What Did Districts Look Like in 1981?

[OldSchoolLion]

Below is an example from 3A in south Florida.  There were 4 total classifications in 1981.  Current classification of each school is in parentheses after school name.  Today Ely, Ft Lauderdale and STA are in a 3-team district in 7A.  My how things have changed! 

One thing is for sure...scheduling was a lot simpler back then.  You basically played local teams and might have one game against a team from outside the county.  There were greater disparities in school populations than today...and I don't recall hearing nearly as much bitching about the topic.

FYI-STA was 8-0 against the others that year, but 3 teams got within a TD of them.  Chaminade was a small, all-boys school and was a doormat.  They lost to STA 71-7, yet they still "played up."  Today we talk about having systems to force certain teams to move up...sad.  

Cardinal Gibbons(5A)

Chaminade(3A)

Ely(7A)

Fort Lauderdale(7A)

Hallandale(5A)

Northeast(6A)

Pompano Beach(5A)

Stranahan(5A)

St Thomas Aquinas(7A)

 

[nolebull813]

Where are you getting these results and records from for all these tidbits? 

Do you have season by season results for these teams? 

[OldSchoolLion]

9 minutes ago, nolebull813 said:

Where are you getting these results and records from for all these tidbits? 

Do you have season by season results for these teams? 

Wouldn't that be sweet if there was one source.  Unfortunately, have to hunt...lots of old newspaper clippings.

[DarterBlue2]

1 minute ago, OldSchoolLion said:

Wouldn't that be sweet if there was one source.  Unfortunately, have to hunt...lots of old newspaper clippings.

Your hard work is appreciated. You have posted a lot of historical knowledge and perspective the past several months!

[OldSchoolLion]

12 minutes ago, DarterBlue2 said:

Your hard work is appreciated. You have posted a lot of historical knowledge and perspective the past several months!

...some of it is just amusing trivia.  But some of the history is truly important for future decision-making, ie rationales for past district and region alignments.  If we are not careful, we could end up reinventing the wheel and/or repeating sins of the past.  For this reason, I think it is important for us geezers to share what we know with the younger folks, since they are the future of the sport.

I think it is also important to recognize how Florida has changed so much over the years, ie population centers, and how such changes have impacted hs football.  There have been huge changes in the power centers of hs football, and there is no reason to believe this trend will not continue.  I'm sure folks in the Panhandle 30-40 years ago would have struggled to believe that they would be trailing the pack one day.  Likewise, I could see central FL overtaking south FL in terms of powerhouse teams in 30 years...maybe less.       

I'm not one to think things were always better in the past.  Today we get to see certain regular season games we never would have seen in the stone ages.  On the flip side, one has to wonder how we could pack 5000+ fans into a rural stadium 50 years ago and today we have games in urban centers where you can hear the crickets.     

[Floridatech]

Ironically same year Vero won states lol

[OldSchoolLion]

10 minutes ago, Floridatech said:

Ironically same year Vero won states lol

For a team to win a 4A title back then was a huge deal.  4A was brutal, and Vero had to come through south FL in the playoffs.  I liked the playoff paths better back then...games vs Broward and Dade teams were more likely.   

[Floridatech]

2 minutes ago, OldSchoolLion said:

For a team to win a 4A title back then was a huge deal.  4A was brutal, and Vero had to come through south FL in the playoffs.  I liked the playoff paths better back then...games vs Broward and Dade teams were more likely.   

Vero beat Mosley 10-7 very low scoring game 

[OldSchoolLion]

25 minutes ago, Floridatech said:

Vero beat Mosley 10-7 very low scoring game 

Not taking anything away from the victory, but Vero was fortunate they made the finals that year so they could play at home.  The Panhandle teams were notoriously difficult to beat at home back then.  A number of central/south FL teams tried and came away empty.    Imagine an 8-hour road trip to play in a state final.    

[Floridatech]

14 minutes ago, OldSchoolLion said:

Not taking anything away from the victory, but Vero was fortunate they made the finals that year so they could play at home.  The Panhandle teams were notoriously difficult to beat at home back then.  A number of central/south FL teams tried and came away empty.    Imagine an 8-hour road trip to play in a state final.    

Yea I understand that and I wish I can see that box score for this game

[OldSchoolLion]

21 minutes ago, Floridatech said:

Yea I understand that and I wish I can see that box score for this game

Gonna make your day.  You owe me LOL

 

1st quarter VB 47 yard FG (bounced off the upright and through)

3rd quarter MOS Little 2-yard run

4th quarter  VB Simmons 5-yard run

VB linebacker Bobby Toomey recovered a Mosely fumble at the Vero 25-yard line with less than 40 seconds to play to seal the game.   

 

Stats

First Downs VB 12  MOS 14

Rushing VB 27-154   MOS 31-130

Passing VB 7/13 for 68 yds   MOS 10/17 for 71 yds

Turnovers VB 1 INT   MOS 1 lost fumble and 1 INT

Penalties VB 2-20   MOS 2-20

VB Ind Rushing  Cunningham 16 carries for 101 yds

MOS Ind Rushing Miller 6 carries for 40 yds

[Hwy17]

On 7/29/2018 at 3:27 PM, OldSchoolLion said:

Below is an example from 3A in south Florida.  There were 4 total classifications in 1981.  Current classification of each school is in parentheses after school name.  Today Ely, Ft Lauderdale and STA are in a 3-team district in 7A.  My how things have changed! 

One thing is for sure...scheduling was a lot simpler back then.  You basically played local teams and might have one game against a team from outside the county.  There were greater disparities in school populations than today...and I don't recall hearing nearly as much bitching about the topic.

FYI-STA was 8-0 against the others that year, but 3 teams got within a TD of them.  Chaminade was a small, all-boys school and was a doormat.  They lost to STA 71-7, yet they still "played up."  Today we talk about having systems to force certain teams to move up...sad.  

Cardinal Gibbons(5A)

Chaminade(3A)

Ely(7A)

Fort Lauderdale(7A)

Hallandale(5A)

Northeast(6A)

Pompano Beach(5A)

Stranahan(5A)

St Thomas Aquinas(7A)

 

There was a push for a 5th class back then too.  But you are correct, districts were much bigger and only the district champ made the playoffs. 

[OldSchoolLion]

There was much more parity then.  STA was 84-26 in the 1980's.  Not as dominant as today, but still a powerhouse.  

Back then, they got the best of the Broward teams, but the following teams all managed to pull off wins during the regular season:

Boyd Anderson, Deerfield Beach, Dillard, Ely, Hollywood Hills, McArthur, Miramar, South Broward, Stranahan

 

[Floridatech]

17 minutes ago, OldSchoolLion said:

Gonna make your day.  You owe me LOL

 

1st quarter VB 47 yard FG (bounced off the upright and through)

3rd quarter MOS Little 2-yard run

4th quarter  VB Simmons 5-yard run

VB linebacker Bobby Toomey recovered a Mosely fumble at the Vero 25-yard line with less than 40 seconds to play to seal the game.   

 

Stats

First Downs VB 12  MOS 14

Rushing VB 27-154   MOS 31-130

Passing VB 7/13 for 68 yds   MOS 10/17 for 71 yds

Turnovers VB 1 INT   MOS 1 lost fumble and 1 INT

Penalties VB 2-20   MOS 2-20

VB Ind Rushing  Cunningham 16 carries for 101 yds

MOS Ind Rushing Miller 6 carries for 40 yds

So Vero had a come from behind victory huh