The new Pennsylvania Classifications

[TDHelmick]

As some may know, the PIAA in Pennsylvania is reclassifying all schools for 2016. They will have 6 classes starting next fall. There is much fighting going on as the PIAA has narrowed down the best way to do this into 3 separate proposals. The one currently out in front can be seen on the PIAA website:

LINK: NEW PIAA CLASSIFICATIONS

The interesting part is that every sport (boys and girls) will be classified separately. So some schools may be Class 3A in football but Class 2A in boys soccer and 4A in girls basketball.

Here are the enrollment breakdowns by class for football. And these are based on males only in grades 9-11:

CLASS 6A - 1770 to 564
CLASS 5A - 563 to 398
CLASS 4A - 397 to 283
CLASS 3A - 282 to 201
CLASS 2A - 200 to 141
CLASS 1A - 140 to 1

The problematic debate is at Class 6A where you have schools with 564 males competing against schools that have 1770 males. That's not good. It just goes to show that PA has way more smaller scale enrollments. Maybe they bought into the fact decades ago that smaller schools were better. I don't know. But this would likely shoot Maryland teams like Linganore and Urbana into the top class where they have to compete with Henry Wise.

Here is where local area schools would fit in PA:

Jefferson (WV) - Class 6A

Martinsburg (WV) - Class 5A
North Hagerstown - Class 5A
South Hagerstown - Class 5A

Williamsport - Class 4A
Mountain Ridge - Class 4A
Boonsboro - Class 4A
Hampshire (WV) - Class 4A
Fort Hill - Class 4A
Smithsburg - Class 4A

Allegany - Class 3A
Southern - Class 3A
Brunswick - Class 3A
Berkeley Springs (WV) - Class 3A
Keyser (WV) - Class 3A
Frankfort (WV) - Class 3A

Northern - Class 2A
Moorefield (WV) - Class 2A

Hancock - Class 1A
Bishop Walsh - Class 1A

 

[glamourbyjim]

Maryland is not the only state with problems. To me the 6A looks real top-heavy, and unfair to everyone.

 

[otnorot]

The vast majority of schools in the new PA 6A have less than 1000 boys in grades 9-11, and while there are some strong programs among the largest schools, there are some pretty weak ones too. The Catholic schools will win most of the state titles anyway.

It's impressive to see how small the enrollments are for some storied programs. Aliquippa only has 131 boys 9-11, and they play up a class and still compete for state titles in football and basketball.

 

[TDHelmick]

While I try to stay positive most of the time, my opinions on PA football programs, in what we might call the Western Central part of the state, are lacking in size and quality. Because of that I have seen way too many of those teams posting 8, 9 and 10 win seasons on a consistent basis only to fold like a wet paper bag when someone like FH puts them on the schedule. Whether it was Ligonier Valley, Central, Chestnut Ridge or Clearfield...they all carry the same resume. They post 9 or 10 wins and then drop in the early rounds of the playoffs. The reason a handful of these teams are able to post those type of winning records consistently has to do with the fact there are so many weak teams surrounding them which obviously wind up on the schedule every year.

The first two years FH played Chestnut Ridge with the Bo Bosh kid at QB was the best I had seen out of those type of teams. Once you get closer to Pittsburgh the competition seems to get better. In other words, I wouldn't put too much stock in the won/loss records posted by some of these teams.