BleacherCoaches.com

1 - 197 A 136
198 - 337 AA 154
338 - 541 AAA 141
542 - 99999 AAAA 143


These are the current Classifications for the state and how many schools are in each. I guess with eight they are taking each one and splitting them in half.

Roughly (Yes I used small/large because that many A’s is crazy)
Small A=1-101
Large A=-102-197
Small AA=198-240
Large AA=240-337
Small AAA=338-430
Large AAA= 431-541
Small AAAA=542-830
Large AAAA=831-2000

Actually did a "study" on this one time and the "A" cutoff would be more in the 155-160 range rather than 101. Reason is that there is a HUGE glut of schools in the 150-200 range with football while there are actually extremely few of the less than 100's playing football. Williamsburg and Turkeyfoot are the only ones in D5 and 6 for instance.

I think Big Ike's numbers may be more accurate from there on up but "A" is skewed because of a lot of the really small schools not even having football.

Would I be accurate in saying that you pretty much just used an "in-between" number, Big Ike? Anyway....excellent food for thought.

My own guess based on nothing but intuition is that they are seeking 8 classes in hopes of getting 6 (Compromise) but we'll see.

Steering Committee was meeting at 2:00 this afternoon so any recommendation to go to the PIAA board could even show up in tomorrow's papers.

Good Points Sir...on another board some of the guys said the same thing about A...After I looked at the WPIAL's A the small A would only equate to about 4-5 schools at the most and some of them with well below 500 records...Realistically you would have to make the cutoff in the 130 range...and make the Large A from about 131-197...I admit I am warming to the possibilty of more classes

Football season could start earlier
That is, if the PIAA accepts a committee proposal to ax teams' second scrimmages.
By STEVE NAVAROLI
Daily Record/Sunday News
Article Launched: 12/21/2006 06:20:16 AM EST


Dec 21, 2006 — MECHANICSBURG - Don't expect the high-school football season to get any shorter. What you might find is that the fall sports season could begin earlier, and the winter season later, possibly starting in 2008.
The consensus was that the 2006 football season went on too long - 16 weeks - extending to the third weekend in December. The same will be true in 2007.

Knowing some changes were needed, and after considering them for nearly two and a half hours Wednesday, the PIAA football steering committee voted, 10-1, to send the following recommendation to the PIAA board:

· Retain the current four playoff classifications;

· Give schools the option of replacing their second scrimmage with a game (which would start the season a week earlier);

· Provide for at least a three-day heat acclimation period with no pads or contact the week prior to the official start of fall sports practice;

· Maintain a 16-week season (assuming a school opts for its first game instead of a second scrimmage;

· Play the 2008 state championship games on Dec. 5 and 6, instead of Dec. 12 and 13.

The PIAA will consider the proposal at its Jan. 25 board meeting.

"This is really the beginning step in the process," PIAA executive director Brad Cashman said.

The proposal would allow teams to keep 10-game regular-season schedules, and the same number of teams would qualify for their respective district playoffs as they did this year.

The second part of the plan would call for the winter sports season to be delayed by one week to help avoid the inconvenient overlap experienced this year.

District 3 chairman John Ziegler thinks the proposal has merit.

"We had to come out of here with a recommendation," Ziegler said. "We have to talk to our schools and say, 'Tell us what you want us to do.' We don't have a district committee meeting scheduled prior to the board of directors meeting. I think we may have to."

With the state football playoffs not ending until Dec. 16 this fall, several winter sports, especially basketball and wrestling, were adversely affected as teams went weeks without full rosters.

The proposed combination of holding the state title games a week earlier and starting winter sports a week later would potentially cut two weeks from the overlap seen this season.

There was talk going into Wednesday's meeting that the PIAA would consider adding more classifications for football.

Steering committee member Jack Bailey of the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association presented a proposal for breaking the playoffs into eight classifications, instead of the four used presently.

George Shue is part of the coaches association and also sits on the steering committee. The former Red Lion and Littlestown coach said many of his peers are in favor of added classifications.

"The coaches association likes the idea of bumping up in classes from the standpoint of it helps with the number of qualifiers," Shue said. "It helps to bring down the range of schools within that classification."

Still, many of the district representatives on hand were not crazy about class expansion.

Cashman expected this part of the agenda to be painstaking.

"I was actually pleased that it came out the way it did," he said. "I think this committee appreciates the fact that we overlapped the football season and the winter sports season too much.

"We need to take a step back, look at the big picture and see things not only from the football perspective, but also from all sports."

Beginning football workouts earlier in August would please the medical community, which has campaigned for longer heat acclimation periods without pads.

"The sports medicine advisory committee has recommended a heat acclimation period for football," Cashman said. "Actually, they recommend it for all fall sports, more importantly for football because of all the equipment they wear."

The committee also voted on whether to allow teams at the top of the state football brackets to play home games in the playoffs, as opposed to neutral sites, but that was voted down, 8-3.

Concerns over small games of chance (50-50 drawings) at state playoff games were discussed, with no changes pending, as long as the schools possess the proper licensing.


http://www.ydr.com/football/ci_4878689

If 8 classes passes looking at the current enrollment figures: 0-143 1A, 144-204 2A, 205-267 3A, 268-355 4A, 361-465 5A, which covers most area schools except the largest. It comes out to 72 schools per class.


But alas it looks as if the PIAA won't make such a bold move which I think is long overdue not just in football but in all sports!

With current enrollments an 8A scenario would look like this...

D5

1A...Berlin, meyersdale, shade, rockwood, turkeyfoot (5)

2A...township, north star, northern bedford, tussey, windber (5)

3A...ridge, everett (2)

4A...Bedford (1)

D6

1A...williamsburg, blacklick, glendale, ferndale, carroll, conemaugh valley, Juniata valley, claysburg, saltsburg, laurel valley, portage, BG, purchase line, penns manor (14)

2A...northern cambria, united, west branch, southern huntington, mo valley, bellwood, blairsville, mount union, ligonier valley (9)

3A...central, penn cambria, penns valley, phillipsburg, richland, tyrone (6)

4A...bald eagle, jtown, central cambria, forest hills, westmont, huntingdon
(6)

5A...bellfonte, indian valley, lewistown, somerest (4)

6A... hollidaysburg (1)

Kind of gives some perspective as to how things would change!

This would really water down the current championships.

Looks like just another way for the PIAA to make more $$$.

Either that, or it's the AYSO idea that everyone can be a champion.

Good research 'Paw

I would venture to guess that you would see Everett down at 2A and NB down at 1A (more normal enrollments are 130's and 180's for those schools) with possibly Windber approaching the 3A category on and off.

Besides, it didn't even get past the steering committee let alone the Board so it's a dead issue for at least another year.

I hope this is dead in the water unless they come up with something to loosen the recruited grip from catholic and now charter schools.

Southpaw

im curious to find out where my school would be im guessing High A?


and i believe they said this isnt gonna happen and im glad cause i feel it tarnishes a state championship if your only beating half the schools that you have been playing with the system we have