Home > Sports > Prep Extra > Football
Bookmark Us   •   Make Us Your Homepage

District reshuffling sends Elkhorn to Class A

Comments 22 comment(s)  
E-mail Story E-mail Story
Print Story Print Story
Share  Share
Text Size: 
Tools Sponsor

BY RYLY JANE HAMBLETON / Lincoln Journal Star

Friday, Dec 28, 2007 - 06:05:32 pm CST

Class A football coaches will be scrambling to find game film of Elkhorn.

The Antlers moved up to Class A for the two-year football classification period that begins next fall, replacing Columbus.

Elkhorn was assigned to District 2, where they’ll compete with Kearney, Lincoln East, Lincoln Southeast, Lincoln Southwest and Norfolk for one of the three available playoff spots.

Story Photo
Class A

District A-1

Fremont, Lincoln North Star, Grand Island, Lincoln Northeast, Lincoln High, North Platte

District A-2

Elkhorn, Lincoln Southeast, Kearney,Lincoln Southwest, Lincoln East, Norfolk

District A-3

Millard West, Omaha Central, Omaha Benson, Omaha Westside

Omaha Bryan, Papillion-La Vista

District A-4

Bellevue East, Omaha North, Millard North, Omaha Northwest, Omaha Burke

District A-5

Bellevue West, Omaha South, Creighton Prep, Papillion-La Vista South, Millard South



Class B

District B-1

Blair, Schuyler, Mount Michael, South Sioux City

District B-2

Nebraska City, Plattsmouth, Omaha Gross, Ralston

District B-3

Gretna, Platteview, Omaha Skutt, Waverly

District B-4

Beatrice, Lincoln Pius X, Crete, Norris

District B-5

Columbus, Seward, Columbus Lakeview, York

District B-6

Adams Central, Hastings, Aurora, Northwest

District B-7

Holdrege, McCook Lexington, Ogallala

District B-8

Alliance, Scottsbluff, Gering, Sidney



Class C-1

District C1-1

Bennington, Fort Calhoun, Boys Town, Omaha Roncalli, Douglas County West

District C1-2

Auburn, Lincoln Lutheran, Fairbury, Syracuse, Falls City

District C1-3

Ashland-Greenwood, Raymond Central, Bishop Neumann, Wahoo, Milford

District C1-4

Arlington, Tekamah-Herman, Logan View, West Point-Beemer, North Bend Central, Wisner-Pilger

District C1-5

Battle Creek, O’Neill, Crofton, Pierce, Norfolk Catholic, Wayne

District C1-6

Boone Central, David City, Centennial, Madison, Columbus Scotus, Twin River

District C1-7

Central City, Grand Island CC, Doniphan-Trumbull, Hastings St. Cecilia, Fillmore Central, St. Paul

District C1-8

Centura, Ord, Gibbon, Southern Valley, Minden, Wood River

District C1-9

Ainsworth, Cozad, Broken Bow, Gothenburg, Valentine

District C1-10

Chadron, Kimball, Gordon-Rushville, Mitchell, Hershey



Class C-2

District C2-1

Brownell-Talbot, Weeping Water, Elmwood-Murdock, Yutan, Louisville

District C2-2

Humboldt-TR-S, Lourdes Central Catholic, Johnson Co. Central, Palmyra, Lincoln Christian, Southern

District C2-3

Aquinas, Malcolm, East Butler, Tri County, Friend, Wilber-Clatonia

District C2-4

Archbishop Bergan, Stanton, Oakland-Craig, West Point CC, Scribner-Snyder

District C2-5

Hartington CC, Ponca, Homer, Randolph, Laurel-Concord, Wakefield

District C2-6

Creighton, Plainview, Lutheran Northeast, West Holt, Neligh-Oakdale

District C2-7

Cross County, Loup City, Fullerton, Ravenna, High Plains

District C2-8

Blue Hill, Sutton, Sandy Creek, Thayer Central, Superior

District C2-9

Cambridge, Kearney Catholic, Dundy Co.-Stratton, North Platte St. Patrick’s, Elm Creek, Southwest Consolidated

