We are down to eight football teams in Classes 1-5, down to four in Class 6.
And the sites are set. Let's get it on!
But is the current system fair when it comes to post-district play? In my opinion, a definite maybe. There is a tweak or two I think would make it better.
Here's the way things operate now, starting with the quarterfinals in Classes 1-5 and the semifinals in Class 6.
In an even-numbered year, like 2014, if both teams have played the same number of home games in their first three district contests and you are in an even-numbered district, you get to host that quarterfinal.
So that's why California, which is in Class 3 District 6, gets to host next Friday. And Helias, which is in Class 4 District 7, has to hit the road to District 8 champion Kearney for its quarterfinal.
But is that fair? Helias and Kearney are believed to be two of the top three teams in Class 4. Why should they have to play each other in the quarterfinals?
Continuing to use Class 4 as an example, only because it's the one I know the best, there's the case of the Webb City Cardinals.
The Cardinals, who you could make a strong case for as being the best team in the state regardless of classification, are the champions of District 5. That means a quarterfinal game this Friday at Harrisonville because they're on an odd line in the bracket in an even-numbered year.
Let's carry it one step further. If, and it's an if, Helias were to beat Kearney and Webb City beats Harrisonville, that means the Class 4 state semifinal would be at Adkins Stadium.
In that scenario, Webb City, No. 1 in the state and ranked among the top 20 teams in the nation, would have to play two road games to advance to the state title game.
Fair? If you take the "It's always been that way" approach, then yes.
But here's my suggestion.
Keep the current district format and the points. The executives at the Missouri State High School Activities Association apparently excelled in geography in school and like things to be close together.
Unless you're Blue Springs South, which had to travel across the state in its Class 6 district games to Timberland in Wentzville and Francis Howell in St. Charles for its postseason. A fact I will be using to prove my point later.
Once you get down to eight teams in Classes 1-5 and the top four in Class 6, seed them.
How? How about state rankings?
How about not? I vote in the state rankings and have the opportunity to see in my opinion how much or how little some of the voting members put into their ballot each week. There are the "teams in my area are better than anyone else" voters. And some voters are firmly in the "you lose, you drop" camp, no matter who you lost to or how close the game was.
So as a member of the media, I say keep the media out of it.
There is a system already in place you could use in the seeding process - district points. Teams accumulate points throughout the regular season to be used in seeding the district tournament. Why not let those points through the first nine games determine seeding the rest of the way?
Again, using Class 4 as the example, Webb City had the top total for the season and would be No. 1. Helias would be No. 2, with Kearney No. 3 and Affton No. 4.
They would get home games in the quarterfinals. And as the top seed, Webb City would be assured of hosting a semifinal if it advanced.
But what about travel? For example, what if Cape Girardeau Central had to travel to Kearney for the quarterfinals? Is that too far for a Friday night game?
Well, it wasn't too far for Blue Springs South to go across the state for a playoff game on Friday. Twice. And under the new system of just one playoff game a week, you could set a distance standard that would automatically move the game to Saturday afternoon if the visiting team wants that.
And with this format, there's a decent chance you'll get the two best teams playing for a state title instead of the two best teams from its respective half of the state.
Reward teams for what they've done during the season, not because of what year it is.