Every Monday, I bracket the 256 playoff teams using the IHSA Playoff Outlook. This is NOT a prediction. These are NOT my opinions. It is simply the most logical way the playoffs would be bracketed, using the IHSA's specific system, if today's standings were the final standings.
Each week I usually have to add/subtract teams to get a true 256. The Outlook doesn't adjust for the teams ineligible for the playoffs from the CPS "Chicago" conferences (teams who finish 3rd place and lower). The Outlook doesn't adjust for a conference champion falling below the cutoff. I take care of all that before proceeding.
My adjustments.....
I pulled Collins (2A), North Lawndale (4A), and Sullivan (4A) out of the playoffs because of the CPS "Chicago" conference rule. I inserted Urban Prep/Bronzeville (4A), Morgan Park (5A), and Elmwood Park (5A) into the playoffs because their conference had zero qualifiers per the Outlook. I simply chose the top team listed by record and playoff points. That left us with 256 teams. No need for further tie-breakers this week... Whew!!! Team 256 is 3-2, 19 pp, the same as last year. 3 teams miss the field with that same record, but the IHSA already broke that tie for me. Those teams are Hardin-Calhoun (1A), Red Bud (2A), and Frankfort (3A).
There are 11 teams at 3-2 with LESS than 19 playoff points. These teams probably need to win 6 games because there isn't much time left for their playoff points to improve dramatically. They are Chicago Military/Bronzeville, Mooseheart, Madison, Villa Grove-Heritage, Illini West, Chicago Christian, Thornridge, LaSalle-Peru, CPS Washington, Glenbrook North, and Taft. During conference play, there is rarely a big swing in playoff points. If any of these teams have great non-conference opponents, that will help going forward.
From there, I adjust teams up and down into the proper classes to create 8 classes of 32 teams. My classes were 32-32-32-34-31-32-31-32 respectively. So.... Geneseo and Morris down to 4A, Clark down to 3A, and Pana down to 2A.
I don't see quads in the 2015 or 2016 playoffs, and they aren't mentioned in "How the matchups are determined", so I'm not using quads unless I get new information. I'm using the Playoff Outlook updated at 10:00 AM on 9/25. I'm not making further adjustments.
Next week you get 8A thru 2A, and I continue to add a class each week until week 8. For week 9, I give you the final projection with team nicknames. For week 10, we scramble the actual playoffs into 1999 mode and show what it would look like with just 6 classes.
6A North has 7 undefeated teams right now, and 6A South has just 1. I wouldn't be surprised if we get a wacky east/west bracket dividing line from the IHSA if this disparity holds up all year. They did it in 8A a few years ago.
~~~ 8A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#32 St. Charles East at #1 Lincoln-Way East
#17 Oswego at #16 Glenbard West**
#25 Warren at #8 South Elgin
#24 Curie at #9 Hinsdale Central
#29 Joliet West at #4 Barrington
#20 Oak Park at #13 Huntley
#28 Plainfield North* at #5 Lyons
#21 Neuqua Valley at #12 Maine South
Lower Bracket
#31 Evanston at #2 Homewood-Flossmoor
#18 Loyola at #15 Glenbrook South
#26 Palatine at #7 Marist
#23 West Aurora at #10 Bolingbrook
#30 New Trier at #3 Naperville Central
#19 Minooka at #14 Naperville North
#27 Bloom at #6 Oswego East
#22 Notre Dame at #11 Stevenson
~~~ 7A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#32 Jacobs at #1 Batavia
#17 Rolling Meadows at #16 Maine West
#25 Fenwick at #8 St. Charles North
#24 Schaumburg at #9 Lincoln-Way Central
#29 Rockford East at #4 Lake Zurich
#20 Mount Carmel at #13 Hersey**
#28 Glenbard North^^^ at #5 Buffalo Grove
#21 Andrew at #12 Belleville West
Lower Bracket
#31 Plainfield Central at #2 Normal
#18 Lincoln-Way West at #15 Willowbrook*
#26 Geneva at #7 Lincoln Park
#23 Benet at #10 Wheaton North
#30 Harlem at #3 Hononegah
#19 Pekin at #14 East St. Louis
#27 Moline at #6 St. Rita
#22 Libertyville at #11 Stagg^^^^
~~~ 6A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Hinsdale South at #1 Marmion
#9 Mather #8 De La Salle
#13 Cary-Grove at #4 Prairie Ridge
#12 St. Laurence at #5 Auburn^^^^
#15 Grayslake North at #2 Nazareth
#10 St. Ignatius at #7 Hoffman Estates^^^
#14 Montini at #3 DeKalb
#11 Crystal Lake Central at #6 Riverside-Brookfield
Lower Bracket
#16 Peoria** at #1 Eisenhower
#9 Richards at #8 Providence
#13 Glenwood* at #4 Shepard
