I'm not a coach, but I have a question.... Is it better to schedule weak non-district opponents in hopes of getting enough points to make the playoffs after coming in 3rd or 4th in district? Or is it better to schedule strong non-district opponents to get your team to play up to the level of the competition they face, with the idea of winning district and going on to do well in the playoffs?

Having watched games the last few years from week 0 to the finals, there is a DRASTIC difference in the level of competitiveness from week to week. In TAPPS 6-man, there aren't very many teams in a given year that are really strong. I think if I were a coach, I'd want to get my team as much experience playing strong teams as I could get before district and playoff games started. If a team's first real test didn't come until district or the playoffs, I'd think they'd have a harder time.

So does this rule make you choose between a hope of going to one 1st round playoff game and calling it good or a real shot at a district title and a better shot at actually winning a game or more in the playoffs?

Personally, I think the playoffs - in TAPPS as well as UIL - should be reserved for teams that are actually competitive at the higher levels. Really, the top 2 teams in a district are where it should cut off. And if my favorite team didn't make the cut, I'd be fine with it. Having a system that would potentially allow all but the last place team in a 5-team district to go to the playoffs is a little nuts, isn't it? This "everybody gets a ribbon" stuff that kids sports has turned into drives me crazy. :D

Question really is, how big a bracket do you want and how many weeks of playoffs do you want?

There has been some discussion of trying to get the finals on Thanksgiving weekend (not possible in 2012 since season starts a few days later and Thanksgiving is earlier; usually semi finals are Thanksgiving weekend, but this year the 2nd round will fall that weekend).

But to cut a week out of the playoffs, you'd have to do one of two things:

1. Cut the bracket down to 8 teams (three weekends)
2. Play a mid-week game. Don't laugh, I know Wisconsin did this with their 11 man playoffs (they may have changed it this year); you'd play your last game on Thursday, first playoff round was Tuesday and the second round was on Saturday; so you'd have three games in ten days).

I don't like the second choice, and the problem with the first choice is that with 5 districts, you'd have to eliminate 2 second place teams. ... and certainly, the wildcard point system would be even more critical there.

I don't like the point system in any level ... first, it rewards the ability to schedule weaker teams at higher point levels (teams you can beat) and it's easy to game the system if you can do it. In six-man, it rewards smaller districts and west Texas districts where more UIL schools (higher point values) are located AND are logical non-district opponents.

All that being said, remember, only the third and fourth place teams (although it is said that any last place team in a three or four team district won't be eligible) are going to deal with the wildcard point system. In MOST instances, you aren't going to go through your non-district schedule 6-0 or 7-0 and go 1-2 in district (unless you have a serious injury to a key player during district play) and the effect on playoff position may slightly favor District 1 and to a lesser extent Districts 2 and 3 (which are usually based in north and central Texas where there are also decent numbers of UIL six-man schools). It may be difficult for District 4 and 5 to bring in a fourth team into the playoff pool.

My guess is playoff teams in D2 will end up something like this:

District 1 - Four teams, 3 make playoffs
District 2 - Six teams, 4 make playoffs
District 3 - Five teams, 3 make playoffs
NORTH - 15 teams, 10 in playoffs
District 4 - Seven teams, 3 make playoffs
District 5 - Eight teams, 3 make playoffs
SOUTH - 15 teams, 6 in playoffs

Shane,
You are absolutely right. I HAD scheduled teams to make us better and give us a better chance at a good district run and a good playoff run.
My schedule USE to have
Wk. 0 - Heath The Fulton School .......... District Champ, Tapps Playoffs
Wk. 1 - Houston Emery-Weiner ....... 11-2, Independent Finished #2
Wk. 2 - Houston Clear Lake Christian.... rivalry game
Wk. 3 - Azle Christian.... 11-1, 2x Defending T-CAF State Champion

BUT-

Now that this wildcard numbering system is involved, Pine Drive can't afford to lose 2 or 3 non district games. So I my schedule has changed.
Thanks to Coach Adams (Emery Weiner) who called Tapps personally and complained and Tapps changed Emery-Weiners Point Status OR THEY WOULD'VE BEEN DROPPED OFF MY SCHEDULE.

Last year we scheduled Waco Live Oak (State Champs) on a WHIM/Last Minute, I CAN ASSURE YOU, THIS YEAR WE AINT SCHEDULING NO-BODY THAT'S RANKED IN THE TOP 5 ON A WHIM.
Because, Honestly, NO-ONE IS DISTRICT 4 & 5 can really afford 2 non-district losses, IF THEY FINISH 3rd or 4th.

And it's sad because District 5 is going to be very loaded. And two teams will be at home.
Orange Community has two outstanding running backs returning. (Cj + 1)
Living Stones brings back 3 outstanding studs (shawrieh, schlemmer, dudley)
Brenham Christian returns a SLEW of kids that got significant playing time last season.
Brazosport comes in from D-I and has 7 seniors.
Pine Drive returns a couple of kids as well.

I do understand where Young'un and Coach Ware are coming from.

They are two people who has lived their entire lives in West Texas (Amarillo & Lubbock) and they know who the traditionally bad and traditionally good schools are.

Me, being a CTK graduate, knows TAPPS DISTRICT 1 (2012-14) is WEAK, VERY WEAK.

