Wood football
- Thread starter lilromeo
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Take all of this with a grain of salt since the people I would get second and third hand information from have not been at Wood for a couple of years. But I will share what I have heard about the program that I think applies overall, and a what I heard after reading these rumors and asking around.
For years it was a big complaint that the alumni and administration were not the best. This is big because everything always comes down to money. The way it works is students receive financial aid that is determined by their income, and is not a decision made by the school. The school can provide a student with more aid on a case by case basis, and this money usually comes from an alumni fund. With Wood the administration was more stringent than most schools, and the alumni are not as financially supportive as other schools.
The belief is Devlin was always going to leave one day to coach in college. One of the stories I heard was that there was a transfer rule put into place that either moved that timeline up, or made Devlin willing to accept a job at an Ursinus rather than hold out for something along the lines of what Gabe got. Again belief was always that Devlin would make the move at some point whether it was for different challenge, being able to just coach full time, or help family. But the transfer rule put in place by the administration played a role.
When Adkins took over I was told that there were two major efforts. One was to build up the alumni support. The second was to put a lot of work into recruiting the local programs. I heard that there was a ton of work put into both of those, but it was never reciprocated from the administration. Alumni was more complicated, and probably needed more time to come around, but ultimately not enough support in the moment.
Walp was hired because he would keep the entire staff together. Adkins and the OC left, but Armstrong was able to take over on the defensive side, Plenski was able to take over on the offensive side, and the rest of the assistants stayed on. Obviously they were able to bring in a lot of the McDevitt kids, and Watkins. I do know that the first few McDevitt transfers that left Wood were due to issues in school. I can't say if Watkins left due to issues with football staff, concerns over kids being kicked out of school, or the realization that McDevitt and Wood would be very different. What I can say is that Watkins would never be able to have the same success with recruiting at Wood that he had at McDevitt.
That has nothing to do with Watkins. I am sure he is a hell of a recruiter and coach. It is a Wood thing and a money thing. It seems that the later transfers or rumors of transfer are football related with all of the other coaches and players leaving. I know Walp was heavily involved with the recruiting of the QB that just left, so it makes sense he would not stay without Walp.
I know the McD players decided on Wood primarily due to Watkins going there. Most thought Watkins would be named HC this year and when that didnt occur He took the HC job at Pennington NJ. He wanted the Wood job and I believe the transfers probably would not have happened. I also believe he would continue to be successful recruiting quality players as he has been doing. Wood missed a good opportunity for continued success. It is a mess . BTW i agree with much of what you mentioned FJ. Im not looking forward to watching them this year for sure. Sure hope something positive happens there soon.
Its obvious the administration chose the path thats now happening. Probably a trend of the future for the catholic league and private schools. PA football in general is not as important as it once was. The liberals have taken total control of education. Everyone gets a trophy and winning doesn't matter.
I can't see the connection between politics (liberals and conservatives, etc.) and which schools have good football programs. I don't think SJP, LaSalle, Tep, and the more successful Interac schools are run by politically conservative people. I know most of those are not public schools, but is it the case that Beck at NP or Ricci at Garnet Valley or ... have been constrained by liberal principals or superintendents?
it was stated in above post in regards to Woods administration and alumni aren't the best. Direction of the program and donations? I'm not happy about their dirrection. There's probably alot of money flowing into schools like SJP. Look at Pine Richland if you want to see what our educators think of winning programs. Don't agree but there it is.
The only thing I know about P-R is what I've read on here--and obviously there was a lot of disagreement about what happened there and why. But in any case it seemed like a one-of-a-kind situation, and now Coach K is back as head coach at another school. At least in SE PA there have been lots of successful apparently quite traditional coaches (e.g. Beck, Ricci, Ortega, Schmidt, etc.) who've had long runs.
In fairness to Wood, what programs besides Lasalle and Prep have a lot of money flowing into the school? Add the budget with their talent and coaching, and not too many schools are on par with that.
