Hypothetical Neutral Site Regionals 2025

[HoopsCoach]

I am an advocate of neutral sites to host tournament games after the sectional round, and I think the football facilities in Indiana are capable of a format with neutral site hosts for regional and semi-state as we have in most other sports.  All games would be played at locations with turf fields.  This will reduce travel times and remove field conditions as a variable.   It also gives schools an opportunity to showcase the investment they have made in their facilities.  Here are my hypothetical neutral site regional games for this year.

Neutral Site Regionals

6A
Penn/Carroll @ Warsaw
Westfield/Fishers @ Noblesville
Brownsburg/Decatur Central @ Ben Davis
Center Grove/Warren Central @ Southport

5A
Merrillville/Michigan City @ Chesterton
Lafayette Jeff/Concord @ Logansport
New Palestine/East Central @ Greensburg
Bloomington South/Floyd Central @ Seymour

4A
Hobart/South Bend St. Joseph @ LaPorte
Bishop Dwenger/Lebanon @ Yorktown
Yorktown/Roncalli @ Hamilton Southeastern
Martinsville/Heritage Hills @ Washington

3A
Knox/Angola @ Wawasee
Twin Lakes/Bishop Luers @ Wabash
Cascade/Lawrenceburg @ Shelbyville
Indian Creek/Gibson Southern @ Mitchell

2A
Andrean/Southmont @ Harrison (WL)
Adams Central/Eastbrook @ Bluffton
Indianapolis Lutheran/Lapel @ Mount Vernon
Linton-Stockton/Brownstown Central @ Bloomington North

1A
LaVille/Pioneer @ Culver Academies
North Miami/South Adams @ Huntington North
Sheridan/South Putnam @ Tri-West
Milan/Providence @ Madison

Edited November 8, 2025 by HoopsCoach

[yogi]

Why should a team that plays all of their games on grass have to play on turf?  Some teams don't play on turf all year and then for the Regional they are going to have to play on turf because you think it is more fair. Field conditions this time of year are part of the game and I don't think you can compare football to other sports that are played inside.  On paper this looks like a great idea, but obviously there are a lot more reasons why this has not been done.  Should NFL playoff games be on neutral sites as well? Just my thoughts.  I would love to hear what other people think about this.

[Sparty]

What if the neutral site team is not playing and is hosting a winter sport?  Tough coverage and logistics.  
 

What about a scenario like Yorktown?  They are still playing.  Going to a neutral site location to play, yet their facilities are being used?  

[HoopsCoach]

29 minutes ago, Sparty said:

What about a scenario like Yorktown?  They are still playing.  Going to a neutral site location to play, yet their facilities are being used?  

Crap, that is my mistake with Yorktown hosting the Dwenger/Lebanon game.  I had it as the first option in my tentative list before the games last night and forgot to change it to Maconaquah.  I can’t edit my original post, but this is the correction.

Bishop Dwenger/Lebanon @ Maconaquah

[23andCounting]

57 minutes ago, yogi said:

Why should a team that plays all of their games on grass have to play on turf?  

To prepare themselves for when they have to play on turf at Lucas Oil. 

 

56 minutes ago, Sparty said:

What if the neutral site team is not playing and is hosting a winter sport?  Tough coverage and logistics.  
What about a scenario like Yorktown?  They are still playing.  Going to a neutral site location to play, yet their facilities are being used?  

I think the whole idea is to determine the neutral site six days prior. Not sure why that would be a problem. 

 

I like the idea of neutral sites. Had Crown Point won last night, Carroll would have had  2.5 hour bus ride. That shouldn't happen in my opinion. What do other states do? The whole playoff system in Indiana just seems to be determined by the flip of a coin. 

[HoopsCoach]

1 hour ago, yogi said:

Why should a team that plays all of their games on grass have to play on turf?  Some teams don't play on turf all year and then for the Regional they are going to have to play on turf because you think it is more fair. Field conditions this time of year are part of the game and I don't think you can compare football to other sports that are played inside.  On paper this looks like a great idea, but obviously there are a lot more reasons why this has not been done.  Should NFL playoff games be on neutral sites as well? Just my thoughts.  I would love to hear what other people think about this.

