Five private schools have quit TSSAA Division II-AAA football, and the fallout could eventually touch playoff classifications for programs like Summit and Spring Hill.

The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) Board of Control scheduled an emergency meeting for Thursday, Oct. 1, at 2 p.m. in Mt. Juliet to address the departures, Main Street Preps reported. TSSAA assistant executive director Matthew Gillespie told the outlet that schools have until Friday, Oct. 2, to formally withdraw or request a classification change. The original deadline was Sept. 29 but was extended.

Summit, Spring Hill and Battle Creek all compete in TSSAA Division I and are not part of the DII-AAA exodus. But how the TSSAA restructures its divisions, adjusts enrollment thresholds or rewrites transfer rules could affect classification policy beyond Division II.

Who left and why

Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) started the wave on Sept. 22, becoming the first program to go independent for the 2027-29 cycle. Father Ryan followed on Sept. 27. Christian Brothers and Memphis University School made a joint announcement on Sept. 28. Chattanooga Christian declared on Sept. 29, though it also filed a classification appeal to be heard at the Oct. 1 board meeting.

The departing schools share a concern: the rise of what coaches call the "super team era." High-profile FBS recruits have been transferring to DII-AAA programs to finish high school. The TSSAA adopted a one-time transfer rule, dropped its residency requirement and allows name, image and likeness (NIL) deals in high school athletics, as the Columbia Daily Herald reported.

Father Ryan president Paul Davis wrote in a Sept. 27 email to parents that the school had "become increasingly concerned that a growing number of football programs across the state are not aligned with our view of the TSSAA's mission as it relates to the prioritization of the student-athlete."

The 12-team problem

TSSAA bylaws approved in March 2026 require a minimum of 12 schools in DII-AAA. As of Sept. 29, only eight remained: Baylor, Brentwood Academy, Briarcrest, Ensworth, Knoxville Catholic, Lipscomb Academy, McCallie and Montgomery Bell Academy. Briarcrest was the only program to publicly confirm it would stay.

The math matters. If the count stays below 12, the TSSAA can force smaller DII-AA schools up by enrollment. The next programs in line would be Pope John Paul II (481 students), Knoxville Webb (474), Notre Dame (424) and Silverdale Baptist (415).

George Quarles, head football coach at Knoxville Webb and an 11-time state champion at Maryville, said on Sept. 30 that the top of DII-AAA has become "just a different game … You've got schools that are able to board, you got schools that are able to go get them from Canada and other countries and all over the country. And then you got schools that are playing with local kids. We couldn't compete at that level."

Quarles warned that if Webb were forced up to AAA, the school might also go independent, calling it unfair to his players. TSSAA executive director Mark Reeves said on Sept. 30 that the board must decide whether to move schools up the same way Division I does or take a different approach.

Local schedule

The DII-AAA shakeup does not change this week's games for local teams. Spring Hill, off to its best six-game start in over two decades, hosts Dickson County on Thursday, Oct. 1. Summit (2-4) faces Hendersonville (4-2) on Friday, Oct. 2. Battle Creek (1-5, 0-2 in Region 5-4A) travels to Montgomery Central (5-1) on Friday, Oct. 2.

The Oct. 2 deadline will determine whether DII-AAA survives with enough schools to field a playoff bracket or gets rebuilt entirely.