Columbia opts out of Single-A field

For the first time this football season, I dropped what I was doing and studied the District 3 power-point races.

Always a good, riveting read.

If the season ended today – not in two weeks – 11 L-L League teams would make the district playoffs:

Reigning champ Wilson (2nd), Penn Manor (3rd), Manheim Township (10th) and Reading (13th) would make it in Quad-A.

Bishop McDevitt (8-0 and ranked No. 1 in the state) currently sits atop the Quad-A heap.

Manheim Central (1st), Conestoga Valley (7th), Elco (9th), Cocalico (10th), Lampeter-Strasburg (14th) and Northern Lebanon (15th) would make it in Triple-A. One L-L League directly on the Triple-A bubble - Solanco is currently tied for the 16th and final spot.

And reigning champ Lancaster Catholic (1st) would make it in Double-A.

Of course, with two games to go, those rankings will likely change. So sit tight.

The top 16 teams make the bracket in Quad-A and Triple-A and the top eight teams make the bracket in Double-A and Single-A.

Was able to confirm from coach Jason Shoff that Columbia has opted out of the Single-A field, should the Crimson Tide earn enough points to get in.

Columbia (0-8), along with Halifax (0-8) and Carson Long (0-7), according to published reports, have opted out of the Single-A bracket.

Upper Dauphin (7-1) currently sits atop the Single-A list.

One L-L League team is sitting squarely on the district-playoff bubble – Hempfield, which is 17th in Quad-A. The Black Knights (4-4) take on another Quad-A bubble team, Warwick (4-4), on Friday.

The loser there is out of the race for sure. Hempfield will likely finagle its way in if it can win out; the Knights play rival Manheim Township in Week 10. Stay tuned.