Palisades High Football Moved Up to Division I

The Palisades High varsity football program is on its way up--in more ways than one.

The Los Angeles City Section's football advisory committee is adapting a new playoff format beginning next season which places teams in the higher or lower playoff bracket based on their MaxPreps rankings over the last two seasons. Of the 59 schools that field football teams, the top 29 will be in Division I and the bottom 30 will be in Division II. 

As a result of last year's 7-6 record and its run to the City Division II semifinals, Palisades is rated 27th in the section and will compete for the City Division I title should it make the playoffs.

Being slated as one of the bottom five schools in Division I, Palisades has the option to appeal its placement and request to be dropped to Division II, but it is unlikely head coach Perry Jones will do so given the Dolphins' success last fall. 

"Our program is on the rise," said Jones, anxious to begin his second season. "Last year was really a breakthrough. We made so much progress and now we want to sustain it year in and year out. The way you do that is by scheduling and beating the best competition."

In the past, coaches could choose which playoff division they wanted their teams to be in prior to the season. Now, the only schools allowed to appeal their postseason placement are the last five schools in Division I (which can request to drop down) and the top five schools in Division II (which can request to be moved up), based on rankings.

Under the new format, playoff divisions will be set for two seasons.

A strong indication that the Western League is improving is that five of the six schools in the league (Venice, Westchester, Fairfax, Hamilton and Palisades) will be in the Division I bracket in the fall. Only University, which went winless last year, remains in Division II. 

"It just goes to show how much our league is improving," Jones said. "The best way to earn respect is by winning and that's what we want to do. We want winning to be a habit, the norm around here."

In his first year, Jones rejuvenated a program that had been a dismal 26-65 over the previous nine seasons and had not finished with a winning record since going 8-3 and making the City's upper division playoffs in 2000.

The advisory committee was scheduled to meet Friday to approve the new playoff alignments and finalize the ranking formula and criteria for seeding.

Here are the Division I schools (2010 record, league place and playoff results):

1. Crenshaw (12-2, Coliseum League #1, Division I champion)

2. Carson (12-3, Marine League #1, Division I finals)

3. Venice (8-5, Western League #1, Division I semifinals)

4. Narbonne (6-6, Marine League #3, Division I quarterfinals)

5. Dorsey (10-2, Coliseum League #2, Division I quarterfinals)

6. Taft (9-4, West Valley League #1, Division I semifinals)

7. San Pedro (8-4, Marine League #2, Division I quarterfinals)

8. Fairfax (12-3-1, Western League #3, Division II champion)

9. Westchester (6-5, Western League #4, Division I first round)

10. Arleta (10-4, East Valley League #2, Division II semifinals)

11. Hamilton (3-7, Western League #5, Division II quarterfinals)

12. Locke (5-6, Coliseum League #4, Division I first round)

13. Jordan (6-5, Eastern League #2, Division I first round)

14. Garfield (7-6, Eastern League #1, Division I quarterfinals)

15. West Adams (4-7, Coliseum League #3, Division I first round)

16. Franklin (8-4, Northern League #3, Division II quarterfinals)

17. El Camino Real (4-7, West Valley League #3, Division II first round)

18. Panorama (7-5, Valley Mission League #2, Division II quarterfinals)

19. Poly (9-3, East Valley League #1, Division II quarterfinals)

20. Reseda (10-1, Valley Mission League #1, Division II first round)

21. Sylmar (5-6, Valley Mission League #5, Division I first round)

22. Birmingham (2-8, West Valley League, missed playoffs)

23. Gardena (2-9, Marine League #4, Division I first round)

24. Chatsworth (11-4, West Valley League #2, Division II finals)

25. Marshall (8-3, Northern League #1, Division II first round)

26. Kennedy (5-6, Valley Mission League #4, Division I first round)

27. Palisades (7-6, Western League #2, Division II semifinals)

28. Roosevelt (6-5, Eastern League #4, Division II first round)

29. South East (7-4, Eastern League #3, Division II first round)

Here are the Division II schools (2010 record, league place and playoff results):

30. Bell (5-5, Eastern League #5, missed playoffs)

31. Cleveland (3-7, West Valley #5, missed playoffs)

32. Banning (1-9, Marine League #5, missed playoffs)

33. San Fernando (3-7, Valley Mission League #6, missed playoffs)

34. Jefferson (9-2, Southern League #1, Division II first round)

35. Granada Hills (4-7, West Valley League #4, Division I first round)

36. Lincoln (9-2, Northern League #2, Division II first round)

37. Canoga Park (6-4, Valley Mission League #4, missed playoffs)

38. Hollywood (7-4, Southern League #2, Division II quarterfinals)

39. Washington (2-8, Marine League #6, missed playoffs)

40. Santee (2-8, Southern League #5, missed playoffs)

41. Huntington Park (3-7, Eastern League, missed playoffs)

42. Fremont (2-8, Coliseum League #5, missed playoffs)

43. Grant (4-6, East Valley League #3, missed playoffs)

44. South Gate (3-7, Eastern League #7, missed playoffs)

45. Contreras (6-4, Southern League #3, missed playoffs)

46. Wilson (1-9, Northern League #5, missed playoffs)

47. Belmont (5-5, Southern League #4, missed playoffs)

48. University (0-9, Western League #6, missed playoffs)

49. Eagle Rock (3-7, Northern League #4, missed playoffs)

50. Manual Arts (1-9, Coliseum League #6, missed playoffs)

51. Van Nuys (3-7, Valley Mission League #7, missed playoffs)

52. North Hollywood (3-6, East Valley League #4, missed playoffs)

53. Verdugo Hills (3-7, East Valley League #5, missed playoffs)

54. Monroe (2-8, East Valley League #6, missed playoffs)

55. Los Angeles (2-7, Southern League #6, missed playoffs)

56. Bernstein (1-9, Southern League #7, missed playoffs)

57. Roybal (0-10, Northern League #6, missed playoffs)

58. Sun Valley (0-10, East Valley League #7, missed playoffs)

59. Torres (First-year program; will join the Southern League)