By Danny Waldo
The regular season for high school football concluded on October 25th and now the real games begin, and for the first time all Class AA teams are invited to the party.
With the addition of Belgrade to the Class AA ranks prior to the 2019 school year, the MHSA made the decision to alter the playoff format for Montana’s largest classification for this season only as Gallatin High School in Bozeman gets set to open in 2020.
For the 2019 season, Class AA split into two divisions for football, similar to what basketball and volleyball currently does; in addition, the MHSA decided to invite all 15 teams to the playoffs, using a seeding process for the two divisions that will ultimately lead to a true state champion.
Bozeman earned the No. 1 seed out of the Eastern division after knocking off Billings West 26-20 in their season finale, and will host the Western division’s No. 8 seed Missoula Big Sky to open post-season play on November 1st.
Following the conclusion of the opening round, teams will be reseeded, with the highest remaining seeds being paired up against the lowest remaining seeds. This process will continue throughout the playoffs, until the state final, where the highest remaining seed will host the lower seed in the 2019 Class AA state championship.
Bozeman enters the playoffs on a hot streak after knocking off the No. 2 ranked Bears. The Hawks have not lost since September 6th, when they lost 20-19 to Missoula Big Sky in a muddy, soggy affair at the old Van Winkle Stadium. Bozeman has been dominant on the turf field at the new Van Winkle Stadium. However, Bozeman won’t be taking anything for granted in this year’s playoffs after entering the 2018 postseason as the No. 1 team in the state before losing to Kalispell Flathead at home in the semifinals.
