EAST LANSING — To accommodate an increasing number of member schools moving to 8-player football, while continuing to provide a championship opportunity for schools with the smallest enrollments, the representative council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association approved the addition of a second division to the 8-player football payoffs among multiple actions taken during its annual winter meeting March 24 in East Lansing.

A total of 60 Class D schools have declared so far they will sponsor 8-player varsity football teams this fall, a 20-percent increase in tournament-eligible teams from last season (only Class D schools currently are eligible for the MHSAA tournament in this sport). The Council voted to expand the 8-player tournament to two four-week, 16-team brackets, with schools divided based on enrollment. Since its first season of MHSAA tournament sponsorship in 2011, 8-player football has finished with one 16-team playoff.

The two-division, four-week format provides the smallest MHSAA member schools a shorter tournament involving schools with a smaller difference in enrollment, both of which may enhance participant health and safety. The championships games will occur the weekend before Thanksgiving. Qualification criteria, enrollment limits and MHSAA finals venues will be discussed at the Council’s Spring Meeting, May 7-8.

The council also discussed venue possibilities for future wrestling and basketball finals rounds, with sites for the 2017-18 school year to be selected not later than the spring meeting.

The basketball finals, played the last many seasons at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center for both girls and boys, would have with their currently-scheduled dates one or the other in conflict in future seasons with Breslin’s potential opportunity to host NCAA tournament first and second-round games for MSU’s women’s basketball team.

The Council will review proposals for hosting the basketball finals at the spring meeting, and also consider the possibility of altering schedules for the tournaments to accommodate venue availability.

The MHSAA wrestling finals have been conducted for the team tournament the last two years at Central Michigan University’s McGuirk Arena, while the individual tournament has finished the last 15 seasons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. The contract with McGuirk Arena ended with this winter’s tournament and with the future of The Palace uncertain, the MHSAA is considering options for moving that event as well.

The council also approved a recommendation from the MHSAA baseball/softball committee to classify those two sports independently beginning with the 2017-18 school year.

Currently, schools are placed in the same divisions for both sports, and also play in the same tournament groupings for both. This action allows for the sports