There will be no Clark County School District high school football teams winning official Nevada state titles this fall.
Instead, 30 schools have moved their football programs from the 5A and 4A classifications to independent status, beginning this fall and continuing for the next two seasons. They will not be eligible for the playoffs or a state-sanctioned state title.
The new-look high school football season begins on Friday, with 22 of the 30 independent teams opening their seasons. None of the independent football teams will play Bishop Gorman, which has won 16 of the past 17 state titles in the top classification, or any of the six other private and charter schools that are eligible to play for a state title.
The decision was made by CCSD principals who expressed frustration with the leadership of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association, the controversial HRM points rating system, the threat of legal action from Gorman and another eventual realignment process that led to the decision in March.
Schools have been split into three 10-team tiers based on competitive balance and split into two divisions in each tier based on geography.
Instead of getting an opportunity to play at Allegiant Stadium or UNR for a state title, the schools have formulated their own version of a playoffs that will end with the top two teams in each of the three divisions to play for the Superintendents Cup on Oct. 23.
“You’re going to see great games,” said Liberty coach Rich Muraco, whose Patriots open the season Friday at Hawaii power Mililani and added that he believes the top division of CCSD independent teams (Division I) will be the most “competitive” league in the state.
“You’re going to see teams that match up with each other, and I think it’s going to bring some enthusiasm for programs because they’re going to feel like they really have a chance to win something. I know it’s going to be great.”
Superintendents Cup
The 30 CCSD football programs have been split up into the following groups:
Division I
■ East: Liberty, Desert Oasis, Coronado, Foothill, Las Vegas
■ West: Arbor View, Centennial, Shadow Ridge, Mojave, Desert Pines
Division II
■ East: Basic, Canyon Springs, Durango, Silverado, Palo Verde
■ West: Clark, Green Valley, Sierra Vista, Legacy, Spring Valley
Division III
■ East: Eldorado, Del Sol, Sunrise Mountain, Chaparral, Valley
■ West: Cheyenne, Cimarron-Memorial, Bonanza, Western, Rancho
Independent teams can play up to 10 games and their seasons end on Oct. 23, the final day of regular-season play for all fall team sports.
Each CCSD team has its schedule filled out through Oct. 9, and two blank dates for Oct. 16 and Oct. 23. Those two dates are “crossover games” between teams in different groups in the same division that will act as a version of a playoff.
The top two teams in each group will play for the Superintendents Cup in each of their three respective divisions. Group standings will determine who the top two teams are.
The first-place team in the East will play the second-place team from the West in a crossover game, and the first-place West team will play the second-place team from the East in another crossover game on Oct. 16. The winners of each game will play each other on Oct. 23 for the Cup.
Teams in third, fourth and fifth place will play one another in the final two weeks. On the field, the action won’t look that different. Top teams like Liberty, Arbor View and Centennial have filled their schedule with quality out-of-state teams.
Other CCSD teams have the freedom to renew old rivalries against opponents in and not in their groups and compete against similar teams on a competitive balance level.
“We’re looking forward to it, and we’ve done a good job over the last few years of embracing anybody and everybody who we put on our schedule,” Centennial coach D.J. Campbell said. “It’s business as usual, but knowing that there is an exact end date, that being Oct. 23, kind of lights a fire under the boys.
“The fact that we know when the end date is, we know that we really have limited time and it kind of puts things into perspective about taking advantage of every opportunity.”
‘The biggest travesty’
As part of CCSD’s independence, there are three remaining 5A playoff-eligible teams in the Southern Region — Gorman, Faith Lutheran and Losee — and four in 4A — Sloan Canyon, Mater East, SLAM! Nevada and Cadence.
CCSD teams have united in not scheduling any private or charter teams to fill voids in their schedules. The seven private and charter schools are playing one another, outside of the teams in their league, to fill voids in their schedule.
Bishop Gorman coach Brent Browner said he recalled asking his players their thoughts about not playing the CCSD teams and not knowing what their response would be.
“Our kids are sad that they’re not going to play against kids that they’ve been playing against in youth football,” Browner said. “The kids all want to play, adults are the ones that don’t want to play. Who would have thought we would have gotten to that point because I asked my kids, ‘Do (the kids on the CCSD teams) want to play (us)?’ and they said, ‘Yeah.’
“Those are things that I think have been taken away that nobody thought about and nobody thought about the kids. Nobody asked the kids what they wanted to do. … They all just decided on their own that was in their best interest. I think that’s the biggest travesty of what’s happening.”
All three playoff-eligible 5A Southern Region teams will qualify for the playoffs. The third-place team advances straight to the Open Division state title game. The first- and second-place teams will play in an Open Division state semifinal, with the winner advancing to the title game and the loser dropping to the 5A title game against the Northern Region champion.
In 4A, all four teams will qualify for the Southern Region playoffs with the region champion playing the Northern champion at UNR for the title. The 5A and 4A playoff seedings will be used by the HRM points rating system — that combines Harbin points, MaxPreps rankings and NIAA rubric points — that was used last year.
“We all know who’s going to win (the Open Division, Gorman) and you can write down the state championship for the Open and 5A today,” Muraco said. “It’s predetermined and there’s not going to be a lot of great competition on the NIAA side of things.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
