Old Orchard Beach quarterback Dylan Boudreau runs the ball during a game this past season. PAT McDONALD/Journal Tribune
The Seagulls had a solid season in Class D South as they went 3-5 and just missed the playoffs, but they will also be losing a ton of players to graduation and were forced to make another decision for the 2018 campaign.
OOB head coach and athletic director Dean Plante decided to make the move to Class E for next season after the MPA made a couple changes and added Dirigo and Freeport to the mix for the 2018 campaign.
“Truth be told, we were strongly considering it last year because we were under the impression that it was going to have a playoff structure. When they initially talked about it that was kind of the idea and then the MPA said that it wasn’t because of classification by enrollment, so we bailed last year,” said Plante.
Plante still believes he made the right call this past season — for both the Seagulls and the rest of the Class E teams.
“It was probably the right thing to do for Maine football last year because enrollment-wise we were definitely a (Class E) type of team but we had a pretty strong team last year and we would have rolled through E last year in a manner that wouldn’t have been beneficial to football in general,” Plante said.
One reason why Plante was more willing to consider a move to Class E this time around was the addition of an actual postseason tournament.
“I don’t know if it’s necessarily going to be a Gold Ball because we will still have a couple teams that are probably Class C size schools playing down and they are still stuck in the enrollment piece being a part of allowing teams to play for a Gold Ball or not,” said Plante. “There will be a very structured playoff format, but I don’t know if it’s going to be a Gold Ball or a plaque, but there will be a champion.”
While the move to Class E was a big decision for OOB, it may be only the beginning of major changes for Maine high school football as the idea of 8-man football has been gaining steam.
“The MPA and football committee is working. This is a 1-year deal and then they are reclassifying and what conditions they are reclassifying under next year are very much up in the air. They may find a creative way to do it and they are also floating — and it’s gaining some momentum — the idea of 8-man football for smaller schools,” said Plante.
Plante understands how some people may dismiss the idea of 8-man football at the beginning, but he believes it may be the right way to go.
“The initial reaction when they brought it up four years ago was absolutely not, we have a tradition of football and we do,” said Plante. “But football is football and the more you research it it’s pretty common across the 50 states. It’s a pretty exciting brand of football and you still have colleges recruiting kids out of 8-man football programs.”
Eight-man football exists in more than 30 states right now. The game is basically the same as traditional 11-man football except the offensive line consists of two guards and a center only.
Plante believes 8-man football could be more sustainable for the state’s smaller schools.
“Eight-man just allows you to kind of create some depth in a way you never had it … it’s more realistic,” said Plante. “We could certainly choose not to and play up, but even in Class D South if you look at the teams, four had dropped down from Class C and the rest are co-ops … we are in a unique situation — other than Traip — where there are all big schools around us and nobody wants to co-op. We don’t want to get gobbled up so it’s really choose your poison. Do we adjust to 8-man football if that’s the option or do we play against schools that have a decided advantage in terms of talent pools?”
The longtime OOB coach believes 8-man football could be a part of the MPA’s plan in 2019.
“If I were to have to decide now, and I’m not just talking Old Orchard Beach, I’m talking statewide, will there be an option for 8-man football (in 2019)? If I were to be put under oath right now I would have to say I think so. I think there’s a strong push both at the MPA level and I think people are looking at it as a realistic option,” Plante said.
— Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at pmcdonald@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.
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