(Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)

AURORA — The new football alignment means new conference names in some classifications.

When the alignment was set, the conferences in Classes 2A-5A had placeholder names such as “Conference A,” or “Metro 1” until they could be named. These names were set earlier this year, but haven’t been reported on yet.

So, here’s the 2016 and 2017 football alignment, along with the names of those conferences. This can also be found on the football alignment page.

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Class 5A

This alignment is a waterfall based on the two-year average in the RPI. Find more information here.

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Class 4A

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Class 3A

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Class 2A

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Class 1A

% – Not eligible for the postseason

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8-man

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6-man

Proposed football alignments for the 2016 and 2017 seasons are below, separated by classification.

These proposals were developed through a collaborative effort based on feedback from coaches, administrators, conference czars and football committee members over the past year. The CHSAA office facilitated the meetings, but these proposals came from the leagues and schools.

They will be voted on at the football committee meeting in December. After that, they need final approval from the Legislative Council in January 2016.

Some of these conferences have yet to be named, and terms such as “Conference A,” “Conference B,” etc., are placeholders.

Note: An asterisk (*) indicates that the school is playing up. A caret (^) indicates the school is playing down.

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Class 5A

This alignment is a waterfall based on the two-year average in the RPI. Find more information here.

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Class 4A

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Class 3A

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Class 2A

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Class 1A

% – Not eligible for the postseason

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8-man

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6-man

The CLOC committee met on Wednesday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — The Classification and League Organizing Committee met on Wednesday to work on the state’s alignment for the 2016-18 two-year cycle.

Nothing was set — in fact, it’s not even close to being finalized — but the committee did have a lot of work to do since they have been charged with evenly distributing teams into classifications for next cycle.

And there was one wrinkle that took up much of their time on Wednesday: That they have flexibility to move the cutoff line for a classification up or down five percent in order to balance the number of schools.

Those numbers, and the potential enrollment cutoff splits, are listed below. Schools should be looking to see if they could potentially fall within this cutoff range. The CHSAA office will send out a survey asking schools about their preference for a classification. If they fall within that cutoff zone, that preference will be taken into consideration, though will not always be granted.

Keep in mind that this is only Step 1 of this new CLOC process. Further steps will be explained in detail in the months to come.

Note that football’s numbers are hard-and-fast numbers, and the 5 percent buffer does not apply to its enrollment cutoffs. As a result, those numbers are not included below. They are listed in this story.

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2016-18 enrollment cutoffs, and the cutoff zone

Note: These numbers are for the bottom end of a classification. So, in 5A team sports, anything at 1357 (or, potentially, 1425 or 1289) and above is 5A. Anything below that number then falls into the next class (in the example, 4A).

The middle number is the number which was set by CLOC, and approved at Legislative Council in January. Above that is the enrollment cutoff with a 5 percent increase. The bottom number is the enrollment cutoff with a 5 percent decrease.

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CHSAA’s Legislative Council met on Thursday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — The structure of CHSAA’s classifications will see more equity after approval of the Classification and League Organizing Committee’s report at the Legislative Council meeting on Thursday.

It means that CLOC, which sets the league alignment, will evenly divide teams among classifications in a given sport beginning with the 2016-18 two-year cycle.

“There are a number of ways to measure equity,” said CHSAA commissioner Paul Angelico. “One way is this: If I’m the 50-yard dash champion in 5A, I’m the champion of 50,000 kids. If I’m the 50-yard dash champion in 1A, I’m the champion of 1,000 kids. And that’s not to say one’s more important than the other.

“But we can’t measure the number of kids competing in a classification. The only thing we have that’s measurable is the number of teams per classification.”

The change marks a shift in philosophy for CLOC, which in past years had simply divided classifications using enrollment splits determined upon the number of basketball teams in the Association. The hope is to get as close as possible to an equal number of teams competing in every classification.

This philosophy was actually used by the Association roughly 20 years ago. This return was modeled by something wrestling did at last April’s Legislative Council. It was first presented to the membership at the All-School Summit last July, and then hammered out at a meeting in November.

