The GHSA Reclassification Committee is considering another proposal for the next round of reclassification following the 2025-2026 school year. The proposal would reduce the number of classifications to four while still crowning eight state champions in many sports, with playoff seeding determined by the Playoff Ranking system introduced last year.
The benefits of the proposal are clear: Fewer classifications would restore many local rivalries and reduce the geographical size of regions. Over the past decade and a half, the addition of Class 6A and the now-defunct Class 7A led to fewer schools in each region, but also increased travel distances and put many traditional rivalries on hiatus with schools in different regions.
However, the proposal is controversial.
One major point of contention is the potential shift to a playoff with seeding based on Playoff Rankings. This issue divides schools largely along geographic and size-based lines, smaller schools and South Georgia programs tend to oppose ranking-based seeding, while larger metro-area schools are more likely to support it.
Importantly, this proposal does mean the GHSA is abandoning the Competitive Balance Model that has been heavily discussed in recent months. Additionally, neither proposal guarantees any changes for the 2026-2027 school year. The GHSA is simply exploring ideas to increase competitiveness across all sports and will not need to make any decisions until the fall.
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