Analysis: 8-man football in Maine could be shrinking in popularity

By Sam Canfield, Bangor Daily News Staff

Eight-man football first arrived in Maine in 2019, providing a safe alternative for high school teams struggling with small rosters, numerically and physically speaking.

Similar to 8-person soccer, it quickly grew in popularity — especially in northern Maine — due to historically low school enrollment numbers, single sport specialization and various pandemic-related complications.

At first, the Maine Principals’ Association oversaw just ten 8-man football teams and issued one state championship trophy. To the chagrin of football traditionalists around the state, 16 more schools joined their ranks after one year, and by 2023 there were 28 total teams vying for either the 8-man large school or 8-man small school state championships.

Fans of 11-man football will be delighted to hear that this trend is going in reverse.

This offseason, five teams around the Pine Tree State are leaving 8-man to play football in its original form: Brunswick, Mountain Valley (Rumford), Maranacook (Readfield), Dirigo (Dixfield), and Mattanawcook/Lee/Penobscot Valley (Lincoln). 

Meanwhile, Washington Academy’s (East Machias) football team is rejoining the MPA’s ranks as an 8-man Small school football team, previously playing in the unaffiliated 8-man Aroostook League for the past four seasons.

“I love the game of football, it’s like live chess. Eight-man is basketball on grass, but 11-man has more strategy,” second-year Brunswick head coach Mark Renna said. “I’m looking forward to it.”

Brunswick, a school of approximately 741 students, is making the jump all the way from 8-man Large to Class B. The Dragons previously dealt with a 2021 hazing incident and a 2022 winless record which slashed their participation numbers and saw two coaches leave the program in two years.

Under Renna’s leadership, the Dragons’ roster has grown from 22 players to roughly 45 since the end of the 2022 season. Brunswick ended up advancing to the regional finals last November, so the transition back to Class B was a no-brainer for Renna and company.

“The kids don’t want to sit on the sidelines. I want to give them an opportunity to play,” Renna said. “It was time to go back. It was not fair to teams when we have all fresh players in the third and fourth quarters.”

Over in East Machias, the Red Raiders have been the only active high school football team in Washington County for several years, due to cultural and financial barriers.

Athletic Director Justin Crosman says he is “proud” to be playing MPA football once again.

“Football is foreign to Down East Maine. Numbers are an issue, and having a field and all that equipment is an expense,” Crosman said. “The Aroostook League is a great league, but we’re big enough that we can go back. It’s the right time. We won’t win a championship, but we can compete and want to push ourselves.”