McClain, Paint Valley have divisions changed in football
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
Schools with football had some of their divisions switched, as the OHSAA released the new football division structure for the 2013 and '14 seasons, Thursday.
There were a couple changes for the South Central Ohio League with the McClain Tigers going from Division III to Division IV, as did the Miami Trace Panthers. Both teams will play in the Southwest region.
McClain was ninth in region 12 last year (7-3 overall record), one spot away from reaching the state playoffs in Division III.
The new divisional breakdowns are set by how many boys attend each high school.
McClain has 253 boys in the high school in grades 9-11, which is what was counted to determine the overall numbers for the upcoming school year. Miami Trace has 274.
"Our enrollment has been on the decline for a while now," McClain head coach Randy Closson said. "It seems like the new divisions reflect the reality of our numbers."
To qualify as a Division I school, the male enrollment is 608 or more. In Division II, it is an enrollment of 403-607.
Division III is 282-402, and Division IV is 213-280. For Division V, the enrollment now is 156-212, and for Division VI, it is 112-155. Division VII is 111 and less.
Hillsboro, who will play in the Southwest region, stays in Division III with 327 boys, as does Washington, who will play in the Southeast region with 284 boys in their high school.
McClain will have four opponents from Division III and three each from Divisions IV and V. Hillsboro has five Division III opponents, three from Division IV and one from Division V. One HHS opponent this season isn't affiliated with the OHSAA in Landmark Christian.
East Clinton (Southwest) also saw a change as they move to Division V from Division IV. EC has 175 boys enrolled.[[In-content Ad]]
The newest SCOL member, Chillicothe (Southeast), moves down a division, as they will be Division III this year, last year playing in Division II, as they have a boys enrollment of 381.
Reigning Division IV State football champion Clinton-Massie (Southwest), who has also won the outright or a share of the SCOL championship since the '07 season, will stay in Division IV with 213 boys enrolled.
In the '15 season, Wilmington (Southwest) will join the SCOL, as they are in Division III, formerly a Division II school, with 377 boys enrolled in their high school.
Another area school from the Scioto Valley Conference, Paint Valley, will drop two divisions, going from Division V to the new Division VII with 111 boys enrolled. Paint Valley will play in the Southwest region, which has defending state champion Marion Local.
"Our enrollment has consistently dropped the past 10 years, and we are as small as we've ever been," Paint Valley football coach Pete Hollon said. "The last three counts, we've been one of the smallest Division V schools in Ohio, so we knew it would be close.
"We return eight starters on both sides of the ball, as well as 21 lettermen, so we are very excited. We also know we have to take care of us and let the chips fall where they may."
Hollon also spoke about the division changes as a whole.
"The adding of the new Division I is great," Hollon said. "As a football purist, seeing the new Division I is exciting and will bring a lot of great football with it."
For playoff seeding, the Top 8 in a region still qualify for the state football tournament. There are four regions in each division.
There were a couple changes for the South Central Ohio League with the McClain Tigers going from Division III to Division IV, as did the Miami Trace Panthers. Both teams will play in the Southwest region.
McClain was ninth in region 12 last year (7-3 overall record), one spot away from reaching the state playoffs in Division III.
The new divisional breakdowns are set by how many boys attend each high school.
McClain has 253 boys in the high school in grades 9-11, which is what was counted to determine the overall numbers for the upcoming school year. Miami Trace has 274.
"Our enrollment has been on the decline for a while now," McClain head coach Randy Closson said. "It seems like the new divisions reflect the reality of our numbers."
To qualify as a Division I school, the male enrollment is 608 or more. In Division II, it is an enrollment of 403-607.
Division III is 282-402, and Division IV is 213-280. For Division V, the enrollment now is 156-212, and for Division VI, it is 112-155. Division VII is 111 and less.
Hillsboro, who will play in the Southwest region, stays in Division III with 327 boys, as does Washington, who will play in the Southeast region with 284 boys in their high school.
McClain will have four opponents from Division III and three each from Divisions IV and V. Hillsboro has five Division III opponents, three from Division IV and one from Division V. One HHS opponent this season isn't affiliated with the OHSAA in Landmark Christian.
East Clinton (Southwest) also saw a change as they move to Division V from Division IV. EC has 175 boys enrolled.[[In-content Ad]]
The newest SCOL member, Chillicothe (Southeast), moves down a division, as they will be Division III this year, last year playing in Division II, as they have a boys enrollment of 381.
Reigning Division IV State football champion Clinton-Massie (Southwest), who has also won the outright or a share of the SCOL championship since the '07 season, will stay in Division IV with 213 boys enrolled.
In the '15 season, Wilmington (Southwest) will join the SCOL, as they are in Division III, formerly a Division II school, with 377 boys enrolled in their high school.
Another area school from the Scioto Valley Conference, Paint Valley, will drop two divisions, going from Division V to the new Division VII with 111 boys enrolled. Paint Valley will play in the Southwest region, which has defending state champion Marion Local.
"Our enrollment has consistently dropped the past 10 years, and we are as small as we've ever been," Paint Valley football coach Pete Hollon said. "The last three counts, we've been one of the smallest Division V schools in Ohio, so we knew it would be close.
"We return eight starters on both sides of the ball, as well as 21 lettermen, so we are very excited. We also know we have to take care of us and let the chips fall where they may."
Hollon also spoke about the division changes as a whole.
"The adding of the new Division I is great," Hollon said. "As a football purist, seeing the new Division I is exciting and will bring a lot of great football with it."
For playoff seeding, the Top 8 in a region still qualify for the state football tournament. There are four regions in each division.