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The Northwest Region would get larger. RegionIV would continue to shrink. The Dogwood District would become Group A only.

Those were among the proposed changes the VHSL released Monday from the Virginia High School League's Redistricting & Reclassification Committee meeting.

However, the big news was the R&R committee's 9-3-1 vote to recommend that the VHSL split its 306 schools into four classifications beginning with the 2007-08 season.

The VHSL's Executive Committee must approve all R&R recommendations before they are final.

Patrick County Principal E.G. Bradshaw, representing GroupAA RegionIV, and Alleghany Principal Kenny Higgins of RegionIII were among those voting for a change from three to four classifications.

Bradshaw had a simple reason for his vote. Competing against fewer schools offers a better chance to win a state championship.

"It gives you greater representation for small schools at the state level," the Patrick County principal said.

Several different models for a four-classification system have been proposed. Included are simply dividing all the state's schools into equal fourths instead of thirds. Another proposal would allow all current GroupAAA schools who wish to stay among the largest classification comprise GroupAAAA while the rest of the schools are divided into thirds.

Bradshaw also attempted to get the R&R committee to endorse the four-classification system for 2005-06, a move that already had been voted down by the executive committee.

The 13-member R&R group rejected Bradshaw by an 8-4-1 vote.

GroupA RegionC representative Earl Downs of Parry McCluer followed his region's mandate and voted against the four-classification setup both times. The largest schools in RegionC - Grayson County, Floyd County, Lebanon and John Battle - would be in jeopardy of moving to GroupAA in a four-classification system.

"RegionC would like things to stay the way they are," Downs said. "I didn't have to blink. Now I can go back to our region meeting with a straight face and tell someone from Grayson County or Floyd County or Lebanon that down the road you're probably going to be looking at some changes.

"It's not like it's set in stone, but I think the reason we voted on it now was to give everybody plenty of time to look at all the different plans."

The R&R committee did not attempt to balance the number of schools in the four regions that make up GroupAA. RegionII would include 30 schools, RegionIII 19 and RegionIV 14 for the two years beginning with 2005-06.

However, Bradshaw said GroupAA might look at expanding its state tournaments - excluding football - from eight schools to 12 while giving the larger regions more representation.

"RegionII came to us with a proposal for extra wild cards based on the size of the regions," Bradshaw said. "RegionI would get three teams, RegionII would get four, RegionIII would get three and RegionIV would get two."

Bradshaw said the third- and fourth-place teams would play first-round road games at regional runners-up, while all regional champions would earn a bye.

Pending final approval in September by the 23-member executive committee, these proposed changes for the two-year cycle beginning in 2005-06 will affect Timesland:

The Northwest Region will add four schools. Fauquier and Chancellor will move up from GroupAA, while new schools Freedom and Battlefield will open. Culpeper County will move from the Commonwealth District to the Cedar Run, while Potomac will go from the Cedar Run to the Cardinal.

RegionIII will go from four districts to three. The Dogwood District will become exclusive Group A with Appomattox County joining the Seminole District. Prince Edward County will move to RegionI.

With fewer schools in RegionIII, Northside and Liberty will move from Division4 to Division3 in football.

RegionIV member Virginia High will drop from GroupAA and join the GroupA Lonesome Pine District, leaving three schools - Marion, Abingdon and Lee - in the Highlands District.