Tesoro’s football team, despite its solid season, found itself without a spot in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs due to a peculiar rule concerning CIF placements.
High school sports can be a rollercoaster of emotions, and for Tesoro’s football team in 2023, it was no different. Their third-place finish in a very challenging league with high ranking Mission Viejo and San Clemente teams was a testament to their toughness. It meant, however, that they were labeled as an "at large" team in the CIF system.
The Titans had the potential to be the number one team in Division 4; their season-long performance made them a formidable contender with hopes of making a deep playoff run.
However, Tesoro’s aspirations were dashed by a CIF rule that declared "at large" teams ineligible to become the number one team in a division. While the rule aims to ensure fair representation and competitive balance, it can inadvertently prevent deserving teams from achieving the results they've earned.
In addition, if CIF did not limit Division 1 to eight teams, more teams, including Tesoro, would have a chance in CIF. More unfortunately for our seniors, the Tesoro team did not celebrate any last game rituals as the players all believed they had another game.