With the new playoff format last year, the number question we got at every practice we went to was about playoff divisions. With that in mind we’re going to track where teams stand each week in the CalPreps rankings, which are used to determine the CIF Southern Section’s playoff divisions at the end of the year.
No team will know what playoff division they’re going to be in until that last day of the year–but following the rankings gives a good ballpark. This is not an exact science since not every team in the rankings makes the playoffs, and there’s no set number of teams in Division 1–if it’s a four team bracket versus an eight team bracket (which it was in 2021) that will change how many teams are taken off the top before the 16-team brackets Division 2-14 are assembled.
We are doing these projections based on an eight-team Division 1–remember the top three Moore League teams qualify for the playoffs, while anyone else has to apply for an at-large. St. Anthony is in the Del Rey League, where they’d need to finish in the top two to get an automatic qualifier for the playoffs.
A final reminder that these are not our rankings but the rankings taken from CalPreps.com’s power rankings–these are the numbers used to assemble CIF-SS playoff Divisions at the end of the year. You can see the whole list here.
Remember, these numbers will go up and down a lot this year–wins will move them up, losses will move them down. We’ll keep you updated and break down what the weekly changes mean.
Long Beach Poly: No. 4 (+/- 0)
The Jackrabbits are still No. 4 in the State and in the Southern Section, and their rating has gone from 63.1 to 65.4 during their bye week, the result of previous Poly opponents racking up victories this week. But the Jackrabbits are only 3.3 points ahead of Mission Viejo at No. 5 and 4.5 away from Los Al at No. 6. By contract, Corona Centennial is in No. 3 and is 20.4 points above Poly. The Jackrabbits will need to win out in the Moore League to stay in Division 1, and even then it’s a real possibility that a lowered strength of schedule will drop them in ranking even with wins. That will be the top storyline to watch rankings-wise the next few weeks.
Millikan: No. 47 (+2)
CalPreps doesn’t care about forfeits which means even with an adjusted record of 1-5, the Rams’ high quality still has them as the No. 7 team in Division 4. To give a sense of perspective, Poly last year was No. 1 in Division 4 when the playoffs started.
Jordan: No. 102 (-1)
The Panthers got their first loss of the year against Millikan last week but because the Rams are higher-ranked, they only moved down one spot. They’d be No. 14 in Division 7 if the playoffs started today.
Lakewood: No. 132 (+19)
The Lancers got a big boost from a big win over Cabrillo, jumping 19 spots from last week to this week–more than an entire playoff division. They’d now be No. 13 in Division 8.
Compton: No. 172 (+4)
Compton jumped up four spots and would be No. 4 in Division 12 if the playoffs started today, with a good chance to make it back to the CIF-SS championship game.
St. Anthony: No. 199 (+15)
The Saints’ big win over Marina boosted them almost a full division and they’d currently be No. 15 in Division 13 if the playoffs started today.
Wilson: No. 244 (+2)
The Bruins would be in Division 14
Cabrillo: No. 274 (+1)
The Jaguars would be in Division 14
