HS 4:02 and 2 mile best ever time not eligible for PA state meet?

the coach screwed up and they are lucky. this appeal would not have been accepted for a lesser athlete, but now the precedent is set.

Pa. has far less rules for state qualifications than NY, where you have to run a minimum number of NFHS certified meets and go through a state qualifier meet.

So, if I get this right, his time was rejected because it isn't allowed by the rules. It was appealed, and the appeal was rejected because the time didn't follow the rules, then it was later accepted, "...but there was no comment about the specifics of the reversal. "

So they can't site any reason to change the decision and the appeal? So they just decided to ignore the rule because he is a big name who screamed loud enough to cause them some embarrassment because it made the news?

Hate to say it, but this makes me think less of Drew. And a lot less of his current coach and future coach at ND. That is just a bad look of a spoiled HS star.

Like this quote: "
"We have splits from Drew's final 1,600 meters of his two mile this past weekend," he said. "For that final 1,600m he was completely solo and ran a time of 4:13. This time would, and should, qualify him for the state meet."

In what world do you expect splits from mid-race (not even from the start) to qualify you for an event? "Would and should qualify him" ?? Just making bleep stuff at that point.

I sure hope they do publicly comment later on "the specifics of the reversal." You can't leave it that.

he hasn't run "any" HS meet they treat as a qualifying time. how is he going to HS state? that's beyond "rules is rules." that's if you want to win HS honors or advance run some actual HS.

i do think your performance list should harmonize to your standards. it's a bad look to list the time top of the leaderboard then say it's not qualifying. but i don't know if it has some pound sign or asterix, not looking at it.

in practical terms, the rabbit is more concerning than the college. in some races, particularly 300H, i would win a bunch of heats out by myself and wish i had a push. versus college, if you live in some areas and your school makes the rounds some HS competition is tough like college. racing's racing. you run a competitive mile without a rabbit and that's a real time. but that's a politics comment. rules is rules if it needs to be a HS meet. just like if i went and ran unattached during HS that would have counted for the team against a pre-state limit, ie, we didn't do it. you don't get to make up your own rules because you're gifted. show up for "a" meet and make your time. i have a feeling the kid could do it at 90%, lay down his marker, and it's probably a workout.

re blowing off the "pacer" issue, his status is what it is, it's not the same racing as what the rest of us get to set our times in, and pacers are usually registered to run, wear a bib and such, and can finish or win if they chose to. byers being one who famously did so when the pack couldn't be bothered -- bislett 1500 in 81.

splits is complicated. back in the day that would be trusting the coach with the stopwatch, but that's now often electronically timed as part of the race itself, down to small fractions of a second.

but again, rules is rules, we're either allowing en route times or not. if the rules require a literal mile under race conditions, timed start to finish, on a certain type of track, indoors, certain type of meet, pros and college excluded, them's the rules. given that it's a performance cutoff and not a judged event, and we're not talking about the jury advancing a tripped athlete, your capabilities or splits should be besides the point -- or, they are the point. run them in the right meet.

that notre dame's coach likes his times, can extract a convincing split, and welcomes his future presence shouldn't matter. i am sure most of the finalists in such state meets at the higher levels are D1 recruits. i am sure kid 21 who missed out doesn't suck and is being recruited. they all are. that's going way too subjective. if anything it should be consolation.

i would think it would be a paperwork mess if you could extract any 4 laps you liked for en route stuff. it's one thing if you look at endpoints. your time is your time. imagine if you can submit en route or worse the PA folks have to ferret them out. and what if some meets aren't that rich to have the electronic splits recorded for them.

also, basic bs, but it's a flying run vs. a standing start. there is a reason a 4x1 is faster than the individual 100m times added. i don't get to offer that to the meet to advance instead of my heat.

The reality is that a bunch of coaches didn't want to reject the top runner in the state because of a technicality. He is the defending champ and the heavy favorite. Lesser runners would not have gotten the same treatment - but also I would argue that for lesser runners this issue may not have even been noticed.

fastest kid in the state should get to compete in the state championship. simple as. "rules are rules". The winner without him in that race would be a mickey mouse champion lol.

There is no way Ron Lopresti will comment on this at all. At least not on the record.

What's the next rule that will be ignored because it's convenient? Perhaps next time an outdoor time can be submitted for the indoor championship?

The coach screwed up and didn't bother to enter the kid in any other meets. I'm sorry for the kid, but that doesn't change the reality of the situation. I'm sure we won't see any details about the specifics of the reversal because there's no plausible way can justify it in detail.

"No marks performed in competition against college or post-HS age athletes or OUTDOOR SURFACES will be accepted. Marks must be from current indoor season. No relay split times or last Spring’s times/distances will be accepted." Pretty unequivocal.

This is an awful example.

CIF rules are notoriously outdated. The entire dual meet and postseason track system basically hasn't changed since the 50s.

Really? How do you know who is fastest since the meet hasn't happened? Are you okay only for the fastest? How about 2nd? 8th? 16th? Are you okay in outdoor if your kid runs a sectional and is the last qualifier to your state meet but he gets bumped because the fastest kid was running a college meet in another state but the authorities decide to auto qualify him?

My son ran a 1:59 800 but they refused to beleive that he should qualify for the 1600. His pace was faster than 4:00. I am going to file a lawsuit against the state.

It's a high school championship. If he didn't run for his high school he shouldn't qualify. Same reason if you don't compete for your college you can't go to NCAA. If you don't become a member of USATF you can't compete at "Nationals" all membership organizations. Nothing more. People are upset he didn't pay the cover charge to get into the party but now says "my name is on the list cause I know somebody" happens all the time in life.

Dont disagree with ya. Id argue though that if you are enrolled in that HS, and wear the jersey (regardless of meet location/event) that should in essence count as running for the school and qualify you for a state meet. seems crazy that him racing at more competitive events rather then a local HS meet would in some way disqualify you. That type of rule is strictly against whats best for the athlete.

You can argue but you should comply with rules rather than cheat. Are you okay with a wrestler qualifying to states by beating a college wrestler?

No. It's just the typically antiquated b.s. high school rule system. That's 1970s thinking... the old mythical notion of amateurism and complete separation of pros and "amateurs" for no discernible reason. If a hs kid is good enough to compete with pros, then everyone (including the state sports governing powers) should be thrilled and encourage the kid to be his best. It doesn't disadvantage his competitors in any shape or form, and offers the kid no tangible advantage at all. Who does it harm? It's just a race against faster runners. That should not affect his eligibility at all. Ridiculous. Update the rules already.

If a race on a better track against better competitors with a paid pacer doesn't benefit runners, why do professionals and college runners travel to meets with better tracks and better competition and paid pacers?

Yes, they should update the rules. But until then, everyone is supposed to play by the same current set of rules.