The PIAA is considering a proposal to reduce the length of the football season from 16 weeks to 14

The football steering committee will consider the change when it meets Monday at the PIAA's headquarters near Mechanicsburg.

PIAA officials would not release details of the proposal, saying they wanted the football steering committee to see it first.

The PIAA is weighing the change based on complaints about the overlap of football and the winter sports season, according to PIAA executive director Brad Cashman.

"The complaints are coming from the schools who go deep into the playoffs," Cashman said. "Right now, (the current system) impacts basketball and wrestling, and, to some extent, swimming and diving."

At least two schools in this weekend's state championship football games, West Middlesex in Class A and Jeannette in Class AA, have not played any boys basketball games because so many basketball players play football.

"They're waiting for us," West Middlesex football coach Brian Hoffman said.

The PIAA added a week to its football playoffs this year in response to complaints from the WPIAL (PIAA District 7) and the eastern districts. The WPIAL started the 2004 and 2005 seasons earlier than the rest of the state to preserve its 16-team playoff structure; eastern districts complained their schools could not play 10 regular season games and qualify enough teams for the postseason.

The PIAA proposal appears to contradict the policy it enacted this year, which allowed districts across the state to expand their playoffs.

This weekend's state championships are the latest scheduled football finals since the PIAA began football playoffs in 1988, but football championships have been played later. In 1992, the state finals were scheduled for Dec. 11 and 12, but a major snowstorm that hit Altoona, the site for the state championship games, forced postponement of the games one week to Dec. 18 and 19.