2016 Week 9 Football Playoff Listing
October 18, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Here is a list of Michigan High School Athletic Association football playing schools, displaying their win-loss records and playoff averages through the eighth week of the season.
Schools on this list are in enrollment order for 11-player teams, with 8-player teams ordered by playoff average. An asterisk (*) beside a record indicates a team has eight or fewer games scheduled. A caret (^) beside a school’s name indicates a team is one win away from playoff qualification.
Those schools with 11-player teams with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules, or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer, will qualify for the MHSAA Football Playoffs beginning Oct. 28.
Schools with 5-4, 4-3 or 4-4 records may qualify if the number of potential qualifiers by win total does not reach the 256 mark. Schools with six or more wins playing nine-game schedules or five or more wins playing eight games or fewer may be subtracted from the field based on playoff average if the number of potential qualifiers exceeds the 256 mark.
Once the 256 qualifying schools are determined, they will be divided by enrollment groups into eight equal divisions of 32 schools, and then drawn into regions of eight teams each and districts of four teams each. Those schools with 8-player teams will be ranked by playoff average at season’s end, and the top 16 programs will be drawn into regions of eight teams each for the playoff in that division, which also begins Oct. 28.
To review a list of all football playoff schools, individual school playoff point details and to report errors, visit the Football page of the MHSAA Website.
The announcement of the qualifiers and first-round pairings for both the 11 and 8-player playoffs will take place at 7 p.m. on Oct. 23 on the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit. In addition to the cable television broadcast, the show will be available via a live video stream on the FoxSportsDetroit.com website, and for mobile users on FOX Sports GO! The playoff qualifiers and pairings will be posted to the MHSAA Website following the Selection Sunday Show.
11-Player Playoff Listing
1. Macomb Dakota ^, 2976, 5-3, 65.000
2. Utica Eisenhower, 2700, 8-0, 113.000
3. Clarkston, 2683, 6-2, 82.125
4. Grand Blanc, 2628, 4-4, 57.000
5. East Kentwood, 2596, 4-4, 55.500
6. Southfield Arts & Technology ^, 2581, 5-3, 68.125
7. Rockford, 2563, 6-2, 83.750
8. Clinton Township Chippewa Valley ^, 2518, 5-3, 73.000
9. Howell ^, 2499, 5-3, 65.875
10. Dearborn Fordson, 2487, 7-1, 94.750
11. Lake Orion ^, 2418, 5-3, 64.500
12. Detroit Cass Tech, 2368, 8-0, 93.000
13. Northville, 2325, 7-1, 100.750
14. Salem, 2172, 4-4, 51.125
15. Brighton, 2142, 7-1, 94.750
16. Detroit Catholic Central, 2128, 8-0, 110.000
17. Novi, 2050, 4-4, 51.875
18. Oxford, 2042, 4-4, 51.000
19. Canton, 2035, 6-2, 79.500
20. New Baltimore Anchor Bay ^, 1987, 5-3, 57.500
21. Macomb L'Anse Creuse North, 1986, 6-2, 76.500
22. Dearborn, 1978, 7-1, 97.750
23. Lapeer, 1932, 6-2, 72.500
24. Saline, 1923, 8-0, 108.714
25. West Bloomfield, 1905, 4-4, 53.375
