Ames High changing conferneces

Freebird

Well-Known Member
Apr 11, 2006
5,451
8,058
113
Football has been a mess for quite a few years. The classes that are Srs and Jrs this year had good teams in Junior High, beating the Ankeny schools, etc.

But at least the Jr class very few of the kids that started in 8th grade are even playing football. A few went to other schools but a lot just focusing on other sports.
My son competes in multiple sports. When he started high school two years ago he was told by someone on the football coaching staff if he wanted to play football he couldn't play any other sport. So he said **** that and continued wrestling/track/cross country. Telling a freshman he has to dedicate his high school athletic life to football is a ******** move. That coach is gone now by the way.
 

isu_oak

Well-Known Member
Bookie
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Sep 4, 2006
2,899
1,012
113
Football has been a mess for quite a few years. The classes that are Srs and Jrs this year had good teams in Junior High, beating the Ankeny schools, etc.

But at least the Jr class very few of the kids that started in 8th grade are even playing football. A few went to other schools but a lot just focusing on other sports.
This whole thing sounds exactly like the freshman class. Beating basically everyone in junior high (except Dowling), but now kids are focusing on specific sports.
 

2forISU

Well-Known Member
Oct 8, 2008
6,240
2,205
113
Why are the Waterloo schools in the same conference as Des Moines and Ottumwa? Are the same people responsible for NCAA conferences also doing Iowa high school conferences? Geography should matter even more in high school.
That is wild. That bus trip to Ottumwa will be brutal.
 

Freebird

Well-Known Member
Apr 11, 2006
5,451
8,058
113
This is what I was going to post. Ames is growing but most of the growth is getting added to the Gilbert school district. How many D1 athletes who have Ames addresses played in Gilbert in the last 20 years?
Plus that is where most of the ISU coaches live so you don't get the advantage of getting D1 coaches kids in the program.
 

2forISU

Well-Known Member
Oct 8, 2008
6,240
2,205
113
The Waterloo schools either have to go to Des Moines or IC and the Quad Cities, there just are not enough schools around that area for them to play and be part of a conference. Smaller conferences do not want to let them in, as they would be twice the size of many schools. Ottumwa is in the same boat, no other large class schools until you get to Indianola or SE Polk.
Why not Dubuque, CR and IC schools? Much shorter commute vs Ottumwa/Des Moines
 

2forISU

Well-Known Member
Oct 8, 2008
6,240
2,205
113
West plays the CR/IC/DBQ schools. East wasn't competitive there anymore and decided, rightfully, that getting to play the DSM publics and smaller 4/5As was the better choice.
West & East are merging in two years, so will they not still play the IC/CR/CF and Dubuque schools?
 
  • Informative
Reactions: NWICY

1SEIACLONE

Well-Known Member
Jun 2, 2024
2,254
2,087
113
63
Ames Iowa
I’d argue that Ames is growing just fine. Gilbert (Ames north) is growing quite rapidly.

The Ames school boundary is similar to urban dam as any growth is going to be either, Gilbert, Ballard or Nevada.
Ames is really growing very well, the problem is most of the new construction is being done in the Gilbert School district to the North. Bloomington Road is the cut off between Ames school district and the Gilbert school district and all the new homes are being built west and north of there.
 

2forISU

Well-Known Member
Oct 8, 2008
6,240
2,205
113

This whole concept makes me vomit. I grew up in Des Moines and after several moves over 40 plus years, I found my peace and tranquility in NW Montana. My son lives in Ankeny and everytime I visit- the traffic and population density drives me crazy. View attachment 148324 Glacier National Park "Logan Pass." This beautiful place is just minutes from where I reside.
Beautiful out there, but damn it's cold in the winter. Spent handful of summers on Flathead Lake/Polson chasing college women and enjoying the outdoors.
 

VeloClone

Well-Known Member
Jan 19, 2010
47,885
38,329
113
Brooklyn Park, MN
My son competes in multiple sports. When he started high school two years ago he was told by someone on the football coaching staff if he wanted to play football he couldn't play any other sport. So he said **** that and continued wrestling/track/cross country. Telling a freshman he has to dedicate his high school athletic life to football is a ******** move. That coach is gone now by the way.
It is really sad to see how many coaches out there who don't see the value in kids getting experience and skills from playing other sports. How many times have we seen players who are excellent tacklers and you know before even being told that they have a wrestling background? How many BB players do we rave about their excellent footwork and find out that they played soccer as well? "Other sports" are also an excellent way for players to stay in shape and stay sharp when it isn't their primary sport's season.

