This could be the potential AA/AAA split for 2013. The SHOCK are the only team that I counted as not being around since they're the only team that has made it official.
We have 10 teams in Utah. 10 teams in Idaho. 6 teams in Montana.(26 total).... We could just divide the states into 2 divisions.....(13 teams each). I took the current AAA teams in each state and the top AA teams in each state (according to record) and split them in half. Here is the way it would look and I think it would make both divisions competitive and help with travel. This concept will basically give the AAA the same travel relief that the AA had this year. I also agree that it seems the 3 AA divisions had a lot of parity and some really good games this year.
Since MONTANA AA and AAA only have 3 teams then EVERY team in the league will have 2 travel games IN STATE and 2 travel games out of STATE. Montana would have one extra OUT OF STATE TRAVEL GAME. (FOR UTAH: one trip to montana and one trip to idaho. FOR MONTANA:one trip to utah and two trips to idaho. FOR IDAHO: one trip to montana and one trip to utah).
here are the potential schedules for a team from each state:
I think the key to this whole thing is that there is incentive to be AAA... Maybe AAA pays 1000 league fee and AA pays 2000 league fees. People should want to build a team to play in AAA. not because they have to, but because they want to..
So you'd have the Spartans going to on 2 extremely long road trips. No thanks. I'll play 8man local league before I'll travel to Montana and St. George. How did that scenario cut down on travel? But looking at your three teams they didn't jive with each other. You show Rebels going to Spartans but then in Spartans you show them going to Rebels? And Spartans going to Gladiators but then not even on the Gladiators schedule?
Stogs, I agree... Any team having to travel to GF's and St George in the same year is just asinine and the league would be retarded to throw out such a schedule!!!!
#seewhatididthere???
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Guys, we are poking holes in the example that Jaye gave rather than looking at the overall format. They were just examples and I read them as being seperate from each other rather than all together. Now, with that being said, Stogs I got to call BS on your claim. The Spartans traveled to SLC 3 times this year and to Great Falls once. with the schedule Jaye mapped out, you would have 4 home games, 1 game that is closer to your house than your home field is, one game that is 2 hours away and 2 long road trips. I would say that is an easier travel schedule than you guys have had the last few years where you would have to travel to SLC 3-4 times a year.
The fact is, this league is spread out and we will never have equal travel schedules (at least not with as many as we have in the SLC area while Montana is so spread apart). This format eases it pretty well, but some of the other formats look interesting as well. I am curious to see where this off season takes us as a league.
Hey, Stogs, get it straight!!! we traveled to Arco and Pocetello!! lol this was not by our design, the Matadors enjoy one or two long road trips. Im sorry, I forgot you guys played the Bulldogs in Twin this year. Im all for a redisign and I will admit the easy travel was nice for family and non football life. But I really missed the long road trip this year, its always nice to get away for a weekend with my Family and Football team :)
I'm guessing (and I'm sure someone will tell me if they disagree) that most RMFL players don't mind one long travel game, but nobody wants to be the Gladiators this year (travel games to Pocatello, Jerome, SLC, & Logan). Personally, I think at least one over-night trip per season can be a great bonding experience for a team and one of the reasons a lot of guys play the game. I don't think a practice goes by that I don't hear someone talking about some crazy weekend they spent in some random town (last week it was one of the Stampede guys talking about driving the wrong way down a One Way street in Helena, MT) thanks to an RMFL roadtrip.
I would hope that between a more equal AA/AAA split and more regionalized games (playing geographically close teams twice vs. playing everyone once) we could get to the point where both AA & AAA wouldn't have to have more than one long away game (I'm defining long as needing to stay over-night).
Stogs, I agree... Any team having to travel to GF's and St George in the same year is just asinine and the league would be retarded to throw out such a schedule!!!!
#seewhatididthere???
Don't forget Logan......
The biggest problem with this "potential new league structure" is AA teams wanting to play up. It seems that half the gm's have some pussalitis going on and won't move their teams up to AAA unless they are forced. And half the time when they are confronted with that option they cry and say they will fold (i.e. Logan Stampede)
The more and more I see how things are going its gonna end up AAA being all Utah and AA being the rest. Idaho teams keep splitting and creating more and more mediocre AA teams because its easier to make a new AA team rather than play AAA ball (i.e. Idaho Matadors version 2.0)
I don't understand the big problem with traveling 1 to 2 games a year? I understand Montana and Idaho where they have 4 road game of 6 hours+ but that has to go with my above mentioned splitting of teams. Quit crying the second you don't get clock and run and start a new team.
For the record, the Matadors split off from the Spartans due to philosophical differences. It was two teams that should have never combined in the first place. It had nothing to do with not wanting to play AAA, in fact a ton of us enjoyed playing that year and would have loved it more as the Matadors (as we were willing to do) rather than the Spartans.
i wasn't saying that ANY of those schedules would be an actual schedule.....(just quick examples). i'm just saying that it would at least HELP with travel. nobody would have to go out of state more than twice per year. montana teams would have to go to idaho twice, (or utah).....whichever is closer. i'm sure the staff could work out a schedule to make it EASIER. there is never going to be a perfect scenario when you have teams spread out in four states. we count the rebels as a UTAH team when they're 5 hours away from the next utah team. that was just a point to start the discussion. i think the breakdown of teams, (with maybe a couple changes) would make both aa and aa even in numbers and competitive.
