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Great Stuff Will and to go one step further, get a seeding system for basketball too.
same old same old doesn't cut it anymore for IHSAA. Be careful however, they may pull the plug on this site if you get to out of hand on that seeding stuff. "it's the way we have always done it, why change"?

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I feel the same way about the 2A brackets. Why does District 3 get 2 bye weeks AND get to field 4 teams in the play-offs? Melba is a 1-6 team for crying out loud. Without even looking at all the stats, I can guarantee that there is a 3rd place 2A team somewhere in Idaho that has a better record than Melba. Regarding the bye week for both Parma and New Plymouth, Declo is ranked #1 in the state. If anyone deserves a bye (which I dont believe belongs in HS footbal) it should be them. Glenn's Ferry had better record than New Plymouth AND the whole Canyon Conference spent more time in the power rankings than New Plymouth. Valley has the same record as NP for crying out loud. There has to be better way than pre-seeding the brackets.

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Just watched the 3A Shelley vs American Falls thrashing.. why a 2 & 6 team is even in the playoffs is beyond me.. Heck Sugar was 4 & 4 and didn't even get into the playoffs.

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This week in the 2A isn't State according to the IHSAA.

This week is how the districts decided to get down to 8 teams for the real playoffs. In years past the WIC #4 played #1 and #3 played #2 and ended up with two teams in the 8. Since the 2A North only had two teams they asked to play the WIC teams as their 9th game rather than playing each other possibly the third time. Seeding based on geography is not a great system, but that is what it is.

I think there are +/- 24 2A teams playing football. Do we really need 16 or 2/3 of them to make it to State? This is not t-ball and everyone gets a trophy.

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I don't beleive seeding the teams in football is going to resolve the problem of trying to acheive equality in the brackets or leaving undeserving teams out of the playoffs. What some don't realize is the games that were played last weekend were actually play-in games. They take on the feel of playoff games because most teams play out of conference. David makes reference to the 3A but look what transpired in the play-in games. District 5 and Distict 4 all lost their games. Would Salmon a 4-4 team and Weiser at 5-3 been left out of the playoffs if seeding would have occured because they were the third seed in their own conference.

My biggest concern is that the additional travel casued by seeding would result in less time in the classroom and increased travel cost. Most school districts cannot afford either. Finally, I am wondering what criteria would be used to seed teams. We all know that schedulling can have a big impact on a teams won-loss record. We don't want to encourage teams to play weak schedules so they can get a higher seeding and home field advantage they may come with such a seeding. I don't think the system is that broke and most of the time the state champion is truely the best team in the state.

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So, WIC Watcher. I'll ask you this in relation to your post and Kelly 1260's post.

1. If you're using the analogy "this isn't T-ball", why complain?

2. Kelly 1260, you just wasted a ton of time complaining. When in your last sentence you said," I don't think the system is that broke and most of the time the state champion is truly the best team in the state. "

The TRUTH is, every team that is at the state tournament theoretically shouldn't always be there. But that's why there is a thing such as upsets, underdogs, and teams that play with heart. If a team is just nominated best team in the state, why play the game?

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Kelly -- Cost is about the only reasonably viable explanation anyone has been able to come up with to support the current model. But I still don't buy it. Why was a winless Borah team sent across the state to play a two-win Madison team in a game that means absolutely nothing on Friday night? And, moreso, why are we using play-in games to qualify for the state playoffs? Isn't that what the regular season is for?

As far as seeding goes, it's been said by many (so I can't claim it as an original thought). If the state can figure out a way to seed hundreds of wrestlers for the state tournament every year, they can figure out a way to seed eight football teams per classification.

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Im on the Hillcrest varsity football team. I dont see why we didnt get the bye week and why we wont have home field in the semi final round

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You didn't get a bye because the great 8 is basicly a play-in game between the 4th, 5th, & 6th districts. The IHSAA only recognizes 8 teams in the 4A playoffs. Your game last week was essentially a play-in game. The great 8 is played on the last week of the regular season. The athletic directors for the 4th, 5th, and 6th districts get together before the season starts and determines who plays whom in the great 8 and every year it is different. For instance, next year 4th and 6th district will get three teams in and 5th district will get two. I don't know why the great 8 was ever started, but I believe it was to give more teams the chance to compete for the state championship and to knock a team that has a good record but played weak teams out of the playoffs. We see it every year that one district is not up to par with the others.
For your next question about having to travel to Sandpoint that was predetermined before the season started by the IHSAA, the state's activities association. I believe the playoff seeding rotates every year also, but I am not positive about that last statement.

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FruitJuiceBox- Sorry you feel I "wasted at ton of time complaining". The contents of my earlier e-mail was intended to justify that the system in place is the most equitable and cost effective to determine state football champions. I would agree that champions need to be determined on the field and not on paper. Reseeding the teams will create more questions than it will answer. Another reason I like this system is each team in Idaho knows before the season where they have to finish in their conference to advance into post season play. With random seeding at the end schools may get surprised they are on the outside looking in.
Will makes some good points and backs it up with some examples on costs. I have followed the 3A for a number of years and I believe travel is minimized and the process results in a deserving state champion. I can't speak to the other classifications.

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I think the semi-final game should be in a neutral location.

