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30 Southern Nevada high school football programs go independent, leaving the NIAA playoff structure

30 local football programs are stepping away from the sanctioned playoff format to create a fairer playing field.
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LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — 30 southern Nevada high school football programs are going independent and choosing to step away from competing in the NIAA-sanctioned playoff structure.

"Definitely a good number of schools, their decision was based off of Bishop Gorman, we have to do all of these weird playoff configurations with these complicated formulas because a lot of teams don’t want to play them, but it’s not the only factor," Liberty Football head coach Rich Muraco said.

WATCH| Alex Eschelman reports the latest on 30 high school football programs leaving NIAA playoff structure

30 Southern Nevada high school football programs go independent, leaving the NIAA playoff structure

Other factors include differences in zoning rules, transfer rules and finances.

"When you’re playing for a state championship, the NIAA’s job is to group teams you know as fairly as possible and play with similar types of circumstances and rules and there’s a perception out there that that’s not being done," Muraco said.

Now, these schools are taking action into their own hands as the first step toward an even playing field.

"The goal long term is to get everybody back in a room and come up with a plan that’s fair for everyone," Muraco said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.


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Alex Eschelman

Alex Eschelman

Sports Multimedia Journalist

Taylor Rocha

Taylor Rocha

Sports Multimedia Journalist