Cienega joined Ironwood Ridge as the only Southern Arizona football programs in Division I when the Arizona Interscholastic Association released revised division placements Monday morning.
Meanwhile, Mountain View dropped down a level to Division II, joining Canyon del Oro, Catalina Foothills, Sahuaro, Salpointe, Sierra Vista Buena, Sunnyside and Tucson High.
The AIA informed member schools on Thursday that it would check each school on a sport-by-sport basis to ensure everything is correct in the new formula that takes several things into account including a team's success and certain demographics.
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After determining that some data points were incorrect, the formulas were re-run over the weekend before the new alignments were released Monday morning.
With the delay, the AIA has also extended the deadline to appeal placements to a lower or higher division until Feb. 2 at 2 p.m. Once set, the alignment will remain the same for the next three years.
Chances of Cienega and I-Ridge remaining in Division I for football remain low because there isn't a Southern Arizona section meaning it wouldn't be feasible financially with having to travel to the Phoenix area several times throughout the regular season.
If divisions were still formed on enrollment alone, Buena, Sunnyside, Tucson would also be in the state's largest division.
