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)
For the time being, the Jackrabbits are still No. 4 in the CIF-SS and are now up to No. 22 in the nation on MaxPreps. But there’s bad news on the horizon for Poly, as their rating dropped 1.7 points to 64.0 following a 49-0 win over Cabrillo, in part because of the Jaguars’ low rating. As Poly’s ranking has fallen during its Moore League schedule, competitors in stronger leagues are on the rise–Poly is just .2 points above Mission Viejo at No. 5, .4 points above Los Al at No. 6 and .9 points above Chaminade at No. 7.
Why is that a big deal? If Poly is No. 5 in an eight-team bracket it would play at the No. 4 seed, likely Mission Viejo or Los Al, giving up a home game. If it’s No. 6 it would play at No. 3, almost guaranteed to be Corona Centennial. And if it’s No. 7, it would play at No. 2 St. John Bosco. The Jackrabbits have two games left, both against low-ranked teams in Compton and Jordan, both of whom are ranked lower than MIssion Viejo, Los Al, and Chaminade’s teams.
At this point, we expect Poly to stay in Division 1 but to fall into the bottom half and end up on the road in their opener. We will know a lot more after this week’s games.
Millikan: No. 51 (-5)
The Rams slip five spots during a convincing win over Compton, in part for the same reason Poly is sliding. The CalPreps rankings drop teams when they play lower-ranked opponents, and the Moore League is filled with lower-ranked opponents. Millikan is now No. 11 in Division 4.
Lakewood: No. 133 (-14)
Lakewood dropped almost a whole division (in part because their best win, over Jordan, is now considered “less valuable” by the points system thanks to Jordan’s loss to Wilson. The Lancers are now No. 13 in Division 9.
Jordan: No. 142 (-24)
The Panthers’ loss to Wilson dropped them a division and a half. Jordan would now be No. 6 in Division 10.
Compton: No. 193 (+3)
As Millikan dropped five spots for beating Compton, Compton moved up three spots for losing to Millikan. That’s about as clear a case as you can get for how much strength of schedule matters to these rankings. Compton is now No. 9 in Division 13.
St. Anthony: No. 204 (+11)
The Saints would be in Division 14
Wilson: No. 213 (+29)
The Bruins would be in Division 14
Cabrillo: No. 306 (+5)
The Jaguars would be in Division 14
