AAAAA to be split into two divisons, crown two state champions in all sports

               The South Carolina High School League will once again crown more state champions than it has classifications, and not just for football, but for all sports.

               The SCHSL executive committee voted by a 12-1 count on Tuesday to allow AAAAA to be split into two divisions for the playoffs for the next two school years and crown champions in all sports for each division.

               There will be 54 teams in AAAAA beginning with the 2024-25 school year. The 26 largest schools will make up Division I with the other 28 making up Division II.

               There have been five classifications since the 2016-17 school year, crowning just one champion for each class. Prior to the creation of AAAAA, AAAA was split into two divisions for football, crowning two champions for 35 years.

               There will be eight regions in AAAAA with the teams from regions 1, 2 and 3 being in the upper state playoffs for each division while regions 6, 7 and 8 will be lower state. Regions 4 and 5 will have teams competing in both the upper state and lower state playoffs.

               Dutch Fork and Blythewood will be Division I upper state schools while Sumter will be Division I lower state. Spring Valley, Ridge View, Lexington and River Bluff will rotate between Division I upper state and lower state.

               The other teams from regions 4 and 5 – Irmo, Chapin, White Knoll, Lugoff-Elgin, West Florence and Westwood – will be in Division II lower state.

               As far as the playoffs go, there will be 24 teams – 12 upper and 12 lower in both divisions – making the playoffs in most sports. When a full bracket is filled out, that means 48 of the 54 teams will be competing in the playoffs.

               The top three teams from a 6-team region and the top four teams from a 7- or 8-team region would automatically qualify for the playoffs. Region champions will be seeded first followed by second-, third- and fourth-place finishers.

They will be seeded with the use of the MaxPreps RPI formula, which is used by other states, one of them being North Carolina. The RPI is calculated based on the team’s winning percentage and the opponents’ winning percentage in regular-season games. MaxPreps RPI will be used to determine and seed the remainder of the two brackets.no

There won’t be any predetermined home teams in the brackets. The highest seed will host throughout the playoffs.

AAAAA DIVISION I

Upper State

J.L. Mann

Mauldin

Boiling Springs

Dorman

Byrnes

Spartanburg

Wade Hampton

Clover

Rock Hill

Dutch Fork

Blythewood

Flex Schools

Lexington

River Bluff

Ridge View

Spring Valley

Lower State

Sumter

Carolina Forest

Cane Bay

Stratford

Wando

Ashley Ridge

Fort Dorchester

James Island

Stall

Summerville

West Ashley

AAAAA DIVISON II

Upper State

Easley

Greenville

Greenwood

Hillcrest

T.L. Hanna

Woodmont

Eastside

Gaffney

Riverside

Catawba Ridge

Fort Mill

Indian Land

Nation Ford

Northwestern

Lower State

Chapin

Irmo

White Knoll

Lugoff-Elgin

Westwood

West Florence

Conway

Myrtle Beach

North Myrtle Beach

Socastee

St. James

Berkeley

Goose Creek

Lucy Beckham

AAAAA REGIONS

Region 1: Easley, Greenville, Greenwood, Hillcrest, JL Mann, Mauldin, TL Hanna Woodmont

Region 2: Boiling Springs, Dorman, Eastside, Gaffney, Byrnes, Riverside, Spartanburg, Wade Hampton

Region 3: Catawba Ridge, Clover, Fort Mill, Indian Land, Nation Ford, Northwestern, Rock Hill

Region 4: Chapin, Dutch Fork, Irmo, Lexington, River Bluff, White Knoll

Region 5: Blythewood, Lugoff-Elgin, Ridge View, Spring Valley, Sumter, Westwood, West Florence

Region 6: Carolina Forest, Conway, Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Socastee, St. James

Region 7: Berkeley, Cane Bay, Goose Creek, Lucy Beckham, Stratford, Wando

Region 8: Ashley Ridge, Fort Dorchester, James Island, Stall, Summerville, West Ashley