Playoff System
- Thread starter rivalsHSFBfan16
- Start date
Ryan4VT
VaPreps Varsity
If I'm getting your meaning, you're referring to cross-bracketing, wherein the lower remaining seed in the West visits the higher remaining seed in the East, and vice versa. As I understand, the purpose is to try to ensure that the two best teams in the state will meet for the state championship. I'll use 4A as an example. A few years ago, the top two or three, possibly even four, teams were all in the East region. Yet because 4A doesn't cross bracket, only one of those teams could advance to the state final. There was an East region winner and a West region winner, and those two met for the whole ball of wax. The result was the East champion Dinwiddie shellacking West champ Sherando, 56-14. Not much of a championship game. Fortunately, the West champ won 4A last year, so order was restored to the universe. ;-)
I see the advantages both ways. I like the idea of the two best teams, regardless of region, meeting for the state championship. However, I also think with regions of twenty-plus schools - 4A West has 29 - you have to crown a regional champion. 1A, 2A, and 3A don't crown regional champions in football, under the current format.
We could have both, if a format like basketball's were implemented. There would be regional title games, with the losers surviving to face the champions from the opposite regions in what would be the state semifinals. Of course, this would add a week to the playoffs, but that could be countered by limiting each region to eight teams - thereby eliminating the current first round.
After this year, we'll be going back to four regions in each classification, so the current format will be history, anyway.
I see the advantages both ways. I like the idea of the two best teams, regardless of region, meeting for the state championship. However, I also think with regions of twenty-plus schools - 4A West has 29 - you have to crown a regional champion. 1A, 2A, and 3A don't crown regional champions in football, under the current format.
We could have both, if a format like basketball's were implemented. There would be regional title games, with the losers surviving to face the champions from the opposite regions in what would be the state semifinals. Of course, this would add a week to the playoffs, but that could be countered by limiting each region to eight teams - thereby eliminating the current first round.
After this year, we'll be going back to four regions in each classification, so the current format will be history, anyway.
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