In the biggest shakeup since expanding the number of classifications in 1984, the playoff format will look drastically different in November for Alabama High School Athletic Association teams.
The 1984 change involved expanding from four classifications to six and changing from regions to areas. The 2026 change places all of the private schools in two separate classifications, dropping from seven classes to six and making playoff alterations to both the largest divisions in public school play (Class 6A) as well as private school (AA Private).
In AA Private, AHSAA officials apparently turned down a proposal from the private school committee and adopted a different version that pits all the members of a region against each other in the postseason…