OK then, what about this?
8's get RELEGATED.
Two pools are made (below)
Big 8 #5, 7 & Great 8 #6
Great 8 #5, 7 & Big 8 #6
Then, teams compete in a round-robin format.
1st Tuesday - #5 (at home) vs. #6
1st Saturday - #6 (at home) vs. #7
2nd Tuesday - #7 (at home) vs. #5
The team with the most wins (or largest point margin as TB) is SAFE.
2nd Saturday - 2nd place team (at home, according to above) vs. 3rd place team.
Winner is SAFE, loser gets RELEGATED.