Really Mr. Dolan?
Do you really think the public is that naive? I'm referencing the paragraph that I bolded below. If nothing that was said by LU had any affect on the decision to change venues, then why isn't the VHSL considering moving the 1a/2a and 5a/6/a venues?
I don't have a problem with with the VHSL considering the facts and voting on a decision that the majority decide is in the best entrance of the membership. I do however become offended when the VHSL, through Tom Dolan, put a political spin on a controversial decision instead of being up front with the rationale
CATES
The (Lynchburg) News & Advance
The Virginia High School League may move all but one of its state championships away from Liberty University, beginning next school year.
The league released a plan Friday that details a multitude of proposed changes, which must now meet with approval by an executive committee next month. The executive committee can approve or reject the changes when it meets on Thursday, May 5.
Among the changes, the VHSL recommends moving the Group 3A and 4A football state championship games away from LU’s Williams Stadium to William & Mary’s Zable Stadium in Williamsburg. The Spring Jubilee for 3A and 4A schools, which will be held at LU for the third straight season this June, would be moved to Salem.
On Dec. 18, 2015, the VHSL released a statement saying it was concerned about safety at LU following comments by university President Jerry Falwell Jr. at a Dec. 4 convocation.
Falwell made national headlines when he said, “I always thought if more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in and killed them.”
Those remarks followed the Dec. 2 attack in San Bernardino, California. Falwell later said his remarks were aimed at Islamic extremists responsible for that attack and not at Muslims in general. The VHSL said Falwell’s comments had raised alarm among some of its members.
On Friday, Tom Dolan, the VHSL Assistant Director for Compliance, said the proposed move was not generated by Falwell’s comments or the university’s pro-gun stance.
Dolan cited a December meeting at the league’s office in Charlottesville in which the VHSL explored their potential moves for the future.
“That [meeting] was in response to an October presentation that we were going to explore all avenues and membership requests,” Dolan said.
The VHSL will hold the 3A and 4A Spring Jubilee at LU in June. The three-year contract will run out after those events.
The Spring Jubilee consists of baseball, softball, boys and girls soccer, boys and girls tennis, and lacrosse (4A).
“There’s not a reason for us to do anything different at this point,” Dolan added.
The move to William & Mary for the 3A and 4A football championships would run through 2018. The 1A and 2A state title games remain in Salem, while basketball and volleyball titles stay in Richmond.
The only state championship scheduled to remain at Liberty is indoor track & field. Wrestling would be split up, with 1A-3A schools grappling at Salem and 4A-6A schools traveling to Norfolk.
E.C. Glass boys tennis coach Wistar Nelligan is certainly familiar with the Spring Jubilee. His team has won three-straight state titles, with the last two coming at LU. The Hilltoppers are poised for another run this season.
“It’s a neat atmosphere. It’s hard to find another place with facilities that are as first-rate as Liberty,” Nelligan said. “Certainly for a local coach, it’s nice to play in a place that’s so close to home, where fans can come watch you easily.”
Those fans, Nelligan added, didn’t show up en masse when the Hilltoppers won a state title at Virginia Tech in 2013. “The last two years, we’ve had a tremendous amount of people,” he said.
Some of the league’s state title games have a long history at Liberty’s Williams Stadium. In 2012, both Brookville and Heritage High played in back-to-back state championships there.
And while Heritage football coach Brad Bradley admits it’s been nice for local teams to be able to compete close to home, he thinks the new format might be beneficial as well, despite the three-hour trip to William & Mary.
“If you’re lucky enough to play in the state championship game, then wherever they have it, you go play,” Bradley said.