26. Holt, 1881, 4-4, 48.500
27. Livonia Stevenson, 1839, 4-4, 57.125
28. Bloomfield Hills, 1831, 8-0, 107.000
29. White Lake Lakeland, 1822, 4-4, 48.875
30. Grandville, 1810, 7-1, 93.625
31. Hudsonville, 1797, 7-1, 93.750
32. Warren Mott, 1768, 6-2, 78.375
33. Ann Arbor Skyline, 1732, 4-4, 49.536
34. Grand Ledge, 1694, 7-1, 91.750
35. Belleville, 1668, 6-2, 77.500
36. Davison, 1668, 8-0, 101.000
37. Rochester Adams, 1666, 6-2, 75.500
38. Romeo ^, 1641, 5-3, 75.750
39. Waterford Mott, 1638, 4-4, 56.000
40. Rochester ^, 1632, 5-3, 63.750
41. Walled Lake Northern, 1631, 6-2, 76.125
42. Kalamazoo Central, 1615, 4-4, 52.089
43. Grosse Pointe South, 1600, 6-2, 83.125
44. Temperance Bedford, 1597, 7-1, 85.875
45. Detroit Western International, 1584, 4-4, 42.750
46. Brownstown Woodhaven, 1579, 6-2, 75.375
47. Detroit East English, 1579, 4-4, 49.125
48. Livonia Churchill ^, 1578, 5-3, 64.625
49. Traverse City West, 1552, 6-2, 77.625
50. Flint Carman-Ainsworth, 1522, 6-2, 78.250
51. Livonia Franklin, 1507, 6-2, 80.000
52. Warren Cousino, 1496, 7-1, 89.500
53. Detroit Martin Luther King, 1487, 7-1, 86.875
54. Detroit U-D Jesuit *, 1482, 5-2, 76.746
55. Jenison ^, 1481, 5-3, 60.125
56. Oak Park, 1409, 6-2, 81.750
57. St. Clair Shores Lakeview ^, 1409, 5-3, 55.875
58. Ypsilanti Lincoln, 1404, 4-4, 47.161
59. Traverse City Central, 1394, 7-1, 92.500
60. Port Huron, 1392, 4-4, 47.875
61. Midland, 1388, 4-4, 46.625
62. Portage Central, 1388, 7-1, 95.464
63. Portage Northern ^, 1378, 5-3, 65.946
64. Walled Lake Western, 1370, 7-1, 103.125
65. Grosse Pointe North, 1367, 6-2, 76.250
66. Battle Creek Lakeview *, 1353, 5-2, 70.268
67. Hamtramck ^, 1352, 5-3, 51.804
68. Dearborn Edsel Ford, 1346, 4-4, 47.875
69. Berkley ^, 1319, 5-3, 65.750
70. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, 1316, 6-2, 76.375
71. Wyandotte Roosevelt, 1311, 7-1, 89.875
72. Dearborn Heights Crestwood, 1294, 4-4, 45.125
73. Port Huron Northern, 1288, 6-2, 67.875
74. Wyoming ^, 1288, 5-3, 59.875
75. Pinckney, 1276, 6-2, 78.375
76. Midland Dow, 1254, 7-1, 86.625
77. Birmingham Brother Rice ^, 1250, 5-3, 69.042
78. Birmingham Groves, 1248, 8-0, 109.000
79. Jackson, 1243, 4-4, 51.250
80. Muskegon Mona Shores, 1240, 4-4, 52.375
81. South Lyon, 1234, 4-4, 53.250
82. Muskegon Reeths-Puffer, 1198, 4-4, 45.625
83. Lowell, 1165, 8-0, 113.000
84. Holly ^, 1164, 5-3, 59.750
85. Farmington Hills Harrison, 1161, 4-4, 50.500
86. Bay City Central ^, 1158, 5-3, 58.875
87. Greenville ^, 1142, 5-3, 64.625
88. Fenton, 1138, 6-2, 79.000
89. Gibraltar Carlson, 1136, 4-4, 51.500
90. East Lansing ^, 1117, 5-3, 62.500
91. Ferndale, 1117, 6-2, 65.375
92. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 1100, 4-4, 50.875
93. Allen Park, 1094, 8-0, 111.000
94. Byron Center, 1070, 7-1, 89.750
95. Mount Pleasant, 1065, 4-4, 43.625
96. Muskegon, 1052, 7-1, 91.750
97. Orchard Lake St. Mary's ^, 1040, 5-3, 70.978
98. Ortonville-Brandon, 1034, 7-1, 80.625
99. Detroit Cody ^, 1015, 5-3, 59.125
100. St. Johns, 1015, 4-4, 47.750
101. Mason, 1009, 7-1, 81.750
102. Zeeland East, 1007, 6-2, 73.250
103. DeWitt, 1002, 7-1, 95.750
104. St. Joseph, 989, 6-2, 77.071