“It’s a system that worked for us 20 years ago,” Angelico said. “And swimming, as an example, was better competition when we split the teams in half than it is now with using the basketball numbers to do so.”

Now, equal classes will expand to all sports, including football. The new enrollment splits will be used to determine alignment for 2016-18.

Traditional play-ups and play-downs have been accounted for in initial projections of classification numbers, but unexpected plans from teams to play up a classification may shift the equity slightly.

In addition, the projections were based on October 2014 counts, so CLOC built in a 5 percent allowance which will allow them to adjust the enrollment splits based on October 2015 figures to preserve equity as best they can.

This also opens the door to potentially adding a third classification of girls swimming and diving, girls tennis and girls golf, as the numbers support doing so. (Additionally, a recent survey of athletic directors supported the idea.) That may happen as soon as April’s Legislative Council meeting.

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Notables

• All three proposed changes to the transfer rule were shot down. It means the transfer rule will stay the same — for now.
• The cross country committee’s recommendation to keep the state meet at the  Norris-Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs drew much discussion. Ultimately, it is just that: a recommendation. The state venue will be voted upon by the Board of Directors at its meeting in June, along with the rest of the state championship venues for other sports.
• The new pitch-count limits for baseball also passed along with its report, but not before some drama. First came a motion from the Southwestern League which sought to strike it entirely. That was defeated by the Council. Then the Santa Fe League moved to delay the new rule by one season. That passed. So, when the baseball report finally passed — by a wide margin — it meant that this new pitch-count rule would go into effect during the 2016 season.
• A proposal to bar teams which are playing down a classification from competing in the postseason passed. It means that, for example, a Class 4A-sized team which applies for and is granted the chance to play in 3A due to a lack of success will no longer be allowed to make the postseason. If this new rule were in effect two seasons ago, 3A football champion Coronado would not have been allowed to make the playoffs.
• Football’s new quarter limits passed. Here’s more information on that rule. This brings Colorado more in line with the rest of the nation.
• Golf will now mandate the use of iWanamaker to track scoring during all regular season and postseason events. This only applies to varsity.
• The new penalties in tennis for stacking a lineup were approved.
• A change to the Sunday contact rule was approved. It allows contact via social media, so long as it’s done in a group or public fashion, and is not a direct call-to-action, such as instructions on which pages of the playbook to study.
• Newly appointed CHSAA board members, who will begin their terms in June: Doug Pfau, the superintendet at Weldon Valley (District 3); Troy Baker, the athletic director at Buena Vista (District 7); and Wendy Ruben, the principal at Chatfield (CASE). Wendy Dunaway returns from CDE.
• As we reported this morning, Adams 12 district athletic director Eddie Hartnett will be the new president of the board.

CHSAA’s Classification and League Organizing Committee met on Tuesday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — The enrollment splits used to divide classifications got a pretty major overhaul on Tuesday.

The Classification and League Organization Committee set the new figures to be used in the 2016-18 two-year cycle with an eye at evenly distributing teams among classifications. Basketball’s numbers were used as a basis for all team sports, save for football. Individual sports (such as track, tennis and golf) will each have their own enrollment splits to evenly divide teams among their classifications.

Find the new enrollment numbers here.

As a whole, the idea was based upon something wrestling did in April. Expanding the model to all sports was first floated at CHSAA’s All-School Summit in July.

“The wrestling model showed us what can happen,” said Randy Holmen, the principal at Holly High School who chairs CLOC. “We felt like today turned out the way it was supposed to.”

The changes will need to be approved at the Legislative Council meeting in January.

Ultimately, on Tuesday, CLOC sought equity in terms of numbers. For team sports, the result will place 66 teams in each classification for boys and girls basketball, and volleyball. The splits also did a job good of evenly distributing teams in other sports, as well. For example, in boys soccer, 5A and 4A will both have 66 teams, while 3A will have 71. (See the full breakdown here.)

