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FHSAA Football District Assignments


Georgiaflyer

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Hello everyone! I’m m a new transplant here from Georgia. I have been following GHSA sports for over 20+ years. I now follow a team, Gateway Charter High School, in Fort Myers. I had a question regarding FHSAA district assignments (regions as we call them in Georgia). How often does the FHSAA re-evaluate district assignments? I actually like the classification break downs as they seem pretty fairly split up (a big problem Georgia had for a while in the smaller classes). After doing some pretty thorough research I still found myself somewhat confused by how they actually draw the districts up. Gateway Charter for example is in District 5 Class 4A for football. Their Fall 2017 enrollment is 552 on the FHSAA website. Why would they be placed in Class 4A (681-1,114)? Is it based on student population from 4 years ago when Gateway Charter had a much larger enrollment? Do they do mid-cycle reviews say if a school increases or decreases say more than 20% of their total enrollment every 2 years? It also seems Gateway has a different slate of district members and classifications for each sport which is where it gets tricky for new fans such as myself. For example, Cardinal Mooney is in our district in baseball but not for any other sport. Also, Gateway Charter is in 5A for basketball, 4A for most other sports and Soccer is 2A. Football to my understanding in class 1A-4A have no districts and use a point system? Somewhat confusing. I'm sure it has something to do with even distribution of member playing schools in that sport and the number of classes. In Georgia, you are assigned one classification and you play in the same district with members across the board in all sports (unless they don't field the sport). Just wondering if anyone could fill me in how things are done here in Florida.

Also, what sites are the most popular for talking HS sports? Georgia has two main ones but I can’t seem to find many for Florida. 

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11 minutes ago, Georgiaflyer said:

Hello everyone! I’m m a new transplant here from Georgia. I have been following GHSA sports for over 20+ years. I now follow a team, Gateway Charter High School, in Fort Myers. I had a question regarding FHSAA district assignments (regions as we call them in Georgia). How often does the FHSAA re-evaluate district assignments? I actually like the classification break downs as they seem pretty fairly split up (a big problem Georgia had for a while in the smaller classes). After doing some pretty thorough research I still found myself somewhat confused by how they actually draw the districts up. Gateway Charter for example is in District 5 Class 4A for football. Their Fall 2017 enrollment is 552 on the FHSAA website. Why would they be placed in Class 4A (681-1,114)? Is it based on student population from 4 years ago when Gateway Charter had a much larger enrollment? Do they do mid-cycle reviews say if a school increases or decreases say more than 20% of their total enrollment every 2 years? It also seems Gateway has a different slate of district members and classifications for each sport which is where it gets tricky for new fans such as myself. For example, Cardinal Mooney is in our district in baseball but not for any other sport. Also, Gateway Charter is in 5A for basketball, 4A for most other sports and Soccer is 2A. Football to my understanding in class 1A-4A have no districts and use a point system? Somewhat confusing. I'm sure it has something to do with even distribution of member playing schools in that sport and the number of classes. In Georgia, you are assigned one classification and you play in the same district with members across the board in all sports (unless they don't field the sport). Just wondering if anyone could fill me in how things are done here in Florida.

Also, what sites are the most popular for talking HS sports? Georgia has two main ones but I can’t seem to find many for Florida. 

Well some sports have 9 classifications so it isn't seperated the same 

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15 hours ago, Georgiaflyer said:

Hello everyone! I’m m a new transplant here from Georgia. I have been following GHSA sports for over 20+ years. I now follow a team, Gateway Charter High School, in Fort Myers. I had a question regarding FHSAA district assignments (regions as we call them in Georgia). How often does the FHSAA re-evaluate district assignments? I actually like the classification break downs as they seem pretty fairly split up (a big problem Georgia had for a while in the smaller classes). After doing some pretty thorough research I still found myself somewhat confused by how they actually draw the districts up. Gateway Charter for example is in District 5 Class 4A for football. Their Fall 2017 enrollment is 552 on the FHSAA website. Why would they be placed in Class 4A (681-1,114)? Is it based on student population from 4 years ago when Gateway Charter had a much larger enrollment? Do they do mid-cycle reviews say if a school increases or decreases say more than 20% of their total enrollment every 2 years? It also seems Gateway has a different slate of district members and classifications for each sport which is where it gets tricky for new fans such as myself. For example, Cardinal Mooney is in our district in baseball but not for any other sport. Also, Gateway Charter is in 5A for basketball, 4A for most other sports and Soccer is 2A. Football to my understanding in class 1A-4A have no districts and use a point system? Somewhat confusing. I'm sure it has something to do with even distribution of member playing schools in that sport and the number of classes. In Georgia, you are assigned one classification and you play in the same district with members across the board in all sports (unless they don't field the sport). Just wondering if anyone could fill me in how things are done here in Florida.

