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FHSAA Releases New Football Districts, Here’s Where Each Local Team Will Play
March 11, 2022
The Florida High School Athletic Association has announced the new Metro, Suburban and Rural football classification and created nine state championships.
The new classifications will be in place for at least the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
Another big change will come in playoff rankings. Football will move away from the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) rankings that were implemented in 2019. The FHSAA Power Rankings, handled by MaxPreps, will instead decide playoffs.
The metro classification includes the eight Florida counties with the highest population — Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Orange, Duval, Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Seminole.
The Tate Aggies are the only Escambia County team in the largest 4S class, joining Pace, Milton, Gulf Breeze and Navarre in District 1. The 4S classification is for schools with 1,896-3,226 students.
Pine Forest, Escambia, Washington, Choctaw and Fort Walton Beach are District 1 in 3S, while West Florida, Pensacola High, Pensacola Catholic and Walton are District 1-2S.
In the Metro and Suburban classes, for 4A-2A there are four regions and 16 districts across the state with district play required. District champs will advance, along with the next four at-large in the region.
Northview, Jay, Baker, Bozeman, Chipley, Freeport, Graceville, Holmes County and Vernon make up Rural Region 1-1R. That is the same as last year, except Cottondale moves to Region 2.
In the Rural classification, there are four regions and no districts. The Rural classification does not have a required regular season district or region schedule. The top six in each district will advance to the playoffs.
Suburban District 1-4S
- Tate, Pace, Milton, Gulf Breeze, Navarre
Suburban District 1-3S
- Pine Forest, Escambia, Washington, Choctaw, Fort Walton Beach
Suburban District 1-2S
- West Florida, Pensacola High, Pensacola Catholic, Walton
Rural Region 1-1R
- Northview, Jay, Baker, Bozeman, Chipley, Freeport, Graceville, Holmes County, Vernon
NorthEscambia.com file photos.
Comments
3 Responses to “FHSAA Releases New Football Districts, Here’s Where Each Local Team Will Play”
Where are Niceville and Crestview?
Nice line-up & some big games ! Looks like Walton and Northview wii do some traveling! Spring training soon !
I am proud that the rural division wasn’t changed very much. What would be great is if the rural schools and their coaches would live by the concept that it was formed. The Rural division came about because private schools in the urban regions could just go about Tallahassee, Jacksonville. Miami, etc and recruit themselves a small number of great players and plug them into their teams be it football, baseball, basketball or whatever and overpowering for the rural teams. Rural schools had very little chance of winning a state championship in almost any sport. Just look at who won the state championships pre rural league and you will see the advantage the urban small schools had. I personally fought for twenty plus to bring a level playing field to the smaller schools and with the help of a few coaches and others at FHSAA the Rural division was formed. There has been many many State Championship Rings handed out to students who won them on Rural championship teams. You can bet that almost none of these would have been won if the Rural division had not been adapted by the FHSAA. Just look at the records. But as it seems to always happen there are some bad apples that comes to light and ruin a great system. There are some coaches and or schools who have gamed the system and are doing the exact same thing that caused the Rural division to be formed. There are a few schools who have found a way to mess with the student count, who can play at what school the school district lines and I am sure other ways. No more just taking the kids who get off the bus in Baker, Jay, Vernon, Paxton, Freeport and grow them starting in junior high and making them the best they can be in high school. Some rural division have figured out a way to get a few great athletes and plug them into their teams and win games they could never win without them. It saddens me to see this take place but it also doesn’t surprise me. The college portal and free agency in college and the pros shows me that win at any cost is excepted. Best of luck to the Rural Division teams who adhere to the rules as intended by it founders.