Iowa Football Classifications for 2021

Well, it took until March 5, but finally it's happened - the Iowa High School Athletic Association has released the seven classes for the 2021 high school football season (and, I'm assuming with a return to the two-year cycle, 2022 as well ... but there still might be questions about that).

In January the IHSAA announced the addition of a Class 5A, splitting the 36 largest schools off into their own new class; then 4A (previously the largest designation) would contain the next 36, followed by another 36 schools in 3A. Classes 2A and 1A would consist of 48 teams each, with the remaining 11-player teams in Class A. Eight-player remains its own class.

Now, here's some complicating background. In early 2020 the IHSAA said that football season would be a one-year outlier, rather than the two-year cycle they'd used since, well, forever. The idea was that an IHSAA study group would examine ways to improve competitive balance, perhaps by using socioeconomic factors (such as free and reduced lunch percentages) or previous success in football, to create a more balanced assortment of schools in the largest classes, at least. While that work was going on, 2020 was to see a different approach in 4A, the largest class: Instead of assigning districts, teams would be put into tiers (based on prior won-loss records), and there would be some limits on how many tiers up or down a team could choose their opponents from. It was explained as a temporary experiment, with a more permanent change coming for 2021 and beyond.

Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which threw everything upside down. Schedules were rearranged, the first couple of weeks of the fall season were made optional, and the Class 4A experiment was put on the shelf. Yet, still, there didn't seem to be anything preventing the IHSAA from going forward with their study groups to put together a more comprehensive competitive balance proposal out for this year.

Except ...

They didn't. Or, at least, they haven't yet. The addition of the new 5A simply splits the largest 36 schools into their own class, using the same enrollment numbers they've always used to determine classes; there's no adjustment for socioeconomic factors, no arrangement for past success or struggle, nothing different than what's been done for the past several decades. Now, might some of these things be addressed when districts are released in a week or so? Perhaps ... maybe the state will bring up another system similar to last year's shelved "tier" plan for 5A. We'll have to see.

In any event, here we are. A couple of surprises arise here, I suppose: Cedar Rapids Washington drops out of the largest class into 4A, joining metro mates Xavier and Marion (although I'm not convinced all three will be in the same district); Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson will also be 4A, no doubt joining Lewis Central and Glenwood in a district; previous big-class schools Fort Dodge and Indianola will also be in 4A this fall. Meanwhile, Solon, a perennial power in the second-largest class, now falls into the number-three class (3A), while Harlan, last year's runner-up in what was the second-largest class, also moves into the third-largest class (it's still 3A, but today's 3A is last year's 2A, so ...).

Let's go to the maps. Districts aren't out yet, but you can make your own!

CLASS 5A

Here's the 36 5A schools. I'm assuming there'll be six groupings of six teams each, although it may not be "districts" as we've been used to; perhaps the IHSAA will go to some kind of grouping with "tiers" as they planned to do last season. Teams will play 9 regular-season games, with 16 playoff qualifiers.

CLASS 4A

The next 36 schools by size are in 4A. Again, I'm guessing six districts of six teams, with 9 regular season games and 16 playoff qualifiers. The districts could be a bit tricky; while it's a cinch to make nice, tidy groups of five, adding that sixth one causes all kinds of domino effects around different regions, so I don't know what's actually going to happen there. You also have to find three teams to join Mount Pleasant, Burlington, and Fort Madison in a district, which is going to be lots of travel fun. Decorah's location makes it hard to find five other schools within a reasonable distance, too - is it Webster City or one of the Cedar Rapids/Marion schools that ends up thrown into that northeastern district?

CLASS 3A

Same story again, 36 teams, probably six districts of six, 9 games, 16 playoff qualifiers. A couple of teams are going to have long drives for district games in Keokuk ... (there's four obvious district mates down there, but what two do you add? Assumption? Solon? Knoxville?)

CLASS 2A

Now things change up a bit. There's 48 teams in this class; six districts of eight, or eight districts of six. Only 8 regular-season games, with 32 playoff qualifiers (so if you had eight districts, you could just take the top four finishers in each district and Bob's your uncle, no RPI required). With that extra week of playoffs, non-playoff qualifiers would be permitted to add a ninth regular-season game with another non-qualifier, should they choose.

CLASS 1A

The same setup as Class 2A, 48 teams, 32 qualifiers, 8 regular-season games, yadda yadda.

CLASS A

Class A has the remainder of the 11-player football schools, which (just coincidentally) happens to be a nice even 56 for 2021. So you're looking at seven districts of eight, most likely. Once again, 32 playoff qualifiers and 8 regular-season games, with that optional ninth game for non-qualifiers. You're going to have some at-large qualifiers here (with the top four from seven districts you have 28, leaving you four remaining playoff spots), so I guess RPI will need to be a thing.

Wayne, Corydon continues to be basically all alone there in southern Iowa, so whatever district gets them will see some long road trips.

EIGHT PLAYER

Ah, yes, the eight-player schools. This group continues to grow; while the IHSAA does have an enrollment limit for this class, it continues to be more of a guideline than an actual rule. There was talk prior to January that the state might actually split 8-player into two classes, but that's not happening.

In any event, there are 71 schools planning to play 8-player football in 2021. This is somewhat problematic, because an odd number means each week one of those teams won't have an opponent. I'm not going to try to work out all the math here for non-district games, but eight 8-team districts and one 7-team district might work (it might not, too, considering each team in the 8-team districts only has one non-district available and the seven teams in the small district would need two apiece). It might take creative math, but I'm sure somebody can figure it out.

So this is what we know as of today, March 5. We expect to have districts made available in about a week; hopefully in the same timeframe we might have information on how playoff qualifiers are determined, which would then lead to schools making their wish-lists for non-district games and then actual schedules ... sometime ... maybe ... before summer.