Monday, 14 April 2008 20:12 by
Dave He would never do it, but when Mickey Thompson faces any teams from the Northern Region next football season, he should consider running up the score.
That’s because the Northern Region has been trying to railroad his team (and all programs at Stone Bridge) out of the region for the past year. Justice prevailed Monday, however, as Stone Bridge won its appeal to stay in the Liberty District and compete in the Northern Region for future seasons. It marked the end to one of the most transparent attacks on a high school program in memory for committing the unforgiveable sin of winning early in its existence, and often.
The vote was a narrow 7-6 margin, and that only happened because Liberty District administrators voted 6-0-1 to keep Stone Bridge in the Liberty. The drama started back in the fall, when increasing enrollment pushed Heritage from the Group AA ranks of the Dulles District into a Group AAA classification. Heritage was placed in the Northwest Region’s Cedar Run District for the 2009 season, where nearby Loudoun Valley is already playing.
Much to Stone Bridge’s surprise, the Bulldogs soon found they were part of the conversation. They were happy in the Liberty District, they hadn’t asked to be moved, and they weren’t bothering anyone, except perhaps the football coaches in the rest of the Northern Region. They were included in the Heritage move to the Cedar Run District, and although they immediately protested, all appeals were denied by a lopsided margin. Monday’s hearing was the final chance for Stone Bridge to stay in the Liberty, but given last December’s 18-8 vote against Stone Bridge, it didn’t look good.
That it has gone on this long is beyond ridiculous. When it all started, Heritage had to pretty much take what it was given, because the Pride’s classification had changed. Loudoun Valley used the situation to ask to be moved back to the Northern Region after spending time in the Northwest Region, also asking for a change in status, so they knew the odds were against them.
Stone Bridge just wanted to be left alone. It’s like a neighbor getting transferred to another state, then being told you have to move too, whether you like it or not.
Officials at Stone Bridge have taken the high road in discussions throughout the year, deflecting the question of “why are they doing this to you?” so as not to lose any friends when the time came for the issue to finally be decided. But it’s clearly because of Stone Bridge’s football success.
Many of the Northern Region schools have lengthy histories in Virginia, and the notion that a school that didn’t exist prior to the year 2000 is now a gateway to the state playoffs has to be irksome. Since Stone Bridge joined the Liberty, the rest of the league has been playing for second place, as the Bulldogs have won all three years. They’ve won the Northern Region twice in the last three years, and made the finals all three. Last year, they won the state title.
If you can’t beat ‘em, move ‘em to another region.
Fortunately that won’t happen, as Monday’s hearing should end any further discussions about where Stone Bridge plays. And by the time football season rolls around this fall, all will probably be forgotten.
But just to be safe, here’s my advice to Coach Thompson: make sure you’ve saved a timeout or two this season for the final minutes of games against “friends” from the Northern Region.
Because against some teams, a 48-point lead just isn’t enough.
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