Here's the deal-Many Landon boys excel both academically and athletically. It kills many parents in the DC area whose sons do not attend Landon, to see so many IAC championships go to Landon teams in addition to the fact that some of these same student/athletes get into top-tier academic institutions. Let's be happy for all boys, regardless of schools that they attend, that they are excelling in academics, sports, and life. Get over the jealousies and insecurities.

Kids think that this forum is a hilarious insight into their dim parents. yes, they post.

This thread lives for a variety of reasons.....
Landon is a school that generates lots of bad publicity and has lots of families who generate bad press...........
Sorry for the sad few who are nice families and boys.

I agree. Please. Go troll another thread.

enough. this thread has turned irrelevant. what?! some people dont like landon? yawn. it's a good school with lots of great kids there. you don't judge a school by a few bad apples. give it a rest.

Anonymous wrote:Love the rationalization on the "hold back." That doesn't square with Jesuit teaching, but if it works for you and the others, I guess that is all that matters. You can call it being a "sore loser," too. Again, if you are willing to bend the rules to get the older players on your teams, it is always about winning. That goes for Landon or Prep. Anyone that dares to cry "foul" is a sore loser. Yep, I would expect nothing less than that approach. Where is the Jesuit introspection on "the ends justify the means" philosophy that is in place at Prep? Glad to be a "loser" that supports teams doing it the right way. Ultimately, the kids are the losers when they actually have to compete on an even playing field -- they will not be prepared. For example, look how Prep bailed out of the MIAA when it couldn't be a top contender. Look how Prep "ignored" the size limitations of the IAC. Yep, I am a sore loser that just wants the playing field level. Then, we can see how things stack up. Sadly, I don't think Prep will voluntarily play by those guidelines.

I am neither Lsndon nor GP parent. But I wonder about those so upset that MD redshirts 1/2 their kids. So 30 8th graders out of 60 are redshirted. Half go to GP, half go to Gonzaga. A sprinkling go other places. So at most each year 15 kids at GP and Gonzaga are 1yr older. So <1% of the population at Gonzaga and about 1% at GP are MD redshirt players.

This is what everybody is upset about? What am I missing?

Anonymous wrote:Very nice article, it's great to see a pro athlete who understood that there would be life after football. Not a fan of Landon, but he seems like a good role model.

I agree. I'm not a Landon fan either, but it's a nice article.

Anonymous wrote:Love the rationalization on the "hold back." That doesn't square with Jesuit teaching, but if it works for you and the others, I guess that is all that matters. You can call it being a "sore loser," too. Again, if you are willing to bend the rules to get the older players on your teams, it is always about winning. That goes for Landon or Prep. Anyone that dares to cry "foul" is a sore loser. Yep, I would expect nothing less than that approach. Where is the Jesuit introspection on "the ends justify the means" philosophy that is in place at Prep? Glad to be a "loser" that supports teams doing it the right way. Ultimately, the kids are the losers when they actually have to compete on an even playing field -- they will not be prepared. For example, look how Prep bailed out of the MIAA when it couldn't be a top contender. Look how Prep "ignored" the size limitations of the IAC. Yep, I am a sore loser that just wants the playing field level. Then, we can see how things stack up. Sadly, I don't think Prep will voluntarily play by those guidelines.

You argument is with the IAC. The are no class size limitations. There is no rule on age.

There is only one rule on eligibility and that is a player cannot play 5 years in any one sport.

If you don't like the rules, take it up with the conference.

I have always felt that Prep ought to play in the WCAC. As it's enrollment starts to reach 500 boys, the other IAC schools may agree.

"The GP lacrosse coach's bark is much worse than his bite. His players like him a great deal. "

As former player for Robbie Bordley, I loved playing for him as well as my classmates. We won a lot of big games under him and we lost a few big games under him. We learned more in defeat when we won. Was he intense - YES. Does he yell - YES. Does he scout opposing teams such as Prep and Gilman - YES. Did he push at times to the brink - YES. Does Coach Giblin does all of the same - YES.

You my friend seem to have an ax to grind against Landon and longtime coach Bordley. Instead of hiding behind a keyboard, and reliving story telling from the 1980's and 1990's and the history of HS sports, I suggest you find a hobby to take after.

