Run4Fun2009 wrote:Interesting article from the GF Herald (10/5/11) pertaining to Drayton/V-E for next season.
Blue Knights moving toward JV schedule
Drayton/Valley-Edinburg is facing a numbers crunch that could result in the football team playing a junior varsity schedule in 2012.
The Blue Knights have suited an average of roughly 17 players per game, with 10 seniors on the roster. The program has only two juniors, four sophomores and three freshmen.
“Going to a JV schedule has nothing to do with wins and losses,” said Andy Currie, the athletic director of the Drayton/Valley-Edinburg football program. “It’s a safety issue.
“If we have to throw those young kids out there against older kids, they could get frustrated, turned off to the sport and quit. Then we won’t have a program.”
Said football coach Murph Thompson: “We want to save our program. If the young kids have to play against those older kids, I don’t know if they’ll all come out. We don’t want to have to fold the program. If you do that, it will be tough to get it started again.”
Currie said the Blue Knights playing a junior varsity schedule next season is a strong possibility. But the hope is that Drayton/Valley-Edinburg will be back playing a varsity schedule in 2013. “The kids will mature physically, get stronger and will safely be able to play against juniors and seniors,” he said.
Really a shame that the NDHSAA wouldn't let St Thomas stay in this coop without moving it up to 11 man. That's the major reason St Thomas is now playing in Grafton. Now, one year later, they can't even field a varsity 9 man team.