- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,243,968
- Reaction score
- 59
Like it or not, the Open Division is here.
The Florida High School Athletic Association's Board of Directors approved the proposed format on June 9, and it will go into effect starting this fall.
In football, the top eight teams on the MaxPreps statewide rankings after the regular season advance to the Open Division. In the other team sports, the rankings after the district tournaments will be used to set the field.
Using the 2025 football season as an example, here's how the Open Division would have played out and what impact it would had on the other classes.
Keep in mind that this exercise is just to give an idea of what the landscape would have been last year. Without the eight Open Division teams, the seedings and matchups certainly would have been much different. It's also worth noting that the seeding last season was determined by the FHSAA's power rankings, which were very different from the MaxPreps rankings.
The Open Division takes the top eight teams and splits them into two pools for round robin play.
The final MaxPreps rankings were: 1. IMG, 2. Miami Northwestern, 3. Miami Central, 4. Cardinal Mooney, 5. St. Thomas Aquinas, 6. Chaminade-Madonna, 7. Raines, 8. Armwood, 9. Buchholz. IMG is not eligible for FHSAA postseason play, so Northwestern would be the No. 1 seed and Buchholz the No. 8.
The pool format would have been as follows.
Pool A: No. 1 Miami Northwestern, No. 4 St. Thomas Aquinas, No. 5 Chaminade-Madonna, 8 Buchholz
Pool B: No. 2 Miami Central, No. 3 Cardinal Mooney, No. 6 Raines, No. 7 Armwood
2025 state championship: Lake Mary 28, Vero Beach 27
Open Division impact: None
2025 state championship:West Boca 31, West Broward 0
Open Division impact: Amrwood and Buchholz both were state semifinalists. Armwood lost to West Boca 14-13 in the semifinals. The Hawks were absolutely dominant in the region, winning its three games by a combined score of 133-0. Other than Armwood, No. 2 seed South Lake was a regional finalist and regional semifinalist Viera was the No. 4 seed. Buchholz beat No. 2 seed Mandarin 27-20 in the regional championship game. Region 1-6A arguably was the deepest in Florida, as it also included No. 3 Pace and No. 4 Nease. Had a Mandarin team with plenty of playoff experience — it was the Class 4M state runner-up in 2023 — gotten into the state semifinals it could have made a run. The Mustangs only losses in 2025 were against IMG and at Buchholz.
2025 state championship: St. Thomas Aquinas 29, Lakeland 0
Open Division impact: Aquinas, which has won seven consecutive state titles, would no longer be in the field. That alone is massive. Aquinas beat Riverdale in the state semifinal and McArthur in the regional final. Without Aquinas in the regional bracket, No. 6 McArthur or No. 4 Coconut Creek, a regional semifinalist, could have made a run.
2025 state championship: American Heritage 31, Jones 28
Open Division impact: None
2025 state championship: Raines 23, Miami Northwestern 22
Open Division impact: Northwestern, Miami Central and Raines all are in this class, so the fallout would have been massive. Let's start with who would be left from the state semifinalists: Bishop Moore and Booker. In Region 1, Raines was a dominant champion, winning every game by at least 37 points. The regional runner-up was No. 3 Bishop Kenny, which was the only team to score more than a touchdown against Raines in the regional tournament. Without rivals Northwestern and Central in Region 4, the regional semifinalists were No. 3 Lely and No. 4 Key West.
2025 state championship: Cardinal Mooney 52, Bolles 28
Open Division impact: Cardinal Mooney was a thoroughly dominant champion, winning all five playoff games by at least 20 points. Bolles was equally dominant through the first four rounds and would have been the clear favorite without Cardinal Mooney in the picture. Cardinal Mooney beat Cocoa 40-0 in the state semifinals last season. The Region 3 runner-up was No. 2 Lakewood, which went 11-2 with both losses coming at Cardinal Mooney by double digits.
2025 state championship: Cardinal Newman 17, Chaminade-Madonna 14
Open Division impact: Without perennial national power Chaminade in the picture, it does have a very different feel. The Lions beat Region 1 champion Trinity Christian 35-0 in the state semifinals. In the Region 4 championship, Chaminade beat a No. 2 True North squad that had been riding an impressive 10-game win streak. The Lions topped No. 4 Edison 47-15 in the regional semifinal.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: How FHSAA Open Division would have changed 2025 football playoffs
Continue reading...