#12 TF South at #5 Sacred-Heart-Griffin
#15 Oak Lawn at #2 Normal West
#10 Bremen at #7 Danville
#14 Springfield at #3 Crete-Monee
#11 Quincy at #6 Thornton
~~~ 5A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Elmwood Park* at #1 Sterling
#9 Solorio #8 Phoenix
#13 Glenbard South at #4 Antioch
#12 Woodstock North at #5 Westinghouse
#15 St. Viator^^^^ at #2 Phillips
#10 Lindblom at #7 Woodstock
#14 Rochelle at #3 Lakes
#11 Back of the Yards at #6 Payton
Lower Bracket
#16 Morgan Park at #1 Dunlap
#9 Triad #8 Centralia
#13 Richwoods at #4 Lemont
#12 Marion at #5 Washington
#15 Bloomington^^^ at #2 MacArthur
#10 Rich Central at #7 Hillcrest
#14 Mahomet-Seymour at #3 Highland**
#11 Oak Forest at #6 Morton
~~~ 4A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Urban Prep/Bronzeville at #1 Herscher
#9 North Chicago #8 Genoa-Kingston
#13 Pontiac at #4 Dixon
#12 Manteno at #5 Johnsburg
#15 Richmond-Burton at #2 Morris^^^^
#10 Wheaton Academy at #7 Alleman
#14 St. Edward at #3 Raby
#11 Geneseo^^^ at #6 Coal City
Lower Bracket
#16 Benton at #1 Unity
#9 Althoff Catholic #8 Effingham
#13 Harrisburg* at #4 Breese Central
#12 Vienna-Goreville at #5 Herrin
#15 Carterville at #2 Rochester
#10 Columbia at #7 Mount Zion
#14 Paris at #3 Watseka
#11 East Alton-Wood River** at #6 Taylorville
~~~ 3A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Spring Valley Hall** at #1 Elmwood-Brimfield
#9 Winnebago #8 Bloomington Central Catholic
#13 ROWVA Mid-County Coop at #4 Byron
#12 Lisle at #5 Immaculate Conception
#15 North Boone at #2 Farmington*
#10 Clark^^^^ at #7 Wilmington
#14 Seneca at #3 Monticello
#11 Eureka at #6 Peotone
Lower Bracket
#16 New Berlin at #1 St. Teresa
#9 Greenville^^^ at #8 Marshall
#13 Beardstown at #4 Carlinville
#12 DuQuoin at #5 Fairfield
#15 Hillsboro at #2 Williamsville
#10 Vandalia at #7 Anna-Jonesboro
#14 North Mac at #3 Sesser-Valier
#11 Newton at #6 Alton Marquette**
Each week I usually have to add/subtract teams to get a true 256. The Outlook doesn't adjust for the teams ineligible for the playoffs from the CPS "Chicago" conferences (teams who finish 3rd place and lower). The Outlook doesn't adjust for a conference champion falling below the cutoff. I take care of all that before proceeding.
My adjustments.....
I pulled Collins (2A), North Lawndale (4A), and Sullivan (4A) out of the playoffs because of the CPS "Chicago" conference rule. I inserted Urban Prep/Bronzeville (4A), Morgan Park (5A), and Elmwood Park (5A) into the playoffs because their conference had zero qualifiers per the Outlook. I simply chose the top team listed by record and playoff points. That left us with 256 teams. No need for further tie-breakers this week... Whew!!! Team 256 is 3-2, 19 pp, the same as last year. 3 teams miss the field with that same record, but the IHSA already broke that tie for me. Those teams are Hardin-Calhoun (1A), Red Bud (2A), and Frankfort (3A).
There are 11 teams at 3-2 with LESS than 19 playoff points. These teams probably need to win 6 games because there isn't much time left for their playoff points to improve dramatically. They are Chicago Military/Bronzeville, Mooseheart, Madison, Villa Grove-Heritage, Illini West, Chicago Christian, Thornridge, LaSalle-Peru, CPS Washington, Glenbrook North, and Taft. During conference play, there is rarely a big swing in playoff points. If any of these teams have great non-conference opponents, that will help going forward.
From there, I adjust teams up and down into the proper classes to create 8 classes of 32 teams. My classes were 32-32-32-34-31-32-31-32 respectively. So.... Geneseo and Morris down to 4A, Clark down to 3A, and Pana down to 2A.
I don't see quads in the 2015 or 2016 playoffs, and they aren't mentioned in "How the matchups are determined", so I'm not using quads unless I get new information. I'm using the Playoff Outlook updated at 10:00 AM on 9/25. I'm not making further adjustments.
Next week you get 8A thru 2A, and I continue to add a class each week until week 8. For week 9, I give you the final projection with team nicknames. For week 10, we scramble the actual playoffs into 1999 mode and show what it would look like with just 6 classes.
6A North has 7 undefeated teams right now, and 6A South has just 1. I wouldn't be surprised if we get a wacky east/west bracket dividing line from the IHSA if this disparity holds up all year. They did it in 8A a few years ago.