Also, what sites are the most popular for talking HS sports? Georgia has two main ones but I can’t seem to find many for Florida. 

First welcome to Florida. 

Why would they be placed in Class 4A (681-1,114)? Is it based on student population from 4 years ago when Gateway Charter had a much larger enrollment?

2014: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 710
2015: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 734
2016: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 646
2017: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 552

So these districts/regions began in the Fall of 2015 and will end in the Spring of 2019, with new districts starting in Fall 2019. So if you look at their 2014 population, you can see that they would firmly be in Class 4A.  The population cutoffs can be different in different sports. 

How often does the FHSAA re-evaluate district assignments? Do they do mid-cycle reviews say if a school increases or decreases say more than 20% of their total enrollment every 2 years?

They redistrict ever 4 years now. They used to do it ever 2 years. They usually do some adjustments mid-cycle and they did this time, but again only if there are major changes or if schools want to move up. It was made more complicated this time around, due to football switching to the Power Point System and the elimination of districts in 1A-4A. 

Football to my understanding in class 1A-4A have no districts and use a point system?
The point system is used for 1A-4A as they got rid of the districts to allow schools to have more flexibility in their schedule (so they can avoid playing some of the really good teams). The Power Point system is designed to make "every game count" instead of just the district games in choosing who enters the playoffs, which was a complaint that there was no excitement in Week 11 games because the playoffs had already been determined. The Power Point System also allowed there to be seeding in the playoffs and allowed to schedule to their competition. (Trying to avoid giving my opinion in order for you to form your own opinion).

Classification 5A-8A still have districts (usually 3-7 teams) and the team with the best DISTRICT record is the district champion seeded as a top 4 seed in the region and receives at least one home playoff game. 

It also seems Gateway has a different slate of district members and classifications for each sport which is where it gets tricky for new fans such as myself. For example, Cardinal Mooney is in our district in baseball but not for any other sport. 

Cardinal Mooney doesn't have a softball team. 
As for the rest of the sports, there are lots of teams that have certain sports (basketball, but don't have a baseball or softball team or vice versa) as a result it changes the size of classifications and as a result the districts.

Also, what sites are the most popular for talking HS sports?
Obviously, this is a good site to start with.
 

 

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On 1/26/2018 at 9:51 PM, gatorman-uf said:

First welcome to Florida. 

Why would they be placed in Class 4A (681-1,114)? Is it based on student population from 4 years ago when Gateway Charter had a much larger enrollment?

2014: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 710
2015: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 734
2016: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 646
2017: Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) - 552

So these districts/regions began in the Fall of 2015 and will end in the Spring of 2019, with new districts starting in Fall 2019. So if you look at their 2014 population, you can see that they would firmly be in Class 4A.  The population cutoffs can be different in different sports. 

How often does the FHSAA re-evaluate district assignments? Do they do mid-cycle reviews say if a school increases or decreases say more than 20% of their total enrollment every 2 years?

They redistrict ever 4 years now. They used to do it ever 2 years. They usually do some adjustments mid-cycle and they did this time, but again only if there are major changes or if schools want to move up. It was made more complicated this time around, due to football switching to the Power Point System and the elimination of districts in 1A-4A. 

Football to my understanding in class 1A-4A have no districts and use a point system?
The point system is used for 1A-4A as they got rid of the districts to allow schools to have more flexibility in their schedule (so they can avoid playing some of the really good teams). The Power Point system is designed to make "every game count" instead of just the district games in choosing who enters the playoffs, which was a complaint that there was no excitement in Week 11 games because the playoffs had already been determined. The Power Point System also allowed there to be seeding in the playoffs and allowed to schedule to their competition. (Trying to avoid giving my opinion in order for you to form your own opinion).

Classification 5A-8A still have districts (usually 3-7 teams) and the team with the best DISTRICT record is the district champion seeded as a top 4 seed in the region and receives at least one home playoff game. 

It also seems Gateway has a different slate of district members and classifications for each sport which is where it gets tricky for new fans such as myself. For example, Cardinal Mooney is in our district in baseball but not for any other sport. 

Cardinal Mooney doesn't have a softball team. 
As for the rest of the sports, there are lots of teams that have certain sports (basketball, but don't have a baseball or softball team or vice versa) as a result it changes the size of classifications and as a result the districts.

