By Alan Goldenbach
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, September 7, 2007

Dunbar senior Deon Long wants to know what it's going to take for people outside of the D.C. Interscholastic Athletic Association to give the league's football programs a little respect

Nobody questions the individual talent produced by the city's public school teams. Last year, Dunbar and Ballou each had two first-team All-Mets, and several others who earned Division I scholarships. But what really riles Long is the criticism that the DCIAA's best teams fatten their records against weak teams, and then get exposed when they step outside the league.

Friends at private schools "say it all the time," Long said. " 'Yeah, you're winning all these games, but look who you're all playing. They've got nobody.' "

Tomorrow night offers Long and his teammates a chance for a resounding retort. The fifth-ranked Crimson Tide, who have played in each of the past nine Turkey Bowls, winning seven, will cross into Maryland to face No. 10 Good Counsel, a power in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, often the bellwether for area football dominance.

"It's confidence, man," said Long, a wide receiver. "You get tested in games like this. It's about executing against a better team. It's important to let people know that we're not just whooping up on weak teams."

Teams from the two leagues often fill gaps in their schedules by playing against one another, but the results have been pretty one-sided. The past two seasons, with the exception of a pair of Dunbar victories over Carroll, the WCAC has won all 10 games against DCIAA opponents.

"We're looking for that respectability," Dunbar Coach Craig Jefferies said. "Everybody in the metropolitan area criticizes how poor our league is. Some of that is due to the poor facilities and equipment, and it was easy to say that, but we're improving it."

Sure enough, Ballou is coming off a 14-7 victory over Bishop McNamara last week, while Theodore Roosevelt shut out Carroll. Along with next week's games featuring Wilson against Carroll and H.D. Woodson against Good Counsel, the Crimson Tide know it will be its turn to uphold the DCIAA's reputation.

"Our program looks forward to games like this," Jefferies said.

No. 5 Dunbar at No. 10 Good Counsel Tomorrow, 7 p.m.