Section III's Class C draws football crowd

Winning a Section III football title is never easy. Winning a Section III Class C football title will be tougher than ever this season.

A change in New York State’s classification cutoff numbers means the number of Class C football teams in Section III has grown from 19 to 27, and the number of “C” leagues has grown from three to four divisions.

Now that schools with enrollment between 276-440 are considered Class C, Cazenovia, Sherburne-Earlville, Altmar-Parish-Williamstown, Ilion, Clinton, Jordan-Elbridge, and LaFayette/Fabius-Pompey have dropped from Class B to Class C, and Frankfort-Schuyler has moved up from Class D.

Two other schools – Oneida and Chittenango – have dropped from Class A to Class B.

The changes in classification cutoff numbers means Class AA includes schools with enrollment of 1,051 and up; Class A from 626-1,050; Class B from 441-625; Class C from 276-440; and Class D from 0-275.

After reclassification and realignment, here is how Section III’s 79 football-playing high schools will line up this season (which begins on Friday, Sept. 5):

CLASS AA-1

Christian Brothers Academy

Cicero-North Syracuse

Fayetteville-Manlius

Liverpool

Thomas R. Proctor

West Genesee

CLASS AA-2

Auburn

Baldwinsville

Central Square

Corcoran

Henninger

Rome Free Academy

CLASS A AMERICAN

Cortland

East Syracuse-Minoa

Fowler

Fulton

Jamesville-DeWitt

Mexico

Oswego

CLASS A NATIONAL

Camden

Carthage

New Hartford

Nottingham

Watertown

Whitesboro

CLASS B EAST

Chittenango*

Vernon-Verona-Sherrill

South Jefferson

Holland Patent

Oneida*

CLASS B WEST

Homer

Marcellus

Phoenix

Skaneateles

Solvay

Westhill

CLASS C EAST

Adirondack

Cooperstown

Frankfort-Schuyler*

Herkimer

Ilion*

Little Falls

Sauquoit Valley

CLASS C NORTH

Alexandria Bay

Altmar-Parish-Williamstown*

General Brown

Lowville

Pulaski

South Lewis

Thousand Islands

CLASS C SOUTH

Canastota

Cazenovia*

Clinton*

Mount Markham

Sherburne-Earlville*

Westmoreland

CLASS C WEST

Bishop Ludden

Cato-Meridian

Hannibal

Jordan-Elbridge*

LaFayette*

Port Byron

Tully

CLASS D EAST

Dolgeville

Mohawk

New York Mills

Notre Dame

Oriskany

Richfield Springs

Waterville

West Canada Valley

CLASS D WEST

Beaver River

Bishop Grimes

Hamilton

Morrisville-Eaton

Onondaga

Sandy Creek

Watertown IHC

Weedsport

* Changed class