Utah prep realignment: 1st draft of classifications has 53 ‘bubble schools’
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- Northridge High’s Eliza Bailey (11, right) goes up for a layup while guarded by Bonneville’s Alexia Stone during a prep girls basketball game at Northridge High on Friday, Jan. 14, 2022.
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- First draft of classifications for Utah prep sports realignment (all sports except football), Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022.
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- First draft of classifications for Utah prep football, Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022.
Utah’s biennial prep sports realignment process kicked off Thursday with the first of three board of trustees meetings at the UHSAA office in Midvale.
As far as the realignment process goes, the first meeting represents the top of the first inning in a nine-inning baseball game.
But in that meeting, the UHSAA board approved the first draft of classifications Thursday, which is an early draft that’s expected to change throughout the process that will eventually decide alignment for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years.
The proposed sizes of classifications are 23 (6A), 25 (5A), 25 (4A), 21 (3A), 25 (2A) and 29 schools (1A).
That would make 6A and 5A smaller than they are now (26 and 33 schools, respectively) and nearly doubles the size of 4A from its current size of 13 schools, which was the main headache from the last realignment.
The 11-player football classifications, which are different from the main alignment since there are less schools that play football, come in initially at 23 schools (6A), 25 (5A), 25 (5A), 12 (3A), 10 (2A) and 10 (1A).
A classification for eight-player football, which was introduced this school year, wasn’t discussed Thursday because schools in 1A and 2A have the option to declare for eight-player football if their circumstances necessitate it.
There are 53 bubble schools in the first draft of classifications, which is more than the last realignment. Bubble schools are those that can move up or down a classification based on enrollment.
That stems from a change that the board approved earlier this year which increases the range of possible bubble schools in order to have more flexibility between classifications.
The change opens the door for some schools to move down a classification for competitive reasons despite being too large to do so in the past. It also clouds the crystal ball when trying to get an idea of what things will look like in 2023, particularly in the 5A classification.
Of 25 schools initially placed into 5A, 21 are bubble schools because they either have an enrollment within 10% of the largest 5A school (Roy High) or the largest 4A school (Uintah).
Locally, Clearfield High (1,279 students grades 11-12) and Northridge (1,277) are bubble schools at the bottom of 6A, with the option to petition to move down to 5A. Clearfield is currently in 6A Region 1 and Northridge is in 5A Region 5.
Roy (1,239) is the largest school in 5A and is a bubble school with the opportunity to move up to 6A, where it is currently in Region 2.
Bonneville High (915) and fellow Region 5 member Bountiful (937) are high 4A bubble schools with the option to move up to 5A. Box Elder (1,076) is one of just four schools “locked” into 5A.
The other two members of Region 5 — Viewmont (991) and Woods Cross (1,020) — are “low” 5A bubble schools.
Ben Lomond (737 students in grades 11-12, 1,170 in 10-12) and Ogden (748 and 1,114) were placed in 4A, but are both expected to apply to move down to 3A in all sports since they both have 50% or higher free-and-reduced lunch rates. This is what both schools did in the current alignment.
Morgan (848 students 10-12) is solidly in 3A and Layton Christian (354 students 10-12) is a low 3A bubble school that can move down to 2A in the first draft of the 2023-25 alignment.
In the current alignment, LCA’s sports are split into three classifications: boys basketball and boys soccer are in 4A, football is in 1A and everything else is in 3A.
In the first draft football classification, which is different and has fewer schools than the main alignment, the Eagles have been placed in 2A with no option to move down.
St. Joseph (139) and Utah Military Academy (235) are locked into 2A, where they both currently reside.
The larger pool of bubble schools means more uncertainty in the classifications, more decisions for board members to make and a host of possible region shakeups.
Board chair Jerre Holmes, the superintendent of the North Summit School District in Coalville, said he felt the board made the move to expand the pool of bubble schools for “the right reasons,” even if it meant more variables to consider.
The next board meeting is Thursday, Dec. 8, and only representatives from bubble schools will present at that meeting. At this meeting, board members will break “ties” between bubble schools, establish classifications and make a first draft of regions.
UHSAA executive director Rob Cuff outlined a process the board will use to break ties between bubble schools.
That process, which is another new addition to the realignment procedure, includes a “success factor” that uses teams’ RPI ratings in team sports that use the RPI system (basketball and softball, for example), plus state and region finishes for sports that don’t use RPI (golf and tennis).