As 23andCounting said, the state championship games are played on turf at Lucas Oil Stadium.  It would be beneficial in my opinion to play on turf before the state finals.  Do you think those teams that have played on grass all year will choose not to play in the finals because it is on turf, or complain that the conditions are not fair to them?  Playing on turf is technically a field condition.

You are right that there are reasons my suggestion for regional and semi-state is not currently done, but I think those can be overcome someday.  This is just my hypothetical based upon my preferences for the regional and semi-state rounds.  Some will agree with my suggestion for neutral sites on turf and others may prefer the current home game format.  It’s like a Dave Portnoy pizza review.  He likes some styles more than others and issues his rating based upon what he likes.  You and I might like different styles of pizza.  I go with New York style and Detroit deep dish.

[jets]

Bloomington South/Floyd should come here. We have one of the best stadiums (seating wise) to accommodate both home and visitor 

[WWFan]

Visitor seating should play a role. Mitchell's is pretty bad. Maybe Salem takes that spot? But if it ever happened id make schools improve visiting side accommodations. Jasper is a great place to host too. I used to be against this as i just enjoy seeing home teams atmosphere but im 50/50 on it now. I just enjoy watching games and semi state weekend might not have any close games for me

[Sparty]

56 minutes ago, WWFan said:

Visitor seating should play a role. Mitchell's is pretty bad. Maybe Salem takes that spot? But if it ever happened id make schools improve visiting side accommodations. Jasper is a great place to host too. I used to be against this as i just enjoy seeing home teams atmosphere but im 50/50 on it now. I just enjoy watching games and semi state weekend might not have any close games for me

How do you “make” schools improve visitor seating?  Unless you are implying that in order to host a neutral site game, a school must apply, like they do now?

[WWFan]

10 minutes ago, Sparty said:

How do you “make” schools improve visitor seating?  Unless you are implying that in order to host a neutral site game, a school must apply, like they do now?

Basically. Could say in order to qualify to host teams must be able to seat X amount on visiting side and have it scale based on class. Like Mitchell may be fine for 1A but 3A definitely not

[HoopsCoach]

1 hour ago, WWFan said:

Visitor seating should play a role. Mitchell's is pretty bad. Maybe Salem takes that spot?

BNL was an option I considered for that game, and it is probably a better fit to host a 3A game.  I went with Mitchell since it is a little closer to being centrally located between Indian Creek and Gibson Southern.  I already had a 4A game at Washington, so I looked at schools with turf a little closer to Indian Creek.

2 hours ago, jets said:

Bloomington South/Floyd should come here. We have one of the best stadiums (seating wise) to accommodate both home and visitor 

Where is “here” and who are “we”?

[adambetz]

If hoopscoach has a million fans, I am one. If hoopscoach has one fan, it is me. If hoopscoach has no fans, I am dead.

[jets]

2 hours ago, HoopsCoach said:

BNL was an option I considered for that game, and it is probably a better fit to host a 3A game.  I went with Mitchell since it is a little closer to being centrally located between Indian Creek and Gibson Southern.  I already had a 4A game at Washington, so I looked at schools with turf a little closer to Indian Creek.

Where is “here” and who are “we”?

Southridge 

[Daniel_Bragg]

On 11/8/2025 at 8:22 AM, HoopsCoach said:

I am an advocate of neutral sites to host tournament games after the sectional round, and I think the football facilities in Indiana are capable of a format with neutral site hosts for regional and semi-state as we have in most other sports.  All games would be played at locations with turf fields.  This will reduce travel times and remove field conditions as a variable.   It also gives schools an opportunity to showcase the investment they have made in their facilities.  Here are my hypothetical neutral site regional games for this year.

