WIAA B of C abruptly reverses GNC/Valley decision
By Kelly O’Day
Quick check to see if there has been a major temperature drop in the nether regions.
In a surprising reversal of a May 15 decision to vote down an executive staff realignment proposal, the WIAA Board of Control voted on Thursday to cast Merrill out of the GNC and back into the Valley.
A 6-4 decision that turned into an 8-2 ruling in the opposite direction baffled MHS principal Shannon Murray.
"Long term we’re trying to figure out what happened and what are our options," he said. "Everybody’s arguments were exactly the same but suddenly the decision was the opposite. That has us scratching our heads."
The one piece of new info–a prerequisite to an appeal carrying any weight–was a chart created by the WIAA.
"The grid was first presented at the hearing itself, it was a real Perry Mason moment," Murray said. "It was a chart of all the Valley schools Merrill played in the ’08-’09 seasons. We’re trying to be good neighbors, of course for non-conference games. The purpose of scheduling those games is for geography, the costs of transportation and a quality of opponent that pays dividends for preparing for the playoffs. Never in a million years did I dream it would come back to haunt us, so to speak.
"We lost to Rhinelander in boys basketball, girls basketball and softball, but Rhinelander was nowhere on this grid."
MHS head football coach Tom Tourtillott noted, "You try to be smart in this economy and play games with the teams that are near by and that kills us. We were going to play Valley schools for our non-conference (football) schedule. Does this mean driving to Escanaba (, Mich.,) and Chippewa Falls again?
"And from an economics issue, where is the school going to find the money to put up bleachers on the other side needed for a Valley crowd? I’m not sure, but I think they’re $200,000."
Murray said the WIAA tells schools and conferences to figure out their own solutions, but he noted–after the fact–those solutions seem to be ignored.
"If you go right to 2006, the Valley conference voted 9-0 to leave it alone," he said. "We didn’t want to get out of the Valley, but more importantly we didn’t want to be the only small school left.
"This time we voted 7-0 at the GNC meeting to leave it alone. We pay the same dues as other schools, but we don’t feel we received the same representation. One comment made by the WIAA that I didn’t understand was that they needed to do for Rhinelander what Rhinelander couldn’t do for themselves."
And apparently the decision wasn’t a difficult one.
"After five minutes of deliberation they came back with an 8-2 vote favoring the appeal, which was curious to us," Murray said. "We’re trying to get to the bottom of what actually happened."
It’s also not surprising Merrill would feel somewhat betrayed by the decision.
"The GNC has only been in place for a year," Murray said. "We’ve done a lot of work to get the GNC off the ground. Every meeting was held at River Valley (State Bank in Merrill). We started the conference from scratch, which was difficult at times bringing in representatives from Valley and Lumberjack schools. We built a viable conference, built on mutual respect."
A common theme is Merrill’s contention that the decision doesn’t address the real problem of the current Valley.
"There needs to be a better solution–a long-term solution," MHS Dean of Students Kurt Soderberg said. "What’s most competitive for the most people. To start something and pull the rug out from underneath it, doesn’t make sense.
"Being fair to Merrill students is just as important as any other school. I thought the GNC was run very well and the teams were competitive. I think Rhinelander would be a good fit in the GNC with Antigo and Merrill, but that clearly wasn’t in the WIAA’s vision.
"Perhaps you go with a big Valley/small Valley with a certain number of crossover games. I think it’s time to dissolve the Valley as it stands. It seems to me that a lot of other options on the table were not even considered."
Football always enters the discussion in this matter.
"In basketball we play all the Valley schools anyway," Soderberg, also the MHS boys hoops coach, said. "For basketball it’s not a big deal. Really, what it comes down to is a football issue."
The sheer numbers needed to play football strongly favor schools such as SPASH (2,414) and Everest (1,838) over Antigo (1,022), Merrill (1,135) and Rhinelander (1,069).
Tourtillott agreed, while noting there wasn’t going to be any quit in his charges.
"Maybe it’s an uphill battle, but as players and coaches we’re still going to work as hard as we can," he said.
Soderberg noted the nature of the decision has left people bewildered.
"I’ve fielded more questions on this than anything," Soderberg said. "We had a basketball tournament this weekend, and the Merrill people were concerned and other people from around the state were asking, ‘Why is the WIAA flip-flopping on this?’ "
One other point needs to be made.
"We are a school that is getting smaller and smaller at the same time that Everest and SPASH are getting larger," Murray said.
Soderberg added, "Some say, ‘We have our pride and we can battle.’ Yeah, we can, but you have to look at the long term. It doesn’t serve any school well."