All CIF section division champions to qualify for state football playoffs

Any CIF San Diego Section football team which wins the CIF championship in its division will qualify for the CIF state playoffs.

On June 3, the CIF San Diego Section's Board of Managers unanimously approved a proposal designating the six division champions as the section's entries to the state playoffs.

"I think it's the right thing. We're sending the right people to our state championships," said CIF commissioner Jerry Schniepp.

The San Diego Section is one of 10 CIF sections in the state. Those 10 sections have a total of 51 eleven-man football playoff divisions and thus 51 section champions. Last year only 18 of those teams were selected to play in the state CIF Football Bowl Championships. On Jan. 31, the state CIF Federated Council approved an expansion of the regional football championship bowl games so that all section champions who choose to participate can play.

The state modification allowed a CIF section with an Open Division to replace one or more section champions from another division with Open Division teams which did not win the Open Division championship. The CIF San Diego Section responded with the resolution that the San Diego Section's six entries would be the Open Division, Division I, Division II, Division III, Division IV, and Division V champions to be seeded as the section teams in that order.

The San Diego Section utilizes competitive-based divisions rather than enrollment-based divisions for playoffs in team sports. Fallbrook High School's football team will be in Division III in 2015.

"I think there are positives and negatives of having that many teams in the playoffs," said Fallbrook head coach Kyle Williams. "I think that the negatives outweigh the positives a little bit."

The positives include increased participation at the state level. "I think it's neat for the kids," Williams said.

Another positive is that subjective criteria for selection of teams for the state playoffs will no longer be an issue. "It eliminates the section bias that kind of occurs," Williams said.

Williams noted that some sections have utilized strength of schedule, which is beyond the control of many teams, as a consideration. "It eliminates that bias because everyone gets to go now," he said.

"I actually think that there are more negatives. First one, it makes for a tremendously long season for a lot of teams," Williams said.

High schools have 11 weeks to play 10 regular-season games. Four weeks of playoff competition, including a possible first-round bye, bring the total to 15 weeks at the section level.

"Now you're talking 16-plus weeks which is really an NFL season," Williams said.

(The National Football League regular season is 17 weeks; each team plays 16 games and has a mid-season bye. Playoff games occur over the next three weeks, and after a one-week bye the Super Bowl is played.)

College football teams are limited to 12 games not including post-season matches or exempt contests such as those played outside the continental United States. Williams noted that the adjustment to a longer NFL season has been a major obstacle faced by rookies transitioning from college competition. "Now we're doing that in high school," he said.

Another negative of the expanded state playoffs is that the significance of a CIF section championship is diminished. "Winning a section championship used to be really special," Williams said.

"It was the end of the season. You completed your primary goal," Williams said. "You really got to dwell on your accomplishment and everything you had just achieved."

The expanded state playoffs force CIF section champions to prepare for the second level of post-season play. "All you're going to be thinking about is the next game," Williams said.

Some of those teams will win a state championship. Most won't have that success. "You're going to have more teams who lose their final game and didn't really get to enjoy their CIF championship," Williams said.

"What made California so special to begin with is we had 10 sections and multiple winners," Williams said. "We're kind of starting to get away from that."

Ninety CIF San Diego Section schools have 11-man football teams. "That would be equivalent to winning a state championship in 32 other states," Williams said.

"My concern is they're going to eliminate a section championship altogether," Williams said. "We'll look more like Texas where you have a 64-team playoff in each division."

The Warriors, who have not won a CIF playoff game since 2009, had a first-round bye in last year's CIF Division III playoffs but lost to Granite Hills in the quarterfinals. "We can't win a CIF championship until we win a playoff game," Williams said.

Fallbrook last won a CIF championship in 2000 by defeating Carlsbad in the Division I final. The Warriors have not reached the finals since 2003.

"Our ultimate goal is to win a CIF championship," Williams said. "Goal number one is to do well in league and get to the playoffs, and we need to win a playoff game."

The Warriors open their 2015 season Aug. 28 with a road game at Westview High School.