105. East Grand Rapids, 979, 6-2, 78.625
106. Trenton ^, 969, 5-3, 68.000
107. Linden, 940, 6-2, 70.500
108. Coldwater, 929, 6-2, 72.000
109. Romulus, 929, 7-1, 84.750
110. Grand Rapids Christian, 912, 7-1, 88.958
111. Warren Fitzgerald, 891, 7-1, 85.500
112. New Boston Huron ^, 886, 5-3, 57.750
113. Battle Creek Harper Creek, 880, 7-1, 78.625
114. Chelsea, 867, 8-0, 101.486
115. Redford Union, 865, 6-2, 62.375
116. Stevensville Lakeshore ^, 865, 5-3, 65.750
117. Vicksburg, 861, 7-1, 77.875
118. Dearborn Divine Child, 859, 6-2, 66.000
119. Zeeland West, 857, 6-2, 78.500
120. Edwardsburg, 855, 8-0, 93.000
121. Marshall, 849, 4-4, 48.375
122. Bay City John Glenn, 838, 6-2, 63.375
123. Sparta, 834, 4-4, 38.375
124. Fowlerville, 833, 6-2, 69.625
125. Cadillac, 817, 6-2, 68.250
126. Hamilton ^, 810, 5-3, 59.125
127. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 797, 6-2, 65.536
128. Marysville, 794, 8-0, 99.000
129. Adrian ^, 792, 5-3, 59.161
130. Detroit Osborn, 786, 4-4, 45.750
131. St. Clair, 784, 4-4, 51.375
132. Milan, 775, 7-1, 87.375
133. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, 749, 4-4, 48.000
134. River Rouge, 741, 7-1, 75.875
135. Allendale, 735, 6-2, 67.500
136. Three Rivers, 730, 6-2, 67.125
137. Escanaba, 722, 6-2, 69.306
138. Detroit Mumford, 714, 7-1, 85.571
139. Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy *, 708, 5-3, 57.911
140. Detroit Cesar Chavez Academy, 697, 4-4, 26.250
141. Ludington, 695, 6-2, 50.375
142. Detroit Country Day, 692, 8-0, 93.714
143. Monroe Jefferson, 687, 4-4, 44.750
144. Warren Lincoln, 686, 4-4, 39.750
145. Yale, 683, 4-4, 42.125
146. Alma, 674, 7-1, 77.875
147. Paw Paw, 672, 4-4, 41.500
148. Battle Creek Pennfield, 669, 4-4, 45.375
149. Wyoming Kelloggsville, 660, 7-1, 80.071
150. Croswell-Lexington ^, 659, 5-3, 53.875
151. Lake Fenton, 654, 8-0, 88.000
152. Grosse Ile, 653, 7-1, 81.750
153. Whitehall ^, 653, 5-3, 51.000
154. Flint Powers Catholic ^, 647, 5-3, 57.625
155. Wyoming Godwin Heights, 645, 4-4, 45.196
156. Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 644, 7-1, 85.750
157. Benton Harbor, 643, 8-0, 93.000
158. Williamston, 643, 4-4, 43.750
159. Corunna, 639, 6-2, 62.500
160. Hudsonville Unity Christian, 629, 7-1, 86.625
161. Grand Rapids South Christian ^, 621, 5-3, 58.250
162. St. Clair Shores South Lake, 617, 6-2, 72.125
163. Lake Odessa Lakewood, 614, 8-0, 86.000
164. Dowagiac ^, 610, 5-3, 54.250
165. Lansing Sexton ^, 610, 5-3, 67.000
166. Hancock, 608, 4-4, 35.514
167. Saginaw Swan Valley ^, 607, 5-3, 55.250
168. Detroit Denby, 593, 7-1, 74.375
169. Muskegon Oakridge, 590, 7-1, 73.875
170. Southfield Bradford, 587, 6-2, 58.536
171. Belding ^, 585, 5-3, 53.125
172. Portland, 579, 8-0, 100.000
173. Remus Chippewa Hills, 577, 7-1, 75.875
174. North Muskegon, 565, 4-4, 38.750
175. Richmond, 562, 7-1, 80.875
176. Freeland, 561, 8-0, 95.000
177. Macomb Lutheran North, 557, 4-4, 41.250
178. Essexville Garber, 550, 6-2, 60.625
179. Algonac, 547, 7-1, 77.750
180. Ida, 546, 7-1, 76.750
181. Carrollton, 543, 4-4, 38.625
182. Kingsford, 543, 6-2, 71.306
183. Olivet ^, 541, 5-3, 54.625
184. Harper Woods, 540, 4-4, 38.425
