high school football

How Camden Hills and Mount View would be affected by latest eight-man football proposal

Fri, 01/17/2020 - 4:45pm

AUGUSTA — The football committee for the Maine Principals’ Association, the state’s governing body for high school athletics, gave its nod of approval Monday, Jan. 13, to altering the landscape of eight-man football, a move that is slated to affect the football programs at Camden Hills and Mount View high schools. 

The committee unanimously endorsed the proposal, according to the Bangor Daily News. This will change the divisional enrollment cutoffs and will introduce a new system of crowning state champions in the division. 

Enrollment cutoffs for the two divisions are slated to slightly change from last season, the Bangor Daily News reported. 

The large school division would be for schools with 375 or more students, rather than 351 or more. Based off the current enrollment numbers provided by the state association, Camden Hills would fall into this division. 

The small school division, meanwhile, would be for schools with 374 students or less, rather than 350 or less. Based off the current enrollment numbers provided by the state association, Mount View would fall into this division. 

The committee agreed to the proposal that separate state champions be crown for each the large school and small school divisions. 

With a deadline of Feb. 8 to inform the state association of intent to join the eight-man division, there are currently 14 teams eyeing a shift to joining the eight-man division including Camden Hills, Mount View, Nokomis, Orono, Stearns, Washington Academy, Houlton, Mountain Valley, Mount Desert Island, Morse, Waterville, Lake Region, Spruce Mountain and Dirigo. 

Last season, 10 programs participated in eight-man football including Ellsworth, Mount Ararat, Yarmouth, Gray-New Gloucester, Maranacook, Boothbay, Old Orchard Beach, Sacopee Valley, Telstar and Traip. 

Following the Feb. 8 deadline, the committee’s recommendation will be considered by a pair of MPA committees in March before being voted on by the state association’s general membership at the annual spring meeting in April at the Samoset Resort in Rockport, according to the Bangor Daily News. 

If the aforementioned teams all join the eight-man division, the divisions could be as follows, based off current enrollment figures provided by the MPA. 

Large School Division 
Mount Ararat
Gray-New Gloucester
Yarmouth
Ellsworth
Camden Hills
Washington Academy
Nokomis
Waterville
Mountain Valley
Lake Region
Mount Desert Island
Morse

Small School Division 
Sacopee Valley
Traip
Old Orchard Beach
Telstar
Boothbay
Mount View
Stearns
Houlton
Orono
Dirigo
Spruce Mountain


Reach George Harvey and the sports department at: sports@penbaypilot.com