GHSA announces reclassification of schools

THOMASTON – The Georgia High School Association announced the reclassification of its 454-member schools Monday, reshaping the state’s athletic landscape for the next two years — and some southwest Georgia schools will feel the changes more than others.

See the full list here

The GHSA divides schools into seven classifications, from Class A up to Class 7A, with enrollment determining placement. Class 7A includes Georgia’s largest schools. Brookwood High School in Gwinnett County tops the list with 4,098 students, while the largest school in south Georgia is Lowndes (3,153 students). Colquitt County (2,572) and Valdosta (2,422) are the other two south Georgia schools that will compete in 7A.

Lee County, with 1,818 students — including six from outside the district — will move back up to Class 6A after two years in 5A. The Trojans will be joined in 6A by several familiar foes: Houston County, Veterans, Coffee and Thomas County Central are all moving up as well. That means the powerful Region 1-6A lineup that defines some of Georgia’s best football and baseball rivalries will continue.

In Albany, Westover, Monroe, and Dougherty are each moving from Class AAA to Class AAAA. Despite the classification change, they will likely remain in a similar regional setup since Cairo and Bainbridge are also moving to 4A.

“With the return of the 7A reclassification, Westover landed exactly where we thought we would be — still in the classification with Peach, Cairo, Bainbridge, Monroe, and Dougherty,” Westover principal William Chunn said. “Because of the reclassification, we moved from 3A up to 4A. All of this is based on student enrollment, with schools having the option to appeal to the GHSA to move up or down.

“The interesting part will be the region alignment, which will be coming up next, but I still anticipate Region 1-4A being the same as Region 1-3A was last year, with the same teams.”

That potential continuity should help the city schools maintain local rivalries and manageable travel while still stepping into a higher level of competition.

The local school facing the most dramatic change is Worth County. The Rams are slated to move from Class A Division I to Class AAA — not because of enrollment growth, but due to shifts in statewide numbers.

Worth County could find itself in a region with Crisp County, Sumter County and Cook, and possibly a few Columbus-area schools such as Carver. That could make for intriguing matchups — Carver is currently ranked No. 1 in Class AA, while Worth County sits atop Class A Division I.

Worth County baseball coach Will Smith said it’s still too early to draw conclusions. “There is really nothing to talk about yet because everything is preliminary,” Smith said. “Schools have nine days to petition to play up or down, so everything could be totally different in nine days.”

Schools now have until mid-November to appeal their classifications, and the GHSA is expected to release finalized region alignments near the end of the year. Until then, athletic directors and coaches across southwest Georgia will be watching closely to see what their future regions — and rivalries — will look like.