185. Frankenmuth, 533, 8-0, 88.000
186. Lansing Catholic, 532, 7-1, 83.875
187. Grandville Calvin Christian ^, 531, 5-3, 54.946
188. Marine City, 526, 4-4, 49.000
189. Grant, 520, 6-2, 57.625
190. Kalkaska, 517, 6-2, 56.500
191. Perry, 504, 4-4, 35.250
192. Almont ^, 497, 5-3, 51.000
193. Shepherd ^, 497, 5-3, 51.125
194. Manistee, 496, 4-4, 39.500
195. Reed City, 496, 8-0, 91.000
196. Grayling ^, 492, 5-3, 46.250
197. Berrien Springs *, 482, 5-2, 66.306
198. Stockbridge, 482, 4-4, 41.500
199. Buchanan *^, 476, 4-3, 51.411
200. Grand Rapids West Catholic, 475, 7-1, 75.625
201. Ovid-Elsie, 475, 4-4, 38.750
202. Durand ^, 463, 5-3, 44.125
203. Parchment ^, 448, 5-3, 48.375
204. Clinton Township Clintondale, 447, 4-4, 40.750
205. Brooklyn Columbia Central, 442, 6-2, 58.500
206. Menominee, 439, 7-1, 84.194
207. Hillsdale, 432, 4-4, 39.250
208. Ithaca, 426, 8-0, 83.000
209. Clare, 419, 7-1, 73.875
210. Pinconning ^, 417, 5-3, 44.875
211. Montague, 414, 6-2, 58.125
212. Tawas *, 412, 5-2, 45.714
213. Hemlock, 411, 4-4, 37.875
214. Harrison ^, 410, 5-3, 46.750
215. Calumet, 406, 7-1, 67.764
216. Michigan Center ^, 406, 5-3, 45.000
217. Morley Stanwood ^, 404, 5-3, 48.875
218. Lakeview ^, 402, 5-3, 54.625
219. Delton Kellogg, 401, 4-4, 42.625
220. Negaunee, 400, 8-0, 86.429
221. Warren Michigan Collegiate, 398, 7-1, 76.036
222. Adrian Madison, 397, 4-4, 36.750
223. Boyne City, 396, 6-2, 62.875
224. Charlevoix, 393, 6-2, 56.500
225. Millington, 393, 7-1, 73.875
226. Beaverton ^, 387, 5-3, 48.000
227. Constantine ^, 386, 5-3, 55.000
228. Montrose ^, 386, 5-3, 52.125
229. Byron, 385, 6-2, 57.500
230. Quincy ^, 381, 5-3, 39.125
231. Jackson Lumen Christi, 380, 6-2, 71.500
232. Napoleon, 380, 6-2, 53.375
233. Watervliet, 380, 6-2, 61.375
234. Maple City Glen Lake, 379, 6-2, 56.750
235. Manchester ^, 378, 5-3, 43.000
236. Detroit Edison Public School Academy *^, 374, 4-3, 41.304
237. Houghton Lake ^, 374, 5-3, 49.125
238. Laingsburg, 374, 7-1, 63.875
239. Blissfield, 367, 4-4, 41.875
240. Roscommon, 367, 7-1, 68.750
241. Grass Lake, 363, 7-1, 65.500
242. Kent City, 362, 6-2, 56.125
243. New Haven, 362, 4-4, 41.250
244. Schoolcraft, 358, 8-0, 83.000
245. Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central, 355, 4-4, 49.500
246. Oscoda, 352, 4-4, 30.125
247. Ravenna, 350, 6-2, 60.375
248. Leroy Pine River, 347, 6-2, 61.125
249. Detroit Central Collegiate, 346, 4-4, 40.250
250. Ecorse, 345, 4-4, 40.375
251. Madison Heights Madison ^, 343, 5-3, 67.625
252. Traverse City St. Francis, 341, 8-0, 85.000
253. Bath, 336, 4-4, 32.625
254. Lawton, 333, 7-1, 62.875
255. Clinton, 331, 6-2, 56.250
256. Flint Hamady, 329, 6-2, 58.375
257. Reese ^, 328, 5-3, 43.000
258. Detroit Delta Prep ^, 327, 5-3, 46.375
259. Flint Beecher, 327, 4-4, 38.250
260. McBain, 326, 4-4, 42.625
261. Burton Atherton, 316, 4-4, 30.625
262. Homer, 313, 6-2, 55.250
263. Bridgman ^, 312, 5-3, 39.946
264. Galesburg-Augusta ^, 312, 5-3, 38.250
265. Iron Mountain, 302, 6-2, 53.929
266. Brown City, 298, 4-4, 32.875
267. New Lothrop, 298, 8-0, 80.000
268. Gobles, 289, 6-2, 57.625
269. Saugatuck, 289, 8-0, 71.000
270. Cass City ^, 288, 5-3, 50.375
271. Pewamo-Westphalia, 288, 8-0, 74.000
