Beginning with the 2010-11 school year, Oxford’s student-athletes will be playing in a whole new league.
Last week, principals from high schools comprising the Oakland Activities Association (OAA) voted 19-1 to admit Oxford to their athletic league.
‘Every coach that I’ve talked to has been excited about the news,? said Oxford Athletic Director Mike Watson. ‘They’re looking forward to it . . . They want to start competing with those schools.?
The OAA currently consists of 24 schools located throughout Oakland County.
Oxford will make 25.
‘We’re happy to have Oxford,? said Jim Smyth, executive secretary of the OAA. ‘At one time, we had 31 schools in the OAA. Keeping the numbers up gives more opportunity for balancing the divisions.?
Oxford is currently a member of the Flint Metro League, which consists of 10 schools spread across Genesee, Lapeer and Oakland counties. The Wildcats joined the FML in 1982.
Watson believes joining the OAA, which was created in 1994, will be ‘very positive? for Oxford in a variety of ways.
‘I think ultimately it will raise the bar competitively because there are a lot more schools to compete with,? he said. ‘It’s not as though the FML had a low standard competitively. I just think there’s more schools to play (in the OAA). It’s not the traditional eight or 10-team league.?
The OAA is typically made up of three divisions ? red, white and blue ? aligned by sport, not by school.
‘It’s the strength of the program that usually determines (a team’s divisional status) although there’s other things that go into it,? Smyth said.
This means Oxford will most likely have different sports in different divisions. For instance, the football team could be in one OAA division and the girls basketball squad in another.
‘The major benefit is you’re going to be able to compete at different levels in different sports,? Smyth said. ‘That’s one of the major strengths of the athletic division . . . It gives schools the opportunity to be league champs in their own division.?
Watson said this also affords a team the chance to move up to a higher division as it improves.
‘The better you get in a sport, the better competition you get to play,? he explained. ‘As your program gets better, you rise.?
As for which sports would compete in which OAA divisions, Watson said there’s ‘no definite answers as to where Oxford will be placed.?
‘I think what has happened is the (athletic directors) and the committees have informally discussed where they think Oxford would fit in their divisional alignments for the different sports,? he said.
The number of schools with programs in a particular sport determines how many divisions there are for that sport.
‘Everything’s not in three divisions. It’s just the programs that have the numbers,? said Smyth, noting a sport like gymnastics has only one division.
Watson’s excited about the switch giving the Wildcats the opportunity to ‘create more local rivalries? and ‘reignite league contests with Lake Orion in some sports.?
Unfortunately, Oxford will lose its FML rivalries with teams like Lapeer East, Lapeer West and Linden.
Competing in the OAA will also be ‘a lot better from a travel standpoint,? in Watson’s opinion, given the Cats will no longer have to play at faraway places like Clio and Swartz Creek.