Nine weeks of regular-season high school football end in South Dakota tonight (Thursday). Some schools are already locked into the post-season, and know they'll play a first-round game next week. But other schools either have to win their last game, or get help from another team in the state, to have their seasons extended. Some schools need both to happen.
This is a big night for many high school football teams in the state. By Friday, pairings should be ready to go for the seven-class state playoffs. At least, that’s the hope of the South Dakota High School Activities Association. It’s going to be a long evening for John Krogstrand—he’s the Assistant Executive Director for the Activities Association. Krogstrand is responsible for compiling final power points—teams earn those for their wins, with more points awarded for wins against teams with better records. The final average numbers determine the playoff qualifiers and where teams will play in the first round.
”There are a lot of unknowns out there—we have, kinda, some general ideas. You know, obviously, the teams that are the eight-and-ohs, the seven-and-ones, things like that, that are pretty obviously gonna host that first-round game. But, a lot of those teams that are around five-and-three, four-and-four kinda teams, where there’s a lot still up for grabs on Thursday night,” says Krogstrand
In the three largest classes, it’s pretty simple. Once the teams total power point averages are figured out, seeds one-through-four have home games against the bottom four seeds. Class 11-B and all three nine-man groups are broken down by region. Krogstrand says three teams from each region qualify for the playoffs; then, four more teams from around the state advance as At Large teams. He says they could go anywhere in the state for Round One.
“Where it gets a little—convoluted, if you will—is, if I’m the number five team in Region Two, and I’m gonna qualify for the playoffs, we start looking at travel distances. As far as, once those teams that are the number four qualifier for their region, they’re set—we start looking at the at-larges, where they might shift from one region to another. And ultimately, it comes down to the next best team with those power point averages getting the shortest trip. So if I’m the first-best team that’s quote-unquote At Large, and there’s already four in from my region, I’m gonna get the shortest trip that’s remaining, based on where I would match up.”
Playoffs in Class 11-B and the Nine-Man classes begin next Tuesday; with remaining 11-Man teams opening a week from tonight. The championship games are set for the Dakota Dome November 10th through the 12th.