Weird prep playoff endings

[Batman]

Ohio is March 18-20, and Indiana boys are March 26. Damn near April. Football is pushing the basketball season halfway into the spring season.

When does football start in those states?
In Mississippi, the first regular-season games are typically around Aug. 20. When it's a "late" start it's Aug. 27ish. There are two weeks of preseason scrimmages allowed before that as well. Championship games are the first weekend in December.
All of which gives a really weird flow to the winter sports season that consists of soccer and basketball. Soccer season is split into two halves. Everybody takes it easy in November and December since the boys teams are typically getting their football guys back into shape. Then they take a two-week break at Christmas and have a three-week sprint of district games leading into the playoffs in late January.
Basketball has the same issue with the football guys early on; then they get another wave of players who seem to join the team at Christmas because of academics; and then we can finally play for real the last six weeks of the season. It's all very disjointed.

 

[Shropshire Slasher]

Texas football playoffs must end on the last Saturday before Christmas. The whole calendar is built backward from that. (Exception was made in January 2021 for Class 5A and 6A because of covid.)

The Texas boys' basketball season typically starts the Tuesday after the final regular season football game and the girls' basketball season a week before that.

 

[UPChip]

Michigan football finals are always Thanksgiving weekend at Ford Field.

I believe the Prep Bowl (Minnesota) is similarly Thanksgiving weekend.

IIRC, Wisconsin's state finals are a week before that, but because they're at Camp Randall, I believe there is a possibility Badger stuff can mess that up.

 

[MileHigh]

Most Colorado football finals are the first Saturday of December.

 

[Matt1735]

Michigan football finals are always Thanksgiving weekend at Ford Field.

I believe the Prep Bowl (Minnesota) is similarly Thanksgiving weekend.

IIRC, Wisconsin's state finals are a week before that, but because they're at Camp Randall, I believe there is a possibility Badger stuff can mess that up.

zzzzzzzzz--z-zzz
Wisconsin state football championships are Thursday and Friday. So Badgers can play Saturday.

 

[fossywriter8]

When does football start in those states?
In Mississippi, the first regular-season games are typically around Aug. 20. When it's a "late" start it's Aug. 27ish. There are two weeks of preseason scrimmages allowed before that as well. Championship games are the first weekend in December.
All of which gives a really weird flow to the winter sports season that consists of soccer and basketball. Soccer season is split into two halves. Everybody takes it easy in November and December since the boys teams are typically getting their football guys back into shape. Then they take a two-week break at Christmas and have a three-week sprint of district games leading into the playoffs in late January.
Basketball has the same issue with the football guys early on; then they get another wave of players who seem to join the team at Christmas because of academics; and then we can finally play for real the last six weeks of the season. It's all very disjointed.

Ohio expanded its playoffs by a week this past fall (went from 8 teams to 16 per region in each division), so the 2021 season started Aug. 20. State finals were held Dec. 2-4. The regular season remained 10 games.

 

[da man]

zzzzzzzzz--z-zzz
Wisconsin state football championships are Thursday and Friday. So Badgers can play Saturday.

Did you write that in your sleep?

 

[Matt1735]

Stupid phone in pocket and stupid me for not seeing it

 

[jr/shotglass]

Opening night of the Pennsylvania state tournament. Lower Dauphin, in blue, trails 53-51 in the final seconds. Kid hits a rebound follow for the tie and overtime ... but the clock sticks at 0:00.1 and the officials wave it off. The winner, Pittston, is the home team. With the home clock.

 

[MileHigh]

If the official is going strictly by the clock -- that's a horrible call. Don't know how he got to the point of waving it off. The ball is starting to fall through the basket as the backboard lights come on.

I've got a state quarterfinal on Thursday. I hope I don't run into the stuff that's been posted here.

 

[Neutral Corner]

Stupid phone in pocket and stupid me for not seeing it

So you were butt posting?