However, the new enrollment splits are based upon this year’s figures. As such, CLOC built in a 5 percent variance which would allow those numbers to change if needed based upon school enrollments determined in October 2015. That way, any changes could be made to ensure the equity in numbers remains.

Football’s class splits were also set by CLOC, and those seek to evenly distribute teams among classifications, as well. The result is 42 teams in 5A, 4A, 2A and 1A, 4A in 3A and 71 to be divided between 8-man and 6-man. (Find the full football numbers here.)

The enrollment figures for individual sports with multiple classes were also determined by CLOC on Tuesday. The committee took the total number of teams in the sport, and divided by the number of classifications. Those figures are below.

There is another wrinkle that will need to be addressed: These enrollment splits did take into account programs which historically play up, but it does not account for those unforeseen teams which will be playing up or playing down. This could also cause the numbers to change ahead of their final version.

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Committee considers mandating play-ups

Before they jumped into the enrollment cutoffs, the committee took a detour to talk about forcing consistently successful teams to play up a classification.

“We have the criteria for schools to play down,” said Dave Schuessler, the athletic director at Clear Creek, “but is the committee willing to tell them they have to play up?”

The question sparked a 15-minute conversation on the topic, including the philosophy behind equity: Is the goal competitive balance or a balance of numbers?

“There are two issues we’re talking about right now,” said Jim Thyfault, district athletic director at Jefferson County Schools, “and they aren’t one in the same.”

“The most successful team has to move up, and we’re going to penalize them now?” said Horizon athletic director Eric Gustafson. “If all we’re doing is balancing the numbers, then we don’t even need the names of the schools. We can just deal with the numbers.”

Ultimately, the committee decided to create a subcommittee which would explore the topic further. Three CLOC members were appointed.

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Notables

• CLOC approved probationary membership for six new schools: Atlas Prep (Colorado Springs), Beth Eden (Wheat Ridge), Faith Baptist (Longmont), Front Range Baptist (Fort Collins), Lotus School of Excellence (Aurora), and Northfield (Denver). If approved by the Legislative Council, it would bring CHSAA’s membership to 352 schools. Eight additional schools have inquired about membership.
• Five schools were granted final approval for CHSAA membership: Aurora West, KIPP Collegiate, Swallows Charter, Vista Peak and William Smith.
• Because of that growing membership, CLOC agreed to discuss the possible addition of a 6A classification at its next meeting in April. The target for the move, since last summer, has been 384 schools.
• With the new enrollment splits, CLOC recommended a third classification for girls golf, girls tennis and girls swimming. It will be up to the sports’ committees to decide whether or not to implement them.

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Enrollment numbers

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Teams per class

As of Oct. 2014 counts
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CHSAA’s All-School Summit began on Thursday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

LONE TREE — The classification system in Colorado seems headed for a change.

It’s not quite drastic, but the direction CHSAA’s Classification and League Organizing Committee (CLOC) is headed is definitely different than the current system. In short, CLOC’s idea would give each sport unique enrollment cutoffs which would then be used to divide classifications evenly.

Currently, all sports — save for football and wrestling — use one set of enrollment cutoffs to determine classifications. And those cutoffs are based upon basketball, the sport with the highest participation among CHSAA member schools.

The new approach was first presented to the membership at CHSAA’s All-School Summit on Thursday afternoon at the Denver Marriott South.

“It’s a philosophical thing right now,” Randy Holmen, CLOC’s chair and the principal at Holly High School, said at the CHSAA office on Wednesday ahead of the Summit.

And so CLOC is seeking feedback from the membership over the next few months. Still, make no mistake, CLOC seems intent on heading this direction for the next two-year cycle (2016-18).

“This was discussed pretty seriously,” Holmen said.

The idea was first hatched at CLOC’s most recent meeting in May. One month earlier, wrestling’s move to unique enrollment numbers was approved at the Legislative Council meeting. Wrestling wanted to create an even split of teams across its classifications.

This spawned a discussion at CLOC’s May meeting, which soon turned to the question of equity among the classification system as a whole.

