High school football: FHSAA releases new classification districts

Naji Tobias New Era Prep Staff Writer

GAINESVILLE – A major move has been announced yesterday (March 9) by the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA).

This affects all high school football programs throughout the state, as the classification system has been renamed and heavily revised.

Up until now, there have been a total of eight classifications: 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 5A, 6A, 7A, and 8A. Now there are nine total classifications and three new groups, effective this upcoming 2022 season.

There is now a new Metro-Suburban-Rural model, which is divided into the following in terms of school population:

METRO

1M: 103-600 students
2M: 601-1,666 students
3M: 1,667-2,329 students
4M: 2,330-4,843 students

SUBURBAN

1S: 65-600 students
2S: 601-1,445 students
3S: 1,446-1,895 students
4S: 1,896-3,226 students

RURAL

1R: 133-600 students

The state’s eight most densely populated counties are in the Metro Division. They are – in no particular order – Miami-Dade County, Broward County, Palm Beach County, Pinellas County, Hillsborough County, Orange County, and Seminole County.

All other 59 counties in the state will be in the Suburban Division, which includes the Treasure Coast (Martin County, St. Lucie County, Indian River County, and Okeechobee County), Hendry County (Clewiston and LaBelle), and Glades County (Moore Haven).

The postseason structure for Metro, Suburban, and Rural will be as follows:

2M, 3M, 4M, 2S, 3S, 4S

•All district champions plus next four at-large teams per region, per FHSAA power rankings; eight teams total per region

1M, 1S

•All district champions plus next two at-large teams per region, per FHSAA power rankings; six teams total per region

1R

•Top six teams per region will qualify for postseason, per FHSAA power rankings; six teams per region

Here is what the new FHSAA districts will look like for Palm Beach County, the Treasure Coast, and the Big Lake Area:

PALM BEACH COUNTY

4M: REGION 3

4M-9
Jupiter
Palm Beach Gardens
Palm Beach Lakes
Royal Palm Beach

4M-10
Forest Hill
John I. Leonard
Palm Beach Central
Wellington
Wellington

4M-11
Boca Raton
Lake Worth
Park Vista
Santaluces

4M-12
Coral Springs
Monarch
Olympic Heights
Stoneman Douglas

3M: REGION 3

3M-9
Atlantic (Delray Beach)
Dwyer
Seminole Ridge

3M-10
Blanche Ely
Coconut Creek
Deerfield Beach
West Boca Raton

2M: REGION 3

2M-9
Glades Central
Inlet Grove
King’s Academy
Suncoast

2M-10
American Heritage (Delray Beach)
Boynton Beach
Somerset Canyons
St. Andrew’s

1M: REGION 3

1M-5
Benjamin
Cardinal Newman
Glades Day
SLAM Academy

1M-6
Avant Garde Academy
Chaminade-Madonna
Somerset Key
St. John Paul II
Westminster Academy

TREASURE COAST/BIG LAKE AREA

4S: REGION 3

4S-12
Centennial
Fort Pierce Central
Martin County
Treasure Coast
Vero Beach

3S: REGION 3

3S-11
Fort Pierce Westwood
Okeechobee
Sebring

3S-12
Jensen Beach
Port St. Lucie
South Fork

2S: REGION 4

2S-14
Avon Park
Clewiston
Hardee
Lake Placid

1S: REGION 3

1S-6
Bradenton Christian
Cardinal Mooney
John Carroll

1S: REGION 4

1S-7
Evangelical Christian
Moore Haven
Southwest Florida Christian

1R: REGION 4

Bronson
Chiefland
Dixie County
Fort Meade
Hawthorne
Pahokee
Trenton
Wildwood
Williston

NOTE: All teams can appeal their proposed designations from now until March 18, according to the FHSAA.

PHOTO CREDITS: FHSAA

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