Like a lot of Ohio high school football coaches, Bob Jacoby has wrestled with the Competitive Balance Proposal. Unlike most of his peers, the Hamilton coach has plenty of experience on both sides of the main issue.

“I suppose it’s a good idea,” the Hamilton head coach said on Monday following the release of a tweaked version of the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s proposal.

“The only other option would be to split it up public and private. Then football as we know it won’t exist anymore.”

That could eventually happen should the Competitive Balance Proposal be voted into effect. Alter football coach Ed Domsitz already has gone on record as saying the Greater Catholic League would consider separating from the OHSAA if it were passed.

Last spring, Ohio principals voted 332-303 not to accept the three-pronged Competitive Balance Proposal.

It was a landmark Ohio effort to revise how some — but not all — sports teams were placed in which divisions. That involved a formula comprised of boundary, socioeconomic and tradition factors.

Next month, principals of OHSAA member schools will once again vote on the issue. However, the tradition factor has been amended. Now, teams will be scored on their four best seasons in the last eight years. Previously, the tradition factor only considered the last four seasons.

That slight twist could help or hurt teams in divisional placement. The great football teams like Trotwood-Madison fielded the past two seasons don’t spike the Rams’ formula number as much considering its results for the last eight seasons.

On the flip side, teams like Alter would be harder hit for earlier success when the Knights won football titles in 2009, ’08 and were second in ’06.

Jacoby was the head coach at Columbus St. Francis DeSales for 18 years, winning two state titles and placing runner-up four other seasons. Much of the Competitive Balance Proposal targets private — especially Catholic — football programs that have dominated their divisions for years.

“I see the reasoning, especially now that I’m in a public school, why people feel that way,” said Jacoby, who’ll guide the Big Blue for a third season this fall.

“The intentions are good. They’re trying to do the right things for kids and communities that have different issues that keep them from performing with other schools. Anything that you can do to help them have that experience is a good thing.”

A separate issue that also could be readdressed is the disproportionate male students available in Division I football. Divisions II-VI have a maximum difference enrollment of 166 boys in D-II. The difference in D-I goes from 494 to more than 1,000.

The OHSAA Board of Directors would have to propose a change in the association’s sports regulations for that to be addressed by its membership. Every attempt to split D-I has been voted down.

Count Middletown football coach Troy Everhart in favor of an association split. If not, then allow open enrollment for public schools, too, he said.

“The system’s not perfect,” the second-year Middies coach said.

“We’re going to continue to tweak the system until the people who make the rules get what they want. We’re getting to be like Little League soccer: everybody gets a trophy no matter what your record is. I don’t know what the right answer is.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2381 or mpendleton@DaytonDailyNews.com.