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High School Top 10: New PIAA Classifications Changes Nothing

By Joseph Santoliquito

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — On Wednesday, the PIAA, the governing body of high school sports in Pennsylvania, decided to move to a 6A classification system for high school football, beginning next year, for the 2016-17 season. The plan was to create an even playing field, with six classes based on enrollment figures for the next two-year cycle (2016-2018), which are scheduled to be submitted this month. A school can opt to move up in classification.

In moving to six classes, the football season will be reduced to 10 games, with one scrimmage, or to 9 games, with two scrimmages.

But does the move really change anything? Many coaches and administrators who did not want to go on the record say the PIAA didn't accomplish anything with the new move. In fact, the underlying feeling was, the strong remain strong. A few unbiased observers feel the same way.

"It diminishes the valuable of winning district and state titles, because do we really need six state champions?" said Matt Smith, the respected high school football writer for the Delaware County Daily Times. "It doesn't address the dilemma between the public and private schools and people and coaches still want change. From what I can tell, the PIAA will never address that issue. The sense I got from people I spoke to is that they felt blindsides that the PIAA included so many sports in this expansion. They thought it was going to be for football only. Does it even the playing field? I don't think it does. It allows smaller schools, like 3A and 2A, to schedule schools from their same classification. The PIAA needs to look at the point system going forward, and how playoff points will be determined. On a whole, this changes nothing."

"The basic argument is that coaches want a separation between the public and private schools, and that didn't happen with this move," said Dave Mika, creator and editor of EasternPAFootball.com, one of the best high school football websites in the state, who spoke to 100 Pennsylvania high school coaches about the move. "District 7, which is Pittsburgh, was the loudest area against the move. They wanted to keep the traditional rivalries, and there will be move travel, because some areas may have to create new leagues. In the Philly area, it won't change that much. But it benefits some schools in the Philadelphia area, because now you have Archbishop Wood and a school like Imhotep Charter, which are both Class AAA teams this year, in different classifications next year, unless Imhotep Charter moved up. I don't think the move really changes anything. It could mean the Philly and Pittsburgh schools win more state titles. You spread out programs and the stronger districts winning more state titles, and this unfair playing field is going to remain the same. It's not going to change anything."

According to current male enrollment figures obtained EasternPAFootball.com, these are where the school classifications:

DISTRICT 1
1A (male enrollment: 1-147)
Jenkintown
Delaware County Christian
Calvary Christian Academy
Morrisville

2A (148-209)
Morrisville
Bristol
Valley Forge Military
New Hope-Solebury

3A (210-300)
Springfield (Montco)
Lower Moreland

4A (301-409)
Pope John Paul II
Octorara
Pottstown
Upper Perkiomen
Bishop Shanahan
Glen Mills
Pottsgrove
Sun Valley

5A (410-607)
Upper Moreland
Chichester
Radnor
Phoenixville
Harriton
Strath Haven
Marple Newtown
Springfield (Delco)
Great Valley
Interboro
Academy Park
Upper Merion
Penncrest
Oxford
Unionville
West Chester Henderson
Lower Merion
Kennett
Wissahickon
West Chester Rustin
Garnet Valley
West Chester East
Upper Dublin
Chester
Plymouth Whitemarsh

6A (608+)
Hatboro Horsham
Penn Wood
Cheltenham
Methacton
Owen J Roberts
Council Rock North
Quakertown Community
Haverford
Central Bucks West
Perkiomen Valley
Downingtown West
Ridley
Conestoga
Avon Grove
Council Rock south
William Tennent
Norristown
Central Bucks East
Downingtown East
Harry S Truman
Souderton
Pennridge
Boyertown Area
Bensalem
Abington
Spring-Ford
Coatesville Area
Central Bucks South
Neshaminy
Upper Darby
Pennsbury
North Penn

DISTRICT 12
1A (1-147)
Lansdale Catholic
KIPP
First Phil Prep Charter

2A (148-209)
Shoemaker Charter
Bishop McDevitt
West Catholic

3A (210-300)
Delaware Valley Charter
Imhotep Charter
Mastery Charter
Conwell-Egan Catholic
Strawberry Mansion
Roxborough
Neumann-Goretti

4A (301-409)
Cardinal O'Hara
Msgr Bonner
Mastbaum
Archbishop Carroll
Prep Charter
School of the Future

5A (410-607)
Fels l
Frankford High School
Bartram
South Philadelphia
Dobbins
Archbishop Ryan
Archbishop Wood
West Philadelphia
Overbrook
Boys' Latin Charter

6A (608+)
Northeast
Central
George Washington
La Salle College
Olney Charter
Abraham Lincoln
Roman Catholic
St. Joseph's Prep
Father Judge
Kensington Multiplex
Thomas A. Edison
Simon Gratz Charter
Benjamin Franklin
Martin Luther King

CBS Philly's Area Top 10 Power Ratings For Oct. 9, 2015
1. Imhotep Charter (Record: 5-0)
2. Upper Dublin (Record: 5-0)
3. Archbishop Wood (Record: 5-0)
4. La Salle (Record: 3-1)
5. Malvern Prep (Record: 4-1)
6. St. Joe's Prep (Record: 2-2)
7. St. Augustine (Record: 4-0)
8. Downingtown West (Record: 5-0)
9. Delsea (Record: 4-0)
10. Downingtown East (Record: 5-0)

Southeastern PA Top 10 Power Ratings For Oct. 9, 2015
1. Imhotep Charter (Record: 5-0)
2. Upper Dublin (Record: 5-0)
3. Archbishop Wood (Record: 5-0)
4. La Salle (Record: 3-1)
5. Malvern Prep (Record: 4-1)
6. St. Joe's Prep (Record: 2-2)
7. Downingtown West (Record: 5-0)
8. Downingtown East (Record: 5-0)
9. Haverford School (Record: 4-0)
10. Perkiomen Valley (Record: 5-0)

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