Bye Weeks - What Does It Mean?

There have been a lot of complaints about the structure of the District 12 playoffs. The fact is that there is not an automatic bye week for the District 12 champions. But, it just so happens that all three District 12 champs did, in fact, have week 13 off. Yes, this is an opportunity for these teams to rest up, scout and prepare for their games in week 14. What I mean by “it just so happens”, is that District 12 was not off during week 13. As a matter of fact, 32 of the 43 District teams played a game last week. Of the 24 teams who qualified for either the PCL or Pub playoffs, 15 of those teams played a game during week 13. “It just so happens” that the three district champs were not scheduled to play that week.

Is having a “bye” week prior to a playoff game limited to just District 12? I think not. As a matter of fact, throughout the state, twenty-five teams have had, or will have a “bye” week during the 2010 playoffs. Many of these “byes” occurred prior to the first round of playoffs, while others were during the playoffs. Here is a list of teams who ended up with a “bye” the week before a playoff game, along with the week of their bye, and the outcome of their post-“bye” week:

Is having a week off a clear advantage?
Let’s break down the “bye” week outcomes for 2010. It may surprise you. So far, 22 teams have played a playoff game after having a week off to rest. Those 20 teams went a combined 10 – 12. Ten of those twenty teams played other teams who had a week off, so obviously, those teams went a combined 5 – 5. But, for the teams who played an opponent that didn’t have a week off, they went a combined 5 – 7. To date, there are still 3 teams remaining (the three District 12 teams) who have yet to play after their “bye” week. Here is how teams fared the week after their “bye” during this playoff season:

Week 9
A - Penns Manor (D6) Won

Week 10
AAAA - Erie Strong Vincent (D10) Lost
A - Berlin-Brothers valley (D5) Lost
A - **Curwensville (D9) Won
A - **Smethport (D9) Lost
A - **Elk County Catholic (D9) Lost
A - **Port Allegany (D9) Won
A - Kane (D9) Lost
A - **Juniata Valley (D6) Lost
A - **Portage (D6) Won
A - **Bishop Carroll (D6) Won
A - **Homer Center (D6) Lost
A - Bellwood-Antis (D6) Lost

Week 11
AAAA - Central Mountain (D6) Lost
AAA - Grove City (D10) Won
AAA - Erie Cathedral Prep (D10) Won
AA - Brockway (D9) Won
A - **York Catholic (D3) Lost
A - **Millersburg (D3) Won
A - Holy Name (D3) Won

Week 12
AA - Oliver (D8) (two weeks off) Lost
A - Calvary Christian (D1) Lost

Week 13
AAAA - La Salle (D12) plays week 14
AAA - Archbishop Wood (D12) plays week 14
AA - West Catholic (D12) plays week 14
** - Opponent after “bye” week also had a “bye”

What does all of this mean?
What this means is that there is no evidence that in 2010, having a week off before a playoff game is a clear advantage. Yes, some teams may have a couple of banged up players who could use that off week to recover. But, in the big scope of things, I don’t think it matters too much. Hell, it may hurt some teams, especially if that team was on a roll, and will now lose momentum by not playing during a particular week. When you have a certain routine for 9, 10 or 11 weeks, and now that routine is broken by not playing, some teams could show a bit of rust, and that may be all that is needed for their opponent to beat them.

Summary
In District 12, despite the cries that they schedule week 13 off to gain some sort of advantage, it’s just not true. District 12 allows teams to play over the Thanksgiving weekend because those games generally make money. And, let’s not forget some of the tradition involved in some of these games. In my opinion, I like the idea of giving teams a choice of playing a rival on Thanksgiving, rather than playing two games in 2 or 3 days. After all, there is a safety factor involved here too. If people from other districts don’t agree with me, or if they still don’t like the way District 12 schedules their playoffs, then they have the same ability to schedule their playoffs in the same manner.