District C2-10

Bayard, Morrill, Bridgeport, Perkins County, Chase County, Sutherland



Class D-1

District D1-1

Cedar Bluffs, Johnson-Brock, Concordia#, Mead, Conestoga#, Omaha Christian

District D1-2

Deshler, Freeman, Dorchester, Meridian, Exeter-Milligan, Pawnee City

District D1-3

Bancroft-Rosalie, Humphrey, Clarkson, Lyons-Decatur Northeast, Howells, Pender

District D1-4

Emerson-Hubbard, Osmond, Hartington, Winnebago#, Omaha Nation, Winside

District D1-5

Burwell, Newman Grove, Clearwater/Orchard, North Central

(Keya Paha/Rock Co.), Elkhorn Valley, West Boyd

District D1-6

Heartland#, Osceola, McCool Junction, Palmer, Nebraska Christian, Shelby

District D1-7

Axtell, Kenesaw, Franklin, Shelton, Giltner, Silver Lake

District D1-8

Alma, Bertrand, Amherst, Overton, Arapahoe, Wilcox-Hildreth

District D1-9

Callaway, Maxwell, Elwood, Medicine Valley, Eustis-Farnam, Wauneta-Palisade

District D1-10

Crawford, Hemingford#, Creek Valley, Leyton, Garden County

# — ineligible for playoffs because of enrollment.



Class D-2

District D2-1

Diller-Odell, Parkview Christian, Falls City SH, Southeast Consolidated, Lewiston, Sterling

District D2-2

Bruning-Davenport, Lawrence-Nelson, Clay Center, Red Cloud

Harvard, Shickley

District D2-3

Dodge, Lindsay Holy Family, Humphrey St. Francis, Nebraska Lutheran, Leigh, Prague

District D2-4

Allen, Walthill, Coleridge, Wausa, Newcastlem, Wynot

District D2-5

Bloomfield, St. Mary’s, Lynch, Stuart, Niobrara, Verdigre

District D2-6

Cedar Rapids, Ewing, Chambers, Pope John, Elgin, Spalding/Spalding Acad.

District D2-7

Hampton, North Loup-Scotia, Heartland Lutheran, Pleasanton, Litchfield, Sargent

District D2-8

Anselmo-Merna, Loomis, Ansley, Maywood, Brady, Sumner-Eddyville-Miller

District D2-9

Cody-Kilgore, Mullen, Hay Springs, Sandhills/Thedford, Hyannis, Stapleton

District D2-10

Banner County, Potter-Dix, Hayes Center, Wallace, Paxton



Six-man

Schools

Arcadia, Minatare, Arnold, Rising City, Arthur County, Santee, Elba, Sioux County, Greeley-Wolbach, South Platte,

Hitchcock County, St. Edward, Loup County, Wheeler Central, McPherson County

“Ouch! That will be a killer district,” said East coach John Gingery on Friday, the day that the NSAA announced classifications and district assignments for football in 2008 and 2009.

“There are a lot of talented teams,” added Gingery. “We know that Elkhorn has a good history and will be a strong addition to the district.“

Elkhorn qualified for the playoffs 18 of the last 20 years, earning championships in 1989, ’92, ’96 and ’99, with runnerup finishes in ’87, ’91 and ’06.

“Attrition is the name of the game. Week in and week out, you’re playing someone who is talented. If you let up, you’ll get beat and you do get beat up,” said Gingery. “You have to survive the injury game. Plus, there is also the numbers game and participation in games. Kids will be asking themselves how they stack up against their opponents and if they have a chance to play.“

The Class B format switched this year. There are eight districts of four teams each, with the winner qualifying along with the eight teams next in the wild-card standings. Games in Class B will also begin in Week 0, the same week as Class A did this year, and playoffs games will be once a week.

Defending champion Crete is joined by Beatrice, Lincoln Pius X and Norris.

“That doesn’t surprise me. Unless we relocate, that won’t change,” said Crete coach Chuck McGinnis. “ This year, I thought Pius was a very good football team with a brutal schedule and they still nearly got in the playoffs.“

McGinnis said he expects his Cardinals to contend again after winning back-to-back titles, led by Husker recruit and Super-State co-captain John Levorson.

“We have a solid group of juniors we’re expecting big things from next year,” he said. “We definitely will miss these seniors, though. It’s been a treat for me to coach them. I don’t think I’ve ever been around a group that competes like these kids.“

McGinnis said there wasn’t anything to celebrate with the changes in Class B.

“I’m not that excited to see Columbus coming down. Trading Columbus for Elkhorn isn’t exactly a huge advantage,” he said.