Love the rationalization on the "hold back." That doesn't square with Jesuit teaching, but if it works for you and the others, I guess that is all that matters. You can call it being a "sore loser," too. Again, if you are willing to bend the rules to get the older players on your teams, it is always about winning. That goes for Landon or Prep. Anyone that dares to cry "foul" is a sore loser. Yep, I would expect nothing less than that approach. Where is the Jesuit introspection on "the ends justify the means" philosophy that is in place at Prep? Glad to be a "loser" that supports teams doing it the right way. Ultimately, the kids are the losers when they actually have to compete on an even playing field -- they will not be prepared. For example, look how Prep bailed out of the MIAA when it couldn't be a top contender. Look how Prep "ignored" the size limitations of the IAC. Yep, I am a sore loser that just wants the playing field level. Then, we can see how things stack up. Sadly, I don't think Prep will voluntarily play by those guidelines.

Anonymous wrote:Well, if we are going to put the holy alliance of Mater Dei/Georgetown Prep under the microscope, let me posit that Landon's approach to sports is more "sportsmanlike" than what I have seen from MD and GP over the years. MD and GP have institutionalized the "hold back" approach to put more "mature" players on their teams. Why? To win more games, of course. This practice at MD is particularly distasteful at the middle school level where MD's boys will tower over the smaller boys who are the right age for their grade. The GP lax coach is a well known bully who also has a leadership role at MD. His bellicose manner at games is worth watching - the disdain for his own players is appalling. On the field, I have seen dirty play from GP's teams at a much more regular rate than I have ever seen from Landon's teams. Especially if the GP team is not so talented, the late hits are more frequent and the taunting/bad behavior more pronounced. So, as a supporter of a school that often comes up short to Landon and GP, I would rather see our boys stick it to GP than against Landon. Beat Landon -- Crush Prep.

I was trying to explain why I thought people were so willing to bash Landon when the opportunity arose. I was also taking issue with the idea that Landon is just like other schools. It isn't.

I agree that both MD and GP are loaded with boys that have been held back for reasons that have included athletics and that as a result their players are older than they are at SOME schools. But the part you are missing, because you are obviously a recent arrival, is when and how this took place. In the late 1980's and early 1990's, the GP people started to notice and to complain vociferously about the advanced age of the Landon players. It was not uncommon to see Landon teams that were dominated by 18 year olds and some 19 yr olds. The result of this was that GP parents and Mater Dei decided to join them rather than fight them. So the trend towards older players was started by Landon in the 1980's.

The GP lacrosse coach's bark is much worse than his bite. His players like him a great deal.

As to dirty play ... if that were true its something the refs would notice. I don't think GP teams are penalized any more often than anyone else. This sounds to me like you are a sore loser. (The other team is older. (The other team didn't play fair, yadda, yadda) With all the practice you have had, seems like you would be a better loser.

Anonymous wrote:Well, if we are going to put the holy alliance of Mater Dei/Georgetown Prep under the microscope, let me posit that Landon's approach to sports is more "sportsmanlike" than what I have seen from MD and GP over the years. MD and GP have institutionalized the "hold back" approach to put more "mature" players on their teams. Why? To win more games, of course. This practice at MD is particularly distasteful at the middle school level where MD's boys will tower over the smaller boys who are the right age for their grade. The GP lax coach is a well known bully who also has a leadership role at MD. His bellicose manner at games is worth watching - the disdain for his own players is appalling. On the field, I have seen dirty play from GP's teams at a much more regular rate than I have ever seen from Landon's teams. Especially if the GP team is not so talented, the late hits are more frequent and the taunting/bad behavior more pronounced. So, as a supporter of a school that often comes up short to Landon and GP, I would rather see our boys stick it to GP than against Landon. Beat Landon -- Crush Prep.

+1. MD's approach to redshirting is truly appalling. I'd much sooner send my boys to Landon.