Neutral Site Regionals

6A
Penn/Carroll @ Warsaw
Westfield/Fishers @ Noblesville
Brownsburg/Decatur Central @ Ben Davis
Center Grove/Warren Central @ Southport

5A
Merrillville/Michigan City @ Chesterton
Lafayette Jeff/Concord @ Logansport
New Palestine/East Central @ Greensburg
Bloomington South/Floyd Central @ Seymour

4A
Hobart/South Bend St. Joseph @ LaPorte
Bishop Dwenger/Lebanon @ Yorktown
Yorktown/Roncalli @ Hamilton Southeastern
Martinsville/Heritage Hills @ Washington

3A
Knox/Angola @ Wawasee
Twin Lakes/Bishop Luers @ Wabash
Cascade/Lawrenceburg @ Shelbyville
Indian Creek/Gibson Southern @ Mitchell

2A
Andrean/Southmont @ Harrison (WL)
Adams Central/Eastbrook @ Bluffton
Indianapolis Lutheran/Lapel @ Mount Vernon
Linton-Stockton/Brownstown Central @ Bloomington North

1A
LaVille/Pioneer @ Culver Academies
North Miami/South Adams @ Huntington North
Sheridan/South Putnam @ Tri-West
Milan/Providence @ Madison

I will forever agree with this.  As long as the tournament remains "random draw", efforts should be made to neutralize any homefield advantage.

[BDGiant93]

You could follow the basketball model and have schools "bid" to host a Regional or Semistate.

[Sparty]

14 minutes ago, BDGiant93 said:

You could follow the basketball model and have schools "bid" to host a Regional or Semistate.

That makes sense.  

[BDGiant93]

4 hours ago, Sparty said:

That makes sense.  

Only problem I could see is that some schools might bid in anticipation of hosting. You'd have to put something in place that would make that not happen.

[HoopsCoach]

5 hours ago, BDGiant93 said:

You could follow the basketball model and have schools "bid" to host a Regional or Semistate.

I’ve thought about football semi-state games being played as a double header on Saturday like the basketball semi-state used to be (which was far better than the current basketball semi-state format) instead of Friday night single games at a host school.  Fans could attend 2 games if they choose with game 1 played at 2:00 p.m. and game 2 played at 6:30 p.m.  Lunch before game 1 and dinner before game 2.  The start times should permit enough time for the first game to be played, celebration, facility cleared, and approximately an hour of pregame warmups before the start of game 2.  I prefer single games at neutral sites on Friday nights, but it would be interesting to see what the Saturday double headers could look like.

[hhpatriot04]

1 hour ago, HoopsCoach said:

I’ve thought about football semi-state games being played as a double header on Saturday like the basketball semi-state used to be (which was far better than the current basketball semi-state format) instead of Friday night single games at a host school.  Fans could attend 2 games if they choose with game 1 played at 2:00 p.m. and game 2 played at 6:30 p.m.  Lunch before game 1 and dinner before game 2.  The start times should permit enough time for the first game to be played, celebration, facility cleared, and approximately an hour of pregame warmups before the start of game 2.  I prefer single games at neutral sites on Friday nights, but it would be interesting to see what the Saturday double headers could look like.

You'd need four locker rooms. I don't think teams could reliably share locker rooms given that time crunch. Does Ohio have double headers?

[Daniel_Bragg]

6 hours ago, HoopsCoach said:

I’ve thought about football semi-state games being played as a double header on Saturday like the basketball semi-state used to be (which was far better than the current basketball semi-state format) instead of Friday night single games at a host school.  Fans could attend 2 games if they choose with game 1 played at 2:00 p.m. and game 2 played at 6:30 p.m.  Lunch before game 1 and dinner before game 2.  The start times should permit enough time for the first game to be played, celebration, facility cleared, and approximately an hour of pregame warmups before the start of game 2.  I prefer single games at neutral sites on Friday nights, but it would be interesting to see what the Saturday double headers could look like.

I would love to see the universities in Indiana host Semi-State competitions.  I just think it would be fantastic to see some high school basketball played at Purdue, IU, etc.  The same thing could be done for football.  Obviously, you aren't going to sell out a D1 college stadium, but it would be a fantastic stage for these kids.