272. Gwinn ^, 287, 5-3, 46.250
273. Harbor Springs, 284, 4-4, 34.571
274. Cassopolis, 278, 7-1, 65.143
275. Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett, 277, 8-0, 74.429
276. Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest ^, 275, 5-3, 42.607
277. Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker, 274, 7-1, 60.750
278. Carson City-Crystal, 268, 4-4, 30.125
279. Sand Creek, 268, 7-1, 60.161
280. Hudson, 267, 7-1, 74.375
281. Unionville-Sebewaing, 267, 7-1, 65.875
282. Detroit Loyola, 266, 7-1, 80.500
283. Hesperia, 265, 4-4, 37.375
284. East Jordan, 261, 4-4, 27.125
285. Ubly, 260, 8-0, 73.000
286. Dansville ^, 259, 5-3, 41.125
287. Springport, 259, 7-1, 61.625
288. Concord, 258, 7-1, 60.750
289. Onekama, 254, 6-2, 42.250
290. Whittemore-Prescott ^, 251, 5-3, 41.589
291. Royal Oak Shrine Catholic, 249, 6-2, 59.000
292. Saginaw Nouvel ^, 248, 5-3, 57.798
293. Petersburg-Summerfield ^, 247, 5-3, 40.000
294. Lincoln Alcona, 245, 7-1, 59.571
295. Decatur, 243, 4-4, 31.250
296. Evart ^, 242, 5-3, 44.625
297. Ottawa Lake Whiteford, 242, 8-0, 74.000
298. Iron River West Iron County ^, 241, 5-3, 47.708
299. Beal City, 239, 6-2, 58.375
300. Breckenridge, 235, 8-0, 68.000
301. Johannesburg-Lewiston, 233, 4-4, 32.375
302. St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic, 232, 7-1, 57.500
303. Harbor Beach, 231, 4-4, 30.250
304. Melvindale Academy for Business & Tech, 224, 4-4, 35.571
305. St. Ignace, 219, 7-1, 62.304
306. Norway, 214, 7-1, 62.637
307. Newberry, 212, 7-1, 54.875
308. Pittsford ^, 206, 5-3, 38.286
309. Mendon, 203, 6-2, 54.179
310. Morenci ^, 201, 5-3, 47.375
311. Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary, 200, 6-2, 59.375
312. Vestaburg ^, 195, 5-3, 41.000
313. Merrill, 191, 6-2, 46.375
314. Adrian Lenawee Christian, 186, 4-4, 34.018
315. Fowler ^, 185, 5-3, 42.000
316. Martin, 178, 4-4, 29.000
317. Sterling Heights Parkway Christian, 173, 4-4, 39.304
318. Frankfort, 171, 8-0, 69.000
319. Gaylord St. Mary, 170, 6-2, 40.125
320. Climax-Scotts, 169, 8-0, 61.286
321. Muskegon Catholic Central, 163, 8-0, 87.000
322. Lake Linden-Hubbell, 157, 8-0, 75.444
323. Colon ^, 156, 5-3, 33.786
324. AuGres-Sims, 149, 7-1, 55.750
325. Hillman, 146, 4-4, 30.625
326. Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart ^, 146, 5-3, 39.875
327. Waterford Our Lady, 134, 6-2, 59.786
328. Clarkston Everest Collegiate, 115, 6-2, 52.250
329. Felch North Dickinson ^, 95, 5-3, 37.153
8-Player Playoff Listing
1. Deckerville *, 177, 8-0, 64.429
2. Wyoming Tri-unity Christian, 168, 8-0, 60.000
3. Portland St. Patrick, 92, 8-0, 59.143
4. Engadine, 91, 8-0, 59.000
5. Powers North Central, 115, 8-0, 58.476
6. New Haven Merritt Academy, 165, 8-0, 57.000
7. Lawrence, 186, 7-1, 50.685
8. Crystal Falls Forest Park, 159, 7-1, 50.018
9. Owendale-Gagetown, 48, 7-1, 47.875
10. Pickford, 149, 7-1, 47.875
11. Stephenson, 177, 7-1, 47.337
12. Webberville, 178, 6-2, 44.375
13. Cedarville, 156, 6-2, 42.625
14. Flint International Academy, 185, 6-2, 39.625
15. Fife Lake Forest Area, 162, 6-2, 38.893
16. Camden-Frontier *, 159, 5-1, 37.845
17. Battle Creek St. Philip, 143, 5-3, 37.595
