Posted by thswarriors.com at 12:15 pm, on November 3, 2007 Bracketology 101
Warriors Advance To CIF Playoffs
The 2007 edition of the Tehachapi High School varsity football team advanced to the CIF Central Section Division III playoffs Friday night by thumping Bakersfield Christian, 41-7, before a delighted hometown crowd.
The Warriors earned a first round bye on November 9 by virtue of a much earned #1 seeding in the playoff bracketing. Tehachapi will host the winner of the #8 seed Highland (Bakersfield) - #9 Cesar Chavez (Delano) game on November 16 in a second round playoff game. Game time is 7:00 pm.
As the #2 seed, Foothill of Bakersfield also has a 1st round bye. Other 1st round games this Friday include #12 Golden Valley at #5 Selma; #13 Frontier at #4 Garces; #14 Madera South at #3 Washington Union; #11 Kerman at #6 Delano; and #10 Roosevelt at #7 Dinuba.
The Warriors won the South Sequoia League for the sixth time since joining the league in 1992, and advanced to the post-season playoff tournament for the 12th season in a row. The Warriors finished at 9-1 in the regular season, and 5-0 in league play. The Warriors have assured themselves of its best overall season record since 1997.
The storied Warrior program has produced 8 CIF sectional titles, the last one in 2003 when Tehachapi defeated Yosemite for the Sequoia Division championship in Oakhurst.
There are 91 high school teams playing varsity football in the Central Section, and these teams are divided into five divisions of play based primarily on student population. Another factor is the historical success, or lack of success in running a football program. This is where things get tricky, political, and controversial. One prime example is Garces, a small school that is the victim of its own success --- with CIF officials moving them "up" in both league play and in the playoff system. Examples of very large schools that play "down" include Roosevelt and McLane in Fresno, Foothill in Bakersfield, and Arvin in the SSL. Historically, these teams have struggled to have winning seasons.
Division III, which includes Tehachapi, has a total of 17 teams, with 14 of those teams advancing to the playoffs. Nine (9) of these teams have winning records this year including Foothill (7-3), Washington Union (7-3), Dinuba (7-3), Selma (6-4), Delano (6-4), Roosevelt (5-5), Kerman (5-5), and Garces (5-5).
In Division IV, SSL foe Taft also earned a #1 seed, and in Division V, Bakersfield Christian is the #2 seed, playing host to Coast Union this Friday. Taft will also have a bye week.
Warrior fans can view all of the playoff bracketing in Division I-V if you follow this link to the CIF offices in Porterville:
http://cifcs.org/PlayoffBrackets/fall_playoff_brackets.htm
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