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As we come into the final week of the regular season, the playoff races in each district and conference begin to heat up. In each case, tiebreakers are determined individually by the athletic directors of each school in each conference.
5A District 5-6 Conference
This year, the 5A District 5-6 Conference has decided to move away from the 3-way 'Kansas City Playoff' tiebreaker system in favor of one that emphasizes the body of work against the tied teams instead of a one-day, winner-take-all Kansas City playoff.
With Highland having already clinched the district title along with Bonneville and Idaho Falls having been mathematically eliminated, the three teams left in question are Madison, Skyline, and Hillcrest.
The tiebreaker being used this year is based on a points system with a capped point limit at 13. It means that a 50-point win is the same as a 13-point win - if you win by more than 13 points, it's counted in the tiebreaking procedure as a 13-point win. The margin of victory/defeat differential from each game between the tied teams is used to figure out which team comes out ahead. Here's what it looks like currently between Madison, Skyline, and Hillcrest.
Madison
Beat Skyline 21-13. +8 point final score differential.
Tiebreaker total as of now: +8
Skyline
Lost to Madison 21-13. -8 point final score differential.
Beat Hillcrest 18-14. +4 point final score differential.
Tiebreaker total as of now: -4
Hillcrest
Lost to Skyline 18-14. -4 point final score differential.
Tiebreaker total as of now: -4.
Madison plays at Hillcrest on Friday night. If Madison wins that game, the tiebreaker will not need to be used as Madison will take the East #2 seed and Skyline will take the East #3 seed with Hillcrest potentially being out of the 5A playoffs. There is an at-large berth available, but Hillcrest did not play any 5A teams in their non-conference schedule, essentially rendering them out of the playoff. Skyline's point differential will remain at -4 regardless of how the Madison/Hillcrest game goes on Friday night and regardless of how the Grizzlies' game vs. Idaho Falls in the 51st Emotion Bowl ends up as they have already played both Madison and Hillcrest.
All of the following scenarios include the caveat of Skyline beating Idaho Falls on Saturday:
If Hillcrest wins the game against Madison, the point differential will come into effect. Here are some different scenarios:
If Hillcrest wins by 1-5 points, it means that Madison's point differential would sit between +7 and +3. The win for Hillcrest would move their point differential to between -3 and +1. The final result would be Madison earning the East #2 seed, Hillcrest taking the East #3 seed, and Skyline being in play for the 5A at-large berth courtesy of their 22-0 win over 5A Coeur d'Alene in their non-conference schedule.
If Hillcrest wins by 6 points, it means that Madison's point differential would sit at +2. Hillcrest's point differential would also sit at +2, but since the Knights would have won the head-to-head matchup, Hillcrest would take the East #2 seed, Madison would take the East #3 seed, and Skyline would again be in play for the 5A at-large berth (as mentioned in the previous paragraph).
If Hillcrest wins by 7-11 points, it means that Madison's point differential would sit between +1 and -3. Hillcrest's point differential would sit between +3 and +7, meaning the Knights would take the East #2 seed, Madison would take the East #3 seed, and Skyline would again be in contention for the 5A at-large berth.
If Hillcrest wins by 12 points, it means that Madison's point differential would sit at -4. Hillcrest's point differential would sit at +8, meaning the Knights would take the East #2 seed, and Madison would take the East #3 seed even though they tied with Skyline in the point differential because of their head-to-head win over the Grizzlies. Skyline would, again, be in contention for the 5A at-large berth.
Finally, if Hillcrest wins by 13 points or more, Madison's point differential would sit at -5 and no lower (because of the 13-point cap on victories as stated earlier). Hillcrest's point differential would sit at +9 and, as stated before, Skyline's would sit at -4. Hillcrest would then take the East #2 seed, Skyline would take the East #3 seed, and Madison would be in play for the 5A at-large berth because of their non-conference 48-20 win over 5A Capital.
Now, if Skyline loses on Saturday against Idaho Falls and Hillcrest wins, Hillcrest will take the East #2 seed, Madison will take the East #3 seed, and Skyline will be in play for the 5A at-large berth.
If Skyline loses on Saturday against Idaho Falls and Madison wins, Madison will take the East #2 seed, Skyline will take the East #3 seed, and Hillcrest will likely be out of contention for the 5A at-large berth.
4A District 5-6 Conference
This year, three state tournament berths are awarded to the 4A's in East Idaho. Rigby, Blackfoot, and Century have all qualified for a playoff spot with Pocatello and Preston being mathematically eliminated.
Century plays at Preston and Rigby plays at Blackfoot with both games being on Friday night.
Here are the scenarios:
1. If Rigby wins and Century wins, Rigby takes seed 5-6A, Century takes seed 5-6B, and Blackfoot takes seed 5-6C.
2. If Rigby wins and Century loses, Rigby takes seed 5-6A, Century takes seed 5-6B, and Blackfoot takes seed 5-6C.
3. If Rigby loses and Century wins, it creates a 3-way tie for first between Rigby, Century, and Blackfoot.
4. If Rigby loses and Century loses, Blackfoot takes seed 5-6A, Rigby takes seed 5-6B, and Century takes seed 5-6C.
What is the tiebreaker and how is it determined? The tiebreakers is a 3-way coin flip. A representative from each team flips a coin at the same time. If all three coins come up heads-or-tails, the coins are flipped again. If the coin flips yields 2 heads and a tails or 2 tails and a head, the odd-man out is awarded the top-seed. A coin is then flipped again to determine the final two seeds.
3A Mountain Rivers Conference
There are several scenarios still in play and all four teams in the conference have a shot a making the postseason. This week, Sugar-Salem plays at Teton and South Fremont hosts Shelley. Here are the scenarios:
1. If Sugar-Salem wins and South Fremont wins: Sugar-Salem takes seed 6A, then there is a 3-way tie for 2nd place between South Fremont, Teton, and Shelley.
2. If Sugar-Salem wins and South Fremont loses: Sugar-Salem takes seed 6A, Shelley takes seed 6B, and Teton takes seed 6C. South Fremont would miss the playoffs.
3. If Sugar-Salem loses and South Fremont wins: Teton takes seed 6A, Sugar-Salem takes seed 6B, and South Fremont takes seed 6C. Shelley would miss the playoffs.
4. If Sugar-Salem loses and South Fremont loses: 3-way tie for first place between Sugar-Salem, Teton, and Shelley. South Fremont would miss the playoffs.
The tiebreaker in the Mountain Rivers Conference is a 3-way Kansas City Playoff. If a tie happens, the location for the KC playoff for scenario #1 would be at Sugar-Salem HS. For scenario #4, it would be at South Fremont HS.
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