“The CLOC committee was very open to this” new idea, Holmen said. “Actually, we were really excited to look into it.”

Randy Holmen explains the new alignment idea at the All-School Summit on Thursday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

The current system has been in place for nearly 20 years. It seeks to keep the higher and lower cutoffs of a classification’s enrollment figures right around a ratio of 2.2 to 1.

“We’ve struggled for a couple of years now of how to have equity in our classification system,” said Paul Angelico, CHSAA’s commissioner. “There is no perfect way to find equity, but our current system may actually work against equity.”

So, how to find equity? Like wrestling did, CLOC wants to have an even amount of teams playing in classifications — in each sport.

Every sport would have different enrollment cutoffs for classifications in order to balance the teams. In some cases, schools would have teams playing in different classifications.

However, the change isn’t all that drastic. Early projections have shown that 10-12 schools would be affected at the very maximum in certain sports.

“We don’t envision this to be a landslide change in any classification,” Holmen said. “It can’t be. It won’t be.”

CLOC’s next meeting is in November. It is there that the committee will set the structure to be used for the 2016-18 two-year cycle, so any feedback from schools needs to come prior to that meeting.

“Please be active in this,” Homen told the gathered athletic directors on Thursday, “because there are going to be some tough decisions to be made.”

Implementing the new idea wouldn’t require a bylaw change, but it would require the Legislative Council to approve the CLOC report at its meeting in January 2015.

Many details remain to be ironed out — for example, how would play-up and play-down requests be handled? — but those things are likely to be hammered out at CLOC’s November meeting.

“There are going to be some real hard questions we’re going to have to answer,” Angelico said.

Under the new plan, wrestling and football’s enrollment cutoffs would not change as they are already unique.

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New classification cutoff

Below are projected cutoffs for CLOC’s idea of evening out teams among classifications. This chart includes data on teams in each classification for the 2014-16 cycle, as well as the projected number of even teams in a given sport.

For sake of comparison, the current 2014-16 enrollment cutoffs are included, as well.

The 2014 football league and classification alignment, as set by the football committee, and approved by CLOC and the legislative council.

Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A | 8-man | 6-man

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Class 5A

* – Denotes playing up

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Class 4A

** – Denotes playing down
# – Must qualify in the 5A playoffs

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Class 3A

* – Denotes playing up
** – Denotes playing down

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Class 2A

* – Denotes playing up
** – Denotes playing down
# – Must qualify in 3A playoffs

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Class 1A

* – Denotes playing up
** – Denotes playing down
# – Must qualify in 2A playoffs

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8-man

* – Denotes playing up
** – Denotes playing down

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6-man

** – Denotes playing down

The hockey committee met at the Denver Coliseum on Friday. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

DENVER — Hockey’s Frozen Four begins at the Denver Coliseum on Friday night. This time next year, might the state have two Frozen Fours?

It’s very possible, but there are hurdles yet to clear.

At its annual meeting at the Coliseum on Friday morning, the hockey committee voted to split the sport into two classifications — 5A and 4A.

The prevailing thought among committee members was that a second classification will make games more competitive, help the sport grow, and could potentially save programs with dwindling numbers.

“When the committee looked at competitive balance, they realized that changes had to be made,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bud Ozzello, who oversees hockey. “Having one classification made it more difficult for smaller schools to complete. After much discussion, they voted in favor of making two classifications to help not only grow the sport but hopefully help maintain the competitive balance.”

The classes would be determined based upon the enrollment number splits used in other sports, and would result in 16 teams in 5A and 13 in 4A. Those numbers could change based upon playdown requests that would need to be approved.

Committee chair Chad Broer, athletic director at Chatfield high school, will present the committee’s report — including the classification split — to the Legislative Council in April. That Council would then need to approve the change.

Hockey has had one classification since it was first sanctioned in 1976.

A split into 5A and 4A would give each class eight-team playoff brackets. Playoff seeding would continue to be determined by conference finish. First-round and semifinal games would likely be hosted at home sites, with both championship games at one venue.

