NYSSWA: New York State Sportswriters Association

NYSSWA rankings are updated weekly.
See the latest plus the earlier weeks'
updates on our rankings page.

Leading off today: Section 1's Martin Luther King Jr. High has given up on launching its first season of varsity football.

Section 1 officials were informed last week by officials from the residential treatment center that it would not field a team, The Journal News reported. The reasons were not disclosed, and the newspaper's calls to the school were not returned.

Five schools were forced to fill schedule slots less than three weeks before the start of the season. Valhalla, which was supposed to face MLK in the opener, will now play Sacred Heart at home on Sept. 7. The other four teams could match up with schools that were supposed to play Webutuck before that Section 9 team dropped football last week.

1 vs. 2: USA Today's first high school football rankings of the season are more fixed than your neighbor's cat -- although there's a legitimate case to be made for doing it.

The national publication has ranked Southlake Carroll of Texas and Miami (Fla.) Northwestern in the top two spots, with both coming off (obviously) impressive 16-0 seasons.

The rub is that the two powerhouses are scheduled to play each other Sept. 15 in Dallas. Since interstate contests between top teams are rare, that raises more than a little speculation that they're starting at the top of the rankings in part to create a buzz.

St. Anthony's, the South Huntington buzzsaw, is ranked 22nd and is the only New York team in the regional top 10.

Publics vs. privates: Newsday's question of the week stirred up a hornets nest the other day: Should public and private schools play non-conference football games against one another?

The short answer seemed to be that the rigid schedule and playoff formats of public schools don't give them the ability to play a non-leaguer. CHSFL teams do have room on the schedule, but they have to look outside Sections 8 and 11 for prospective opponents.

"We've been to Buffalo, Massachusetts, Philadelphia and New Jersey," St. Anthony's AD Don Buckley told the newspaper. "We would much rather play a team from Long Island. It would be good for the sport."

Pat Pizzarelli, the Lawrence AD, advocates playing CHSFL opponents, going so far as to propose using the ninth block of the schedule for public schools that don't make the sectionals.

Add Pat to my Christmas card list. Subtract Kip Lukralle from that same list.

"I don't believe any public school should play any private school in any sport," said Lukralle, Northport's football coach. "I'm in a district that catholic schools recruit from. I'm sensitive to that. We don't play on an equal playing field. So we shouldn't play."

At the risk of starting a new round of battles on this hot-button topic, let me point out something very fundamental to Lukralle: Private schools have to recruit in order to survive because their pipeline for future students -- non=public grammar schools -- is tiny compared to taxpayer-supported schools system.

So, yes, the private schools often do go into junior highs and pitch the virtues of their school. That technically constitutes recruiting, but it hardly means that there's sleazy activity going on.

Now, if Sections 8 and 11 want to step up and offer membership to the private schools, I'm sure that they would be more than willing to limit contact with public-school students as a condition of joining.

Just remember to write a fair rule covering transfers, because that issue cuts both ways. If you don't believe that, keep an eye on the nonsense going on in the PSAL next door in New York City, where private-school players are getting picked off left and right these days.

Gauchos searching: In New York City, the Gauchos are looking at candidates to replace departed director Emmanuel "Book" Richardson.

The New York Daily News reports that Russell Smith, who has been with the program for 31 years as a player and coach, said it's likely that the next director will come from within the program.

Richardson is endorsing Warren Holcomb, who has been a player and coach with the Gauchos.

Extra points: Dick "Hoops" Weiss reported in the New York Daily News last week that 6-5 junior guard Lance Stephenson of Lincoln High in the PSAL has narrowed his list of colleges to Louisville, Memphis, West Virginia, North Carolina, Georgetown and Indiana. . . . Weiss also says junior guard Mo Mo Jones of CHSAA power Rice, who committed to Louisville last year, is transferring to American Christian Academy in Aston, Pa.

11/22/24: Bayport-Blue Point football extends streaks

11/19/24: Some thoughts following the playoffs weekend

11/15/24: Plainedge football pulls off last-play win

11/8/24: Court restores Syracuse ITC to grid playoffs

11/6/24: West Islip girls soccer advances on PKs

11/5/24: Newburgh forfeits sectional football opener

11/2/24: Top-ranked 'D' football team's season over

10/31/24: Herricks' Walia wins state tennis singles title

10/28/24: S-WR senior making the grade in 2 sports

10/27/24: Copiague football ends its record losing streak

10/26/24: Herkimer gridders claw way back to .500

10/25/24: Girls lacrosse schedule proposal nixed

10/22/24: NYSPHSAA Exec Committee meeting preview

10/19/24: Albany CBA wins Sec. 2 football showdown

10/18/24: Baldwinsville cracks 'USAT' eSports rankings

10/16/24: Wisc. hits schools hard for paperwork glitch

10/14/24: Bethlehem girls, Macchia win Eastern States

10/13/24: Iona Prep slips past Hayes in 'AA" showdown

10/11/24: La. QB throws for 817 yards in overtime loss

10/10/24: Report: N.Y. girls to join transgender protest

10/7/24: More eight-man teams left stranded in Week 5

10/5/24: 18 ranked N.Y. football teams fall in Friday action

10/4/24: Longest U.S. football futility streak continues

10/3/24: Syracuse.com's twist on fantasy football

9/30/24: M-E edges Waverly in battle of No. 1 teams

9/27/24: Report: Sec. 3 athletes flock to NIL Club

9/25/24: Ex-Kellenberg QB sets off an NIL drama

9/23/24: NYSPHSAA warns about potential NIL isssue

9/21/24: South Park's Nunes shatters N.Y. rushing record

9/20/24: Storytelling in H.S. sports is alive and well

9/19/24: Longtime SWR coach Paul Koretzki, 84, dies

9/17/24: Western N.Y. teams embracing Guardian Caps

9/15/24: N.J. shows us N.Y. football has a ways to go

9/14/24: Another UPrep game, another fan incident

9/13/24: Ohio wrestles with aftermath of shootings

9/11/24: Mass. school forfeits over male opponent

9/10/24: Regents table vote on expanding mixed competition

9/9/24: Shot clock experiment will change lacrosse

9/7/24: Garden City sets L.I. football record

9/6/24: Lawsuit takes aim at N.C.'s NIL ban

9/5/24: New York's Week 0 football intrigue

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