By: Adam Freeman
The 2024 High School Football Playoffs were scheduled to start this past Friday in West Virginia. Unfortunately, that did not happen and there are several factors at play to why the Tucker County Mt. Lions were not able to kick off their post season quite yet. This all started back in December of 2023 when the WVSSAC approved four classifications through all sports and the addition of bonus points for losing to a winning team. Several teams filed appeals to their new classification to the states Board of Review which granted the reclassification of the schools into lower classifications this August. On the final night of the regular season, Wood and Cabell County filed injunctions against the WVSSAC stating the seeding of post season teams was unjust due to the strength of victory. The strength of victory is a point system based on defeating a team from a higher or lower division. With that, multiple schools flipped classifications just before the start of the season and they felt the numbers were skewed due to this. Wood County’s injunction was granted, therefore, changing the seeding and opponents in the playoffs, which resulted in Tucker going from the #2 seed and playing East Hardy to being the #3 seed and playing St. Mary’s. Many other schools were affected in the same manner, such as Point Pleasant High School, who in return filed an injunction which proposed a “play-in” game scenario for the teams affected in the AAA class. This injunction was also granted, which delayed the playoffs for at least one week. Westside and Tolsia High Schools followed suit stating they were unfairly removed from the playoffs, and with this came an influx of conflicting injunctions promoting the WVSSAC to postpone the playoffs indefinitely. With the array of injunctions, the WVSSAC was forced to file a Writ of Prohibition to the WV State Supreme Court for a final ruling on the matter as to not be in contempt of one of the injunctions. The WVSSAC also filed for expedited relief hoping for a timely resolution to the issue. Hopefully, by the time you read this article the undefeated 10-0 Tucker County Mt. Lions will know their seeding and opponent to begin post season play. Tucker will be the host team regardless of opponent, everything else is still TBD and in the hands of the State Supreme Court.