The biggest topic of conversation has been the shift from four classifications to six, with many schools moving to new groupings, approved by Pennsylvania’s governing body over high school sports—the PIAA. We had a chance recently in studio to discuss this big shake-up with local media members…
Coming up on this Thursday’s live show at 7 pm on RCN-TV (the podcast will be available the next day), District XI Football Chair Jason Zimmerman, along with local head coaches, will be on “RCN SportsTalk” to discuss and debate the advantages of these new alignments. They will also outline the changes to the regular season schedule, the playoff criteria, the reasoning behind moving some teams and not others and many more issues.
Viewers will have the benefit of calling into the show live or emailing us (rcnsportstalk@rcn.com) questions and concerns about the radical change—including the usually lengthy procedure for these alterations, which took place in a surprisingly quick fashion.
Among the areas of confusion that we’ll hope to clear up on this show include: identifying where the different teams “landed,” why a particular school is sometimes in different classifications for different sports (including different grouping for boys and girls sports), the number of teams that will qualify for the postseason and many more issues.
To help clarify some of the confusion ahead of the show, here is a rundown of where the various schools fall for a couple of the most-covered PIAA sanctioned sports.
FOOTBALL CLASSIFICATIONS…
CLASS 6A:
Allen, Dieruff, Easton, Emmaus, Freedom, Liberty, Nazareth, Northampton, Parkland, Pleasant Valley, Pocono Mt. East, Pocono Mt. West and Stroudsburg
CLASS 5A:
East Stroudsburg North, East Stroudsburg South, Southern Lehigh and Whitehall
CLASS 4A:
Bangor, Bethlehem Catholic, Blue Mountain, Central Catholic, Northwestern Lehigh, Pottsville and Saucon Valley
CLASS 3A:
Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, Northern Lehigh, North Schuylkill, Notre Dame-Green Pond, Palisades, Pen Argyl, Salisbury, Tamaqua and Wilson
CLASS 2A:
Catasauqua, Mahanoy Area, Minersville, Palmerton, Panther Valley, Pine Grove, Minersville and Schuylkill Haven
CLASS A:
Marian, Nativity, Shenandoah Valley, Tri-Valley and Williams Valley
BOYS BASKETBALL CLASSIFICATIONS…
CLASS 6A:
Allen, Dieruff, Easton, East Stroudsburg South, Emmaus, Freedom, Liberty, Nazareth, Northampton, Parkland, Pleasant Valley, Pocono Mountain Easton, Pocono Mountain West, Stroudsburg
CLASS 5A:
Bangor, Blue Mountain, Allentown Central Catholic, East Stroudsburg North, Pottsville, Southern Lehigh and Whitehall
CLASS 4A:
Bethlehem Catholic, Jim Thorpe, North Schuylkill, Northwestern, Pen Argyl, Salisbury, Saucon Valley, Tamaqua and Wilson
CLASS 3A:
Catasauqua, Minersville, Northern Lehigh, Notre Dame-Green Pond, Palmerton and Pine Grove
CLASS 2A:
Mahanoy Area, Marian Catholic, Moravian Academy, Panther Valley, Schuylkill Haven, Shenandoah Valley and Williams Valley
CLASS A:
Lincoln Leadership, Medical Academy, Nativity, Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg, Tri-Valley and Weatherly
As I mentioned months ago on this blog, I myself am taking an optimistic “wait-and-see” approach to see how this new classification system shakes out. There are some clear advantages for student-athletes and some of the local school sports programs. However, there have also been a number of coaches in the state who have raised concerns about this year’s changes.
Again, you will have the opportunity to call or email the show directly and our guests will be able to address your questions and concerns on this Thursday’s program. We hope you’ll join us for this important show and let us know your thoughts!
