The most drama from the last high school football season came off the field as the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association worked to figure out a realignment plan for the next two years.
Tensions were high during the over three-month-long saga that saw various realignment plans brought to the table.
Eventually, a plan that would split Class 5A, the top classification, into three separate divisions, add two more state championship games and introduce promotion and relegation was approved in March. A plan that would have made the 5A South a 10-team league — with nine league games and one non-league game — failed.
With the shuffling of teams and the creation of new divisions, there are a lot of questions about the specifics of the new alignment and where teams are placed. Here’s a look at where each Southern Nevada team will be placed this season:
Class 5A
Division I: Bishop Gorman, Liberty, Silverado, Arbor View, Shadow Ridge, Desert Pines, Coronado.
The top high school football division will be Southern only, with Northern schools deciding to drop to Division II. These were the top seven schools in the NIAA’s rubric points system for Southern schools based on their performances in the previous two seasons.
Teams will play six league games with the option to play up to four non-league games.
All seven teams will make the playoffs, which will open up with three state quarterfinal games. The regular season division winner gets a bye to the semifinals.
Since there is no Northern opponent, there will be a week off between the semifinals and state championship game. All state championship games are tentatively scheduled to be played on Nov. 17 and 18 at a site to be determined, according to the NIAA.
The teams that finish in sixth and seventh place in the regular season standings will drop down to Division II, regardless of postseason performance. So a team can win a state title and drop down a division if they finish at the bottom of the standings.
Division II South: Las Vegas, Green Valley, Foothill, Basic, Sierra Vista, Durango, Faith Lutheran.
The next seven Southern Nevada schools in the NIAA’s rubric points system (No. 8-14) will compete with the top division of Northern Nevada schools for a state title.
Like with Division I, all seven teams will make the playoffs with the division winner getting a bye to the Southern League semifinals. The last team standing will play the Northern champion in the state championship game.
The top two teams in the regular season standings will be promoted to Division I and the bottom two teams will drop to Division III for the 2024 season regardless of postseason performance.
Division III South: Desert Oasis, Spring Valley, Palo Verde, Cimarron-Memorial, Clark, Legacy.
These were the next six Southern Nevada schools in the NIAA’s rubric points system. They will compete with Division III Northern schools for the state championship.
The top two teams in the standings will have byes to the Southern League semifinals. The last team standing will play the Division III Northern champion for the state title.
The bottom two teams in the regular season standings will be placed in 4A regardless of postseason performance. Rancho was supposed to be the seventh team based on their rubric points, but since Rancho was in 3A last season, they could not skip 4A to be in 5A.
Class 4A
Desert League: Rancho, Mojave, Cheyenne, Centennial, Losee, Bonanza, Western.
Mountain League: Eldorado, Canyon Springs, Chaparral, Sunrise Mountain, Valley, Del Sol, Cadence.
4A will remain a Southern-only classification. Canyon Springs and Centennial drop down from 5A. Eldorado, Cadence, Rancho, Losee, Western and Valley move up from 3A.
Each league will have its own playoff bracket with all seven teams qualifying. Like in 5A, the top seed will receive a bye to the quarterfinals. The league champions will play one another for the 4A state title game.
Each league winner will move up to 5A Division III for the 2024 season.
Class 3A
Southern League: Boulder City, Democracy Prep, Mater East, The Meadows, Moapa Valley, Pahrump Valley, SLAM Academy, Virgin Valley.
3A will be made up of charter, private and enrollment-protected schools. Democracy Prep and reigning 2A state champion The Meadows both move up from 2A.
All eight teams will qualify for the Southern Region playoffs. The winners of the two quarterfinal games will advance to the state tournament.
The highest remaining seed from the South will play the lowest remaining seed from the North, and the lowest Southern seed will play the highest Northern seed in a pair of state semifinals.
Class 2A
Southern League: Awaken Christian, Lincoln County, GV Christian, Needles, Lake Mead, White Pine.
In addition to losing The Meadows and Democracy Prep to 3A, now former 2A member Laughlin will be an independent for the next two seasons. GV Christian moves up from 1A. The top four teams will qualify for the Southern Region playoffs.
The winners of the two quarterfinal games will advance to the state tournament. The highest remaining seed from the South will play the lowest remaining seed from the North, and the lowest Southern seed will play the highest Northern seed in a pair of state semifinals.
Class 1A
Central League: Beatty, Indian Springs, Round Mountain, Spring Mountain, Tonopah.
Southern League: Beaver Dam, Mountain View, Pahranagat Valley, Sandy Valley, Word of Life.
The Southern League champion will play the No. 2 seed from the Central, and the Central League champion will play the No. 2 seed from the South in a pair of state quarterfinals. The winners will be reseeded and play Northern schools in the state semifinals.
Contact Alex Wright at [email protected]. Follow @AlexWright1028 on Twitter.