18. Peck, 143, 5-3, 37.107
19. Rapid River, 116, 5-3, 36.518
20. Tekonsha, 135, 5-3, 35.000
21. Morrice, 168, 4-4, 32.536
22. Marion, 132, 4-4, 26.500
23. Posen, 94, 4-4, 25.679
24. Hale, 129, 4-4, 25.250
25. Waldron, 83, 4-4, 24.500
26. Onaway, 190, 4-4, 23.750
27. Mayville, 196, 3-5, 22.000
28. Eben Junction Superior Central, 125, 3-5, 20.696
29. Ontonagon, 126, 3-5, 20.431
30. Burton Madison Academy, 198, 3-5, 19.250
31. Burr Oak, 72, 3-5, 18.893
32. Flint Michigan School for the Deaf *, 47, 3-4, 18.506
33. St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran, 97, 3-5, 17.161
34. Manistee Catholic Central, 189, 3-5, 16.875
35. Bellaire, 133, 3-5, 16.125
36. Brethren, 152, 2-6, 13.875
37. Caseville, 98, 2-6, 13.625
38. Kinde-North Huron, 157, 1-7, 12.411
39. Akron-Fairgrove, 105, 1-7, 11.000
40. Baraga, 150, 1-7, 9.143
41. Carsonville-Port Sanilac, 118, 1-7, 8.875
42. Carney-Nadeau *, 140, 1-6, 8.696
43. Ewen-Trout Creek, 115, 1-7, 8.625
44. Covert *, 95, 1-6, 8.571
45. St. Helen Charlton Heston Academy, 137, 1-7, 7.750
46. Pellston, 169, 0-8, 4.417
47. Litchfield, 85, 0-8, 3.750
48. Big Rapids Crossroads Academy, 193, 0-8, 3.036
Inside Selection Sunday: Mapnalysis '16
October 24, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There was a wheel and something that looked like a magic wand. Another started out looking like the head of a caterpillar.
A number of Michigan football teams realized their sky-high dreams with Sunday’s playoff selection announcement on Fox Sports Detroit.
But earlier that day, as is the case at the end of each fall, shaping this season’s tournament at times looked a little like finding pictures in the clouds.
Beginning last night and into this morning, MHSAA staff have been busily gathering game days and times for this weekend’s opening round. We’re assigning officials for those contests. Schools are preparing for what likely will be one of their biggest crowds of the season. And, of course, teams are preparing for what surely will be one of their most memorable games.
But before all of that could begin, we met Sunday morning with nine maps of Michigan and 272 dots that needed to be organized to set another playoffs in motion.
As we’ve done the past five seasons, we’ll explain our most difficult decisions in this Mapnalysis 2016 breakdown of how we paired 272 teams that will play next month for championships across nine divisions. For those familiar with our playoff selection process, or who have read this report in the past and don’t want a refresher on how we do what we do, skip the next section and go directly to the “Observations & Answers: 2016.” For the rest, what follows is an explanation of how we selected the playoff pairings during the morning hours Sunday, followed by how we made some of the toughest decisions and a few thoughts on the breakdown of the field.
Ground Rules
Our past: The MHSAA 11-player playoff structure – with 256 teams in eight divisions, and six wins equaling an automatic berth (or five wins for teams playing eight or fewer games) – debuted in 1999. An 8-player tournament was added in 2011, resulting in nine champions total each season.