The new format prevented Omaha Roncalli from opting to play in Class B, though its enrollment is too small for the class. The Crimson Pride has opted to play in Class B in recent years.

Adams Central and Columbus Lakeview moved up to Class B, with Fairbury and Cozad dropping to Class C-1.

Lincoln Christian, Chase County and Yutan dropped from Class C-1 to Class C-2. Teams moving from eight-man football to Class C-2 are Dundy County-Stratton, Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer, Lourdes Central Catholic and Omaha Brownell-Talbot.

Howells is returning to Class D-1, where it won six straight titles before a two-year stint in 11-man football. The Bobcats lost in the semifinals and the quarterfinals the last two years. Also moving to eight-man football are Pender, Lyons-Decatur Northeast, Heartland, Hemingford, Osceola, Burwell, Conestoga, Franklin and Emerson-Hubbard. New eight-man cooperative sponsorships are Orchard/Clearwater, Sandhills/Thedford and North Central (Keya Paha/Rock County).

There will be 15 teams playing six-man football this year. Arnold, Hitchcock County and St. Edward dropped from eight-man to six-man football.

Reach Ryly Jane Hambleton at 473-7314 or rhambleton@journalstar.com.


$1 Sunday Delivery - Subscribe Today!
Football > Back to Top of Story

Post Your Comment

Standards and Rules
All posts to JournalStar.com are subject to our Terms and Standards.
Your posted comment will appear after it has been approved.
Frequently asked questions about story commenting.
(optional)
   
Hide Comments Hide Comments   Newest First Newest First  
Please explain wrote on December 28, 2007 8:18 pm:
" Would someone please explain to me why there are six-man football teams? Until it is explained to me, I can't help but believe that teams who are playing six-man football really aren't playing football. Real football can't be played with six people. It is time for some schools to move on to something different. "

 DEF wrote on December 28, 2007 9:38 pm:
" Pope John moving from D1 to D2 makes them a big favorite to repeat.They are in the same district with the Final 2 of D2 last year in Chambers & Elgin. "

 Ron wrote on December 28, 2007 9:45 pm:
" Class B will be interesting with Columbus High having to play Columbus Lakeview & Hastings having to play Hastings Adam Central. Enrollments of Columbus High & Hastings are over double the size of their new rivals. "

 Get a Clue wrote on December 28, 2007 10:58 pm:
" All these schools are trying to do is expose their kids to football. Many of the schools are too small to play 8-man...so they play with six. I know it sounds strange, but at least they are competing. They still put on helmets and pads. They still hit people, and there will be injuries. Oh, and it helps inspire the small towns, but why should that matter, since they should move on to "something different."

This state has a lot of special traits. One of them is football. If they can only field enough players for a 6-man team, so be it. If you have a problem with that, then you should just watch your team and leave the little guys (towns) alone. "

 Reply to Please Explain wrote on December 29, 2007 1:16 am:
" Obviously, you have never six man footbal contest. I watched #2 Arcadia play #1 Wheeler County about 15 years ago and it was just great. Have you ever seen the offense that Class B Scottsbluff runs? Another facinating game to see. Six man football was invented in Nebraska and it serves teh purpose of sporting competition just as any "sport" should at the High School level. A casual Crete fan and resident. The High Schools playing six man are dozens of miles from real civilization, don't you know? "

 Eric wrote on December 29, 2007 4:12 am:
" Who cares how many people they are using? It is still football. Just because you dont understand it doesnt mean the schools should drop it and move on. "

 FB nut wrote on December 29, 2007 7:30 am:
" Small schools with limited enrollment and a limited number of boys elect to play six man because it gives these you men the opportunity to be involved in fall sports. The six-man championship game at Kearney had nearly 2000 in attendance. I attend Class A games and teams from the metro area traveling to Kearney very seldom bring a couple hundred people. Six-man football in the Sandhills will double that plus some. It is not only a game but a social gathering for these people. Sad that the larger schools cannot have this usual display of sportmanship and togetherness instead of the taunting and kill at all cost mentality. "

 Explanation wrote on December 29, 2007 8:12 am:
" You don't get out to the middle of nowhere Nebraska often, do you? "

 JJ wrote on December 29, 2007 9:03 am:
" I'm sorry, I didn't know that six man football was hurting you. I'll get on it right away to get rid of the football programs that are about giving the kids a chance to play in communities that otherwise would not have the sport at all. Again, I am sorry for any inconvienence that six man football has caused you. "

