As Sam Sees It<br>

The 2004 football season for Winslow High School was a successful one, but also one that ended in disappointment. The Bulldogs dominated the 3A North Region and easily claimed the championship trophy. Unfortunately, they went through the regional scheduled unchallenged and untested.

Some argue that it is the weak regional schedule that sends the Bulldogs into the state tournament unprepared for the quality of competition they will meet there. In fact, there is probably some reason to believe this could be a factor. Most athletic teams seem to play near the level of their competition. Most coaches like to win, but agree that you improve the most when you play against top quality competition.

To win a state championship in any sport, you must have a number of things going for you. First, you must be good. Bad teams don’t win championships. That does not mean you have to be the best.

Being the best team and not winning the championship happens a lot more than most people realize. You just have to be good enough to win the games you are supposed to win and win a few where you need a break or two to do so. In other words, you have to be good enough to take advantage of your breaks.

The second factor that usually has to be present to win a championship is luck. Winslow did not have much good luck against Sahuarita, at least not nearly as much as they needed. Luck can come in several forms. One form could have been having the Mustangs lose to Ganado the week before and the Bulldogs not even have to play them. We would probably not have recognized that as luck, but it would have been about the luckiest break of them all.

Another is that you get the fortunate bounces of the ball and, of course, the right calls. Winslow actually suffered from some penalty calls that were questionable at best. Luck was the most important missing ingredient.

Lastly, you usually have to win a game you should have lost. That certainly didn’t happen for the Bulldogs. We might argue that Sahuarita was the team that won a game they should have lost and that got the breaks they needed to do so. It is also true, though, that even playing one of their worst games of the season and not getting the calls, the Bulldogs had a chance to win that game at the end. Had they done so, they would have been winning a game that they should have lost.

By the time you read this, you will know whether the Sahuarita Mustangs kept their dream alive on Saturday against a Coolidge team that is an even heavier favorite than the Bulldogs were. The Mustangs will need more luck and need to win at least two games they should have lost. It is possible, but the more superior teams you have to knock off on your way to a title, the greater the odds against you.

The Bulldogs are to be congratulated on a great season. They also need to realize that their future is a bright one. There will be some seniors graduating who will be difficult to replace.

There are also a good number of players returning who should make the 2005 Winslow Bulldogs legitimate contenders for a state title again. That team, like this one, will be capable of bringing home the ultimate prize. Like this one, they will need to be good (that is one factor we can count on being there), lucky and, probably, will need to win a game that they could have lost. If winning championships were easy, doing so would mean much less.

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