Two years from now, the state's smallest football-playing schools will be given a better chance to win championships.
Instead of the smallest 130-plus schools playing for two state titles, there will be three championships available.
That all seems well and good. Yet, in the end, there will be more teams crying and moaning about the inequalities of competition in football.
When a new fence-line is drawn, there are just more teams left out.
Just say, for example, that the smallest four schools in each classification are going to complain each year. Right now, there are four classifications. Sixteen teams will be complaining.
Under the new alignment, with five classifications, there will be 20 teams complaining about being at the bottom.
The kicker in all of this will come when the teams which end up in the smallest classification see which teams they are competing against.
If the 2004-06 enrollment numbers were used today for the 2006 realignment, then the shake-up would seem like a shakedown to the smallest schools.
The new Class A would include, among others, Junction City, Danville, Carlisle, Barton, Rison, Augusta and Mineral Springs.
That's basically a "Who's Who" of the best teams in Class AA over the last 20 years.
Throw in Cross County, a team that could be pushed down to Class A in 2006 when a new school opens in Springdale, and 14 of the past 20 Class AA champions would be playing in the smallest classification.
That will mean better state-championship opportunities for the some of the richest programs in the state.
Between them, Barton and Rison have won 15 state titles since 1950.
The two schools may have combined for more by the time the 2006 season rolls around.
For the second time in four years, Rison begins the season ranked No. 1 in Class AA.
The Wildcats, who won their seventh state title in 2000, bring a lot to the table this season with 17 returning starters from a club that went 13-1 last year.
No team in the 8AA Conference has as many returning starters -- not that it would have made much difference -- giving Rison the clearest path to a berth in the 32-team field at the end of the season.
From there, all it takes is a favorable draw, a relatively injury-free ballclub and a good running game.
Those were the very ingredients that made Rison an upset winner over Shiloh Christian in the 2000 final.
It took a juggernaut from Junction City to put Rison on the shelf last season. This year, the teams for Rison to avoid include the defending champs, Barton and Charleston.
Barton, with eight state titles under legendary coach Frank McClellan, is an easy pick for No. 2.
Junction City has spent the last six seasons in the Top 10 and finished off the 2003 campaign at the top of Class AA. The Dragons recorded a resounding 40-12 victory over Barton at War Memorial Stadium for their first state title.
Along the way, Junction City took down Rison, 33-21, after crushing Hughes, 56-14.
Charleston was the fourth semifinalist and starts the year at No. 4.
The Tigers are unlike the top three teams in the league in that they would not fall into the smallest classification in 2006. But unlike the three top-rated teams this year, the Tigers have never won the gold.
The Tigers also have been to the playoffs 16 consecutive years, a mark better than Rison and Junction City and only three short of Barton.
And Charleston has cranked out 18 winning seasons in a row.
Rison has gone 28 years without a losing season; Barton has posted a winning record in 23 straight campaigns.
A big disappointment last year, No. 5 Harding Academy was unable to reach the playoffs to defend its 2002 title.
Coach Tommy Shoemaker made no excuses, although last year's preseason No. 1 ranking did seem a little steep to everyone in Searcy.
Fifteen returning starters should help the Wildcats meet expectations.
Palestine-Wheatley is going through a run of athletes that comes around just once in a great while.
The sixth-ranked Patriots have eight starters returning on both sides of the football and is seeking its fifth consecutive postseason appearance. The school posted a best-ever 11-2 season last year, making it all the way to the AA quarterfinals while finishing on top of the 3AA.
Not bad for a school that has only played an 11-game schedule two other times in its history.
The Patriots move into the 6AA this year and are the easy favorite in that league, even with Barton as a conference brother.
East Poinsett County had Marcus Monk last year, but found the going a little tough in Class AAA. With a slide into the oft-lesser 3AA Conference, EPC should inherit the role of league favorite.
Mineral Springs had its streak of 22 consecutive years without a losing season threatened, but the Hornets made the playoffs and finished .500 in 2003.
Greenland has spent a couple of years in the fast lane and made a good showing and show up at No. 9 while Gurdon is favored in the 7AA-West and comes in at No. 10.
By the end of the season, the Class AA playoffs should line up like this:
*1 AA -- Charleston, Greenland, Lavaca and Mountainburg
*3 AA -- EPC and Cross County, with Salem, Marked Tree, Earle and Walnut Ridge all viable candidates.
*4 AA -- This beleaguered conference gets a shot in the arm with Carlisle joining. Arkansas Baptist, Hazen and Perryville all have a shot at the other two spots.
*5AA -- With Bauxite gone, Jessieville and Mount Ida represent the south end of the league while Danville and Ola represent the north. Magazine, which squandered a playoff berth due to an administrative error in 2002, can pick up the spoils if any of the other favorites falter.
*6AA -- It's a four-team race with Barton, Harding Academy and Palestine and Hughes.
*7AA-East -- Junction City should have no trouble advancing. Bearden, Norphlet and Hampton will be chasing the Dragons.
*7AA-West -- Mineral Springs and Gurdon will fight it out for first, but don't overlook Dierks. Fouke and Horatio will battle it out for fourth.
*8AA -- Rison is far and away the best team in the league. Gillett, Dermott and Altheimer fill out the field.
--Column by Rich Sanders
Forrest City's Oak Hill Church of God will host a "Play Day" Saturday, Aug. 28, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Ministry Center/Gym, 343 Barrow Hill Road.
A "3-on-3" basketball tournament for age divisions fourth-grade through 12th grade will be held as will a Hoop Shoot Contest, featuring a free-throw shooting and Hot Shot competition.
A Horse Shoe Tournament for all age divisions through adult will be held and a dunking' booth will be set up. Registration for the competitions will begin at 9 a.m. Entry fee is $40 per team for the "3-on-3" and $5 per person for the Hoop Shoot contests and the horseshoe tournament. Concessions will be available.
For more information or to enter, call Fred 870-238-0022 or the church office at 633-7331.