A survey went out to hockey athletic directors this week, with 27 of 29 responding. According to that survey, 59 percent are in favor of a split, with 41 percent against it.

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — Ultimately, it never even went to a vote.

A proposal which sought to reduce the maximum number of allowed games in Class 4A basketball from 23 to 19 was withdrawn before any action even took place during Tuesday’s Legislative Council meeting. The Northern League, which originally submitted the proposal, moved to withdraw the proposal during the meeting and there were no objections.

“The basketball committee continues to look at maximum number of games, and sent out a survey to member schools,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgman, who oversees basketball. “By a 60-40 margin, the 4A schools indicated that 23 games is their preferred choice. But more than that, the current bylaw allows for the basketball committee to develop a format that would limit 4A schools to 19 games, if that is the will of the membership.”

Similarly, the Northern League’s proposal which would have reduced volleyball to 19 matches was withdrawn. The sport, too, will stay at a maximum of 23 contests.

“The volleyball committee has worked really hard and is very proud of the current format, including the length of the regular season,” said Bethany Brookens, a CHSAA assistant commissioner who oversees volleyball.

Additionally, the slight alteration to the match order at volleyball’s state championships was approved.

5A football seeding committee removed; 8-man gets rid of cross-divisionals

At December’s football committee meeting, Class 5A programs went away from using Wild Card points to determine playoff qualifiers. Instead, they installed a seeding  committee made up seven administrators, one from each league.

However, that seeding committee was removed at the Legislative Council meeting Tuesday. A replacement solution to determine postseason qualification in 5A football could come at the next Legislative Council meeting in April. If it doesn’t, that would mean returning to Wild Card points and the process used in past years.

The 5A schools will meet prior to the April meeting to determine if another qualification format is better. That could be another seeding committee, or another format altogether.

While discussing the football committee Tuesday, 8-man football changed the way its playoff qualifiers are determined. Instead of using cross-over games, which matched the top four teams from each division against one another, qualifiers will be determined by a new criteria.

Included is automatic qualification for league champions, as well as a complex set of ways to fill out the rest of the 16-team field. For a full breakdown, see this amendment (.pdf), which was passed.

Elsewhere:

• The format for girls soccer’s Class 2A was approved. It will have a 12-team postseason, moving 3A from a 32-team bracket to 24 teams. 2A will begin play in the spring of 2015, meaning girls soccer will have classes 2A, 3A, 4A and 5A. This change does not affect boys soccer, which has 3A, 4A and 5A.
• File this away for later: A proposal passed which gives CHSAA discretion to add a classification “based on the growth of the CHSAA membership.” This paves the way for an additional class, such as 6A, to be added down the road. We wrote about the details of adding a sixth classification over the summer.
• There were two changes to the Classification and League Organizing Committee report: Alameda moved from the 4A Jeffco League to the Colorado 7 League and Valor Christian from the 5A Jeffco to the 4A Jeffco. Both of those moves pertain to non-football sports. In Valor’s case, the move was made because the Eagles are competing in the 4A postseason.
• An amendment to the constitution passed which will not allow schools that offer specialized sport training to become CHSAA member schools. However, students at those schools will be allowed to participate in athletics at other schools.
• Teams that play down a classification based upon a lack of success will still be allowed to compete for a state championship. A proposal sought to not allow that, but was shot down. This issue was originally raised in part because Coronado won the 3A football title while playing down last fall.

AURORA — The football committee made its recommendations for league alignment on Thursday. This alignment needs to be approved at January’s legislative council meeting.

Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A | 8-man | 6-man

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Class 5A

Submitted by: Jason Jacob, Continental League

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Class 4A

Submitted by: Paul Cain, Southwestern League; Kris Roberts, Pike Peak League

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Class 3A

Submitted by: CHSAA

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Class 2A

Submitted by: CHSAA

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Class 1A

Submitted by: CHSAA

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8-man

Submitted by: Don Steiner, Black Forest League

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6-man

Submitted by: CHSAA