[Pulp Fiction]

Look over these scores..... they are the blowout games from all six classes in the First Round of the Playoffs.  
There were only 13 games across all Six classes that were 8 points or less.

41-0
47-7
66-0
49-14
46-14
40-18
57-7
51-27
56-7
44-7
51-22
52-8
64-0
54-7
56-28
48-13
42-14
27-0
45-0
48-19
42-0
49-0
57-0
52-0
45-0
49-7
48-7
37-0
53-7
49-14
42-14
49-7
59-21
42-0
49-0
50-6
50-12
51-14
48-7
35-0
48-6
58-0
41-13
56-7
42-0
70-7
54-19
55-7
39-0
63-0
48-16
42-0
48-13
63-0
45-16
49-14


I understand the argument of Six classes so more teams get to participate in the post-season, but these scores tell a different story.  There's no incentive to improve your team if you're in a 4 team district.  
If you're a 4 Seed, you drive Drive 2+ hours to get blown out.
This has been the Wash, Rinse, Repeat cycle season after season for some teams.

[Spud6]

As someone who went through first round blowouts twice and had two years were we almost pulled off the upsets. Those two years we got blowed out we just hoped we didn’t get hurt for basketball. The two years we almost won, we went into the game thinking we’d be the first team in history of our program to win a district game. So it’s a touchy subject for me.

[Hoot Gibson]

Look over these scores..... they are the blowout games from all six classes in the First Round of the Playoffs.  
There were only 13 games across all Six classes that were 8 points or less.

41-0
47-7
66-0
49-14
46-14
40-18
57-7
51-27
56-7
44-7
51-22
52-8
64-0
54-7
56-28
48-13
42-14
27-0
45-0
48-19
42-0
49-0
57-0
52-0
45-0
49-7
48-7
37-0
53-7
49-14
42-14
49-7
59-21
42-0
49-0
50-6
50-12
51-14
48-7
35-0
48-6
58-0
41-13
56-7
42-0
70-7
54-19
55-7
39-0
63-0
48-16
42-0
48-13
63-0
45-16
49-14


I understand the argument of Six classes so more teams get to participate in the post-season, but these scores tell a different story.  There's no incentive to improve your team if you're in a 4 team district.  
If you're a 4 Seed, you drive Drive 2+ hours to get blown out.
This has been the Wash, Rinse, Repeat cycle season after season for some teams.

I disagree. If teams have no incentive to improve, then it is the result of extremely poor coaching, which is probably the result of a lack of support from the school administrators. Making the playoffs should never be the goal for a team that has existed for more than a few seasons. The focus should always be on winning your next game, whether it is a playoff game, or a regular season game. Good coaches focus their teams on making incremental improvements throughout the year, including during the off season. If they do that, then their teams will not become perennial doormats.

Indiana has much more parity among their high school football teams and they do not exclude any teams from the playoffs. If a team has no incentive to improve, then it is not because of the number of classes or the number of teams qualifying for the playoffs.

[DangerMouse]

This is a hill I die on every time this gets brought up.

I’ll always want kids to play as many games as possible regardless of record. One more game for some teams is another week of practice that may not matter to many, but for some it’s one more week before they hang up the pads, possibly forever.

I get the argument against it, but it will always be my stance. Plus, that one more game to go live rounds for some back ups on the best squads is also good.

I have other problems I dislike more than a blowout week in playoffs.

[Hoot Gibson]

This is a hill I die on every time this gets brought up.

I’ll always want kids to play as many games as possible regardless of record. One more game for some teams is another week of practice that may not matter to many, but for some it’s one more week before they hang up the pads, possibly forever.

I get the argument against it, but it will always be my stance.  Plus, that one more game to go live rounds for some back ups on the best squads is also good.

I have other problems I dislike more than a blowout week in playoffs.

I agree 100 percent and I repeat the same point every time that anybody suggests reducing the number of teams in the playoffs so that the first round games are more enjoyable to the people in the stands. More football is better football. If players are eager for their seasons to end, then that is on the coaches and school administrators for not doing a better job.

[2000PHS]

This is a hill I die on every time this gets brought up.

I’ll always want kids to play as many games as possible regardless of record. One more game for some teams is another week of practice that may not matter to many, but for some it’s one more week before they hang up the pads, possibly forever.

