AHSAA Central Board Restores Playoff eligibility to the Calhoun County White Plains Wildcats

Calhoun County, AL Calhoun County, Alabama AHSAA Central Board reinstates White Plains’ playoff eligibility and the Wildcats could earn their first playoff appearance since 1994 by securing a win in the match against Munford on Friday. The Wildcats will also receive assistance.

Up-to-date Regional 4 standings

Refreshed Class 4A region 4 standings to show White Plains’ successful appeal to be eligible for playoffs, as well as an overall and region records reflecting the games White Plains has played or forfeited against regional opponents.

By Joe Medley

East Alabama Sports Today

White Plains is eligible for the 2023 Alabama football playoffs for high schools for the first time, so the Wildcats are in the best position in a long time to secure their first playoff spot since 1994 on the Friday.

The Alabama High School Athletic Association Central Board on Tuesday ratified the District 6 decision to approve White Plains’ appeal for playoff eligibility. This Central Board action occurred at Tuesday’s 10:00 a.m. session in Montgomery.

White Plains can go a great way to clinching an automatic playoff spot with a win in Friday’s Class 4A, Regional 4 match with Munford on the road. If the Wildcats triumph in the game and Anniston wins against Cleburne County on Oct. 27th, White Plains goes to the playoffs.

The Wildcats hope to reach playoffs for the second time in the team’s 52-year history, and the first time since 1994.

“I’m 100 % excited for our coaches and players,” White Plains principal Andy Ward said. “They have been extremely focused and they have won the final two fixtures. They’ll have the chance to do it again on Friday night.

“That is all we’ve ever wanted is that our team be given the chance.”

A first-time White Plains coach Blake Jennings advised the team following the practice on Tuesday.

“They were thrilled and hysterical, with a flurry of hooting and screaming” he told reporters.

The AHSAA announced that White Plains would be ineligible for the playoffs following Calhoun County Schools superintendent Dr. Jose Reyes ordered the Wildcats not to play in their September. 22 game in Anniston. Reyes made the decision after an incident involving Anniston students earlier in the week.

The shooting led Anniston to postpone the annual homecoming celebration and celebration, which were scheduled to take place prior to the game. Reyes took the decision in response to the cancellations.

White Plains is one of seven high schools that are into the Calhoun County Board of Education umbrella. Anniston High falls under its own school system that is independent.

Reyes’s decision means it was a matter of White Plains would forfeit a Class 4A region 4 game. According to AHSAA rules the forfeiting of a region game puts the team that forfeited it not eligible for playoffs, and no forfeited team’s games count as regional games.

Ward made an appeal to Central Board District 6 representatives Mike Welsh, Larry Davidson, Quentin Lee and Chad Young at Oxford High School the week after an initial ruling to cancel the game. Calhoun County Board of Education deputy superintendent Tony Dowdy also attended the meeting.

District 6 approved appeals, as did district 6 granted the appeal. Central Board approved the district-level decision on Tuesday. Ward Dowdy and Ward Dowdy were the representatives of White Plains in Montgomery.

The basis for appeal was Reyes the reason he made for directing White Plains to forfeit the Anniston game. The policy of penalizing forfeits to regions is intended to stop attempts to gain an advantage in the competition however Reyes made the decision to order this forfeit came from concerns about the security for the safety of White Plains personnel and fans.

Reyes visited the White Plains coaches and players.

“What I did tell them know was that we’d appeal to the ruling of AHSAA,” he said, “and I wanted them to understand that we wanted to keep playing and watch how it goes.”

After it has become clear that the Central Board has approved White Plains appeal and White Plains’ appeal is approved, the Wildcats won against Talladega as well as Cleburne County on Oct. 6 and. 13 respectively, will be counted as games in the region. White Plains has a 2-2 region record in addition to a overall record of 2-5.

White Plains has the head-to-head tiebreaker over Cleburne County, which now has a region record of 2-2. If they beat Munford (1-3 area) on Friday would set White Plains’ region record at 3-2. The Wildcats will hold a head-tohead tiebreaker against the Lions.

Munford finishes regional play on Oct. 27 when it plays sixth-ranked Handley Munford closes out region play against Handley, which is ranked sixth. White Plains closes region play against seventh-ranked Jacksonville the following night.

Cleburne County, having lost three games in a row as well as four games in the last five games, will play Handley on Friday. The team will close the region with Anniston on October. 27. The Tigers defeated Munford 37-21 in September. 22.

The Wildcats match against Munford “is the most significant game likely to have been played in White Plains High School in many decades,” Jennings said.

Central Board also… Central Board also …

The AHSAA was upheld in its decision on The Coosa Christian ruling. School was sanctioned with a fine and required the option of forfeiting four matches for an infraction to rules regarding transfers.

-Appropriated a request by Elmore County High School to reinstate eligibility for a student-athlete.

— Approved named”the” AHSAA the Athletic Revenue Plan in memory of the former the Executive Director Steve Savarese. This Revenue Share Plan, approved initially in 2009 by the Central Board in 2009, will have paid out $2,250,000 to its member schools when this allocation has been disbursed later in the month. The plan is designed to return surplus funds to schools if the AHSAA has at minimum one

Reserved working capital for the year.

named”the AHSAA Auditorium in the memory of the Former Executive Director Dan Washburn.

Approved four schools that are currently enrolled in the Alabama Independent School Association for membership starting with the 2024-25 school year. Autauga Academy, Glenwood School, Lee-Scott Academy and Pickens Academy.

-Appropriated a request made by Oakwood Adventist Academy, based on the by-laws passed last

This year, regarding dates and timings in 2024 for AHSAA basketball tournaments.

— Approved the AHSADCA budget for the 2023 Alabama Mississippi All-Star Football Game and the North-South Football All-Star Game, both scheduled for December.

I was able to hear an account of the financials from Chief Financial officer Amy Gulledge.

-Appropriated The Super 7 budget and heard a presentation by Knight Eady’s Daniel Smith concerning Super 7 credentials agenda, agenda, and other operations that will be conducted during the three-day Super 7 event scheduled for December. 6-8 in Tuscaloosa.

— I heard the report on classification timelines of the Assistant Director Marvin Chou and set Dec. 18 as the fall the meeting for classification.

— Schedule to schedule the Winter Central Board meeting for January. 17, 2024.