Really not sure. 4th coach in 5 years, moved up to 6A when they can be playing 4A ( I think)
all those factors along with the Mcdevitt situation. I think it looks worse than it is. They were decent last year, state title two years ago. I think they just need some stability.
all those factors along with the Mcdevitt situation. I think it looks worse than it is. They were decent last year, state title two years ago. I think they just need some stability.
Their last state title--unlike the previous ones--was flukey. As I recall, the team they played in the semi-final was missing their star player due to injury and the team they barely beat in the final, Cheltenham, was a very weak finalist.
A decade ago I posted here that the PCL would be gone by 2020 but they have survived. Wood has had a nice run , but it maybe over. Do they have enough money to run with the prep & lasalle? I do not think so anymore.
The prep & lasale have more money then the rest of the PCL thus more & larger scholarships. also there other advantage over Public schools & the other PCL schools is that they are not COED. No title 9 to deal with, no parents of girls sports wanting to use the fields, salary's, etc. They belong in another league but no one wants them so here they stay. Remember Wood won a state title a couple years ago, but got beat by Peddie School 35-0. Getting difficult to compete without the $.
The prep & lasale have more money then the rest of the PCL thus more & larger scholarships. also there other advantage over Public schools & the other PCL schools is that they are not COED. No title 9 to deal with, no parents of girls sports wanting to use the fields, salary's, etc. They belong in another league but no one wants them so here they stay. Remember Wood won a state title a couple years ago, but got beat by Peddie School 35-0. Getting difficult to compete without the $.
Unless Wood gets a very good Head Coach IMO they will not regain their prestige of being one of the best in the state. I thought they would seriously content for the 5A title this year before all these situations occurred. They will be fortunate to have a winning season , and that is if they solidify things quickly. Who are the candidates being considered for HC ??
I will do my best to hit on different things said in the last few posts
Romeo - I did hear something similar about a plan for Watkins to take over for Walp. But saying that the McD kids don't leave if he is the HC after last season is just wrong. The first few players to leave were because of disciplinary reasons with the school. I could have the exact number wrong but I am pretty sure it was at least 3 kids. I know someone said if you're expelled you can't play at different school, maybe it won't be an official "expulsion", but they are no longer at wood because the school made the decision. Not the other way around. Watkins left after or during all of this. Was it the only reason, or even the biggest reason? I don't know, but what I do know is that was the order of operations.
Wilson / Chuck - There were problems between the program and the alumni. The alumni and the admin. And the admin and the program. It was something that just became more and more strained over the years. I remember hearing a story that Wood's biggest alumni was going to donate enough for a field and maybe a stadium but the president said if he was donating the money then it was for the school to decide how it was spent. The transfer rule was originally thought to be a PCL or district rule, but football staff found out it was a rule implemented by the school. Not only that, it was a rule for football team only.
SJP and LaSalle are private schools. They are not part of the archdiocese. They have different rules they are playing by than the rest. Judge has a very very strong alumni base, and last I heard the money is still coming in. I believe Roman also gets a good contribution. from alumni. I think other schools are just more lax with who they do and do not let in from a financial standpoint, and I do believe it is one of the things that get some of the schools in trouble and have had to close.
Chuck / Tulla - 2019 was their last state title. Yes the Gateway team was missing their RB, but they were still better at almost every position. A couple of people who were on the Devlin staff but not the Adkins staff said that was probably one of the best coaching jobs they've seen in the area with that team. Agree it was a down year with talent, but just wanted to point that comment out.
Romeo - back to overall state of the program I just don't see it. When Adkins left I asked someone the same thing people are asking now. What the hell is going on at Wood? First Devlin, now Adkins? I get guys want to advance and coach in college, but Ursinus isn't Temple like Gabe. And I do not want to get into specifics because it is not my place to speak for people, but I am telling you as sure as anything, there is no money and the administration does way more harm than good. I hope I am wrong, but I have a hard time believing any HC will have success.
Thanks for the information.