I get the argument against it, but it will always be my stance.  Plus, that one more game to go live rounds for some back ups on the best squads is also good.

I have other problems I dislike more than a blowout week in playoffs.

I agree 100 percent and I repeat the same point every time that anybody suggests reducing the number of teams in the playoffs so that the first round games are more enjoyable to the people in the stands. More football is better football. If players are eager for their seasons to end, then that is on the coaches and school administrators for not doing a better job.

Coach Peck, when he was at Phelps, said on the record in a newspaper, he did not see the benefit of Phelps traveling to Fairview (who went to state finals) to play in the 1st round. Sometimes things just need a reset. 

I’m for top 2 in district making the playoffs. 

However, all of this is a 1st world problem that can live with either way lol

[Old School Hound]

This is a question I've actually posed to a lot of parents and quite a few kids they play. If your team has to travel four to eight hours round trip to play a team that is going to pound you early and often, beat you up physically and emotionally , put a running clock on you in the first or early second quarter, would you prefer staying at home or making the long trip to be brutalized? The vast majority of parents and kids told me went with staying home and going to a movie.

Mind you, it is not a unanimous sentiment but a pretty healthy majority wants to save the wear and tear on the car and their kids' psyche. I'm talking games like Lynn Camp-Pikeville, Perry Central-Boyle. Games like that are hot garbage. Moms and dads, for the most part, would rather save the gas money and a lot of kids would rather eat pizza than face eight hours of bus travel and a brutal ass beating.

---

This is a hill I die on every time this gets brought up.

I’ll always want kids to play as many games as possible regardless of record. One more game for some teams is another week of practice that may not matter to many, but for some it’s one more week before they hang up the pads, possibly forever.

I get the argument against it, but it will always be my stance.  Plus, that one more game to go live rounds for some back ups on the best squads is also good.

I have other problems I dislike more than a blowout week in playoffs.

I agree 100 percent and I repeat the same point every time that anybody suggests reducing the number of teams in the playoffs so that the first round games are more enjoyable to the people in the stands. More football is better football. If players are eager for their seasons to end, then that is on the coaches and school administrators for not doing a better job.

Coach Peck, when he was at Phelps, said on the record in a newspaper, he did not see the benefit of Phelps traveling to Fairview (who went to state finals) to play in the 1st round. Sometimes things just need a reset. 

I’m for top 2 in district making the playoffs. 

However, all of this is a 1st world problem that can live with either way lol

Coach Peck was spot on!!!

[Rebel55]

Scores in the first round on the last year the KHSAA had a 4 class system.  You're going to have blowouts either way in the first round on a 4 class or 6 class system. 

44-0
55-6
56-7
54-7
49-0
45-0
49-6
45-6
45-7
49-7
55-7
50-6
46-7
42-6
40-6
41-14
41-7

[King Kong]

I'm kinda 50/50 on this topic for the most part. 

Some of these kids,  football is their passion.  Ever since they were little kids They've dreamed of putting on that highschool jersey.  Ever since flag football to grade school.  Football is their life.  You don't have to be on a team that's always winning to have a love and passion for the game.  For these kids one more game doesn't hurt anything. 

Now,  I understand the argument about driving hour's in the first round,  just to get picked apart with a running clock,  often in the first quarter.
I've never coached highschool or middle school.  Though I have helped coach and sponsor some county sports leagues.  There were times towards the end of the year we'd have players drop off.  Some quit others just didn't show up much. 
Because of that I've actually got with the other coaches and decided to cancel some games.  The other coaches were happy and said they're parents would be to.  Our parents were happy,  the ones that were showing up still lol

I know county youth leagues are a big difference than highschool sports. 
Here's my point,  if the highschool football team still has their kids showing up for practice,  working,  putting forth the effort,  trying, I see no problem with them getting a first round playoff game. 
Now you take a team that has kids not showing up for practice,  who don't really care,  ready for the season to end,  then I can see that bunch not having a playoff game. Plus you don't risk injury for either team. 

