MPSSAA - COVID football reclassification for 2021

[TDHelmick]

In the next few weeks the MPSSAA is likely going to announce that the football classifications for this 2021 season will be broken down to 6 classifications instead of 4 classifications that we have always had. This will just be for the 2021 season due to COVID cancellations. What this does is make sure every team makes the playoffs so COVID won't short change some school. I'm OK with it for this year but it surely does water down the competition. There will be 32 or 31 teams in each class and 8 teams in each region. I have broken them down on my own to give everyone a bigger picture starting with CLASS 1A:

EVERY SCHOOL MAKES THE PLAYOFFS

CLASS 1A WEST
Mountain Ridge
Smithsburg
Allegany
Southern Garrett
Fort Hill
Northern Garrett
Clear Spring
Hancock

CLASS 1A NORTH
ACCE
Benjamin Franklin
Edmondson-Westside
Frederick Douglass-Balt
Lake Clifton
National Academy
New Era
Reginald Lewis

CLASS 1A SOUTH
Loch Raven
Surrattsville
Brunswick
Catoctin
SEED School
Perryville
Forest Park


CLASS 1A EAST
Patterson Mill
Bohemia Manor
Colonel Richardson
Havre de Grace
Joppatowne
Kent County
Washington
Snow Hill

MOVING UP IN CLASS
Williamsport
Boonsboro
Dunbar
Chesapeake-BC
Pikesville
Western STES
Francis Scott Key
Liberty
South Carroll
Central
Crossland
Largo
Cambridge-SD
Fallstown
Harford Tech



CLASS 1A-2A
Sparrows Point
Parkside
Calvert
Randallstown
Friendly
Elkton
Winters Mill
Carver Vo-Tech
Patuxent
Rising Sun
Gwynn Park
Southern - Anne Arundel
Fairmont Heights
Lackey
North East - Cecil
McDonough
Chesapeake - BC
Harford Tech
Liberty
Fallston
Dunbar
Williamsport
South Carroll
Crossland
Largo
Western STES
Francis Scott Key
Boonsboro
Central
Cambridge - SD
Pikesville

CLASS 2A
Stephen Decatur
Huntingtown
C. Milton Wright
Northeast - Anne Arundel
Milford Mill
Patterson
Oakland Mills
Glenelg
Hammond
Hereford
Potomac
Poolesville
Lansdowne
New Town
Walkersville
North Harford
Easton
Eastern Tech
Overlea
Queen Anne's
Wicomico
Kent Island
North Caroline
LaPlata
Owings Mills
Westlake
Frederick Douglass - PG
Middletown
Thomas Stone
Century

CLASS 3A
Towson
Marriotts Ridge
Poly
Long Reach
Frederick
Bel Air
Crofton
River Hill
Aberdeen
Digital Harbor
South Hagerstown
Northern - Calvert
Chesapeake - AA
Westminster
Edgewood
City
Rockville
Franklin
Oxon Hill
St. Charles
Atholton
Centennial
Linganore
Damascus
Wilde Lake
North Hagerstown
J.M. Bennett
Patapsco
Oakdale
Manchester Valley

CLASS 3A-4A
Thomas Wootton
Northwood
Perry Hall
Walt Whitman
Dulaney
Sherwood
Urbana
Dundalk
South River
James Blake
Leonardtown
Severna Park
Seneca Valley
Catonsville
North Point
Arundel
Mergenthaler
Reservoir
Springbrook
John F. Kennedy
Thomas Johnson
Howard
Great Mills
Woodlawn
Magruder
Watkins Mill
Chopticon
Kenwood
Tuscarora
Mt. Hebron

CLASS 4A
Montgomery Blair
Walter Johnson
High Point
Northwest
Eleanor Roosevelt
Bowie
Gaithersburg
Parkdale
Clarksburg
Richard Montgomery
Suitland
Northwestern (PG)
North County
C. H. Flowers
Duval
Wheaton
Old Mill
Henry Wise
Bethesda-Chevy Chase
Winston Churchill
Annapolis
Broadneck
Meade
Glen Burnie
Paint Branch
Parkville
Quince Orchard
Bladensburg
Laurel
Albert Einstein

 

[beall02]

I guess that is a nice idea for the schools that do end up missing games due to COVID. But do we really want to see another Mountain Ridge/Southern game? Even a Fort Hill/Southern or Allegany/Southern game for that matter?

