're hungry, they're going to want to make the season as long as possible."
Thomas Jefferson didn't make it to the PIAA title game, losing in the Class AAA semifinals Saturday. Star quarterback-defensive back Dom DeCicco started basketball Monday.
"Actually, the football season was a little too short for us because we didn't get to the final game," DeCicco said. "I definitely wouldn't shorten it. I'd probably start it just a little earlier so kids playing basketball wouldn't have to miss so many section games."
The WPIAL would not be in favor of the proposed 14-week season being floated by the PIAA committee because the league would have to cut back the number of teams that make the playoffs.
"I have said this many times. I wish there was a little more cooperation between the WPIAL and the PIAA," Upper St. Clair coach Jim Render said. "I wish they would function as one body rather than two entities. Seven games beyond our regular season is a long year, especially in the north [part of the country]. ... I really think basketball should start a little bit later."