My strong impression is that Wood between 2010 and 2016 was a fair bit stronger than the Wood teams since, even the ones that won state titles. What do you think?
The weird thing is how close Wood came to beating SJP in the league semi-final last year. The fact that Samaj Jones could play only part of the game (because of injury) was a factor, but Wood made the most of its strengths. What's striking was how inconsistent they were last year. I watched them play LaSalle and noticed how they kept shooting themselves in the foot with bad penalties and missed assignments.
OMG things are worse than I thought. Guess CB West will benefit in the Doylestown area from now on . i had wondered why CB west QB Cooper [brother of Jake who played at Wood and Penn State } decided on West over Wood. Oh Well !!! Go Bucks !!!
Yes the 2010-2016 teams were loaded with talent. They had a ton of D1 talent and it was a pretty well balanced mix of OL/DL and skill guys. From my recollection I was told about the transfer decision and rumors around the time of Blackshear and Pitts coming into the program. Devlin moved onto Ursinus not long after that. The 2018 and 2019 teams took a big step back as far as that top end talent, but I know people felt they had a ton of depth with the D2 D3 type of kids that every coach loves. I think one of the more underrated things about that Wood program is from 2008-2019 they won 6/12 state titles and the 6 they didn't win they were knocked out by the team that did win. After 2019 they returned 90% of the staff and roster then in 2020 had the D1 recruits again with McDevitt transfers. I know they played tougher schedule in 6A, but they finished under .500, and I don't know that they had a win against any of teams on their level.
I was told that somewhere around the time Mike Carey left, and around the time Blackshear and Pitts transferred in there was a restriction placed on transfers. The staff originally thought it was either a PIAA or League rule. They came to find out it was a rule implemented by the administration. From what I remember the way they found out was they talked to other sports staffs about the rule and they did not know anything about the rule, so the belief/rumor was that it was a football only rule. The person that told me all of this assumed it was alumni unhappy with how program was run, and then trickled down to administration putting some restrictions on football team taking in transfers.
what Wood team was the best?
i remember a lot of people out east were really high on that 2011 team that mercy ruled Bishop Mcdevitt, it was the only time i could recall people saying the AAA champ would beat the AAAA champ, despite the fact they lost to a good but not great Central Catholic team in the opener
i would've bet on Wood winning a rematch but i just thought it was silly to call them Philly's best team since CB West when they had that loss
i remember a lot of people out east were really high on that 2011 team that mercy ruled Bishop Mcdevitt, it was the only time i could recall people saying the AAA champ would beat the AAAA champ, despite the fact they lost to a good but not great Central Catholic team in the opener
i would've bet on Wood winning a rematch but i just thought it was silly to call them Philly's best team since CB West when they had that loss
I remember watching that game and thought Wood got jobbed at the end. They had a very good team that year for sure and probably agree it was their best squad IMO.
2011 was the best. They had about 8 different starters on defense in that PCC game than the McDevitt game. Peoples was hurt in the first half and they changed up the whole backfield rather than using the backup HB. The backup ended up playing next three games and being the second HB the rest of the way and got a scholarship to Villanova. Think early season HS is so hard to compare to end of year because there is a lot of trial and error trying to figure out which guys are players and where they fit.
I would say 2014 was probably their second best team. 2016-2017 had the most top end talent at the skill positions, but 2014 was deeper and better up front with guys like Bates and Cooper.
I would say 2014 was probably their second best team. 2016-2017 had the most top end talent at the skill positions, but 2014 was deeper and better up front with guys like Bates and Cooper.
I seriously doubt he would consider Wood knowing their situation and current administrations position on recruiting, but who knows.
Romeo.... I see teams having organized pratices now. Are there any rules on the number of days/weeks that teams can have minicamps?
No limitations outside of no real contact, helmets only, etc... but you can practice as much as you want. Just have to follow heat acclimation rules in August with adding shoulder pads... then adding full pads and full contact after that adjustment period. (which I think is something like 3 days, depending on the number of practices per day)