The first playoffs were conducted in 1975 with four champions. Four more football classes were added in 1990 for a total of eight champions each fall. Through 1998, only 128 teams made the postseason, based on their playoff point averages within regions (four for each class) that were drawn before the beginning of the season. The drawing of Districts and Regionals after the end of the regular season did not begin until the most recent playoff expansion.
In early years of the current process, lines were drawn by hand. Dots representing qualifying schools were pasted on maps, one map for each division, and those maps were then covered by plastic sheets. Districts and Regionals literally were drawn with dry-erase markers.
Our present: After a late Saturday night tracking scores, we file in as the sun rises Sunday morning for a final round of gathering results we may still need (which can include making a few early a.m. calls to athletic directors). Re-checking and triple-checking of enrollments, what schools played in co-ops and opted to play as a higher class start a week in advance, and more numbers are crunched Sunday morning as the fields are set.
This season, there were 218 automatic qualifiers by win total – only two more than the record low set a year ago – with the final 38 at-large qualifiers then selected, by playoff-point average, one from each class in order (A, B, C, D) until the field was filled. For the second consecutive season there were only four Class D additional qualifiers with 5-4 or 4-4 (playing eight games) records from which we could choose – so after those four we added 12 teams from Class A and 11 each from Class B and Class C.
Those 256 11-player teams are then split into eight equal divisions based on enrollment, and their locations are marked on digital maps that are projected on wall-size screens and then discussed by nearly half of the MHSAA staff plus a representative from the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association. Only the locations themselves are marked (by yellow dots) – not records, playoff point averages or names of the schools or towns. In fact, mentions of those are strictly prohibited. Records and playoff points are not part of the criteria. Matchups, rivalries, previous playoff pairings, etc. also DO NOT come into play.
The same process is followed for organizing the 8-player bracket, with the difference that the 16 teams are selected purely on playoff-point average.
Geography rules: This long has been rule number one for drawing MHSAA brackets in any sport. Travel distance and ease DO come into play. Jumping on a major highway clearly is easier than driving across county-wide back roads, and that’s taken into consideration. Also, remember there’s only one Mackinac Bridge and hence only one way to cross between peninsulas – and boats are not considered a possible form of transportation. When opponents from both peninsulas will be in the same District, distance to the bridge is far more important than as the bird flies.
Tradition doesn’t reign: Every group of 32 dots is a new group – these 32 teams have not been placed in a bracket together before. How maps have been drawn in the past isn’t considered – it’s hard to say a division has been drawn in a certain way traditionally when this set of 32 teams is making up a division for the first time.
Observations & Answers: 2016
First things, first: Congratulations to five first-time playoff qualifiers – Bloomfield Hills, Detroit Delta Prep, Southfield Arts & Technology, Southfield Bradford and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian. Bloomfield Hills (Lahser and Andover) and Southfield Arts & Technology (Southfield and Southfield-Lathrup) were created by mergers of previous schools. Southfield A&T and Detroit Delta Prep are eligible for tournament play this season for the first time. Bradford and Tri-unity Christian both started programs during the latter half of the 2000s; Tri-unity qualified in 8-player after moving back to that format from 11-player this fall. Of 617 varsity football programs that played games this season (including five not eligible for the playoffs as either a first-year program or with an enrollment too high for 8-player), all but 18 have made the playoffs at least once going back to the first series in 1975.
Tie it up: We had a few ties in a few ways this season. In two situations, we had multiple teams with the same enrollment at a line between divisions. In those cases, the teams with the higher playoff point averages go to the larger divisions – so Ferndale went to Division 2 and East Lansing to Division 3 to settle one tie, and Lansing Sexton went to Division 4 and Dowagiac to Division 5 to settle the other. The additional tie came in 8-player football, with Portland St. Patrick and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian both having the same playoff point average, the same opponents’ winning percentage and drawn into the same District. A coin flip was used to determine St. Patrick as the top seed and home team both this week and next if it advances and plays the Defenders.