On a side note, Todd, do you happen to know of many MD games being cancelled so far this season? I haven't heard of many but have heard of some.

 

[LHSlancerFAN]

I guess in theory its a good thing for this year. My concern is that the MPSSAA is going take this and run with it and make it a permanent thing. We already changed it once to allow more schools to participate and it just feels like the ultimate goal is to eventually have everyone make it on a yearly basis. But 6 classifications in a state this small is just too much!

 

[beall02]

I guess in theory its a good thing for this year. My concern is that the MPSSAA is going take this and run with it and make it a permanent thing. We already changed it once to allow more schools to participate and it just feels like the ultimate goal is to eventually have everyone make it on a yearly basis. But 6 classifications in a state this small is just too much!

100% the effort is to make all schools reach the playoffs in football. They can say it isn't but we all know that isn't true. In the future they wouldn't necessarily need 6 classifications in order to accomplish it I would think. They could introduce byes in the first round of the playoffs for 1-2 or 1-4 seeds. I haven't looked at the regions and numbers so I am not sure how it would work but one would think off hand they could do something like that.

 

[TDHelmick]

My 3 recommendations to the MPSSAA were:

1. Change the point total divisor from the lowest being 8 to whatever the number of games played are. So if a team only gets to play 5 games then total their points and divide by 5.

2. This proposal should be for this year only, not permanent. This system drastically devalues winning a championship. This system is straight up participation trophy stuff. But I am OK with it for COVID years.

3. If COVID started to cancel games during the playoffs then dump the playoffs. I don't want to see a situation like West Virginia had last year where you only have to win one game to be state champs because everyone else had COVID. That had to be the dumbest thing I have ever seen. If this happens, then dump the playoffs and let teams schedule whoever they want until Dec. 4.

 

[bleedred]

Doesn't everyone make the playoffs in every other sport? I understand that this is taking some of the glamour away from the first couple of rounds, but after that it's all good. I remember the year that Beall upset Alco in the first round. Those kids were going nuts. Could you imagine Hancock knocking off Fort Hill, Mt. Ridge, Alco, or anybody for that matter. That would be the score heard around the world.

The State is going to do what they want, but if they conclude that this is the direction for football, where everyone makes the playoffs, that would open the door to schedule anyone you want during the season. I'd love to see more games like this past Friday! Or am I being too optimistic?

 

[beall02]

Doesn't everyone make the playoffs in every other sport? I understand that this is taking some of the glamour away from the first couple of rounds, but after that it's all good. I remember the year that Beall upset Alco in the first round. Those kids were going nuts. Could you imagine Hancock knocking off Fort Hill, Mt. Ridge, Alco, or anybody for that matter. That would be the score heard around the world.

The State is going to do what they want, but if they conclude that this is the direction for football, where everyone makes the playoffs, that would open the door to schedule anyone you want during the season. I'd love to see more games like this past Friday! Or am I being too optimistic?

I would be good with it for that reason as well. Mountain Ridge has adopted the philosophy that we are going to have to beat the teams in our region in order to make it far in the playoffs as it is. We my dis well schedule them in the regular season and see where we stand. Not to mention cheaper road trips depending on the situation. I actually like the current Mountain Ridge schedule. Wouldn’t mind to see them have one non-area/West region team. But who would you take off? Certainly not Keyser/Frankfort/Southern/Northern/Fort Hill or Allegany.

 

[novaunicorn]

Doesn't everyone make the playoffs in every other sport? I understand that this is taking some of the glamour away from the first couple of rounds, but after that it's all good. I remember the year that Beall upset Alco in the first round. Those kids were going nuts. Could you imagine Hancock knocking off Fort Hill, Mt. Ridge, Alco, or anybody for that matter. That would be the score heard around the world.

The State is going to do what they want, but if they conclude that this is the direction for football, where everyone makes the playoffs, that would open the door to schedule anyone you want during the season. I'd love to see more games like this past Friday! Or am I being too optimistic?

Fort Hill should be the biggest supporter of this. For years all we've heard is their scheduling issues. If they get in no matter what then it doesn't matter if they play M'burg and lose. Not only wouldn't losses truly matter but all those 1a teams that have been dodging FH years wouldn't have any choice in the matter if the playoffs include everybody.