Also, what sites are the most popular for talking HS sports?
Obviously, this is a good site to start with.
 

 

If a school goes over these enrollments figures, how does the FHSAA handle it.  For instance Raines is at 1376 enrollment and is 4A yet the top of 4A is 1114?  

 

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47 minutes ago, Tigers2017 said:

If a school goes over these enrollments figures, how does the FHSAA handle it.  For instance Raines is at 1376 enrollment and is 4A yet the top of 4A is 1114?  

 

If they are under during the reclassification cycle then they are assigned to a classification 

 

Sometimes they allow a team to move up or down for travel but those are case by case basis 

 

Was raines at that enrollment 3 years ago or this year? 

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Raines was 1,020 in 2015 and 1,386 in 2017.

Not to hijack the thread to how things are done it Georgia but I think it’s worth noting that in Georgia they adjust every 2 years if a schools enrollment increases or decreases more than 20% at mid-cycle. Many new schools (especially growing metro Atlanta) are opening each year causing dramatic shifts in school populations. That is why GHSA has the rule. Not sure FHSAA has a rule like this in place. Georgia also allows schools to play up in classification and also has an isolation rule to allow a school to play down due to travel. These are obviously special cases. City school districts also get a population multiplier if more than 3% of the student population comes from out of county since many city school districts have open enrollment policies. Ie. Buford in metro Atlanta.

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On 1/30/2018 at 7:18 PM, Georgiaflyer said:

Raines was 1,020 in 2015 and 1,386 in 2017.

Not to hijack the thread to how things are done it Georgia but I think it’s worth noting that in Georgia they adjust every 2 years if a schools enrollment increases or decreases more than 20% at mid-cycle. Many new schools (especially growing metro Atlanta) are opening each year causing dramatic shifts in school populations. That is why GHSA has the rule. Not sure FHSAA has a rule like this in place. Georgia also allows schools to play up in classification and also has an isolation rule to allow a school to play down due to travel. These are obviously special cases. City school districts also get a population multiplier if more than 3% of the student population comes from out of county since many city school districts have open enrollment policies. Ie. Buford in metro Atlanta.

That is interesting. I wonder if Florida has rule like this. It seems weird that a school could be that far above the limit and still allowed to stay in 4A.  Why have schools classified by enrollment if the numbers don not matter?

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14 minutes ago, Tigers2017 said:

That is interesting. I wonder if Florida has rule like this. It seems weird that a school could be that far above the limit and still allowed to stay in 4A.  Why have schools classified by enrollment if the numbers don not matter?

My guess is raines will be 5a come next cycle (which will be after this upcoming season)

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1 minute ago, gatorman-uf said:

Reclassification was done in 2017, but it would be done based on the 2016 population. So their number was 1220. The FHSAA Assignments page has 4A at 1,114. 20% more is 1336. So even at the idea of 20% more, Raines would still be in the same classification.

So how come when we were not even 100 students above the limit (which wouldn't be close to 20%) we were forced to move up? 

On side note i really hope they eventually assign Gainesville high into our football District 

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4 minutes ago, gatorman-uf said:

Mid-term reclassifying (which is what we are talking about) vs when they completely re-do it (when Columbia moved up) Come on, follow along now. 

BTW this also the reason it should be done on an average of 4 or 5 years and not on a one year snap shot.

So the 20% only applies during half point cycles? 

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5 minutes ago, gatorman-uf said:

Mid-term reclassifying (which is what we are talking about) vs when they completely re-do it (when Columbia moved up) Come on, follow along now. 

BTW this also the reason it should be done on an average of 4 or 5 years and not on a one year snap shot.

Finally something we can agree on

 

I see schools out there (not naming names) that find ways to lower the numbers on enrollment years which why some schools go from rising every year to suddenly dropping

 

If it was done as a average it would be impossible to "fudge" the numbers

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14 hours ago, ColumbiaHighFan2017class said:

So how come when we were not even 100 students above the limit (which wouldn't be close to 20%) we were forced to move up? 

On side note i really hope they eventually assign Gainesville high into our football District 

Columbia................be careful what you wish for. The Hurricanes, in most years, are one tough team to defeat.

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12 minutes ago, Proseteye said:

Columbia................be careful what you wish for. The Hurricanes, in most years, are one tough team to defeat.

They in our district in every other sport so I'm accustom to having our season going through Gainesville and more times than not we are able to get the best of them

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22 hours ago, ColumbiaHighFan2017class said:

They in our district in every other sport so I'm accustom to having our season going through Gainesville and more times than not we are able to get the best of them

I agree. But, they are usually one of your toughest opponents although being one class below you. A team has always got to be on top of their game to defeat them, up year or down.

