GHSA to hear new reclass proposal: Cut classes down to 4

“Our job in reclassification is to bring all options to the table,” GHSA reclass committee chairman Curt Miller said. “That includes competitive balance. It includes tweaking the current model. And it includes exploring any new options.”

An intriguing example of tweaking the current model would be letting power ratings seed state-playoff teams 1-32 regardless of their region finish. That was discussed briefly in last week’s meeting.

The newest reclassification option — trimming the number of classes — comes from Monroe Area athletic director Eli Connell, a reclass committee member. Connell believes the GHSA should consider fewer classes, which would mean fewer but larger regions.

The GHSA’s current 56 regions have an average of 7.5 football-playing schools in them. With 48 regions, the average would jump to 8.6 schools. With 32 regions, it would be 13. Larger regions would mean less travel and better local rivalries, Connell said.

The GHSA could use power ratings to select and seed those state-playoff teams the same way the ratings currently handle classes 3A, 2A and A Division I. This is the first academic year that the GHSA has used power ratings to seed as many as four state-championship brackets. The other four classes are seeded based strictly on region finish.

“If power rankings are in play, that gives us the flexibility,” Connell said. “We owe it to our member schools to think outside the box. What are our stated goals? Everybody has shared goals of reducing travel and playing your geographical rivals and doing what’s right for kids.”

Under a plan such as this, county rivals such as Connell’s Monroe Area, currently in Class 3A, and Walnut Grove, of Class 4A, could be the same region, then separate for the state playoffs.

Connell cautioned that his idea is a concept, not a detailed plan yet. The GHSA is sending out a survey to its 456 member schools Friday to gather more data, such as each school’s rules governing out-of-zone students. The data is meant to guide the reclass committee and anyone who has a reclass idea.

There is no promise that the GHSA will be making any big changes.

For the current two-year cycle, which runs through the 2025-26 academic year, the GHSA has seven classifications with schools placed primarily by enrollment size but with a multiplier that moved up some schools that have a high number of out-of-district students.

The current model adopted a controversial Class 3A-A private playoff division. Private schools don’t like it, and many support competitive balance as a way to reintegrate smaller public and private schools. The super-successful privates would get bumped up in class under competitive balance.

A December GHSA survey of member schools found that 18% supported competitive balance, 25% opposed it, 20% were unsure and 6% had not heard of it. The rest, or about 31%, did not respond.

The current model remains popular particularly among smaller, more rural public schools.

Miller said athletic directors have reached out to him suggesting two interesting changes to it.

One would use the power ratings to seed playoffs brackets entirely, allowing strong regions to have multiple teams in the top eight. Another change would tweak the power ratings formula or look for a better ranking model.

Southeast Bulloch football coach Jared Zito wants the rating formula changed. It currently multiplies a team’s winning percentage times opponents’ winning percentage times opponents’ opponents’ winning percentage.

“A win should count more than anything else in the formula, and right now it counts the same as opponents’ win percentage,” Zito said. “As coaches and players, the only things we control is our non-region schedule and our opportunity to win. We do not control our opponents’ win percentage, and we certainly do not control our opponent’s opponents win percentage.”

Jan Azar, the coach of Hebron Christian’s No. 1-ranked Class 3A-A private girls team, loves the idea of seeding a state-playoff bracket purely on computer ratings, whether it’s the GHSA’s model or a better one.

“If the best three teams are all in the same region, then they should be seeded 1-2-3,” Azar said. “Using power ratings and then allowing the region winners to jump above teams with a higher power rating negates what the power ratings are meant to do. The best state tournament allows for the best teams to see each other later rather than sooner in the tournament.”

Worth County football coach Jeff Hammond doesn’t trust the power ratings to do that equitably and says the GHSA should stick with making region finish a priority. His team won Class A Division I’s strongest region last season and was seeded No. 4 for the state playoffs. If not for the region title, which guaranteed a top eight seed, his team would’ve been seeded 12th by the GHSA ratings.

“I’m not a fan,” Hammond said. “If winning your region doesn’t guarantee you home games in the playoffs, then what’s the purpose of us being in regions?”

The next reclass committee will be Feb. 25. Any proposals must be approved by the GHSA’s 75-member executive committee.