Why Are There 2 Styles of Ineligible?

Over the years the Ineligible style of competitive flag football has taken a back seat to other more dominate styles, such as eligible and screen.  True, ineligible is closer to true football but when it comes to competition that alone is not enough to draw more teams to that style.  Instead, teams are opting for more wide-open versions of flag where points are plentiful and size matters not.

However, unlike the other styles ineligible could be viewed as its own oppressor; a victim of its own indifferences and the unwillingness of teams to adjust their games and convert to one or the other in order to increase overall competition. 

With an abundance of styles to choose from, teams have developed preferences of one particular style over the years and are reluctant to participate in another.  One of the largest margins between the various styles is based on an additional player.  And teams, no matter what, cannot seem to get past that obstacle to help increase the competition by increasing team participation.  Simplicity has always been an attribute of success, and limited styles is as simple as you can get - but in the minds of many that one difference is just too much to ask for.

If there were only 1 Ineligible contact style, 1 eligible contact style and 1 screen style accepted nationwide tournaments would literally be ridiculous.  One could only imagine.  But sadly, that one additional player and the perception of the 2 styles is just enough to keep these styles from becoming one and growing to its full potential. 

Now regardless of why a 9-Man B was not started and 8-Man Ineligible was, the real problem was that there was not an effective enough incentive plan implemented to encourage the 8-Man Ineligible teams to move up to 9-man so they remained in that division forcing ineligible to have 2 different, but not so different styles of play. 

So that leaves us with a simple solution, either 8-Man teams develop a desire to move up to 9-Man or the remaining 9-man teams drop to 8-man Ineligible.  Easier said than done.  Dropping down to 8-man Ineligible is something 9-Man teams feel is lowering their standards to play a weaker version of ineligible and not only that, it would kill the 9-Man tradition.  8-Man teams on the other hand, view having a 9-Man team as being higher maintenance and overly physical in some cases.  But most importantly what they are playing for is equally recognized by the host organizations, which eliminates any reason to do so.  So there goes your incentive.

Hopefully, in the near future, the players that make up Ineligible flag can find common ground to agree on and combine the two styles, because the Ineligible game is currently operating at around 30% of its full potential and is none existent out West for the most part.   Should these two styles ever decide to come together, Ineligible could very easily become the pinnacle style in all of competitive flag as many in the game would like it to be, but as long as teams are unwilling to change, things will stay the same and ineligible will remain in its current stagnant state.