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47 minutes ago, Proseteye said:

I agree. But, they are usually one of your toughest opponents although being one class below you. A team has always got to be on top of their game to defeat them, up year or down.

I understand that but for me i want us at our best and if we aren't capable of beating Gainesville with a playoff spot on the line then i know we don't belong in the playoffs 

 

It's became the biggest rivarly in the Columbia building, there is no team i look forward to us beating more than Gainesville 

 

When Columbia played Gainesville in playoffs this past year in softball it probably meant more to get that win than any other football win just because it was the   first time playing Gainesville in the playoffs my entire time in high school (that i attended at least)

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On 2/3/2018 at 1:18 PM, ColumbiaHighFan2017class said:

I understand that but for me i want us at our best and if we aren't capable of beating Gainesville with a playoff spot on the line then i know we don't belong in the playoffs 

 

It's became the biggest rivarly in the Columbia building, there is no team i look forward to us beating more than Gainesville 

 

When Columbia played Gainesville in playoffs this past year in softball it probably meant more to get that win than any other football win just because it was the   first time playing Gainesville in the playoffs my entire time in high school (that i attended at least)

Looking back over the years Columbia and Gainesville have played almost every year and usually in the first game of the season.

 

2004, 2007, 2009 Columbia won

2011, 2012  Columbia lost

2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017  Columbia won

All of the games were close and some were by a point or two.

Don't know why you didn't play in 2006, 2008, 2010

From what you have observed what is it that allows Columbia to be just a little bit better than Gainesville nearly every year? Your roster is about the same. Your student body is pretty close. Could it be that Columbia is the only public HS in Lake City and Gainesville is one of four HS's located in Gainesville, Buchholtz, Eastside, Santa Fe? Of course, that may not have anything to do with it. Columbia may just be a better all around team. 

 

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9 minutes ago, Proseteye said:

Looking back over the years Columbia and Gainesville have played almost every year and usually in the first game of the season.

 

2004, 2007, 2009 Columbia won

2011, 2012  Columbia lost

2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017  Columbia won

All of the games were close and some were by a point or two.

Don't know why you didn't play in 2006, 2008, 2010

From what you have observed what is it that allows Columbia to be just a little bit better than Gainesville nearly every year? Your roster is about the same. Your student body is pretty close. Could it be that Columbia is the only public HS in Lake City and Gainesville is one of four HS's located in Gainesville, Buchholtz, Eastside, Santa Fe? Of course, that may not have anything to do with it. Columbia may just be a better all around team. 

 

From my experience it seems like we always are just a level ahead of them when we play

 

Plus by us always playing so early we are healthy when the game happens and we are better than Gainesville when healthy 

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17 minutes ago, Proseteye said:

Looking back over the years Columbia and Gainesville have played almost every year and usually in the first game of the season.

 

2004, 2007, 2009 Columbia won

2011, 2012  Columbia lost

2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017  Columbia won

All of the games were close and some were by a point or two.

Don't know why you didn't play in 2006, 2008, 2010

From what you have observed what is it that allows Columbia to be just a little bit better than Gainesville nearly every year? Your roster is about the same. Your student body is pretty close. Could it be that Columbia is the only public HS in Lake City and Gainesville is one of four HS's located in Gainesville, Buchholtz, Eastside, Santa Fe? Of course, that may not have anything to do with it. Columbia may just be a better all around team. 

 

...my view as an outsider...2 things...tradition and coaching continuity.  Columbia has a history of winning going WAY back and they have had little coaching turnover since the mid 90's.  Columbia had a seasoned coach take them to quite a few playoff wins and now they have a hometown hero who appears to be there for the long haul.

Much of Gainesville's historic playoff success has taken place this decade, and I believe they have gone through quite a few coaches since the 90's.  

  

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3 hours ago, OldSchoolLion said:

...my view as an outsider...2 things...tradition and coaching continuity.  Columbia has a history of winning going WAY back and they have had little coaching turnover since the mid 90's.  Columbia had a seasoned coach take them to quite a few playoff wins and now they have a hometown hero who appears to be there for the long haul.

Much of Gainesville's historic playoff success has taken place this decade, and I believe they have gone through quite a few coaches since the 90's.  

  

That's an excellent assessment and something I was not fully aware of. Just look at Trenton. Championship coach leaves and the team reverts to ordinary. Can't believe they have different quality players now.

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