Condensed Brackets For Playoffs
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2020 10:09 am
This befuddled football season is almost over now. The SCHSL drafted a "unique" playoff bracket this year to compensate for a condensed season. Instead of the normal 32 teams in each class qualifying for a spot in the bracket, the SCHSL condensed their playoff brackets to just 16 teams per class. Some liked it, some didn't. As it worked out, there were some glaring omissions and some dreadful inclusions. Nothing is perfect, but this is what we were all informed of before the season started.
As I glanced over the brackets this morning, something became blatantly clear. These condensed brackets seemed to work better than the original 32 team brackets for the higher seeds. In all classes combined, there were very few #2 seeds that advanced, and some of them were in #2 vs. #2 games due to At-Large teams playing in classes where only 7 Regions were present. From that standpoint, my opinion is that these condensed brackets gave the higher seeds a distinct advantage, although I don't understand exactly why. Home field advantage? I just know that there are more #1 seeds playing in the quarter finals than we normally see.
We are in for some mammoth games this week. Daniel-Chapman. Camden-Oceanside. North Myrtle Beach-North Augusta. South Pointe-Flora. Myrtle Beach-Beaufort. Dorman-Northwestern. Gaffney-Hanna. Dillon-Gilbert. Bamberg-Whale Branch. Sorry if I omitted some games, but my point is that no matter where you are in the State this Friday evening, there will be a huge game being played nearby. Any one of those games would be more than worth the price of admission. Every team cannot win, but as High School Football fans, this is most definitely a week for us all to be winners.
As I glanced over the brackets this morning, something became blatantly clear. These condensed brackets seemed to work better than the original 32 team brackets for the higher seeds. In all classes combined, there were very few #2 seeds that advanced, and some of them were in #2 vs. #2 games due to At-Large teams playing in classes where only 7 Regions were present. From that standpoint, my opinion is that these condensed brackets gave the higher seeds a distinct advantage, although I don't understand exactly why. Home field advantage? I just know that there are more #1 seeds playing in the quarter finals than we normally see.
We are in for some mammoth games this week. Daniel-Chapman. Camden-Oceanside. North Myrtle Beach-North Augusta. South Pointe-Flora. Myrtle Beach-Beaufort. Dorman-Northwestern. Gaffney-Hanna. Dillon-Gilbert. Bamberg-Whale Branch. Sorry if I omitted some games, but my point is that no matter where you are in the State this Friday evening, there will be a huge game being played nearby. Any one of those games would be more than worth the price of admission. Every team cannot win, but as High School Football fans, this is most definitely a week for us all to be winners.