EDITORIAL - Realignment vs Divisions

This season has been exciting and provided a lot of competition and interesting story lines for most, and we stress most, teams in the Mid Penn. Highensite is always 20/20 but if you go back to our preseason reviews, other media outlets, and local pundits it has been a virtual lock that Hershey and Carlisle were on a collision course for the Mid Penn championship game.

      Trinity looked like a contender and there were some teams that had the potential to surprise them but none of those possibilities ever got all that close. Now as the seasons go by undoubtedly the two teams in the MPC will change, maybe even as soon as next year. What may not change as quickly is teams in the middle of the pack or teams at the bottom. What is the best possible solution to what could be considered uneven divisions and an unbalanced playing field based on program development?
    Realignment is one option. It is not a radical view to say the Commonwealth has more talent/competition in it than the Keystone division when you look at all the teams that comprise the divisions. With Carlisle and a Trinity at the top of the Commonwealth battling it out, both teams still have to contend with a Northern, State College, and CV. All quality programs. Hershey on the other hand has had an easier path the past few years in the Keystone Division as their closest competition seems to be very far behind them at the start of the season. CD has the potential to be an elite team and Palmyra is getting better year to year, while LD is certainly a program on the rise.  How a realignment occurs is question one and more to the point is weather or not this is a short term fix with a problem that will just reappear in a few years is certainly question two. Ultimately we feel the same issues would occur once realignment was set and the real answer lies in a divisional playoff game prior to the MPC.
    Now going to divisions is certainly a more interesting debate. CD East, Mechanicsburg, and McDevitt represent three programs who have historically struggled to compete. Various factors come into play here but the likelihood of them vying for the MPC in the next 2-3 years seems like a scenario with a very low probability. Would they and other teams based on school size, program age, and past years record be better served to separate in a second division? All MP teams could still play each other but this way the secondary division would have something to play for all year. This would also free up schedules to avoid unnecessary match ups. Some of the regular season games are practices for the better clubs and demoralizing for teams and players trying to build. Additionally good squads risk injury and potentially hurt their district playoff chances when it comes to opponents winning percentages. You could very easily make a rotation where you ensure all MP teams play each other once at least every two years, maintain rivalries annually, and allow teams to add more suitable out of conference opponents to better their programs in what ever regard they see fit.
     Let us know what you think in the comments!