The aforementioned RPI rating will use data from three fall sports seasons, three winter sports seasons and two spring sports seasons (spring 2020 not included because of COVID-19). Cuff said geography, rivalries and the school’s alignment preference will be also considered in the tiebreaking process.
BEHIND THE NUMBERS
The UHSAA establishes classifications for 6A-4A based on their schools’ 11-12th grade enrollment and uses 10-12th grade enrollment for classifications 3A-1A.
It uses slightly different enrollment counts for schools than the ones that show up on the Utah State Board of Education website.
It takes the USBE numbers, subtracts the number of “self-contained” students — severe special ed students, for example — from the total, then adds in numbers from districts’ alternative high schools where students are eligible to play sports at traditional high schools.
BASEBALL CHANGE
In non-realignment business, the board approved combining the 2A and 1A fall baseball classifications into one classification.
St. Joseph and Utah Military Academy have played 2A fall baseball the past few years in a division with other charter and private schools along the Wasatch Front.
UMA won the 2A fall baseball championship in 2020 with an 18-0 record. St. Joseph is expected to move to spring baseball starting in the 2023-24 school year because it’s adding eight-player football in the fall of 2023.
WEST FIELD HIGH
Towards the end of the realignment discussion, UHSAA assistant director Jeff Cluff reminded the board that West Field High, the new school in Taylor, would come online in 2024 — in the middle of the upcoming alignment period.
So at some point, the board will have to figure out where to place a school that doesn’t exist yet. But there’s recent precedent with Farmington (opened in 2018 initially in 5A, grew to 6A by 2021), Cedar Valley in Eagle Mountain (opened in 2019 in 4A, is now 5A) and Mountain Ridge in Herriman (opened in 2019 in 5A, is now 6A).
West Field is expected to open in the 2024-25 school year with about 1,400-1,500 students, greatly affecting student enrollments at Fremont, Weber and Roy High.
Cuff then pointed out a relatively new rule in the UHSAA handbook which states that any school with at least a 40% reduction in enrollment may appear prior to Jan. 15 of even calendar years to move down no more than one classification for the second school year in the alignment period.
It’s referred to by some as “the Mountain Crest rule,” hearkening back to 2016 when Ridgeline High opened in Millville and nearby Mountain Crest (Hyrum) took a huge enrollment hit but had to stay in 5A for another year with the likes of Roy, Weber and Fremont despite being hundreds of students smaller.
The 40% rule didn’t exist in 2016, but it does now and depending on the results of the West Field boundary study, could be an option for Fremont, Roy or Weber if any of their enrollments drop far enough.
Below are where schools in the Standard-Examiner coverage area fell in the first draft. For a complete list of the first consideration, read online at uhsaa.org/news.
FIRST DRAFT OF CLASSIFICATIONS (NON-FOOTBALL)
*–indicates low bubble school
^–indicates high bubble school
^^–expected to apply for low bubble status
6A: Weber, Fremont, Layton, Syracuse, Davis, Farmington, Clearfield*, Northridge*
5A: Roy^, Box Elder
4A: Bonneville^, Ben Lomond^^, Ogden^^, Bear River,
3A: Morgan, Layton Christian*
2A: Utah Military Academy, St. Joseph
FIRST DRAFT OF FOOTBALL-ONLY CLASSIFICATIONS
Note: The UHSAA did not discuss the eight-player classification on Thursday, which St. Joseph is expected to join in 2023.
*–indicates low bubble school
^–indicates high bubble school
^^–expected to apply for low bubble status
6A: Weber, Fremont, Syracuse, Layton, Farmington, Davis Clearfield*, Northridge*
5A: Roy^, Box elder
4A: Bonneville^, Ben Lomond^^, Ogden^^, Bear River
3A: Morgan
2A: Layton Christian
TIMELINE
Thursday, Dec. 8: board meeting where only representatives from bubble schools can present. Classifications will be established and the board will discuss a first run-through of regions.
Wednesday, Dec. 14: Public hearing on Zoom. Information will be sent out to schools on how to join the Zoom meeting.
Thursday, Dec. 15: Alignment will be established, but not 100% finalized.
Thursday, Jan. 19: Board meeting where any school may apply to a higher classification.
Connect with reporter Patrick Carr via email at pcarr@standard.net, Twitter @patrickcarr_ and Instagram @standardexaminersports.