I mean this is why I'm kinda stuck in the middle with this topic.  I will always agree that if a group of kids wants to play,  let them play,  heck with the record.  This has nothing to do with participation trophies either.  Kids who play on lesser teams deserve trophies more than anyone.  What trophies should they get? How about a trophy for heart and grit amongst many others. 
It takes real heart,  courage,  love for the game to still put in all the effort,  knowing you're likely going to get picked apart. 
Ol Kong here will always support and pull fo kids in these situations.

[zaga_fan]

Should be the top 3 teams moving on with the district champions having a bye in the first round.
The two and three seeds would be more competitive.

It won't happen though because people still pay money to see blowouts and outlets will pay the fee to broadcast them.

[ROTC]

You are correct!!! The only opinion that matters is that of MR. MONEYBAGS, himself.

[SmashMouth17]

Why are we always complaining about the first round games that always seems to be a blowout. Are you complaining on behalf of that team that is getting beat by 40+ points bc if that’s the case then it’s obvious that the coaching staff you currently have unless it’s a new first year coach is not working out as you should be improving and eventually not on that end of the loss. If your the winning team what does it matter your typically the home team and get an extra gimme game that you don’t have to travel for. You’re always going to have a team that is just superior to the other team regardless of how many classes we have some are just better and will always be that way. We play the game bc at the end of the day you never know what could happen and it may just be the last time someone puts on the pads so win or lose play it out!!

[ROTC]

This topic reminds me of the obese woke women who are shaving their heads and promising to abstain from sex in protest of the red wave known as MAGA.

These people are so delusional. It would be like if I suddenly protested being a billionaire- by refusing to be one!!!

People know the outcome of these games. The system isn’t going to change. July to November is long enough. If you are 0-10; have scored 18 points all season; do the right thing….FORFEIT!!!

Save your district’s resources and start planning for next season.

If enough teams would forfeit, it would force the change!!!

[zaga_fan]

In basketball, I would argue that you just never know what could happen and a team could slow stuff down and pull a big upset.
In football, when the disparity is like what we typically see with the best in the class playing a team who didn't win a district game, 100 times out of 100 the result is the same.

It seems like the majority of districts around here send everyone to the playoffs and we have instances of some teams coming in 5th and still playing in the first round. I don't think an automatic playoff berth removes incentive to improve. To me, losing any game all season long should be enough incentive to improve. Good programs and players incentivize themselves to improve.

I just think we moved to six classes for monetary reasons and we send as many teams to the playoffs as we do for monetary reasons. Football and the players are secondary.

[Rebel55]

A District 4 seed has won the State Championship in the past. I'm fine with the way things are currently.

[ROTC]

Exactly one! And you could write a Hollywood movie about all the events that happened that year to keep Breathitt County from winning and allowing former Breathitt Head Coach, DUDLEY HILTON, to pull it off at Bourbon.

Insert the great spoiler…. The Lawrence County Fire Department and Louisa City Water Works!!!

Hahahaha- at least that’s what the BOBCAT nation believe to this day!! LOL

[RAM-A-DEVIL]

If you are a winless team you shouldn’t be in the playoffs period.

[plantmanky]

Look over these scores..... they are the blowout games from all six classes in the First Round of the Playoffs.  
There were only 13 games across all Six classes that were 8 points or less.

41-0
47-7
66-0
49-14
46-14
40-18
57-7
51-27
56-7
44-7
51-22
52-8
64-0
54-7
56-28
48-13
42-14
27-0
45-0
48-19
42-0
49-0
57-0
52-0
45-0
49-7
48-7
37-0
53-7
49-14
42-14
49-7
59-21
42-0
49-0
50-6
50-12
51-14
48-7
35-0
48-6
58-0
41-13
56-7
42-0
70-7
54-19
55-7
39-0
63-0
48-16
42-0
48-13
63-0
45-16
49-14


I understand the argument of Six classes so more teams get to participate in the post-season, but these scores tell a different story.  There's no incentive to improve your team if you're in a 4 team district.  
If you're a 4 Seed, you drive Drive 2+ hours to get blown out.
This has been the Wash, Rinse, Repeat cycle season after season for some teams.

What about all the blowouts during the regular season? just as many every week.   District play, over 50% of the games are blowouts, and those are times of like size and in same geographical area.  


If teams dont want to play, they have the option to bow out with no penalty.