Hurricane Helene has altered high school sports all over Georgia. The Georgia High School Association announced football changes and Thursday, the Georgia Independent Athletic Association did the same.

“We will reschedule certain events to allow recovery and ensure that facilities are fully operational,” said the GIAA in a statement on its website. “We understand the challenges that many are facing and want to stress that there is no pressure to proceed with events that do not align with the best interests of everyone involved. We stand ready to support our communities during this difficult time.”

The most visible change for area GIAA schools is to the football playoffs. Because several regular season games will need to be rescheduled, the GIAA said the said the season will be extended one week. However, the playoff schedule won’t also be pushed back.

By extending the regular season, the GIAA is eliminating the first week of playoffs. Thus, “the number of playoff teams will be reduced from 10 to 8 per classification.”

In MaxPreps’ rankings, the top eight teams in Class 3A as of Oct. 1 are Valwood, Westfield, Tiftarea Academy, Deerfield-Windsor, Lakeview Academy, Frederica Academy, Terrell Academy and John Milledge Academy. All have played six games.

No teams will have a first round bye in the state tournament. Instead the No. 8 seed will face No. 1 in the first round. Playoffs will begin the week of Nov. 8.

Cross country will still have finals Oct. 26, the league said. The GIAA listed no changes to softball’s schedule and will still have championships Oct. 17-19 in Columbus.