Now, under the proposed playoff format that the NJSIAA's executive committee is expected to approve in April, winning a South Jersey title for the Wildcats would involve beating Camden Catholic or Holy Spirit or Holy Cross - or, more likely, all three.
Anything that creates strong tournaments, increases rivalries, and strengthens the competition and the blood flow in this part of the state is a good thing. And the new format, which likely will take effect in September, should do that.
Under the old format, St. Joe's won 13 titles since 1993. All of them were in Non-Public 1 or Non-Public 2. Holy Cross won Non-Public 2 titles in 2007 and 2008, and Holy Spirit won a Non-Public 2 title last season.
You can't tell me those crowns - despite the cachet associated with the designation "state champion" - represented the culmination of a better season than winning a true South Jersey B title by emerging as the top team in a crowded, competitive, familiar field.
Now, winning a Non-Public 3 title, as Holy Spirit did in 2007 (beating Immaculata) and 2010 (beating St. Joseph of Montvale), that's a different story.
And the loss of that opportunity for South Jersey teams that might have been placed in Non-Public 3 is a negative aspect of the proposed new system.
But guess what? Zero South Jersey teams were in Non-Public 3 last season. And given enrollment trends at powerful programs such as Camden Catholic and Holy Spirit - well, at pretty much all private schools for that matter - it's likely that no South Jersey teams would be in that group in the foreseeable future.
So what's the difference between the old Non-Public 2 and the new South Jersey B?
The big difference is that there won't be a Non-Public 1 anymore - and amen to that - so St. Joseph would move into South Jersey B with Holy Spirit, Camden Catholic, Holy Cross, Bishop Eustace, and Gloucester Catholic (along with Mater Dei, Cardinal McCarrick, and Pingry).
