The ink was barely dry on Wednesday's edition when I started hearing from the naysayers: We've got to get Mifflin County out of the Mid-Penn Conference.
Not bad for the first full day of competition in the Huskies' debut season as a member of the Commonwealth Division.
Actually, it started more than a year ago. The proposal to enter the league - admittedly one of the biggest and strongest in state athletics - was met with scorn and derision in some quarters. There were a few in favor of it, and some who were willing to wait and see.
All it took was a couple of losses that day, and suddenly it was time to turn and run away.
Different reasons were offered: We're not as good as them. They're bigger than us. We'll never be able to compete.
Those are great things to tell the kids. That'll motivate them.
Most offensive of all - and this, too, is something I've heard more than once - is the belief that Mifflin County kids won't be able to hold their own on the field of play because they're the wrong color.
Now, none of this is true of everyone, especially not the last one.
And there are people in the community who remain willing to give the change a chance - who believe that, whether next month or next year, the Huskies will not only compete with Rams, Cougars, Colts and a Thundering Herd, but will stand among them as winners.
The chatter reminds me of what we heard a few years ago when Juniata shifted to the Mountain League. But instead of ending every game with their tails between their legs, the Indians were successful in several sports, and were troubled mostly in sports where they struggled before the change.
East Juniata moved from District 3 into District 4 nearly a decade ago, a move made mainly to open the door for more playoff qualifiers. When there still were two schools in Mifflin County a similar move - to the same district, in fact - was pitched, presumably with the same goal in mind.
Of course, if all you want is to be in the playoffs, District 6 is the place to be - it's an open tournament for most sports, subject to the whims of the school district. But success should be measured by more than whether or not you get to play a 19th game at the end of the season - especially a 10-8 season.
There are games Mifflin County will win. There are some it will lose.
There are teams that have more than the potential to finish the campaign with winning records. Some won't.
Some should be expected to succeed this year. Others will take time - but then, some weren't successful last year, either (I'm sure the nattering nabobs of negativism will use that to bolster their argument that Mifflin County has no place in the Mid-Penn)
Yes, you can run out and start a new Mountain League, or petition the Heartland Conference to let you in. Or you can just try to beat the teams on your schedule - the team you're playing today.
Toward the end of the Lewistown football era, the once-proud program was the subject of jeers from the folks who should have been offering cheers. Alan Muir once told me how much it pained him to hear the so-called fans telling the kids on the field they had no chance. With that kind of support, they didn't.
I've yet to hear a coach or an athlete from Mifflin County suggest that the Mid-Penn was too tough for them. They admit it will be hard to win - it always is.
You don't have to like the fact that Mifflin County joined the Mid-Penn. You don't have to wear black and purple and carry a pom-pom. But if you're not supporting them, the least you can do for the kids of this community is to get out of the way.
***
Jeff Fishbein is the sports editor of The Sentinel. Contact him at jfishbein@lewistownsentinel.com.
