- First, stop calling the first week of football Week O. Zero is a placeholder for nothing. Call it what it is, Week 1. You can’t have something in nothing because then it would not be nothing.
- Make the season 11 weeks long (which it is now) or better yet 12 weeks long.
- Instruct all regions in all classifications that region contest must be scheduled so that a team’s region schedule is completed by week 10. Start whenever they want but finished by week 10.
- Teams can schedule a non-region game in week 11 (or week 12) but it will be understood by all parties that any of those games in those weeks will be subject to cancelation if the dates are needed to makeup region games because of unforeseen and controllable circumstances. All contracts for games them will be null and void with no penalty to either school.
- If those dates (weeks 11 or 12) are not needed for makeup region game, great! All teams will get a 1 (or 2) week period to heal, rest and get ready for the playoffs.
Above are my thoughts to help solve a problem that crops up with high school varsity football scheduling problems ever few years.
Mike Hughes
Sports Director for WLBG Radio in Laurens, SC
10-1-2024