Gotcha. I take it this hasn’t always been the norm?
Also. Do you agree? Or who do you think has been the top team of the past five years?
2A Top Teams Over Last Five Years…
- Thread starter DelaNewb
- Start date
Gotcha. I take it this hasn’t always been the norm?
Also. Do you agree? Or who do you think has been the top team of the past five years?
I was curious if things changed much midway through so I calculated all of this years records and records against all of the “top teams”.
No real surprise. Caravel at 7-0 looks to be the class of 2A again and is beating up on all of 2A. Archmere and Woodbridge are both 6-1. Seems like Friends/Howard/DMA/Tower are all sorta inconsistent this year. Some ups and downs for those teams.
Archmere seems to widen its gap a bit in terms of playing the most challenging schedule (they will play 6 of the top 8 teams in the regular season) which is the most.
Thoughts?
No real surprise. Caravel at 7-0 looks to be the class of 2A again and is beating up on all of 2A. Archmere and Woodbridge are both 6-1. Seems like Friends/Howard/DMA/Tower are all sorta inconsistent this year. Some ups and downs for those teams.
Archmere seems to widen its gap a bit in terms of playing the most challenging schedule (they will play 6 of the top 8 teams in the regular season) which is the most.
Thoughts?
BELOW RESULTS ARE CURRENT FROM 2019 TO OCTOBER 24 2024
Team — Record — Winning %
Caravel — 53 - 9 — .855
Archmere — 55 - 12 — .821
Friends — 43 - 15 — .741
**St Marks — 30 - 11 — .731
Woodbridge — 45 - 16 — .734
Howard — 43 - 19 — .694
Tower Hill — 33 - 20 — .623
DMA — 34 - 22 — .607
Team — Record — Winning %
Caravel — 53 - 9 — .855
Archmere — 55 - 12 — .821
Friends — 43 - 15 — .741
**St Marks — 30 - 11 — .731
Woodbridge — 45 - 16 — .734
Howard — 43 - 19 — .694
Tower Hill — 33 - 20 — .623
DMA — 34 - 22 — .607
Edited to add each team’s records against the top eight teams mentioned above from 2A over the past five years at the suggestion of @connor11. This was super interesting and kind of eye opening.
Team — Total Games Played — Record — %
DATA BELOW FROM 2019 TO OCTOBER 24, 2024
Archmere — 35 — 25 - 10 — .714
Caravel — 19 — 13 - 6 — .684
Woodbridge — 23 — 14 - 9 — .609
Friends — 23 — 11 - 12 — .478
Howard — 24 — 11 - 13 — .458
**St Marks — 15 — 7 - 8 — .467
DMA — 17 — 4 - 13 — .235
Tower Hill — 16 — 1 - 15 — .063
Team — Total Games Played — Record — %
DATA BELOW FROM 2019 TO OCTOBER 24, 2024
Archmere — 35 — 25 - 10 — .714
Caravel — 19 — 13 - 6 — .684
Woodbridge — 23 — 14 - 9 — .609
Friends — 23 — 11 - 12 — .478
Howard — 24 — 11 - 13 — .458
**St Marks — 15 — 7 - 8 — .467
DMA — 17 — 4 - 13 — .235
Tower Hill — 16 — 1 - 15 — .063
I’m not really basing much of anything on this. I did this to try to put some numbers to “the talk” around this page (and in conversations). And maybe some of that talk is tainted by locals historic experiences. Not being from here, I have no idea who’s who, so I didn’t want the bias of the past to taint what’s actually happening in recent years.
What would be different if I went back and did the past 10 years? Why is my recent “findings” flawed? I look at as these are just factual findings from the past 5.5 years…it is what it is. No?
Every school in Delaware is a school choice except for a few in certain districts that are full. It's a tired argument... You being new and all missed the era when school choice and bussing was enacted missed the days when Newark High School dominated in the 90's when all the player from Wilmington and wherever choiced and bussed there. In those day the only private school that was good was Sallies and maybe St Marks..due to numbers but all the other private schools sucked because they were rich kids and the Tech Schools were for other kids who didn't play sports but wanted to be refrigerator repairmen or auto mechanics .. The scholarship chasing was never thing back then it was a back up plan if the sports thing didnt pay out
Oh no, it's not a maybe regarding some biases, it's a fact. One regular on the threads has nothing but disdain for private schools and any of their success on the field, except when it's Sallies (and maybe Caravel). For some regulars, it had to hurt pretty bad when AA won in 2021 and WFS in 2022 as these are the two schools that put out a quality product each year and also have seriously high academics. Academics is the one thing missing from this discussion on top teams.
I can understand all of this! I guess what I don’t really understand is I’m not making any argument or statement. So when you say it’s a “tired argument”, not really sure what you’re referencing.
What I find so odd in DE is that private/catholic/independent schools are in the same conferences with public schools. Frankly, it seems like an unfair equation…especially in 2024 when it seems pretty clear that private/catholic/independent schools have more resources.
Separate leagues would give public schools that might have been traditionally strong in past years an opportunity to compete against other similar teams with similar resources.
But the way it sits now, it seems to me that at least in 2A, private/catholic/independent schools have an advantage and their records show.
This is what has surprised me the most out of my research. I understand Archmere and Friends to be highly academic schools where sports are secondary. And maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think these schools have students who attend these schools on athletic scholarships? And kids aren’t transferring in for sports?
The fact that they can sustain athletic excellence in todays climate of “scholarship kids” without playing that game while remaining “academics first” institutions is seriously impressive.
Absolutely! Back to back undefeated seasons? Back to back state champs?
2021 — 9-2
2022 — 12-1 (loss in state champs)
2023 — 13-0 (state champs)
2024 — (projected) 13-0 (state champs)
What a run! 47-3 over 4 years! Wow.
Has there been a better run in 2A?
Just curious…I don’t know much about Caravel as a school. How are their academics?
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Caravel was the best team in the state last year regardless of class and is the best team in the state this year as well. They would've run all over everyone last year and more so this year.
No clue. They can only play who they can play right? But my guess is “pretty good”! What do you think?
What is their enrollment? What is the cutoff for 3A/2A?
Sallies would beat Caravel this year. Not sure about last year. Like I said if they're so good then move up. Not proving anything by beating up on Concord, Newark and Delcastle.
They’re not beating Sallies, Middletown or Central this year.
I don’t agree with that, they beat middletown and sussex imo, Sallies probably not.
I know it's a matter of enrollment but I would be for St Mark's and Caravel switching 2A / 3A classifications.
Not that I have any dog in this fight but I would have liked to Laurel's '20 and '21 state championship teams play in in 2A. I believe they would held their own. Maybe not have won the championship but maybe could have upset a few dreams in the process. Caravel definitely needs to move up to 3A they have no real competition in 2A.
