GHSA announces major change to high school football state playoff schedule

We’ll see a slight shift to the Georgia high school football state playoff schedule in 2024.

Unlike past years, there will be no playoff games scheduled the week of Thanksgiving, GHSA executive director Robin Hines confirmed on Friday. While the schedule change will give the players and staff a break for the holiday weekend, it’ll also avoid conflict with the Nov. 29 Georgia-Georgia Tech football game.

Hines said that the change was due to a shift in the calendar this year and not the college game.

The GHSA will hold its state football championships a week later than normal (Dec. 16-18) because of the leap year, Hines said. The shift gave the GHSA an extra week in the middle of the playoffs, so it decided to allow teams “to have a normal Thanksgiving for a change,” Hines said.

Hines also noted that the leap year forced the SEC to hold its championship game on Dec. 7, which would have caused conflict that weekend with use of Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

GHSA announces change to state football playoff schedule

It changes a loose tradition in Georgia, in which practicing the week of Thanksgiving became somewhat of a badge of honor. Everyone was looking to do so, meaning their team was still alive in the state championship hunt. The Georgia High School Association state football playoff schedule for 2024 will be played as follows:

First round: Nov. 8-9

Second round: Nov. 15

Third round: Nov. 22

Semifinals: Dec. 6

Finals: Dec. 16-18

The GHSA state championship games will be held in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Georgia High School Association changes football playoff schedule

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/ghsa-announces-major-change-high-143156682.html

Author : The Augusta Chronicle

Publish date : 2024-05-31 14:31:56

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.