Columnist Spencer Patterson: Realignment football handed off to schools

Spencer Patterson's high school notebook appears Thursdays. Reach him at [email protected] or 259-4085.

After months of heated debate, the state's final high school realignment proposals are in the hands of local athletic administrators.

In a meeting Wednesday at Chaparral High School, Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association Executive Director Jerry Hughes presented area representatives with a survey outlining all realignment scenarios, along with several other potential key policy changes.

With the aid of their coaching staffs, the athletic administrators and principals from the 18 current 4A schools (along with three more set to open next fall) have until Feb. 5 to return their votes and comments.

"It's a process that involves an entire school and every athletic administrator and coach at each school," Hughes said. "We're proposing to change things pretty drastically."

Hughes, who is set to meet with northern representatives later this month, expects to have all votes compiled by the state basketball tournament, with an open state-wide meeting slated for Feb. 25 in Reno.

Realignment decisions will be finalized at a special NIAA board meeting March 22 at Silverado. The state will continue to operate under the current format next year, with most changes scheduled to go into effect for the 2000-2001 school year.

Among the key issues included on the NIAA survey:

* Realignment: As expected, the NIAA presented two options -- the "Elko/ Carson" proposal and the "reapportionment" proposal.

The first proposal, which appears to have very little support, would create a 5A league for schools with more than 2,000 students. Essentially, it would group Northern Nevada's current 4A schools (along with Spring Creek and Tahoe-Truckee) into Class 4A, and Southern Nevada's 4A schools into Class 5A.

The second proposal, which seems likely to pass, would do away with the current two-zone system and create three separate regions: Northern, Southern Sunrise and Southern Sunset.

* Permanent sites for state tournaments: Two proposals were presented, one that would rotate all events between Northern and Southern Nevada on an annual basis and another that would make Reno's Lawlor Events Center the permanent home for boys and girls basketball and Las Vegas-area high schools a permanent site for baseball and softball.

* Sites for state football championships: Schools will decide whether the 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A football title games will be held at neutral sites or at the top seed's home stadium. Expect the latter to get overwhelming support from coaches.

Hughes also indicated there is a possibility the 4A football championship could alternate between Nevada-Reno's Mackey Stadium and Sam Boyd Stadium annually.

* The "super state" wrestling tournament: Since Nevada went to an all-inclusive state wrestling event featuring athletes from Classes 1A-4A, the format has come under fire from coaches. Now, they will have the option to return to a set of individual state tournaments.

* Other proposals: Also on the survey are possible changes to the state's divisional tie-breaking system, along with a suggestion to do away with the double-elimination format used in state baseball, softball and volleyball tournaments.

"We want to be consistent," Hughes said. "We have to look at this as a total package, not as individual sports."

* NEW FACES: The new semester is upon us, and it has brought new athletic administrators to eight area high schools.

* At Green Valley, Lee Koelliker, an assistant principal who also is serving as the school's boys basketball coach, takes over as the Gators' athletic administrator. He replaces Ike White, now an assistant principal at Eldorado.

* At Cimarron-Memorial, Faron Springer, already an assistant principal at his school, takes over for outgoing athletic administrator Andre Denson, now the principal at West Middle School.

* At Clark, former J.D. Smith Middle School assistant principal Betsy Angelcor succeeds outgoing athletic administrator Larry Lee, now the principal at Sunset High.

* At Palo Verde, Mike Reese, a dean at the school, has been promoted to the position of assistant principal and will serve as the Panthers' athletic director. He takes over for Jim Howard, now an administrator at Silvestri Middle School.

* At Cheyenne, dean Ed Pfeiffer has been promoted to the position of assistant principal and will serve as the Desert Shields' athletic administrator.

* Pfeiffer's predecessor at Cheyenne, Pat Hayden, is the new athletic administrator at Centennial High, one of three schools slated to open next year.

* Desert Pines, another new school, has lured athletic administrator Kim Grytdahl away from Bonanza. Replacing Grytdahl at Bonanza is Karl Spendlove, previously a dean at Mojave.

The third new school, Henderson's Foothill High, is still looking for an athletic administrator. New principal Bob Johns, previously an athletic administrator at Palo Verde and Cimarron, will handle Foothills' athletic duties in the meantime.

Centennial, Foothill and Desert Pines began interviewing coaching candidates on Tuesday.

* TIDBITS: UNLV football coach John Robinson will speak at 4A state champion Cimarron-Memorial's football banquet on Jan. 26. Robinson is recruiting two Spartan seniors -- lineman Kawika Sagapolu and linebacker Arnold Parker. ... Centennial's sports teams will be known as the Bulldogs, with Carolina blue and navy the school colors. ... Green Valley's Rodger Fairless and Bishop Gorman's Tim Chambers are among 12 candidates for the Community College of Southern Nevada's new varsity baseball coaching position. ... Bishop Gorman's Anne Kerestesi leads all area girls soccer players with 11 goals.

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