~~~ 8A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#32 St. Charles East at #1 Lincoln-Way East
#17 Oswego at #16 Glenbard West**
#25 Warren at #8 South Elgin
#24 Curie at #9 Hinsdale Central
#29 Joliet West at #4 Barrington
#20 Oak Park at #13 Huntley
#28 Plainfield North* at #5 Lyons
#21 Neuqua Valley at #12 Maine South
Lower Bracket
#31 Evanston at #2 Homewood-Flossmoor
#18 Loyola at #15 Glenbrook South
#26 Palatine at #7 Marist
#23 West Aurora at #10 Bolingbrook
#30 New Trier at #3 Naperville Central
#19 Minooka at #14 Naperville North
#27 Bloom at #6 Oswego East
#22 Notre Dame at #11 Stevenson
~~~ 7A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#32 Jacobs at #1 Batavia
#17 Rolling Meadows at #16 Maine West
#25 Fenwick at #8 St. Charles North
#24 Schaumburg at #9 Lincoln-Way Central
#29 Rockford East at #4 Lake Zurich
#20 Mount Carmel at #13 Hersey**
#28 Glenbard North^^^ at #5 Buffalo Grove
#21 Andrew at #12 Belleville West
Lower Bracket
#31 Plainfield Central at #2 Normal
#18 Lincoln-Way West at #15 Willowbrook*
#26 Geneva at #7 Lincoln Park
#23 Benet at #10 Wheaton North
#30 Harlem at #3 Hononegah
#19 Pekin at #14 East St. Louis
#27 Moline at #6 St. Rita
#22 Libertyville at #11 Stagg^^^^
~~~ 6A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Hinsdale South at #1 Marmion
#9 Mather #8 De La Salle
#13 Cary-Grove at #4 Prairie Ridge
#12 St. Laurence at #5 Auburn^^^^
#15 Grayslake North at #2 Nazareth
#10 St. Ignatius at #7 Hoffman Estates^^^
#14 Montini at #3 DeKalb
#11 Crystal Lake Central at #6 Riverside-Brookfield
Lower Bracket
#16 Peoria** at #1 Eisenhower
#9 Richards at #8 Providence
#13 Glenwood* at #4 Shepard
#12 TF South at #5 Sacred-Heart-Griffin
#15 Oak Lawn at #2 Normal West
#10 Bremen at #7 Danville
#14 Springfield at #3 Crete-Monee
#11 Quincy at #6 Thornton
~~~ 5A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Elmwood Park* at #1 Sterling
#9 Solorio #8 Phoenix
#13 Glenbard South at #4 Antioch
#12 Woodstock North at #5 Westinghouse
#15 St. Viator^^^^ at #2 Phillips
#10 Lindblom at #7 Woodstock
#14 Rochelle at #3 Lakes
#11 Back of the Yards at #6 Payton
Lower Bracket
#16 Morgan Park at #1 Dunlap
#9 Triad #8 Centralia
#13 Richwoods at #4 Lemont
#12 Marion at #5 Washington
#15 Bloomington^^^ at #2 MacArthur
#10 Rich Central at #7 Hillcrest
#14 Mahomet-Seymour at #3 Highland**
#11 Oak Forest at #6 Morton
~~~ 4A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Urban Prep/Bronzeville at #1 Herscher
#9 North Chicago #8 Genoa-Kingston
#13 Pontiac at #4 Dixon
#12 Manteno at #5 Johnsburg
#15 Richmond-Burton at #2 Morris^^^^
#10 Wheaton Academy at #7 Alleman
#14 St. Edward at #3 Raby
#11 Geneseo^^^ at #6 Coal City
Lower Bracket
#16 Benton at #1 Unity
#9 Althoff Catholic #8 Effingham
#13 Harrisburg* at #4 Breese Central
#12 Vienna-Goreville at #5 Herrin
#15 Carterville at #2 Rochester
#10 Columbia at #7 Mount Zion
#14 Paris at #3 Watseka
#11 East Alton-Wood River** at #6 Taylorville
~~~ 3A ~~~
Upper Bracket
#16 Spring Valley Hall** at #1 Elmwood-Brimfield
#9 Winnebago #8 Bloomington Central Catholic
#13 ROWVA Mid-County Coop at #4 Byron
#12 Lisle at #5 Immaculate Conception
#15 North Boone at #2 Farmington*
#10 Clark^^^^ at #7 Wilmington
#14 Seneca at #3 Monticello
#11 Eureka at #6 Peotone
Lower Bracket
#16 New Berlin at #1 St. Teresa
#9 Greenville^^^ at #8 Marshall
#13 Beardstown at #4 Carlinville
#12 DuQuoin at #5 Fairfield
#15 Hillsboro at #2 Williamsville
#10 Vandalia at #7 Anna-Jonesboro
#14 North Mac at #3 Sesser-Valier
#11 Newton at #6 Alton Marquette**
Last edited:
