Next rules wrote:
How would Nike determine that a second squad from Wayzata is better than a state champ from South Dakota?
For this determination, the clock should not to be ignored. The second-seven would have accumulated times from at least some individual races run during the fall, even if "only" run in JV or freshman/sophomore races at big invitationals where they were not entered in the Varsity A races. At any one meet, the course would be the same, whether in the JV (or other non-elite) race or the Varsity race. It would not be dissimilar to a track event where a time run in a heat, compared with times run in other heats, would be the deciding factor in advancement to a semifinal or final.
Admittedly, times can be deceiving due to hills, wind, rain (or snow!), temperature, height of grass, legitimacy in the course's measurement, etc. However, some next-seven runners at a school such as Great Oak or Loudoun Valley could make unmistakably bold statements by posting impressive times, even if they are not state meet-run times.
As with choosing an at-large team for NXN, or choosing kids for post-season first-team, second-team, and honorable mention awards, there would be a need for a committee of some sort to rate the second-seven runners for eligibility to run NXR as a Varsity A team, alongside the school's first-seven Varsity A team. Subjectivity with intelligence can lead to excellent choices.
It's possible. It really is.
Yes, those who would be shut out by one school's second seven bumping them out of the team competition at NXR would complain - but, to them, I'd say put up or shut up. If those schools couldn't or hadn't delivered prior to NXR, and where one school had a recognized strong second seven, then those weaker teams just wouldn't deserve to be in the team competition. I'm talking about NXR, not the state meet, where even a slow team should get a chance to compete as a team (alongside, maybe one day, two teams of seven runners from the same school, like Loudoun Valley this year).
Choosing teams to go all the way to NXN would still be the same as always, and fundamentally based on NXR team results. There would be teams which automatically qualify, and there would be bubble teams which would be chosen for at-large berths. If any one bubble team deserved to go to the finals, it should go, regardless of whether or not it was a second team of seven from the same school as an automatic-qualifying seven runners.
To me, it's a no-brainer to allow one school to field more than one seven-runner team at NXR if, by previous times run up until then, the second team was deserving of the honor.
Some coaches would claim that their second-seven were deserving of entry into the top race, when they were not. Some deceptive or self-deceptive coaches would occasionally need to be put in their place. But that's probably always the case with coaches pushing for recognition and opportunities for their own teams.
I've mostly been talking about NXR and NXN. State meet rules and reasoning really are different, but for a national championship-related two events - NXR and NXN - I absolutely feel that Nike officials can, and should, make logical decisions which might benefit the Loudoun Valley or Great Oak-types of programs which have a wealth of talent.