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Photo Credit: Mike Lavieri

Bishop Miege wins the Class 4A title, people take to Twitter to fire off their hot takes about how the Stags should be moved to a larger class, which of course follows by nothing happening and the same thing happening the next year.

For those saying this is a Miege problem: Stop it.

I’m not a parent, but I recognize that private schooling is expensive. When parents are already paying taxes for the great schools in districts such as Blue Valley, Olathe and Shawnee Mission, it’s a difficult choice that must be made.

For those that want to bring up the recruiting argument: You realize that Blue Valley, Olathe and Shawnee Mission allow their students to transfer schools for “extenuating circumstances.”

Did you know that Derby has a restricted open enrollment policy and will welcome students that don’t live within district boundaries?

For those wanting a private school only league: Knock it off.

You really think Miege against Maranatha is going to solve the problem?

“But, Mike, Texas has a private school league, so why can’t Kansas?” Because Texas has a population of nearly 29 million people with four major metros and Kansas has a population of less than three million with Kansas City’s, Wichita’s and Topeka’s population being a third of it. 

You can’t make a league out of Miege, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. James to go along with Kapaun Mt. Carmel and Bishop Carroll out of Wichita and Hayden in Topeka.

This also isn’t a KSHSAA problem as much as we want to make it.

The one thing KSHSAA can do is combine classes. There is no reason we have six classes in a state that has the population we do. This wouldn’t be a perfect solution, but when it comes to playoff time, it means that not all teams make the playoffs and that the regular season means something.

Shawnee Mission North, Highland Park and Wichita North had no business being in the playoffs this year.

This is a Kansas legislature problem. K.S.A  72-7114-5 states:

Any association with a majority of the high schools of the state as members and the purpose of which association is the statewide regulation, supervision, promotion and development of any of the activities defined in K.S.A. 72-7117, and amendments thereto, and in which any public high school of this state may participate directly or indirectly shall: Establish a system for the classification of member high schools according to student attendance.

Miege is bound to Class 4A as long as their enrollment falls within the Class 4A bounds. Instead of complaining online or trying to get KSHSAA to change things, take it upon yourself to work with your representative to try and amend the statute.

One that happens, then we can discuss multipliers or my recommendation: success-based multipliers on a sport-by-sport basis, but that’s a discussion for another season.