Changes on the gridiron for WDA programs

BISMARCK – The 2024 football season comes with several changes for the Western Dakota Association.  

Six member schools – Bismarck High, Bismarck Century, Bismarck Legacy, Mandan, Minot High and Williston – will continue to compete in the highest division (AAA) while five others – Bismarck St. Mary’s, Dickinson, Jamestown, Minot North and Watford City – will compete in Division AA. TMCHS Belcourt will compete in the A division. 

In Division AAA, the top four finishers in both the WDA and EDC will qualify for the postseason. This is a change over the past few seasons where a power ranking (Quality Ratings Formula) was used to determine the eight qualifiers. All six WDA teams in the AAA division will play a round robin schedule. Apart from Mandan hosting Williston on Aug. 30, conference games will start at the end of September. 

In Division AA, a West and East region will again be featured. The West Region has six teams.  Dickinson, Jamestown and Watford City competed in the region the past two seasons and they are joined by St. Mary’s, Minot North and Valley City. St. Mary’s returns to the AA level after spending the team past two seasons in AAA. WDA newcomer Minot North is competing in its first varsity season. And Valley City, a member of the EDC and a long-time member of Division AA, is moving over to give balance to the two regions. As is the case with AAA, teams will play a round robin schedule. The top four region finishers qualify for the postseason. 

There are four regions in the Division A ranks, and TMCHS Belcourt will compete in Region 2 along with seven other teams. Since 1997, the Braves program has competed in Division AA. 

The Division AAA and AA playoffs will begin Nov. 1 with quarterfinal play. The semifinals (Nov. 8) and championship (Nov. 15) are to follow. Division A features a first round (Oct. 26) with quarterfinal (Nov. 2), semifinal (Nov. 9) and the championship (Nov. 15) to follow.