Elgin Public-Pope John Wolfpack made a return to the State Football Playoffs during the 2019 season. They were among 32 teams from across the state who played in the postseason.
A decision by the Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) last week will cut the number of teams who actually qualify for the state playoffs in half.
Meeting Thursday, May 21, the NSAA Board approved a measure to have just 16 teams qualify for the state playoff bracket that won’t, for the first time, be determined by geography.
Under the new formation, prior to the 16-team state playoff, the top 32 teams based on points will face off in a sub-state round which will still be based on east-west geography.
According to the NSAA, the 16 winners in the sub-state round will then be re-seeded for the state playoff bracket.
In past years, the state eight-man football playoffs have been made up of two 16-team brackets basked on geography (east and west). The two bracket winners will face off for a state championship in November at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln.
According to NSAA Executive Director Jay Bellar, the goal of the NSAA is a simple one — to get the best teams to play at the end of the season. He added, one consequence of the change is that some teams may have to travel more than in past years, but the tradeoff was worth it.
