Super 8 tournament format coming to MIAA high school football
As it has in other sports, the MIAA Board of Directors approved the Super 8 tournament format for high school football. See when and how it works.
On August 19, the MIAA Board of Directors voted in favor of implementing the Super 8 tournament format for high school football, effective in the 2027 season. The proposal, approved by a 12-2 margin, aims to bring together the top teams in the state, regardless of division. This change was motivated by the desire to shield public school teams from the dominance of Catholic school programs.
For instance, in boys ice hockey, Catholic Memorial had won 13 Division 1A titles from 1991-2009 in the previous Super 8 format, leaving fewer opportunities for public schools to achieve Division 1 titles. The approved football proposal reestablishes the Division 1A top-tier bracket for teams in Divisions 1-2, with the top eight teams in these divisions, as determined by MIAA power rankings, qualifying for the postseason field after Week 9 of the regular season.
This new format includes a nine-week regular season, up from eight, and eliminates the previous minimum win total requirement to qualify for the state tournament. The proposal also reduces the number of teams seeded in Division 1A from 16 to 8, aiming to minimize mismatched games and provide more public school teams with access to the state finals while maintaining a competitive environment for elite programs.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