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I understand what you're saying Kelly 1260.
On the topic of cost though...
I agree with Will, and I'd like to ask this question.
Why are teams not required to pick a neutral field in play offs?
Just using the entire 2a bracket for an example.
NC traveling to Parma (not terrible)
Glenns Ferry traveling to Ashton! (North Fremont) 6 hours?
New Plymouth to Kamiah!

Why are the games not just chosen to be played at BSU or ISU?

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Juicebox you are spot on with your neutral field comment. I will be traveling to Ashton Saturday and think it is a huge disadvantage to our kids to sit on a school bus for that long. Yes I said school bus, no charter bus for our kids. The way I understand it, it was North Fremonts choice, and though I dont blame them, its a shame, there must be 20 fields between here and there. Maybe it will snow and discourage all of our fans from going.

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We were really hoping North Fremont would choose Holt Arena so we could web cast the game....

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I believe the formula used to pick the playoff teams is okay. Therefor nobody in this year would be left out. I do think it is possible to seed them once the bracket is decided. You might miss on a few teams but usually by the time state comes around everybody has a good idea where they and others belong.

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In any bracket, every play off game should ALWAYS be played on a neutral field. Why is any team given the choice to choose where to play? Why is the "homefeild" opition even available?

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Why should all playoff games be neutral? If you can win then prove it!

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I agree with you, if you can win prove it.
But against neutral refs, with due opportunity for fans, and like traveling situations for players.

Say an underdog wins, and keeps winning.
Do they never get to host? Even if they beat the top seed?

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Just move here a few years ago, how is it that mountain view plays capital and highland plays a weak idaho falls team. Seems unfair to boise area schools!

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I think we have proved it seriously on. I thought it was kind of a common courtousy to pick a neutral field. The way I understand it N.F. wants to stop our passing game and seems to think the weather conditions will do that. I know last year we had the option and chose Holt even though the team we played was an hour away and we were 4 hours away. So you think its fair that the weather should be a factor? As a parent I would rather not have my son stuck on a bus for 10+ hours this weekend. As a fan it just ticks me off.

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I have asked this since 1993. How can we seed a wrestling tournament with all of its brackets and wrestlers and not seed an 8 team basketball or football torunament? Non-sense. When I coached in California we seeded a 32 team Section tournament in less than 1.5 hours. With our technology and conference calls we could seed every torunament in a heart beat. Idaho does the same thing year after year because that is the way it is always done.

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Maybe we should create a "BCS" for Idaho football...LMAO! Argue on folks!

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Highland gets to go to BSU to play Capital on a short week... If the ISAA was fair it would play that game in Twin Falls after giving both teams adaquate time to prepare.....

Highland still wins that one....

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Top Bill - Un fair to Boise Schools..... Look at the records.... Highland has won the state 5A title more than any other team..... Don't believe me count for your self... Also look at Highlands schedule this year.... According to the Massey Ratings (national) Highland played a much tougher schedule than the Capital team.....

Because Highland has to travel to Boise seems unfair to the East Idaho teams,,,, Not the Boise teams!!!!!!

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If IHSAA is not going to seed at least have some flexibility. For example, instead of 3A 5th district 3rd place American Falls at 2-6 playing a 1st round laugher with Shelley, (by the way, check the web casts, see how many fans are in the stands as compared to Shelley/Salmon) how about a true play in with say 6h Dist 4th place Sugar Salem who was 4-4 against AF. The Shelley/American Falls and Fruitland/Wendall games didn't belong in a State Tournament. They were neither good for the teams, athletes, fans or the game. Shelley's 2nd and 3rd string scored twice to AF's once, after they were put in the game after the 1st play of the 2nd half. A chance for an upset, not very likely. Simply humiliation for the losing teams.

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Is the Hillcrest and Sandpoint game on Saturday going to be webcast on idaho sports? The quality of the webcast is so much better than EISN, Why doesn't Idaho sports like to webcast any games on Hillcrest?

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I dated a girl from Hillcrest once who broke my heart. Ever since then I swore I would never webcast a Hillcrest game.

KIDDING.

Unfortunately, the Hillcrest vs Sandpoint game will not be broadcast on IdahoSports.com this weekend. I am having all sorts of issues with people out of town, so I can't even do the Capital vs Highland game or the New Plymouth vs Declo game like I would like.

As for Hillcrest, EISN does their games all year long so we don't really make an effort to webcast their games during the playoffs unless they are playing at Holt where I have standing reservations every year at playoff time.

I guarantee we will be webcasting the 4A state championship game, so make sure Hillcrest gets there and we will see you at Holt Arena.

I appreciate the comments about our webcasts though. Made my day.

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Don't count Weiser out just yet. GO WOLVERINES

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Forget the webcasts and radio. Go to the Hillcrest vs. Sandpoint game! The Hillcrest Boosters are renting a travel bus. There are still seats available. There will be a great showing of fans going a great distance to back our team!

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Why is that complaints about traveling longs distances always seem to come from down there in the Boise valley or southern Idaho?

As many up here see it, you people seem to think that the State of Idaho ends somewhere in the vicinity of Horseshoe Bend.

The existing play-in football brackets are fair as they exist. Leave them alone. Seeding does nothing more than skew the brackets toward all those complaining down there.

Decency prevents me from telling you were to drive your insults about Idaho, and how things are done here. But if seeding works so much better for people moving in here from California or elsewhere, the solution is simple. Pack you bags and move back.

HILLCREST AND SANDPOINT

Is this game being broadcasted ANYWHERE?..