Southern Section to create eight-team super division for football playoffs

Facing a growing gap among top teams, the CIF Southern Section announced Friday that it will create an eight-team super division for its football playoffs this fall from select teams in Divisions 1 and 2.

The eight teams will be chosen at the end of the regular season, then compete for the Division 1 title. Teams will have a first-round bye.

The remaining teams will be placed in a 16-team Division 2. The Southern Section is adding a 14th division to its championships but there’s no guarantee the Southern Section will get 14 teams into state bowl games under the current format, according to Ron Nocetti of the CIF office. That could force the Southern Section to send only 13 of its 14 champions.

This past year, there were 18 teams in Division 1 eligible for the 16-team playoffs and 18 in Division 2. In 2019, there will be 24 teams combined for Divisions 1 and 2, meaning every team probably will make the playoffs with 24 spots available.

Since 2016-17, the Southern Section has been using competitive equity to place its teams in playoffs, rather than deciding based on what leagues they play in. First-round games in Division 1 have become increasingly noncompetitive with a 16-team bracket. Division 1 has been dominated by Santa Ana Mater Dei, Bellflower St. John Bosco and Corona Centennial.

By creating a super division similar to ones in basketball, volleyball, water polo and tennis playoffs, it also might place a majority of the private schools in Division 1, which probably will go over well with public schools complaining about private schools holding unfair advantages.

The Southern Section also announced it hopes by 2020 to use the results of the regular season to help with playoff grouping. Currently teams are placed in divisions entering the summer based on two years of performance data.

