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Florida's Open Division era has arrived.
The Florida High School Athletic Association board of directors voted June 9 to officially inaugurate an eight-team Open Division for the 2026-27 season in 11 sports beginning in the fall.
Sports selected for the Open Division will be high school football, girls volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, boys soccer, girls soccer, baseball, softball, boys lacrosse, girls lacrosse and flag football.
The 10-0 vote formally begins a process that began rolling at the end of the 2023-24 season, when the board approved plans to move toward the Open Division for 2026-27.
The FHSAA's vote paves the way for a clash of the titans to end the season in many sports, not just football. Possible mega-matchups include Parkland Douglas against Tampa Jesuit in baseball, Miami Columbus against Calvary Christian in boys basketball or Winter Park against Tallahassee Chiles in volleyball.
In football, the Open Division will produce an elite and punishing finishing stretch that will feature some of the highest-rated prospects in the United States.
The association had previously moved to launch the Open Division over concerns that the eight-team super-tournament might devalue the rest of the postseason.
At that time, the board envisioned the Open Division encompassing only eight sports. However, the association decided during the past week to add flag football and boys and girls lacrosse.
The FHSAA will select the eight Open Division participants based purely on the MaxPreps ranking formula, with no human component planned at this time.
For football, the MaxPreps rankings at the end of the regular season will determine the final eight. All other sports employing the Open Division will use the MaxPreps rankings immediately after the district tournaments.
The eight teams will be drawn into two pools of four, with Pool A containing the Nos. 1, 4, 5 and 8 seeds and Pool B containing the Nos. 2, 3, 6 and 7 seeds. Those teams would play in a round-robin format, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the site of the state finals for double elimination.
The FHSAA would use head-to-head results as its primary tiebreaker in group standings, followed by points allowed among tied teams, point differential among tied teams and overall point differential.
In the approved format, each qualifying team would receive at least one home game.
Pool A games would be scheduled as follows: No. 5 at No. 1, No. 8 at No. 4, No. 1 at No. 8, No. 5 at No. 4, No. 4 at No. 1 and No. 8 at No. 5. Pool B games would be No. 6 at No. 2, No. 7 at No. 3, No. 2 at No. 7, No. 6 at No. 3, No. 3 at No. 2 and No. 7 at No. 6.
Florida is not the only state to institute an Open Division, which gained increased prominence after its introduction in Arizona in early 2019.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: FHSAA votes for Open Division in Florida high school sports
Continue reading...
The Florida High School Athletic Association board of directors voted June 9 to officially inaugurate an eight-team Open Division for the 2026-27 season in 11 sports beginning in the fall.
Sports selected for the Open Division will be high school football, girls volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, boys soccer, girls soccer, baseball, softball, boys lacrosse, girls lacrosse and flag football.
The 10-0 vote formally begins a process that began rolling at the end of the 2023-24 season, when the board approved plans to move toward the Open Division for 2026-27.
The FHSAA's vote paves the way for a clash of the titans to end the season in many sports, not just football. Possible mega-matchups include Parkland Douglas against Tampa Jesuit in baseball, Miami Columbus against Calvary Christian in boys basketball or Winter Park against Tallahassee Chiles in volleyball.
In football, the Open Division will produce an elite and punishing finishing stretch that will feature some of the highest-rated prospects in the United States.
The association had previously moved to launch the Open Division over concerns that the eight-team super-tournament might devalue the rest of the postseason.
At that time, the board envisioned the Open Division encompassing only eight sports. However, the association decided during the past week to add flag football and boys and girls lacrosse.
How will the Open Division work?
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The FHSAA will select the eight Open Division participants based purely on the MaxPreps ranking formula, with no human component planned at this time.
For football, the MaxPreps rankings at the end of the regular season will determine the final eight. All other sports employing the Open Division will use the MaxPreps rankings immediately after the district tournaments.
The eight teams will be drawn into two pools of four, with Pool A containing the Nos. 1, 4, 5 and 8 seeds and Pool B containing the Nos. 2, 3, 6 and 7 seeds. Those teams would play in a round-robin format, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the site of the state finals for double elimination.
You must be registered for see images
The FHSAA would use head-to-head results as its primary tiebreaker in group standings, followed by points allowed among tied teams, point differential among tied teams and overall point differential.
In the approved format, each qualifying team would receive at least one home game.
Pool A games would be scheduled as follows: No. 5 at No. 1, No. 8 at No. 4, No. 1 at No. 8, No. 5 at No. 4, No. 4 at No. 1 and No. 8 at No. 5. Pool B games would be No. 6 at No. 2, No. 7 at No. 3, No. 2 at No. 7, No. 6 at No. 3, No. 3 at No. 2 and No. 7 at No. 6.
Florida is not the only state to institute an Open Division, which gained increased prominence after its introduction in Arizona in early 2019.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: FHSAA votes for Open Division in Florida high school sports
Continue reading...
