Forecast for football reclassification: Cloudy

The Football Committee for the Maine Principals Association will have its annual meeting on Thursday in Augusta, and a once popular idea may be pushed aside until next season.

The idea for a four-class system, involving Class AA, A, B and C in football, based on school enrollment, was considered a shoo-in to be passed as it was wildly popular among coaches during the summer, but minor hurdles in the system have become mountains in the eyes of some schools.

The idea is that the most populated schools (865 students and up) will move into Class AA. In that class, the former system of designating schools into East/West regions based on geography – a practice that has gone on for years – will instead be changed to a three division system. All Eastern Class AA schools would move into what would be known as the “North” division, while schools in Cumberland County would be known as the “Central” division, and schools in York County would be in the “South” division.

As of now, 25 teams make up Class A football in the state. After the 865 student cut off, 18 teams would remain in the state’s highest class, while the remaining six schools would stay in Class A.

Those seven schools are Cony, Lawrence, Messalonskee, Skowhegan, Gorham, Kennebunk and Marshwood, all who are under 865 students.

But sources now say that there is strong opposition, mainly coming from the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference (KVAC) and Pine Tree Conference (PTC) schools. The main concern is the possibility – out of the current proposal – to move young programs that have higher enrollment up a class, which would not make for a more balance of power and parody, which was the purpose of the proposal.

Each MPA member school would have a vote should the issue move forward, but without the support of the KVAC, which has 29 schools in its conference, the most of any conference in the state, it would be difficult for the motion to pass.

Class A through Class C would remain with the current East/West divisions. Class A would be made up of schools with 600-864 in school enrollment. Class B would have schools with enrollment numbers from 396-599, and Class C would involve schools with enrollments of less than 395.

Under the current proposal, Thornton Academy, Biddeford, Massabesic, Sanford and Noble would all move up to Class AA. Scarborough, which moved into the York County division when it became a Class A football program, would move into the Central division, while Bonny Eagle, the team of the past decade in Class A football with four state titles in five years, would move in with the York County schools in the South division.

Wells would remain in Class B, and Old Orchard Beach would remain in Class C under the proposal. Marshwood and Kennebunk would remain in Class A.

Kennebunk head coach Joe Rafferty, who has coached at Kennebunk for 29 years, said before the season that the change would help the program. The Rams finished 2-6 on the season, but competed in many contests against top teams in Western Class A (many of which would become Class AA teams).

“I think in the long run, it will be the best interest of football, but it will help us,” Rafferty said. “Ever since we came [up to Class A], I thought a lot of our teams would struggle based on the numbers, and our best year was 4-4, and that doesn’t get it done up here. I think it will help.”

Wells head coach Tim Roche also said before the season that it would be a good move to go to four classes.

“I love it, it’s what’s right for football,” Roche said. “I laughed because we’re at 450, and we would still be the smallest [Class B] school under the reclassification system. And we only lose two [rivalry games]. But is it right for the state? And it is. A Kennebunk, a Marshwood or a Westbrook, they’re facing schools twice their size. At the Class A level, it’s hard to tell those guys ‘Hey guys, we’re going to win a championship this year’ because the kids know, deep down, that a Deering or a Bonny Eagle are going to be much better than them. They understand that.”

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