The GHSA on Tuesday added one week to the football regular season, meaning the playoffs will start Nov. 15-16, one week later.
The decision was expected, as executive director Tim Scott indicated Monday that GHSA was moving toward that solution for the more than 50 games that were postponed indefinitely or canceled last weekend because of Hurricane Helene.
Many schools remain closed this week, putting teams in the dilemma of playing this week despite being out of class or postponing and playing twice in one week.
The GHSA’s choice was made easier because of an unprecedented bye week in the playoffs this season. The bye was slated for Nov. 29, between the third and fourth rounds. Now, the third round will be played over that Thanksgiving week, as it traditionally is.
The finals, set for Dec. 16-18 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, will be played as scheduled. The playoffs will be five rounds in five weeks, as they have been since the GHSA went to 32-team state brackets in 1996.
The GHSA noted that teams that have two games affected by Hurricane Helene still might have to play twice in a week and recommended a Thursday-Tuesday-Saturday sequence across those two weeks. The GHSA must approve all schedules that call for two games in one week.
The GHSA also said that the Nov. 8 final regular-season date would be only for make-up games that could not be played during the regular season due to the storms.
Schools that completed games without schedule interruptions and are advancing to the postseason will have an open week before the first round of the playoffs, not for other reasons without GHSA approval.
The GHSA did not announce any changes to the schedules of other fall sports, which are flag football, softball, cross country, volleyball and cheerleading.
The GHSA has added weeks to the regular season at least twice previously. It happened in 2001 after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Games scheduled for that week were rescheduled for the added week in November. Then during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the GHSA started the season and playoffs two weeks later than scheduled.
