PROPOSED SJS REALIGNMENT

The SJS bylaws allow for league/school realignment every four years. They just released the first proposal for league realignment. I watched the whole video(linked below) and the proposal may offer the most extreme realignment we have ever witnessed. What I got out of it was that most leagues were going to have two levels  (Capital and Valley). The leagues would also be structured one way for only football and another way for all other sports. Since XC and track fall into the "All Other Sports" category (and not the football one), this is the one I'll discuss. 

https://www.cifsjs.org/realignment 

  

Let's start with the smallest schools in the South SJS Distance area the CCAA:

 

 This "league" is essentially a combination of the current CCAA and the MVL. River Islands has moved out and Modesto Christian has moved in. As far as South SJS Distance is concerned only Vanguard has a XC team this season of the teams I would possibly cover (Vanguard, Don Pedro, Tioga, Modesto Christian, and Turlock Christian).

 

Next let's go to what is being called the Mother Lode League 

 

 

This grouping is primarily composed of the current MLL and SAL leagues. We have added Orestimba back from the TVL (prior to that Orestimba was in the SAL), Hilmar from the TVL, and River Islands moves up from the CCAA. Stone Ridge currently has no XC or track team. Gustine and Mariposa have no XC team. All of these teams I was already covering with the South SJS Distance except River Islands.

 

They are calling this one the CCC

 

 This one is primarily a convergence of the current CCC and the WAC. two those 14 teams we are adding Modesto from the CCAL and Ripon Christian from the current TVL. For Ripon Christian this would be an extreme shift. They have very talented athletes in many sports but in track and XC they don't even hold their own in the TVL. And enrollment wise Atwater is at 2058 and RC is at 293...so clearly enrollment had zero to do with their placement in this conference. All of these teams field XC and track teams and I am already covering all of them.

 

This would be the proposed TCAL 

 

 Most of these teams I don't cover but I believe that they are currently in the SJAA and TCAL. However there are two notable exceptions and there inclusion definitely demonstrates that football is the tail waging the dog. I am referring to Central Catholic and Manteca both currently in the VOL. Regarding track and XC neither of these teams is particularly strong. At least in XC, Central Catholic would slide back into D5 for State qualification.

 

Okay and now things get really weird with what they are calling the VOL 

 

 

 

This appears to be all of the CCAL plus the remaining VOL (minus CC and Manteca), and the rest of the TVL (minus Orestimba, RC, and Hilmar). So why isn't it called CCAL since that league is fully absorbed into the mass. I would suggest FML (Frankenstein's Monster League).  Regardless of the semantics of the league's name....why, why, why.....Central Catholic could have stayed here and Mountain House could have gone to the TCAL...No one wants Mountain House (that is mainly based on geography and this realignment has done nothing to help that issue). MH should be put with the Tracy and Stockton schools. The "VOL Valley Tier" might be the craziest arrangement of the whole proposal. The TVL has historically been the toughest/strongest D4 league in the section and perhaps the whole State...and this realignment seems to have gone far out of its way to destroy that collection of schools...yes Hughson, Ripon, Escalon, and Sonora (arguably the strongest of the TVL) are still together but they had to add D1-Downey and D1-Enochs and D2-Patterson...what a bizarre decision. In track what division would this mess be categorized as??? I predict as the process moves forward and the public has a chance to chime in, this league will be the focus of a lot of the complaining/discussion. 

 

 

Overall I would still cover Central Catholic (they are in StanCo after all) and Manteca but not the rest of the TCAL...Lodi is just too far away and I have no historic connection to any of the Stockton schools. I would add River Islands. This grouping gives me basically 6 leagues to cover (the 2 VOLs, the 2 CCCs, and the 2 MLLs along with Manteca and CC). Curently I have seven leagues, CCAL, CCC, WAC, VOL, TVL, SAL, and MLL. Yes I didn't mention the CCAA schools and in recent years they (the ones I cover) haven't fielded XC or track teams, except Vanguard (which I would still cover).

 

If you read this I am certain that you will have questions. I hope to interview Will DeBoard in the near future. So message me your questions and I will attempt to get them answered.   screaminscott64@yahoo.com