 

[jr/shotglass]

If the official is going strictly by the clock -- that's a horrible call. Don't know how he got to the point of waving it off. The ball is starting to fall through the basket as the backboard lights come on.

I've got a state quarterfinal on Thursday. I hope I don't run into the stuff that's been posted here.

And these people are mulling a shot clock for Pennsylvania preps. When they can't even get a game clock right.

 

[MileHigh]

And these people are mulling a shot clock for Pennsylvania preps. When they can't even get a game clock right.

We are too. We can't get competent people on the book or the game clock. Now add a shot clock?

 

[Della9250]

I'll give that ref credit in real time -- he's at least got an angle of the scoreboard to watch the clock. If you slow it down the ball lands in his hands at .2. Without the stick I think it's still in his hand on a normal buzzer.

 

[apeman33]

I'll give that ref credit in real time -- he's at least got an angle of the scoreboard to watch the clock. If you slow it down the ball lands in his hands at .2. Without the stick I think it's still in his hand on a normal buzzer.

The position of the scoreboard and the LED lights around the backboard help the ref in this situation. Neither were typical in any gyms in Kansas where I covered games, so in a similar situation, I think the basket would have stood had the game been in a place like Garden City or Pittsburg.

 

[rtse11]

I had a similar play a couple of years ago. I waved off a shot that would have tied the score. It wasn't a tournament game though and I didn't have the benefit of the backboard lights. I had to go by the sound of the clock and my eyes. Fortunately I was proven correct by the video which the home team shared with me.
The losing coach chased me off the floor that night but I had his team later in a tournament game and he was fine.
No one feels worse the official who had to make that call.

 

[Roscablo]

If the official is going strictly by the clock -- that's a horrible call. Don't know how he got to the point of waving it off. The ball is starting to fall through the basket as the backboard lights come on.

I've got a state quarterfinal on Thursday. I hope I don't run into the stuff that's been posted here.

That's an interesting take from an official. Sure looks like time should have expired and the clock did stick for some reason (why would it do that?), but if that's how an official should approach it, the buzzer definitely didn't go off yet.

 

[Batman]

We are too. We can't get competent people on the book or the game clock. Now add a shot clock?

The NFHS has approved a shot clock for next season, but it's up to each state whether they want to approve it or not. Coaches I talked to about it last summer were split on it, but neither of the honchos at our two state associations thought it would pass because of the officiating issue. Schools would need to have a third or fourth ref to work it, and they'd also have to pay them to do it which is an added expense a lot of schools don't want to pay.

 

[UPChip]

The NFHS has approved a shot clock for next season, but it's up to each state whether they want to approve it or not. Coaches I talked to about it last summer were split on it, but neither of the honchos at our two state associations thought it would pass because of the officiating issue. Schools would need to have a third or fourth ref to work it, and they'd also have to pay them to do it which is an added expense a lot of schools don't want to pay.

Minnesota added a shot clock but didn't put it into effect until 2023-24. The hardware's not cheap, but yeah, the manpower issue is going to be very difficult for some districts.

 

[sgreenwell]

As someone who did book, scoreboard and shot clock for 15+ years, the shot clock was easier to fill in some ways. Really, you just need someone attentive - you can have non-basketball people work it. Resets if it hits the rim or changes possession, and when in doubt, DON'T reset. It's also "off" for most end of game situations, and a competent scoreboard or book person can "help" with the shot clock. "Did that hit rim?" "Yes!"

Scoreboard is the most nerve-racking, because coaches are always going to "work" the time down the stretch. You started too fast, you started too slow, you didn't hit "off" right at the whistle, etc.

After I got experienced, I'd regularly do the scoreboard and the book at the same time for JV games. I did all three for freshman girls' basketball games, which is pretty much the only sport I can imagine doing that for. (This didn't last long for the school I was at in RI, because any girl that could dribble a basketball or that was over 5'7" ended up on JV at least, and they won about two games in two years.) Common final scores were 45-8, 36-2, etc.