Well, if we are going to put the holy alliance of Mater Dei/Georgetown Prep under the microscope, let me posit that Landon's approach to sports is more "sportsmanlike" than what I have seen from MD and GP over the years. MD and GP have institutionalized the "hold back" approach to put more "mature" players on their teams. Why? To win more games, of course. This practice at MD is particularly distasteful at the middle school level where MD's boys will tower over the smaller boys who are the right age for their grade. The GP lax coach is a well known bully who also has a leadership role at MD. His bellicose manner at games is worth watching - the disdain for his own players is appalling. On the field, I have seen dirty play from GP's teams at a much more regular rate than I have ever seen from Landon's teams. Especially if the GP team is not so talented, the late hits are more frequent and the taunting/bad behavior more pronounced. So, as a supporter of a school that often comes up short to Landon and GP, I would rather see our boys stick it to GP than against Landon. Beat Landon -- Crush Prep.

Anonymous wrote:I never thought I would be writing in defense of the Landon School for Boys, but this bashing is just so indiscriminate. The school has issues and many are well-known. The Huguely incident is not Landon-specific and should be more of a wake-up call for indulged athletes wherever they go to school. To use that unfortunate event as a litmus test for Landon School discredits any other argument.

My sons have played on club teams with Landon boys and have regularly played against Landon teams for the last 9 years. In that time, we have seen some wonderful kids from Landon and some pretty nasty ones as well. The same goes for the parents -- some of the best people I know and also some parental units that I would prefer not to encounter again. That said, I don't think Landon is any different from the other private schools in the DC area, they are just a lightning rod for criticism. Also, the fact that they routinely beat the other schools in so many sports makes them that "bully" we all love to hate. So, put down the the poison pen and acknowledge that Tre' Johnson is making a difference in the lives of some young men. I wish my guys could get an exposure to someone like Tre', who has achieved excellence in his playing career and thne moved on to success after the NFL. Good for Landon and its students.

Our sons played for Mater Dei and GP many times against Landon in football, basketball and lacrosse and I'd take issue with the statement above that Landon is no different from the other private schools in the DC areas. It is. And for the record, I'm pretty sure that our boys beat Landon many more times than Landon beat them.

The struggles between Landon and MD and GP I watched were epic. No other opponent played with the effort that those Landon teams played with. No other opposing coaches were as determined to win. When GP started to challenge Landon's lax dominance, Bordley and staff scouted every single GP lacrosse game looking for weaknesses. If you are at all familiar with high school sports, you'll recognize just how unusual that is.

The Landon approach that I saw might appeal to some. It may produce tougher boys who become successful. But I'd never send my boys there. Their approach seemed desperate to me beyond what high school sports ought to be. There was never that intensity when our team played St Albans or St Stephens or Episcopal or even Prep's natural rival, Gonzaga. I never saw Landon teams having "fun" playing. There was no joy in the games ... only effort and determination. And they seemed to take the loses extremely hard.

I think a lot of the dislike of Landon is reaction to their approach to athletics. So when there's an opportunity to stick it to them, people don't miss a chance.

I actually respect the Landon teams I saw play and many of the athletes. The coaching staff got every single ounce of ability out of their players. But as I wrote above, its not a place we would have sent our kids to and it is not the same as the other DC privates we saw in dozens and dozens of athletic contests over a period of years.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bordley, Huguely, SAT scandal, middle school boy sex game scandal, duke lacrosse stripper (no, they weren't guilty, but they were stupid and privileged).
And, I am a WASP.

THESE are the issues. The school seems to be making good strides and there are many, many nice families whose sons are getting a great education. (Yes, other good prep schools have issues that don't make the papers -- sex game scandals, cheating, defacing property, etc.) Landon needs to keep doing what it's doing and moving forward, although a personnel change or two would signify they are serious about putting the past behind them.

Landon needs a major housecleaning starting with certain members of the board then Headmaster and Division Heads. A "take no prisoner's" approach would signify a sincere desire for improvement. Without these actions change will not take place and public perception will not improve. If public perception does not improve then Landon will continue having a very difficult time filling it's open slots with qualified students.

You need to do some research. . The lower school head is in his 2nd year as well as the upper school head.

I was surprised to see "Bordley" lead the list of supposed lead the list of Landon evils - even before Huguely - but it makes sense in context - when one understands why it is that Landon so annoys those who live in the bubble: It's all about LAX

http://dailycaller.com/2010/06/14/a-memo-to-maureen-dowd/

He or she may not be referring to Robbie Bordley and may be referring tot he SAT incident twice in the same sentence.