Another co-worker of mine, Joe Bachman (or Bambi, as we have dubbed him over the past four years) chimed in with the actual question. “Match the GCL programs with its similar SEC program and list why,” he tweeted.
*Congrats to Joe (Stanek) who just took a job with the Tennessee Volunteers as an assistant in their video department. Not sure exactly what his official title is, but I know we’ll be seeing him in September when the Bearcats visit the Vols.
Needless to say, our GCL minds went to work. Joe graduated from Moeller in 2006, a year before I graduated from Elder, and Bambi graduated from St. Xavier. Needless to say, we had this question covered.
Bambi (far left), myself (next to Bambi), and Joe (second from the right) joined video coordinator John Sells (in white) and former video guy Marcus Hanrahan on the field before the 2009 Orange Bowl
Joe said, “Moeller is [Georgia], we cheat and we’re good but not lately. St. X is Florida cause they weren't good until the last 20 years. Elder is Auburn because they're always strong but only won a couple and LaSalle is Kentucky.”
Bambi countered with his alma mater being Mississippi State or Vanderbilt, “but I don’t want to insult their fine institution,” he said.
I agree with Joe that LaSalle is Kentucky, by far. LaSalle is decent, but normally has a tough time holding their own against the other three schools (minus the past few years where the Lancers have stepped their game up, significantly).
As for Moeller, I argued that they could be Alabama, who was good back when Bear Bryant coached there in the 70s. Moeller won numerous state titles back then, but the football program has taken a back seat since. Sure they’ve been good, but they haven’t been to the state title game since 1989, I believe.
I also countered with Moeller being Tennessee, and that’s probably more because Joe is there now, but I also gave the same line of reasoning. Tennessee has slumped in the past few years, and even though they were good a few years back, they haven’t been as strong in a while.
I still haven’t gotten a response from Joe (@JoeStanek) or Bambi (@joebachman11) on any of my feelings.
I stated that St. X would be more like Vanderbilt because of their academic standing, but it doesn’t make sense to say St. X is like Vanderbilt’s football program because Vandy normally isn’t strong, and does not compete regularly for SEC titles.
I appreciate Joe’s statement that St. X is like Florida because St. X’s first state title came in 2005, so they weren’t great until lately, but they still competed for GCL titles.
The toughest school to pin down is my alma mater. I just don’t know which team Elder is most like. Joe stating that we’re like Auburn because we’re always strong is appreciated, but Auburn only has two national titles (1957 and 2010). Elder’s two state titles came in back-to-back years, 2002 and 2003.
And the recent success of Elder’s football program (The Panthers were also state runners-up in 2008 and reached the state semi-finals in 2009) makes me think that Elder matches up more to a program like Florida, who has become a perennial contender in the SEC and nationally.
But if St. X is Florida, then how can Elder be Florida too?
Oh the dilemmas I face when writing about hypothetical questions.
However, Elder could be LSU, and the similarities go far beyond both teams sharing purple as a color. Think about LSU’s home stadium, nicknamed “Death Valley.” It’s so loud and raucous, and teams hate playing there. Sound familiar?
Elder's stadium, "The Pit," as viewed from the top of the school
Elder’s home stadium, nicknamed “The Pit,” is a place that everyone hates to play at. Students and fans show up in droves—although in this writer’s opinion the fan support of Elder has dwindled mightily since the early part of the 2000s—wearing purple and white. And they are loud.
So, I rest my case. What turned out as a short Twitter conversation has turned into a 700 word blog post.
According to me, Moeller is Tennessee (I’ll go with the Vols over Alabama) St. X is Florida, LaSalle is Kentucky and Elder is most like LSU.
Debate? Leave me a comment or tweet at me. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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