The talks went on and on. Should Maine high school football continue using the threeclass system that had been in place for a lot of years, or had the time come to move to four classes?
We all know the answer to that question by now, as the Maine Principals Association football committee made the announcement earlier this year that a four-class football system’s time had come, with the move changing the landscape of high school football throughout the state.
So here we are, with Monday the kick-off to the 2013 football season as players and coaches head to practice fields to prepare, with season openers scheduled for Sept. 6-7.
What kind of impact did the MPA’s addition of a fourth class layout for football really have on Maine high school football?
The answer depends on the teams themselves, with some facing a similar schedule to years past, while others will establish new rivalries, taking on teams for the very first time, or for the first time in a very long time.
“We are happy that we were able to keep many of our rivalries,” said Brunswick coach Dan Cooper, whose team will reside in Eastern Maine Class B along with old rivals Cony, Lawrence, Messalonskee and Skowhegan. Brewer, Gardiner, Hampden Academy and 2012 Class B champion Mt. Blue round out Eastern B. “We would have hated to lose Lawrence as a rival, and we wanted desperately to face Cony, the team that knocked us out of the playoffs last season. And, having Mount Blue and Gardiner back on our schedule is great.”
Brunswick opens the season with two games on the road, visiting Brewer Sept. 6 and Gardiner Sept. 13 before heading home to take on Cony Sept. 20 and Skowhegan Sept. 27. Visits to Mt. Blue (Oct. 4) and Lawrence (Oct. 18) sandwich a home date with bitter rival Messalonskee (Oct. 11), with Brunswick concluding the regular season with its lone crossover contest against Kennebunk of Western B at home on Oct. 25.
Cooper, whose squad moved from Eastern A, feels his team will face a tough challenge in Class B.
“We have beaten up on teams like Lewiston and Oxford Hills, two teams in A, and I feel our schedule in Eastern B is much tougher then in years past,” said Cooper, whose lone regret is losing its “Battle of the Bridge” rival, Mt. Ararat. “We are sad to lose the rivalry with the Eagles, with us holding the ‘Battle of the Bridge’ Trophy for a long time. That game was always important to the community, so that is the one sad thing that we lost in this move. Many of those kids grew up playing together in youth football.”
One team that had to feel like a yo-yo during the football committee’s process was Mt. Ararat, which contemplated moving from Class A all the way down to Class C before settling for a move to Western B.
The good news is the Eagles will still be eligible for the postseason. But, Mt. Ararat has a long way to go before thinking about the playoffs, considering the squad has dropped its last 27 contests, including three consecutive winless campaigns.
“My AD (Todd Sampson) and I talked a lot about where best to place us during the winter, looking to help our program,” said Eagles coach Frank True. “We did discuss going down to C, knowing we would be ineligible for the playoffs for two seasons, and it made sense, even though that would have been a tough decision. It came about that the numbers changed, and several teams moved down to B. I think Western B is a good fit for us.”
Mt. Ararat faces an old rivalry right out of the gates, visiting past Class A foe Skowhegan in its one crossover matchup on Sept. 6, the team’s only recognizable opponent from last season. Westbrook, where Sampson served as the athletic director before moving north to Topsham prior to last season, provides the opposition in the Eagles’ home opener Sept. 13, followed by a home contest with Fryeburg Academy on Sept. 20. Visits to Gorham (Sept. 27) and York (Oct. 4) follow before the Eagles close out their home slate with games against Oceanside (Oct. 11) and Falmouth (Oct. 18).
Mt. Ararat does have an area rival on the slate, with the season finale at Morse on Oct. 25.
“We’re hoping to be competitive, with teams like Marshwood, York and Kennebunk from the south expected to be good,” said True. “Some of the other teams fit us nicely, like Fryeburg and Gorham. We will miss the rivalry with Brunswick, even though we have been on the short-side of the matchup. It is a good game for the community, and I hope that after this season we can at least have an exhibition game with them. But, it will be neat to play at Bath on the last night of the regular season on their new field.”
The Shipbuilders, after a 2-6 season last year in Eastern B, open at Oceanside, a team the Shipbuilders fell to in last season’s season finale, 27-7, officially knocking Morse out of playoff contention.
Morse will play its first games on its new McMann Field turf Sept. 13 (Falmouth) and Sept. 20 (Gardiner).
“The move to Western B is exciting for Morse, and I feel the four-class system is exciting for football in the state,” said Morse coach Jason Darling, whose squad visits Fryeburg (Sept. 20) and Gorham (Sept. 27), hosts Kennebunk (Oct. 11), travels to 2012 Class B state finalist Marshwood (Oct. 18) and finishes up at home against new rival Mt. Ararat. “All the coaches hope this brings more parity to football in the state. What changes is that we’ve gotten used to seeing certain teams over the past few years, and we will certainly see a change in our travel schedule, but we’re excited to compete and get things going.
“We played in Western B when I was in high school, against a lot of these teams, and in the Campbell Conference, fans are very passionate about their football. So, we’re excited to renew some of those rivalries and compete against the best our conference has to offer.”
Darling said those looking at Class B football will likely feel Eastern B is stronger.