**This is a dream of mine.  I have no idea of the actual feasibility of this idea.** 

[HoopsCoach]

22 hours ago, hhpatriot04 said:

You'd need four locker rooms. I don't think teams could reliably share locker rooms given that time crunch. Does Ohio have double headers?

Most schools that host sectional events in basketball and volleyball have 4 locker rooms, but those are in/near their gym and may not be close to the football field.  It’s a logistic that could possibly be overcome, but it would also be a factor to consider when deciding which schools are chosen to host.

[Coach Nowlin]

I love the new facility that Huntington North has, perhaps a spot for that LUERS regional game with TL vs Wabash, no offense AD McWhirt 

[HoopsCoach]

1 hour ago, Coach Nowlin said:

I love the new facility that Huntington North has, perhaps a spot for that LUERS regional game with TL vs Wabash, no offense AD McWhirt 

Huntington is an excellent choice.  I went with Wabash for that game since it is closer to being centrally located between TL/Luers.  1 hr 25 mins to HN from Twin Lakes and only 40 minutes or so from Luers.  Wabash is an hour from both schools.  Either location would be an improvement compared to the 2 hour trip Luers will have Friday night.  Huntington North would still get to showcase their facility by hosting the North Miami/South Adams game.

[crimsonace1]

On 11/10/2025 at 11:19 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

I would love to see the universities in Indiana host Semi-State competitions.  I just think it would be fantastic to see some high school basketball played at Purdue, IU, etc.  The same thing could be done for football.  Obviously, you aren't going to sell out a D1 college stadium, but it would be a fantastic stage for these kids.

**This is a dream of mine.  I have no idea of the actual feasibility of this idea.** 

Not feasible, in large part because the NCAA seasons are still ongoing, and the stadium has to be prepped for a Saturday game (or available for a Friday game if the Big Ten decides to move a game). You'd have to host on Thursday night if you were using a college stadium. And the logistics/cost of that is high. Purdue plays on grass - they won't want their field torn up right before a game. The cost of opening the stadium - security, et al - is extremely high. Nobody's going to want to pay that rental fee. 

The HS tourney is never going back to college venues because semistate week conflicts with the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. If IU, Purdue or Notre Dame (or Butler/Ball State) earn the right to host the NCAA women's tourney, that kicks out the high schools (and no, you can't play Friday/Sunday and let HS use the venue on Saturday, because the NCAA requires you to block off the arena for the entire four days). Also, a college floor is 10' longer than a high school one, and shortening the floor does take some work. The IHSAA does it at Gainbridge Fieldhouse by taking 10 feet out of the middle of the floor, but anyone who watched the old semistates at Hinkle or Mackey remembers the double lines painted on the court. Purdue earned a host seed in 1995, but had to play the first two rounds at San Diego State because Mackey was tied up for the semistate. None of the local colleges will allow that to happen again. 

[Impartial_Observer]

7 hours ago, crimsonace1 said:

Not feasible, in large part because the NCAA seasons are still ongoing, and the stadium has to be prepped for a Saturday game (or available for a Friday game if the Big Ten decides to move a game). You'd have to host on Thursday night if you were using a college stadium. And the logistics/cost of that is high. Purdue plays on grass - they won't want their field torn up right before a game. The cost of opening the stadium - security, et al - is extremely high. Nobody's going to want to pay that rental fee. 

The HS tourney is never going back to college venues because semistate week conflicts with the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. If IU, Purdue or Notre Dame (or Butler/Ball State) earn the right to host the NCAA women's tourney, that kicks out the high schools (and no, you can't play Friday/Sunday and let HS use the venue on Saturday, because the NCAA requires you to block off the arena for the entire four days). Also, a college floor is 10' longer than a high school one, and shortening the floor does take some work. The IHSAA does it at Gainbridge Fieldhouse by taking 10 feet out of the middle of the floor, but anyone who watched the old semistates at Hinkle or Mackey remembers the double lines painted on the court. Purdue earned a host seed in 1995, but had to play the first two rounds at San Diego State because Mackey was tied up for the semistate. None of the local colleges will allow that to happen again. 

GBB played the finals at ISU a couple of times several years back on the longer floor.