Mandatory seating requirements come into play for this week’s semifinal-round football games (there are no requirements for the first three rounds) and have resulted in a switch of venues for two games.
GHSA rules (page 74, Item B-1c) require schools to have a minimum of 6,000 permanent seats to host a semifinal game in Class 7A. Neither Roswell nor Westlake (both No 1 seeds) meet that standard, so the schools have agreed to move their game to a neutral site. The game will be played at Lakewood Stadium Friday night at 7:30 p.m.
In a related situation in Class 4A, the Jefferson/Thomson semifinal will be played at Thomson Friday at 7:30 p.m., since both teams are No. 1 seeds, but only Thomson’s stadium meets the 4A requirement of 4,000 permanent seats.
The GHSA rule used in both cases reads as follows: If both teams in the Semifinal Round have the same seeding, the following procedure will be used:
(1) If both school/school system sites meet or exceed GHSA standards, a coin toss will determine the host site.
(2) If only one school/school system site meets or exceeds GHSA standards, that school will host.
(3) If neither site meets or exceeds GHSA standards, the Executive Director will designate a neutral site.
