As tournament time begins in the 2025 high school football season, the MIAA is once again confronted with a familiar problem.
For the fifth straight season, one of the state’s most talented and prominent programs, helmed by the second-winningest coach in state history, will compete beneath the highest level.
Catholic Memorial, currently the fourth-highest rated team in the state per the MIAA Power Rankings, will once again enter the postseason as the top seed in Division 2.
LISTEN: Previewing All Eight Divisions of the MIAA Football Playoffs
After losing back to back Division 1 Super Bowl’s to St. John’s Prep in 2018 and 2019, CM made the post-Covid move down to Division 2 as the MIAA realigned entering the new statewide era.
Since then, the Knights have made all but one D2 final, beating the King Philip Warriors in all three trips to Gillette.
In the latest realignment prior to this season, King Philip, who has reached four straight Division 2 finals, and Marshfield, the only public school team to defeat CM in John DiBiaso’s tenure, were dropped down to Division 3. Neither opted to move back up to Division 2.
SUBSCRIBE: WATD Sports on YouTube
Now, the gap between Catholic Memorial and the rest of the Division 2 field has never been wider.
On a recent episode of the Sports Exchange, Quinn Kelly sounded off on the impact of Catholic Memorial’s decision to continue competing in Division 2.
Kelly asserts that in the latest realignment, we are now seeing the ripple effect of CM’s presence, now rendering both Division 2 and 3 a foregone conclusion, while Division 1’s tournament is absent one of the state’s best teams.
The MIAA will realign again next ahead of the 2027 season.
The Sports Exchange airs every Sunday night at 5 p.m. on 95.9 WATD.
Each week, Quinn Kelly, along with co-hosts Johnny Rorke and Brendan Connelly, breaks down the news of the week in sports. Enjoy commentary on local happenings on the high school scene right up to the Big 4 pro sports and beyond.
Missed an episode? Catch up with past episodes of the Sports Exchange below: