There's a scramble because the statewide prep realignment set to go into effect for the new school year, left the Northern 4A to install a new scheduling format. The new format has brought up an issue or two that still need to be addressed.
Under realignment, the Northern 4A has 11 football playing members. Schools will play eight league games. That means teams will miss playing two of 10 potential league opponents each season.
“It's really hard to say at this point how the schedule will work out because we haven't experienced it yet,” said McQueen football coach Jim Snelling. “I think there will be things that are a surprise to all of us.”
That could cause a handful of issues once playoff time rolls around the first week of November. The top eight teams advance to the regional playoffs. More than one team cold finish undefeated and stake its claim to a conference championship. Additionally, teams could tie for other slots with tiebreakers needed to settle playoff seeding.
The first tiebreaker in any sports is head-to-head competition, but with the current format, teams could tie and not have played in the regular season. It's also a possibility they could have played, but only to fill their byes, not in a league game.
“I'm not sure there's any system that's perfect with us being in a transition period,” Reed coach Ernie Howren said. “I think we have to do the best we can and I think that's where we're at. If it becomes a huge problem, we can always go back and change it. But it's not something to lose sleep over. I don't think it's that big of a deal.”
Northern 4A coaches will meet to discuss finalizing tiebreakers at a Wednesday meeting with NIAA officials on hand to provide insight. Regardless of the decisions made, 4A prep football programs in northern and southern Nevada will not have identical tiebreaking procedures.
“With the possibility of two teams tied that did not play each other, it makes things kind of goofy,” said NIAA Assistant Director Donnie Nelson. “Head-to-head is always a first tiebreaker but from there I don't know what we'll do. At Wednesday's meeting that will be one of the discussion topics. The problem is, a rule change has to be approved by the (NIAA's) Board of Control and there's no time for that. It could still be brought to the board as an emergency action item.”
The NIAA Board of Control's next meeting will be held Oct. 13-14, more than six weeks after the 2010 season kicks off.
Most local coaches seem to believe the first tiebreaker between teams who did not play each other will wind up being defensive points allowed in league play. That could bring up an ethical dilemma for some coaches.
“Nobody is thrilled about it,” said Spanish Springs coach Scott Hare. “What it creates is a situation where you don't ever want to put in your back-ups. You don't want to give up a late touchdown in the fourth quarter; and then that brings up a sportsmanship issue.
“If you're up 35-7 with three minutes to go, what do you do?” Hare asked. “In the past, if the other team scored and made it 35-14, you still played all your kids. You still won 35-14 and went home happy. Now that could be a big deal if its the first tiebreaker. That could be the difference between a fourth or fifth seed and a home playoff game or an eight or nine seed and even getting in (to the postseason).”
Hare did say that defensive points allowed is a better tiebreaker than points scored as that would lead to teams trying to score more points in games already decided or with a lopsided margin.
“We've been fortunate enough as a program that we haven't been in many of those situations (where tiebreakers come into play),” said Howren, whose Raiders have been the most successful northern Nevada gridiron squad over the past five years. “But if we are involved, I'll research the heck out of it. We'll know exactly how it works.”
There are other smaller issues with the current scheduling system. With an 11-team league, one school is always sitting out with a bye. The later in the season a school's bye is on the schedule, the tougher it is to fill as potential non-league opponents get into their league play.
Spanish Springs is in a tough spot this fall. The Cougars' bye week comes in week seven, the weekend of Oct. 8-9. Hare said he is constantly checking websites and making calls, looking for an opponent in Nevada or central or northern California with a common bye week. He has not been able to find one.
“I don't want a bye any of the last six weeks,” Hare said. “Then you're really hamstrung and stuck with nine games. If your bye comes in weeks two, three or four, it's pretty easy to fill. You can do it within a week.”
Under a random draw, McQueen was stuck with the bye the last week of the regular season. That means the perennial power Lancers will get a week off before postseason play, assuming they qualify. Many coaches don't like a week off during their prep season, let alone just days before the most important time of the year.
It's likely to affect McQueen. The Lancers have not missed the Northern 4A regional playoffs in more than 20 years and have advanced to at least the regional semifinals 13 times in the past 14 years.
“That (week 10 bye) is pretty tough to fill,” Snelling said. “My feeling is, you always try and look at the positive. You can say it's a tough situation for us. But on the flip side, it also gives us a chance to see the team we could play the next week in the postseason and it could give us a chance to heal up a bit.”
When Spanish Springs opened its doors in the fall of 2001, it became a natural rival with Reed because of the schools' close proximity to each other. By also being in the same league, the rivalry has grown to one of the most emotional in northern Nevada.
Traditionally, rivalry games are played the final weekend of the regular season. However, until this upcoming season, Reed and Spanish Springs have never got to face off at end their seasons. That changes this fall as their final scheduled game is set for Thursday, Oct. 28 at RHS.
While almost all coaches, players and fans of both schools like how that shook out this year, it might not always be the case. In fact, under the current scheduling format, where league foes do not play two league teams each year, it's possible Reed and Spanish Springs might not even play each other during a future two-year cycle.
“I think the rivalry games should always be in there. And they should always be the last week of the season,” Hare said. “It makes it fun at the end of the season. No matter if you're in the playoffs. No matter your record, the game is always good for the fans and it's good for the gate.”
Despite potential problems on the horizon, it is not set in stone that all if any of them will arise. With the first day of practice less than a week away, coaches are trying to focus more on what happens on the field than off it.
“There's always an issue,” Reno coach Dan Avansino said. “As long as it's equitable for everybody, that's what counts. There will always be a situation come up, but that's OK. The schedule may not be my first preference, but I'm not complaining about it.”
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