 6 man football... wrote on December 29, 2007 9:06 am:
" I'll explain...6 man football is better than no football! You can't think of it as "regular football" because 6 man AND 8 man are different sports with each having its own intricacies and unique strategies. Don't hate on 6 man...just be glad there are opportunities for small schools to play sports! "

 Ryan wrote on December 29, 2007 10:23 am:
" Six man is done because those schools are located in very rural areas where they do not have enough kids on the team to play. So they go to six man so you can have some sport to play. It is football. Probably more of a demanding sport than the big schools. There is no second, third string. I bet some of these kids could play better than the Huskers. At least they are used to playing four quarters. Not falling over dead at halftime. It's just a different form. Really, I enjoy this form better. It gives the kid something to do and gives them a sense of accomplishment to know they are doing something for their community. Its time for schools some schools to keep doing things the same way. If its not broke don't fix it. "

 Erik wrote on December 29, 2007 10:48 am:
" I think Nebraska is the only state that has teams that play six man. It is possible to play six-man even though the chances of getting a D-1 scholarship to, say, Nebraska is slim, they can get it done. They've been playing six-man for decades. "

 Brian wrote on December 29, 2007 11:31 am:
" Six-man football is still football. It is a fun game and is a way for the smallest of small schools to still be able to enjoy the sport. Many states play six-man football. The game is huge in Texas and was invented in Nebraska in the 1930s.
"

 From a Ref wrote on December 29, 2007 2:23 pm:
" some of the most exciting games i ever officiated were 6 man games...and have have even had some big time Class A games...it is so fun to watch...and as a player or ref you def. get a workout during those games...also, i believe So Dakota also plays 6 man. "

 Buddha wrote on December 29, 2007 2:32 pm:
" Hey, don't knock six-man football! I used to coach at that level. It's a whole different game than 8 or 11-man. The rules are so different, and teams are usually not even two deep, so everyone pretty much have to play all the way both ways. It's the high school version of ironman football. It's still played in Texas and New Mexico as well as Nebraska. I believe Oklahoma still has it too. It's a big source of small town pride for those schools that play it. "

 whatever wrote on December 29, 2007 2:39 pm:
" The sad thing is that many of these schools aren't even competitive in the classes they are in do to the demographics of their student population "

 I agree wrote on December 29, 2007 4:26 pm:
" I can understand the purpose behind providing opportunity for small towns to support a team, if it means 6 players on each side of the ball so be it. I think what this post is trying to say though, is that this isn't really football anymore with only 6 players. Several posts have mentioned this game was invented in Nebraska, so aren't you saying this is a different game entirely?

So what is next? Will they plan 3 on 3 basketball? Did I just "invent" a new game? "

 Rob wrote on December 29, 2007 9:13 pm:
" So it isn't football with only six men? OK, reduce the letters in accordance with the reduction in players and refer to it as "ftbll." Satisfied? It is what it is, and the players involved in it seem happy enough. "

 BBall fan wrote on December 29, 2007 11:20 pm:
" 3 vs. 3 wow if they had that in high schools i would be in heaven. "

 JR wrote on December 29, 2007 11:59 pm:
" I don't mind the six man game so much, but can someone please explain to me why we need six classes of volleyball or basketball? How many states have that many classes? Or, if you want to stay with six classes, why have all the finals on the same day? Why not have three sessions of two games each starting on Friday night, and finish Saturday afternoon, and evening? Just seems ridiculous the way Nebraska does it. "

 columbus 97 wrote on February 7, 2008 12:00 pm:
" I have heard about columbus drop a class for ten years now. we lose norfolk, fremont, g.i., north platte and kearney. we gain lakeview, seward, schuyler, & york. the rivals will be closer but class a lose a another small city team with 5 teams outside of lincoln and omaha left. "

 Doc wrote on February 8, 2008 10:38 pm:
" Okay Class. What would eliminate 6 man FB say about the 7 man game that is now being played in the summer in Texas. Wonder why the talent is coming from Texas, it is because they have summer leagues for FB just like basketball has had for years. They are keeping quarterbacks, centers, ends, and backs. How soon will that be allowed in Nebraska? "

Ads by Yahoo!

Event Calendar

October 2008
1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27 28 29 30 31
More Events | Submit an Event