The Florida High School Athletic Association's Board of Directors approved the proposed format on June 9, and it will go into effect starting this fall.
In football, the top eight teams on the MaxPreps statewide rankings after the regular season advance to the Open Division. In the other team sports, the rankings after the district tournaments will be used to set the field.
Using the 2025 football season as an example, here's how the Open Division would have played out and what impact it would had on the other classes.
Keep in mind that this exercise is just to give an idea of what the landscape would have been last year. Without the eight Open Division teams, the seedings and matchups certainly would have been much different. It's also worth noting that the seeding last season was determined by the FHSAA's power rankings, which were very different from the MaxPreps rankings.
Open Division
The Open Division takes the top eight teams and splits them into two pools for round robin play.
The final MaxPreps rankings were: 1. IMG, 2. Miami Northwestern, 3. Miami Central, 4. Cardinal Mooney, 5. St. Thomas Aquinas, 6. Chaminade-Madonna, 7. Raines, 8. Armwood, 9. Buchholz. IMG is not eligible for FHSAA postseason play, so Northwestern would be the No. 1 seed and Buchholz the No. 8.
The pool format would have been as follows.
Pool A: No. 1 Miami Northwestern, No. 4 St. Thomas Aquinas, No. 5 Chaminade-Madonna, 8 Buchholz
Pool B: No. 2 Miami Central, No. 3 Cardinal Mooney, No. 6 Raines, No. 7 Armwood
Class 7A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship: Lake Mary 28, Vero Beach 27
Open Division impact: None
Class 6A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship:West Boca 31, West Broward 0
Open Division impact: Amrwood and Buchholz both were state semifinalists. Armwood lost to West Boca 14-13 in the semifinals. The Hawks were absolutely dominant in the region, winning its three games by a combined score of 133-0. Other than Armwood, No. 2 seed South Lake was a regional finalist and regional semifinalist Viera was the No. 4 seed. Buchholz beat No. 2 seed Mandarin 27-20 in the regional championship game. Region 1-6A arguably was the deepest in Florida, as it also included No. 3 Pace and No. 4 Nease. Had a Mandarin team with plenty of playoff experience — it was the Class 4M state runner-up in 2023 — gotten into the state semifinals it could have made a run. The Mustangs only losses in 2025 were against IMG and at Buchholz.
Class 5A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship: St. Thomas Aquinas 29, Lakeland 0
Open Division impact: Aquinas, which has won seven consecutive state titles, would no longer be in the field. That alone is massive. Aquinas beat Riverdale in the state semifinal and McArthur in the regional final. Without Aquinas in the regional bracket, No. 6 McArthur or No. 4 Coconut Creek, a regional semifinalist, could have made a run.
Class 4A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship: American Heritage 31, Jones 28
Open Division impact: None
Class 3A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship: Raines 23, Miami Northwestern 22
Open Division impact: Northwestern, Miami Central and Raines all are in this class, so the fallout would have been massive. Let's start with who would be left from the state semifinalists: Bishop Moore and Booker. In Region 1, Raines was a dominant champion, winning every game by at least 37 points. The regional runner-up was No. 3 Bishop Kenny, which was the only team to score more than a touchdown against Raines in the regional tournament. Without rivals Northwestern and Central in Region 4, the regional semifinalists were No. 3 Lely and No. 4 Key West.
Class 2A
You must be registered for see images
2025 state championship: Cardinal Mooney 52, Bolles 28
Open Division impact: Cardinal Mooney was a thoroughly dominant champion, winning all five playoff games by at least 20 points. Bolles was equally dominant through the first four rounds and would have been the clear favorite without Cardinal Mooney in the picture. Cardinal Mooney beat Cocoa 40-0 in the state semifinals last season. The Region 3 runner-up was No. 2 Lakewood, which went 11-2 with both losses coming at Cardinal Mooney by double digits.
Class 1A
You must be registered for see images attach
2025 state championship: Cardinal Newman 17, Chaminade-Madonna 14
Open Division impact: Without perennial national power Chaminade in the picture, it does have a very different feel. The Lions beat Region 1 champion Trinity Christian 35-0 in the state semifinals. In the Region 4 championship, Chaminade beat a No. 2 True North squad that had been riding an impressive 10-game win streak. The Lions topped No. 4 Edison 47-15 in the regional semifinal.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: How FHSAA Open Division would have changed 2025 football playoffs
Continue reading...