Local really is the rule: Division 3 provided us with a fine example to help show that we work to draw maps locally and beginning with the earliest rounds. There were at least three ways to separate the schools in Region 3 District 1: East Lansing, DeWitt, Fowlerville and Mason. DeWitt, as the westernmost of the group, could’ve been drawn southwest with R2D2’s Vicksburg, Battle Creek Harper Creek and Coldwater, replacing Chelsea. Doing so would’ve literally split the state’s regions down the middle along U.S. 127, which is a favorable picture. But protocol is to favor local matchups at the earliest rounds, and it just didn’t make sense to take DeWitt away from three schools mere minutes away when subbing it in for Chelsea would’ve created a wash in terms of travel for the other three teams in R2D2.
Sometimes, there’s no choice: But keeping a group of four local teams together often is impossible. Remember, 32 dots usually are spread out at least all over the Lower Peninsula. In Division 4, we had Grand Rapids Catholic Central, Wyoming Godwin Heights, Wyoming Kelloggsville and Grand Rapids South Christian stacked nicely along U.S. 131 – but had to send southernmost South Christian down with Benton Harbor, Three Rivers and Hudsonville Unity Christian because there was no other grouping for Allendale, which is about 20 miles west of Grand Rapids. Another incident of splitting up near-neighbors happened in Division 2; we had Lowell and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central next door to each other, but no other Grand Rapids area teams qualify. By only a few miles, Forest Hills Central is south of Lowell – so although the Rangers had shorter drives than Lowell to possible opponents both north and south, they went into a group with Portage Northern, Portage Central and Battle Creek Lakeview, and Lowell went north to join Greenville, Traverse City West and Traverse City Central.
Why coast to coast: It wasn’t lost on the committee that teams waking up looking at Lake Huron traveling to play on Lake Michigan isn’t the greatest scenario. But it was the best of the options, and we stayed consistent by setting up a possible two District trips across the Lower Peninsula. Tawas will journey to Maple City Glen Lake in Division 6 this week. With wins this week, Lincoln Alcona could end up heading to Frankfort for a Division 8 District Final. Those trips aren’t ideal, but they did allow us to keep northern Lower Peninsula teams together – and in reality, aren’t too different than when teams from the Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula match up the first week, as will be the case in Division 4 (Whitehall to Escanaba), Division 5 (Kalkaska to Menominee and Grayling to Kingsford), Division 6 (Charlevoix to Negaunee and Boyne City to Calumet) and Division 8 (Gaylord St. Mary to Newberry).
It’s just the math: The one unexpected oddity of this week’s matchups is Canton going back to Northville for the second week in a row, and after beating Northville 42-27 last week. But math does rule, and Northville does have a higher playoff point average despite that Week 9 loss; the Mustangs beat five teams that finished with winning records, while Canton beat three – which of course is no fault of the Chiefs. It's just the way – rarely – things work out.
At the end of the day …
In six years of being part of these discussions, this weekend’s at least seemed to be the most extensive. We had two and three versions of multiple divisions before deciding which we believed to be the best.
Only one division map – 8-player – was an absolute slam dunk. The rest received plenty of scrutiny from a committee that now includes veterans going back to the beginning but also has had some new eyes join in over the last couple of years. That variety of viewpoints certainly pays off.
And wow, did we fall into some incredible first-week matchups:
• Rockford and Hudsonville in a rematch of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red-deciding game of Week 9 (a Hudsonville 14-7 win).
• Traverse City West vs. Traverse City Central for the first time in playoff history (Central won 10-8 in Week 3).
• Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood at Detroit Country Day in a homecoming for longtime Yellowjackets coach Joe D’Angelo.
• Constantine at Schoolcraft in a matchup of longtime southwestern rivals (Schoolcraft won 20-10 in Week 8).
• Cedarville at Engadine in arguably the most intriguing of three all-U.P. 8-player matchups (Engadine won 52-42 in Week 7).
Truly, at the end of November, the best teams will have to beat the rest to finish as champions – regardless of maps, matchups, weather and anything else that won’t really factor into what eventually is settled on the field.
For many high school sports fans, it’s the favorite time of year. Join us now as we prepare for kickoff.
The MHSAA Football Playoffs are sponsored by the Michigan National Guard.
PHOTOS: (Top) The Division 1 bracket mapped out on the Lower Peninsula. (Middle) The Division 3 map keeps four mid-Michigan teams together.