October 25, 2016 at 4:56 p.m.

Indians will end drought

Rays of Insight

By RAY COONEY
President, editor and publisher

Keep it simple.
Readers had come through with a couple of sports questions well in advance of this month’s column date. That meant I didn’t have to do much begging on social media to fill this space.
I just needed one more question.
So what is typically a plea turned into more of a challenge: “Just need one. The best question will win. Have at it.”
Offerings included questions about Allen County Athletic Conference basketball, which level of football reigns supreme and the curse of the goat.
But, in the long run, it was a simple, timely question that won the contest. And that query leads off the week.
••••••••••

Who wins the World Series and why?
—Nathan Miller,
Wanamaker

This Cubs/Indians series is one for the ages, one team having not won a title since Harry Truman was president and the other since before World War I. Either way, a long drought ends.
But which one?
Well, the Cubs have been the best team in baseball all year. They won 103 games — nine more than the Indians — during the regular season and had two starting pitchers with an ERA under 2.50. They’re led on offense by two young stars — Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo — who combined for 71 home runs this season.
Cleveland, meanwhile, lost three of its top four starters to injuries, the latest of which saw Trevor Bauer walk off the mound last week with a stream of blood pouring from his pinky. The Indians have been without their best outfielder — Michael Brantley — for basically the entire season, and their catchers hit a combined .184.
All signs point to Chicago, which is the heavy favorite in the series.
But, honestly, do you think I’m going to pick against my favorite team? Please.
Cleveland has overcome obstacle after obstacle this year, and it will do so again. Indians in six.
••••••••••
Recently, I read an article about a college football game in which the score was so one-sided that the head coaches agreed to shorten the game. I didn’t know such a “rule” existed. Could that happen in a high school football game?
—Jerry Sullivan, Portland

In short, yes.
While there may not be a specific rule that allows head coaches to shorten a game, there is a certain amount of leeway for them and game officials to do what is best for the athletes.
Consider these examples:
In the 2010 season opener, Jay County High School’s football team gave up 58 first-half points to Delta. Coaches Steve Boozier and Grant Zgunda met at halftime and agreed to play the second half with a running clock. (Since then, a rule has been implemented that makes the running clock automatic if a team trails by 30 or more in the second half.)
In 2004, the Fort Recovery High School football team was leading Ansonia 33-6 at the end of the third quarter when lightning forced a delay. After waiting for an hour, the coaches and officials decided to call the game rather than having the teams return a day later to play the final 12 minutes. (The teams found themselves in the same situation three years later, this time with Fort Recovery awarded a 33-0 victory despite the fact that 7 minutes, 43 seconds, remained on the clock.)
Sometimes common sense trumps the rulebook.
••••••••••
What is the Jay County High School football team’s all-time win-loss record?
—Randy Rains, Portland

With a loss in the opening round of the sectional tournament Friday, the Patriots finished the 2016 season with a 6-4 mark. It put the all-time record at 196-225, a winning percentage of .466.
JCHS football can be broken into three distinct eras.
The school opened with an 8-2 record in 1975, including three consecutive shutout wins over South Adams, Winchester and Eastbrook. That started a run of 14 consecutive winning campaigns under coach Tom Bruin. Record: 99-39
Bruin posted a 7-20 record in his final three seasons before leaving the Patriots. Those struggles began a stretch of 13 straight losing seasons in which the team won two games or fewer eight times. Record: 29-96
Since snapping the losing streak in 2002 with a 6-5 record — all five losses came against state-ranked squads — the Patriots have been a mixed bag. They’ve had six winning seasons, eight losing seasons and one year in which they finished 5-5. Record: 68-90
Jay County has put together consecutive winning seasons just once since 1988, going 7-4 in 2005, 6-5 in 2006 and 9-4 with its only sectional title in 2007. 
In order to climb back above .500 all-time it will need much more sustained success. The 29-game hole will take a while to escape.
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