My daughter was primarily a soccer player and she had offseason training for her club. But we made sure that before she signed on a team that they were okay with her missing training when she had an inseason sport going on. If any coach said that offseason training came before an inseason practice or game/meet she wasn't going to be playing on that coach's team. She did have one coach that said it wasn't a problem but then when she came to off season practice and wasn't "fast enough" in conditioning drills the coach didn't care that she was tired after coming directly from Nordic ski practice. Signing on with that coach was a mistake.
 

AltoonaFish

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Aug 24, 2014
546
635
93
38
Ames is really growing very well, the problem is most of the new construction is being done in the Gilbert School district to the North. Bloomington Road is the cut off between Ames school district and the Gilbert school district and all the new homes are being built west and north of there.
The way the boundaries are set, there no where to develop to make Ames bigger. Nevada gets the eastern edge. Gilbert get the north. Ballard gets the south. And United gets the west.
 

1SEIACLONE

Well-Known Member
Jun 2, 2024
2,254
2,087
113
63
Ames Iowa
The way the boundaries are set, there no where to develop to make Ames bigger. Nevada gets the eastern edge. Gilbert get the north. Ballard gets the south. And United gets the west.
Ames is a smaller version of Valley HS, where the growth is occurring is outside their borders. One has to think that they would love to redraw the district line between Ames and Gilbert. I do know that many young families want to move into the North part of Ames because they want to send their kids to the Gilbert school district, its been rated as one of the top three districts in the state repeatedly over the past number of years. All the advantages of living in Ames, but send your child to a smaller higher ranked school district in Gilbert.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CPG4ISU

AltoonaFish

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Aug 24, 2014
546
635
93
38
Ames is a smaller version of Valley HS, where the growth is occurring is outside their borders. One has to think that they would love to redraw the district line between Ames and Gilbert. I do know that many young families want to move into the North part of Ames because they want to send their kids to the Gilbert school district, its been rated as one of the top three districts in the state repeatedly over the past number of years. All the advantages of living in Ames, but send your child to a smaller higher ranked school district in Gilbert.
Definitely agree. Ames middle school is one of the toughest schools I’ve been too. My kids will not go to Ames. We live in Nevada, but hopefully move before they start school, and Ames isn’t an option.
 

Cycsk

Year-round tailgater
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Aug 17, 2009
28,206
17,005
113
It isn't just kids that are going to Gilbert from the north side of Ames. It is tax dollars going to Gilbert too. And these are higher end homes being taxed.
 
  • Winner
Reactions: 1SEIACLONE

drmwevr08

Well-Known Member
Nov 25, 2006
7,382
3,371
113
Arizona
My son competes in multiple sports. When he started high school two years ago he was told by someone on the football coaching staff if he wanted to play football he couldn't play any other sport. So he said **** that and continued wrestling/track/cross country. Telling a freshman he has to dedicate his high school athletic life to football is a ******** move. That coach is gone now by the way.
Not exactly related but my son played freshman football and they take up 2 periods of your school day. Crazy. Not that Ben was going to win them games anyway but he said no thanks and took actual classes.
 

AltoonaFish

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Aug 24, 2014
546
635
93
38
It isn't just kids that are going to Gilbert from the north side of Ames. It is tax dollars going to Gilbert too. And these are higher end homes being taxed.
Biggest financial problem for Gilbert is corporate taxes. There are very few dollars from businesses as there are very few in that district.
 
  • Agree
Reactions: 1SEIACLONE

jcyclonee

Well-Known Member
Apr 12, 2006
23,149
26,023
113
Minneapolis

This whole concept makes me vomit. I grew up in Des Moines and after several moves over 40 plus years, I found my peace and tranquility in NW Montana. My son lives in Ankeny and everytime I visit- the traffic and population density drives me crazy. View attachment 148324 Glacier National Park "Logan Pass." This beautiful place is just minutes from where I reside.
I'll be there in about a month for a quick visit.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NWICY

1SEIACLONE

Well-Known Member
Jun 2, 2024
2,254
2,087
113
63
Ames Iowa
Biggest financial problem for Gilbert is corporate taxes. There are very few dollars from businesses as there are very few in that district.
People that have never been to Gilbert are blown away by how small the town is, they have a Casey's out to the east, a small grain elevator and few mom and pop stores and that is it. Its entire tax base is the farm ground and homes. You cannot find a home north of Bloomington road out by the Fareway that is less than $400,000, many new homes out by the country club and to the North are in the $500,000 to $700,000 range. Go out to the North West of Gilbert where many of the ISU coaches live, and there are a lot of million dollar homes out there.
 

Latest posts

Help Support Us

Become a patron