High School Football Playoffs 1 Vote Away From Major Changes

A plan to change the way the New Jersey high school football playoffs are structured is one vote away from taking effect for the 2018 season.

The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s (NJSIAA) Executive Committee approved a plan on first reading this week that would implement changes to the way the playoffs are structured and the way teams are ranked, and add another round of games, The Press of Atlantic City reports. The final vote is currently scheduled for May.

The major change in the "NJ United Playoff Proposal," is that the top 32 teams in each of the five groups overall would qualify for the playoffs, as opposed to the top eight teams in each region.

There will still be 20 sectional champions crowned, with five groups remaining in each of the four sections of the state (North I, North II, Central and South). However, once the 32 teams are determined, they will be separated by section, with 16 teams in North I and North II and 16 in Central and South.

The power points system will still be used to determine the playoff teams, but the state will now apply the power points to all a team's games before the cutoff date, no matter how many they play. The current system used the best seven of the first eight games.

The power points system won’t be the only system used, though. The state is adding “The Born Index,” a rankings system created by retired teacher/coach Bill Born, according to nj.com. A team’s ranking will be determined by a formula that is made up 60 percent from “The Born Index” and 40 percent from the traditional Power Points System. Rankings will be released on Sunday nights, beginning a few weeks into the season.

The sectional quarterfinals will be held in Week 9, followed by the sectional semifinals in Week 10 and the sectional finals in Week 11. Sectional finals will now be played at the home field of the higher seeded team. After Thanksgiving, a new round of the playoffs will be held.

The new round will be known as the Public "Single A" and "Double A" bowl games, and each game will match champions from each of the sections. The two teams from North Jersey will play each other, and the South champion will play the Central champion, with all games taking place at MetLife Stadium.

Among non-public schools, 10 teams will qualify in Groups 3 and 4, and 12 teams will qualify in Group 2.
In Groups 3 and 4, the playoffs begin with two first round games and the top six teams receiving byes. In Group 2, there will be four first round playoff games, with the top four teams receiving byes. The playoffs will continue as they currently are from the second round on.

Teams that miss the playoffs will continue to play consolation games, with each team having the chance to play a total of 10 games in a season. The next NJSIAA Executive Meeting is scheduled for May 9.

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