DIVISION 1/2

Bishop Amat

Calabasas

Chaminade

Corona Centennial

Gardena Serra

JSerra

Long Beach Poly

Mater Dei

Mission Viejo

Murrieta Valley

Norco

Oaks Christian

Orange Lutheran

Rancho Cucamonga

Rancho Verde

San Clemente

Santa Margarita

Servite

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame

Sierra Canyon

St. John Bosco

Upland

Valencia

Vista Murrieta

DIVISION 3

Alemany

Cajon

Capistrano Valley

Cathedral

Corona del Mar

Corona Santiago

Edison

Grace Brethren

Heritage

La Habra

Lawndale

Los Alamitos

Moorpark

Paraclete

Redlands East Valley

St. Francis

Tesoro

Westlake

DIVISION 4

Bishop Diego

Camarillo

Chaparral

Charter Oak

Damien

Downey

Eastvale Roosevelt

El Toro

Great Oak

Hart

La Mirada

Loyola

Murrieta Mesa

Paloma Valley

Palos Verdes

Paramount

San Juan Hills

South Hills

Villa Park

Yucaipa

DIVISION 5

Antelope Valley

Aquinas

Chino Hills

Citrus Hill

Colony

Corona

Culver City

Diamond Ranch

El Modena

Etiwanda

Glendora

Lompoc

Mayfair

Mira Costa

Newbury Park

Oak Hills

Oxnard

Saugus

St. Bonaventure

St. Paul

Yorba Linda

DIVISION 6

Apple Valley

Ayala

Citrus Valley

Crespi

Dos Pueblos

Golden Valley

Harvard-Westlake

Kaiser

La Serna

Los Altos

Los Osos

Millikan

Oxnard Pacifica

Redondo

Rio Mesa

San Jacinto

Silverado

St. Margaret’s

Valley View

Warren

DIVISION 7

Alta Loma

Arcadia

Burbank

Canyon Country Canyon

Carter

Cypress

Don Lugo

Elsinore

Fountain Valley

Fullerton

Huntington Beach

King

Long Beach Wilson

Northview

Placentia Valencia

Quartz Hill

Redlands

Serrano

Temecula Valley

Ventura

West Ranch

DIVISION 8

Aliso Niguel

Anaheim Canyon

Buena

Gahr

Garden Grove

Garden Grove Pacifica

Grand Terrace

Palm Desert

Palmdale

Ridgecrest Burroughs

Riverside Notre Dame

Royal

San Gorgonio

Santa Ana

Santa Barbara

Santa Ynez

Sunny Hills

Temescal Canyon

Thousand Oaks

Trabuco Hills

Tustin

DIVISION 9

Bonita

Brea Olinda

El Dorado

Foothill

Highland

Hillcrest

Knight

La Quinta

La Salle

Lakewood

Monrovia

Newport Harbor

North Torrance

Palm Springs

San Dimas

Santa Fe

St. Anthony

Sultana

Troy

Victor Valley

West Covina

Woodbridge

DIVISION 10

Agoura

Big Bear

Covina

Crescenta Valley

Eisenhower

El Segundo

Heritage Christian

Katella

Montebello

Norte Vista

Orange

Peninsula

Pomona

Rancho Mirage

Riverside North

San Marino

Segerstrom

Simi Valley

Sonora

Summit

West Torrance

Western

Westminster

DIVISION 11

Arlington

Arroyo

Barstow

Beaumont

Brentwood

Buena Park

Burbank Burroughs

California

Cerritos Valley Christian

Chaffey

Claremont

Colton

Compton

Dominguez

El Rancho

Hemet

Hesperia

Irvine

Laguna Hills

Linfield Christian

Long Beach Cabrillo

Lynwood

Marina

Muir

Ontario Christian

Pasadena

Patriot

Rancho Christian

Riverside Poly

Salesian

Schurr

South El Monte

St. Genevieve

Whittier

Xavier Prep

DIVISION 12

Adelanto

Arrowhead Christian

Artesia

Bell Gardens

Carpinteria

Channel Islands

Coachella Valley

Crean Lutheran

Dana Hills

El Monte

Glenn

Godinez

Hawthorne

Hueneme

Irvine University

Jurupa Hills

La Palma Kennedy

Laguna Beach

Lakeside

Lancaster

Leuzinger

Lompoc Cabrillo

Long Beach Jordan

Maranatha

Moreno Valley

Nordhoff

Northwood

Norwalk

Oak Park

Ocean View

Ontario

Orange Vista

Pasadena Poly

Rialto

Rio Hondo Prep

Rowland

Rubidoux

Saddleback Valley Christian

San Marcos

Savanna

Shadow Hills

Silver Valley

Torrance

Twentynine Palms

Walnut

Yucca Valley

DIVISION 13

Alhambra

Anaheim

Baldwin Park

Banning

Bellflower

Bishop Montgomery

Cantwell-Sacred Heart

Canyon Springs

Chino

Diamond Bar

Eastside

Esperanza

Estancia

Excelsior

Fillmore

Fontana

Garey

Glendale

Hacienda Heights Wilson

Inglewood

Littlerock

Morningside

Nogales

Pacific

Ramona

Rancho Alamitos

Rim of the World

Rosemead

Santa Ana Calvary Chapel

Santa Ana Valley

Santa Clara

Santa Clarita Christian

Santa Monica

Santa Paula

South Pasadena

St. Bernard

Tahquitz

Temple City

Viewpoint

Village Christian

West Valley

Westminster La Quinta

Whittier Christian

DIVISION 14

Anza Hamilton

Arroyo Valley

Azusa

Bassett

Beckman

Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian

Beverly Hills

Bloomington

Bolsa Grande

Bosco Tech

California Military

Calvary Murrieta

Campbell Hall

Capistrano Valley Christian

Cathedral City

Century

Cerritos

Compton Centennial

Costa Mesa

Desert Hot Springs

Desert Mirage

Duarte

Fairmont Prep

Firebaugh

Gabrielino

Ganesha

Garden Grove Santiago

Gladstone

Granite Hills

Indian Springs

Indio

Jurupa Valley

Keppel

La Canada

La Puente

La Sierra

Loara

Los Amigos

Magnolia

Malibu

Mary Star

Miller

Montclair

Mountain View

Nuview Bridge

Pasadena Marshall

Perris

Pioneer

Portola

Ribet Academy

Riverside Prep

Saddleback

San Bernardino

San Gabriel

Santa Rosa Academy

Sherman Indian

Sierra Vista

South Torrance

Southlands Christian

St. Monica

St. Pius X - St. Matthias

Temecula Prep

Trinity Classical

Vasquez

Verbum Dei

Vista Del Lago

Webb

Western Christian

Workman

Sign up for our daily sports newsletter »