Lubbock Christ The King - 2-8
Lubbock Kingdom Prep - 3-8
*Plainview Christian - 5-2
El Paso Jesus Chapel - 6-5

Plainview Christian 2011 schedule
vs.Highland JV, Miami JV, Southland JV, Cotton Center, Meadow JV, Kress JV

Sadly, This team (Plainview Christian) or My CTK Trojans will finish 3rd and travel during round 1, AND get blasted by 45...... Or if we have to travel and play a team/coach that is offended by this wildcard rule, Our 3rd place team will lose by 75

TAPPS will have the same outcome in 2012-14 as it has each previous year.
First Round Blow Outs coming to District 1 3rd place teams

Lubbock Christ The King will finish 3rd in District 1.....

No offense to ctk because I also graduated from there. BUT they are loosing a lot 4 seniors a foreign exchange student so at least 5 on an already small team. I believe only 1 senior who is still relatively new to football. I'm not going to count them out but it's going to be ROUGH I have them 4th in district out of playoffs again. I think pca might be surprising this year but I think itl be Jesus chapel at 1 kpa at 2 pca at 3 and ctk at 4

Folks, being a key and influential member of the six-man football illumunati, I have been advised that there could be some possibilities of adjustments to the idea of the wildcard point table.

Remember, there are 8 people on the Athletic Committee and the TAPPS Board who are in 6-man schools, so we do have a voice.

If you have SERIOUS changes, or adjustments to this program, I'd suggest two things:

1. Get your district to approve a resolution and send it along to the TAPPS board.
2. Send me a copy (lifegatesports@hotmail.com).

From my spies, I doubt the use of any rankings system (such as Grangers') is gonna fly.

Two clarifications I recieved this morning:

1. The last place team in ANY district will be ineligible for the playoffs (for example, if a district has only 4 teams, the 4th place team is not eligible).

2. Games your varsity team plays against ANY JV team (UIL, TAPPS or independent) will not earn ANY points for victory. Points can only be earned for wins against varsity teams.

Let's look at what woulda happened in 2011 if the points table had been in effect ....

I did Div I only for a couple reasons. First, it took longer than I thought and second, Division II only had 4 districts in 2011 but will go to 5 districts in 2012.

I think this is fairly accurate; had to guess points on a couple schools but I don't think it really affected the actual results. Maximum points any one team could have recieved (that would in in Dist. 1, if you had played AND WON 11 games including 2 district games is 53 -- 9 non-district games vs UIL D1 @ 5 pts and 2 district games vs TAPPS D1 @ 4 pts). Based on 2012 districts AND the 10 game limit, the maximum number of points in Division I for 2012 would be 47 (7 games @ 5 pts; 3 games @ 4 pts); in Division II it is 44 (7 games @ 5 pts; 3 games @ 3 pts). Of course, if you hit the maximum, you aren't going to worry about your point total because you will be (1) undefeated with a 10-0 record and (2) district champion and an automatic qualifier.

Let's go with the assumptions of (1) point schedule as released by TAPPS and (2) playoff format as released by TAPPS (#1 & #2 automatically make it in; last place team automatically out). Also, remember, nobody had knowledge of the point schedule when they made their schedule, so the idea of "gaming your schedule" to maximize points wasn't taken into consideration at that time. Point schedule also applies only to 3rd & 4th place teams.

I found only one change it would have made to the playoffs. Round Rock Christian would have been in the field and Houston Clear Lake Christian would have been out. (Note: Clear Lake did not participate in the playoffs when they drew Bulverde Bracken in the first round.)

You do have two instances where a lower point total in the same district qualified over a higher point total -- Amarillo Holy Cross 18 vs El Paso Jesus Chapel 16, and San Antonio Winston 16 vs San Antonio CASA 12, but in both of those cases, the lower point team (Jesus Chapel and CASA) won the game on the field against their district opponent And I like settling ties on the field instead of by pencil. But I can see where the future will be where coaches start using strategery to maximize their points ... and there already have been reported instances of coaches cancelling previously scheduled games against schools that might only provide 2 or 3 points to find "beatable" opponents worth 4 or 5 points.


Here's what I have ...

# - Automatic Qualifier
* - Wild card qualifer (ranked 1-6) under point system.
@ - Was in 2011 playoffs

District 1 (Finish-School- Dist W-L, Reg Seas W-L, Points)
@# 1. Abliene Christian 2-0, 10-0, 36
@# 2. El Paso Jesus Chapel 1-1, 5-4, 16
3. Amarillo Holy Cross 0-2, 5-4, 18

District 2
@# 1. Dallas Covenant 4-0, 9-1, 32
@# 2. Watugua Harvest 3-1, 7-3, 25
@*(2nd) 3. Rockwall Heritage 2-2, 5-5, 21
@*(5th) 4. Kennedale Fellowship 1-3, 4-6, 15
5. Greenville Christian 0-4, 1-9, 4

District 3
@# 1. Austin Hill Country 3-0, 8-2, 34
@# 2. Temple Holy Trinity 2-1, 9-1, 25
*(4th) 3. Round Rock Christian 1-2, 5-6, 17
4. Waco Vanguard 0-3, 1-8, 2

District 4
@# 1. Bulverde Bracken 5-0, 10-0, 40
@# 2. Kerrville Our Lady 4-1, 8-2, 30
@*(1st) 3. Marble Falls Faith 3-2, 6-4, 23
@* (6th) 4. Christian Academy of SA 2-3, 4-6, 12
5. San Antonio Winston 1-4, 5-5, 16
6. San Antonio Lutheran 0-5, 3-7, 6

District 5
@# 1. Tomball Rosehill 4-0, 7-3, 23
@# 2. Sugar Land Logos 3-1, 6-4, 23
@*(3rd) 3. Lake Jackson Brazosport 2-2, 6-3, 20
@ 4. Houston Clear Lake 1-3, 4-5, 13
5. Pasadena First Baptist 0-4, 4-7, 13