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.

Thanksgiving Rivalry Week

In District 12, Thanksgiving week is Rivalry week.  Some of these games go back many years, while others are relatively new.   Some continue, some may change in the future, and some are gone forever.  But, no matter what team you follow, there's a good chance that your team played on Thanksgiving Day or Thanksgiving Eve.  As a matter of fact, 32 of the district's 43 teams played this weekend.  Most of the games were memorable, while others were downright forgettable.  In any event, most of these games are more about meeting up with old friends, and sharing memories of days gone by.  It's truly a great football weekend, despite the fact that these games mean nothing in the big scope of things, other than, maybe, neighborhood bragging rights.

Thanksgiving Games

Thanksgiving Day just won’t be the same for me.  After 80 plus years, there will be no North/Frankford game.  No other game in the city has been scheduled on Thanksgiving for as many consecutive years at that game.  This was truly the Grand-daddy of Thanksgiving Day games.  But, even grandpa has to die some day, and we just need to move on.  I’ll be moving on by covering the Roman/Roxborough game.  It’ll be a good game for me to see, considering the number of “Norphans” on Roman’s squad.  In any event, I’m glad the folks who run District 12 set up the playoffs to allow for this week of games.  It’s a great tradition, and I hope some of these newer games become long term traditions.

District 12 Championships

Recaps of AAAA and AAA District 12 Championships

First, I’d like to pat myself on the back.  Last week, I made three predictions for the three district championship games.  And while picking the winners wasn’t difficult, I came pretty close with my predicted scores.  I was able to catch the AAAA game from the sidelines, and the AAA game from the bleachers (see videos below).  Unfortunately, due to the re-scheduling of the AA game, I was unable to catch that one.  Click on the "read more" link below to see my take on the two games I saw, plus the video of the Wood-Dobbins game.

City Title Games Preview and Picks

District 12 Championships

This week, the final three of the 23 game District 12 playoff circus ends.  I call it a circus because 24 of 43 teams (56% of all teams) compete in 23 games to determine three district champions.  Compare this to District 1, where 26 teams (35% of all teams) play only 19 games to crown three district champions.  By the way, District 1 has nearly 70% more teams (73) than District 12 (43).  The question that has to be asked here is….Are the two best teams in each classification really playing in the district final?  As long as the Pub and PCL continue to guarantee a spot in the final to a team in each league, we may never know the answer to that question.  So, let’s put that aside for now and focus on the games this week.

Week 11 Recap

Week 11 Recap

This weekend was League Championship Weekend in Philadelphia, at least in the AAAA and AAA Divisions.  The AA divisions were decided a couple weeks ago.  There were some surprises, and some real good games around the city.  We’ll recap all of the playoff games, by division.

Week 11 - League Championships Week

Week 10 is in the books. It was an opportunity for some teams to celebrate, while others had their seasons come to a close. But, a couple of other teams get a second chance. I'll take a look at the significant games from this past week, and look ahead to the playoff games in week 11.