“I think the perception is that Eastern B is one of, if not the strongest class in the state,” said Darling. “With teams like Lawrence, Brunswick, Cony and Messalonskee, how can you argue with that? But, Western B has some accomplished teams as well. I don’t think anyone wants to play teams like Kennebunk and York, and I believe Marshwood could be one of the best teams in the state in any class.”
Class C
Rob Grover’s Freeport Falcons were a new varsity team just a short time ago, wading through Western C against powerful teams like Lisbon, Yarmouth and Winthrop.
The Falcons are still in Western C, but now face a slew of squads that have moved down from Class B to set up new rivalries.
“When I was at Falmouth, I coached against many of these teams,” said Grover, whose Falcons open at the Pownal Recreation Field against Spruce Mountain (Jay/Livermore Falls co-op) on Sept. 7. “This is a whole new ball of wax for us. There are teams here with a lot of tradition, like Mountain Valley (Freeport plays at Rumford on Oct. 18).”
Mountain Valley won the Class B state title in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, while another 2013 opponent, Wells, captured the 2011 Class B championship, and Leavitt, which also competes in Western C this season, appeared in the Class B title game for three consecutive years (2009-11), defeating Cape Elizabeth in 2009, and losing to Mountain Valley (2010) and Wells (2011) before falling to Mt. Blue is last season’s Eastern B final.
Freeport also hosts Poland (Sept. 21), Cape Elizabeth (Oct. 5) and Lake Region (Oct. 12), while visiting Gray-New Gloucester (Sept. 13), Wells (Sept. 27) and rival Yarmouth (Oct. 25).
Grover felt that something needed to be done, but questioned whether the MPA jumped the gun.
“I wasn’t sure if we were there yet, with several teams still new and struggling,” said the Freeport coach, whose Falcons were 4-4 last year and missed out on the postseason in its fourth year competing at the varsity football level. “We’re still building a tradition here after five or six years of jayvee football. From what we’ve had, we’ve done very well and we want to take that next step.”
Class D
Other than the letter change from C to D, there is little on Lisbon’s slate that has changed.
Dick Mynahan’s charges will face familiar opponents to Greyhound fans, including the opener at Winthrop/Monmouth on Sept. 6.
“For us, the schedule really goes back to where it was two or three years ago,” said Mynahan. “We once again face Old Orchard Beach (home, Sept. 28) and Boothbay (home, Sept. 21), teams we were used to playing every season. We once again face Oak Hill (at Wales, Oct. 26), so our goal will be to get the kids ready as always.”
The Greyhounds head to Hiram to take on Sacopee Valley in Week 2 (Sept. 14), visit Traip Academy (Oct. 5), and host Maranacook (Oct. 12) and Dirigo (Oct. 19).
“I would have loved to see the MPA call the leagues Double-A, A, B and C, which would have kept us in C,” said Mynahan. “But, the kids don’t look at the letter and worry about it. As always at Lisbon, we will work hard to get ready to play, knowing that opener at Winthrop will be tough, especially with them having 50 or 60 kids out this year for football.”
The other classes set up like this, with Class A East consisting of Bangor, Cheverus, Deering, Edward Little, Lewiston, Oxford Hills, Portland and Windham, while Class A West has Biddeford, Bonny Eagle, Massabesic, Noble, Sanford, Scarborough, South Portland and defending Class A champion Thornton Academy.
Class C East is made up of Belfast, Camden Hills, defending Class C champion Foxcroft Academy, Hermon, Madison/Carrabec, Mt. Desert Island, Nokomis, Old Town, Waterville and 2012 Class C finalist Winslow, while Class D East is Bucksport, Dexter, Ellsworth/Sumner, John Bapst, Maine Central Institute, Mount View, Orono, Stearns and Washington Academy.
MPA Football Classes
Eastern Maine Class A — Bangor, Cheverus, Deering, Edward Little, Lewiston, Oxford Hills, Portland, Windham. Western Maine Class A — Biddeford, Bonny Eagle, Massabesic, Noble, Sanford, Scarborough, South Portland, Thornton Academy. Eastern Maine Class B — Brewer, Brunswick, Cony, Gardiner, Hampden Academy, Lawrence, Messalonskee, Mt. Blue, Skowhegan. Western Maine Class B — Falmouth, Fryeburg Academy, Gorham, Greely, Kennebunk, Marshwood, Morse, Mt. Ararat, Oceanside, Westbrook, York. Eastern Maine Class C — Belfast, Camden Hills, Foxcroft Academy, Hermon, Madison/Carrabec, Mt. Desert Island, Nokomis, Old Town, Waterville, Winslow. Western Maine Class C — Cape Elizabeth, Freeport, Gray-New Gloucester, Lake Region, Leavitt, Mountain Valley, Poland, Spruce Mountain, Wells, Yarmouth. Eastern Maine Class D — Bucksport, Dexter, Ellsworth/Sumner, John Bapst, Maine Central Institute, Mattanawcook Academy, Mount View, Orono, Stearns, Washington Academy. Western Maine Class D — Boothbay, Dirigo, Lisbon, Maranacook, Oak Hill, Old Orchard Beach, Sacopee Valley, Telstar, Traip Academy, Winthrop/Monmouth.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less