MN High School Football Changes Drastically in 2015

The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is planning to make major changes to high school football, beginning in 2015.

On Thursday, the MSHSL board voted in favor of creating "districts" instead of conferences, as it is now.

The plan calls for the board to divide member schools into districts of 16 or more, using geographic proximity and like enrollments as the placement criteria. The member schools within each district will then establish their own protocol for scheduling eight regular season games.

There are about 375 schools that play high school football, according to the MSHSL, and the schools were asked to participate in a survey before this decision was made. To the question 'Would resolving regular-season football scheduling issues help solve issues that often lead to conference dissatisfaction?' Fifty-five percent of respondents said 'yes.'

Many schools have had a hard time filling a full 8-game schedule, sometimes spending $35-$40,000 to travel to outstate games, because of "the haves and have-nots" in terms of strength of programs, according to a KARE 11 article.

"I think it is a great thing," Dave Nelson, Minnetonka High School Head Football Coach told KARE 11. "For years now, we struggled filling out our schedule. There are only five teams in our conference (Lake), that leaves you with four football games you have got to find and it has been tough. We have taken many trips to other states, Wisconsin, Missouri and North Dakota. So, it will be good to play teams in the Twin City area."

Does this sound like a good plan? Tell us below in the comments.