Huskerland Playoff Preview: Eight-Man Round of 16

Class D-1

No. 17 Bloomfield (7-2) at No. 1 Shelby-Rising City (9-0), 5 p.m. Unbeaten, top-ranked, top seed, SRC is good. Huskies won one playoff game in 2023, two in 2024…you get the idea. Bloomfield has extended its state record for consecutive postseason appearances – 38 and counting – and won the only playoff meeting between these programs, 34-27 in overtime, back in 1998 Class C-2 state semifinals.

No. 9 Pender (8-1) at No. 8 Lourdes Central Catholic (7-2), 6:30 p.m. Pender is a scary nine-seed, having won nine in a row since losing to No. 7 Plainview on Opening Night, and then by just three points. The Pendragons since have won all of their games by at least 18 points, and beat GACC by 28. Lourdes, a 2024 state semifinalist, beat GACC by 31 in the opening round, for whatever that’s worth. Lourdes has lost only to Johnson-Brock and Thayer Central, both which advanced. This is the first playoff meeting between the two teams.

No. 12 Johnson-Brock (7-2) at No. 5 Crofton (7-2), 5 p.m. Speaking of J-B, the Eagles put it on a good St. Pat’s team, winning by 27, and has advanced seven of the last nine times it has qualified. Crofton has won five in a row, and four of the of the teams they have faced are still playing. These two teams have never met in the playoffs.

Stanton (4-5) at Hemingford (8-1), 3 MT. This is the first meeting between these two state champion programs, playoffs or otherwise. Stanton, the 2023 state champ and 2024 state runner-up, sent a shockwave through the rest of Class D-1 with that resounding win over unbeaten No. 4-seed Ravenna. The Mustangs are now in a full gallop, having won four of their last five games. Hemingford’s 64-14 win over East Butler was the program’s first in the postseason since 2018, and will be attempting to win its way into its first quarterfinal since that historic 2014 state championship run.

No. 14 Wisner-Pilger (7-2) at No. 3 Sandy Creek (8-1), 6 p.m. Wisner-Pilger has quietly qualified seven straight seasons, though that was the program’s first postseason win since 2018. (Every notice how there was a lot of playoff stuff last done in 2018?) Defending state champion Sandy Creek has now won seven straight, all of them by 23 points or more, and has been rewriting the school record book since making the round of 16 in 2022. This is the first playoff meeting, probably any meeting, between the two.

No. 11 Wausa-Osmond (8-1) at No. 6 Bridgeport (8-1), 3 MT. Wausa-Osmond has accomplished an awful lot for a mere 11-seed, not the least of which was winning a postseason game after finishing 2-6 last season. Been a while since either Wausa (2012) or Osmond (2018) had won a playoff game, so good for you guys. They make the long trip (370 miles) to find a Bridgeport team brimming with confidence after its third straight opening round win. Thing is, Bridgeport’s never made a quarterfinal and Wausa-Osmond will be no pushover. It is the first playoff meeting between any of the three.

No. 10 Thayer Central (8-1) at No. 7 Plainview (8-1), 6 p.m. Realizing the seeding would suggest the same, this has a real chance to be the D-1 game of the day. Thayer has lost only to Sandy Creek, Plainview only to Crofton, no shame in either . Thayer has qualified six years in a row but has reached only one quarterfinal in program history, that part of 2005’s drive to the Class C-2 state semifinals. Plainview’s won a couple of state titles, and four of the teams they played (three of which they beat) are still playing. It’s the first playoff meeting between these teams.

No. 15 McCool Junction (7-2) at No. 2 Dundy County-Stratton (9-0), 2 MT. That opening thriller over Arcadia/Loup City, 44-42 in double overtime, was McCool’s first eight-man playoff victory since 1988. The Mustangs prospered during their stint in Six-Man, winning state in 2020, finishing as runner-up in 2019. Dundy has been doing Dundy things, beating the tar out of every opponent – all those wins are by 23 or more, mostly with the foot off the gas – and before last year’s round two exit the Tigers had made the quarterfinals or better six straight times. (Spoiler alert: they will again this year.) First playoff meeting between the two.

Class D-2

No. 16 Overton (6-3) at No. 1 Howells-Dodge (9-0), 5 p.m. So much great history piled up over the years by Howells, Dodge and Howells-Dodge, but a bit under reported is how this is the 26th year in a row Howells, in one fashion or another, has made the playoffs. Overton reached last year’s state quarterfinals, and was impressive in its 49-42 win over EPPJ. There is playoff history between the programs, as Howells beat Overton in both the 2002 and 2003 Class D-1 state finals, and Dodge beat Overton in the 1994 D-1 state final.

No. 9 Lawrence-Nelson (8-1) at No. 8 Elmwood-Murdock (8-1), 6 p.m., at Elmwood. This one I wish could have been kicked down the road a bit. Lawrence-Nelson is a really good team to be on the road this soon, having won eight in a row since an opening four-point home loss to top seed Howells-Dodge. The Raiders have advanced nine of the last 10 times they qualified, including a 2022 quarterfinal run. Elmwood-Murdock has qualified eight times in a row, an also reached the quarterfinals in 2022. The Knights have that win over Johnson-Brock, which stands out, and their lone loss is to Lourdes. Good teams. Great game.

No. 12 Sandhills/Thedford (7-2) at Anselmo-Merna (8-1), 7 p.m. This is a rematch from Opening Night, when Anselmo-Merna edged the Knights, 36-34. Back then that seems like an upset of sorts, but the Coyotes have played great football season, losing only to Central Valley, and who hasn’t done that. Sandhills/Thedford had those two early losses (also losing to Burwell, which is still playing), but then rattled off six wins in a row, looks like it old self. Which is pretty good news when your program has played in three state finals and made last year’s quarterfinals, all since 2020. These teams have met once in the playoffs, Anselmo-Merna winning a 44-7 decision in the 2014 D-1 state quarterfinals, on the way to an eventual state runner-up finish.

No. 20 Burwell (5-4) at No. St. Mary’s (9-0), 1 p.m. The first game of a day-night doubleheader, with O’Neill High playing at 7, will be a rematch from the regular season, St. Mary’s having overpowered the Longhorns, 52-12, back in Week 2. Thing is, Burwell, which had lost three of four games coming in, didn’t look like a team likely to get treated that way last week, as it ran away from BDS, 49-30. St. Mary’s has been crushing teams since that opening 18-13 win over still alive Twin Loup. Want proof? In the last six games the Cardinals have scored 66, 78, 63, 74, 80 and 60 points…all with a running clock…yikes…

No. 19 Twin Loup (6-3) at No. 3 Hitchcock County (9-0), 7 p.m., at Trenton. Maybe its the Custer County coming out in me, but Twin Loup is one 19-seed you just don’t want to face. Those three losses are to teams a combined 23-1 (St. Mary’s, Central Valley, A-M), just so you know. Also of note, the last four times the Wolves qualified, and that would included last year, they lost in the second round. Hitchcock mastered that deep and talented D2-8 district field, then beat Franklin (badly) for a second time this year, advancing to this game. In their only playoff meeting, Twin Loup scored a 40-28 decision over the Falcons in 2023’s opening round.

No. 11 Mullen (8-1) at No. 6 Wynot (8-1), 5 p.m. This is Mullen’s 24th consecutive time as a playoff qualifier, and third time in the last six go-rounds they won their opening game. Wynot has won six straight since that overtime loss to Archangels Catholic  – Wynot the six-seed, Archangels the seventh, give me a break – and the Blue Devils have reached the quarterfinals each of the last three times they’ve gotten in. And that includes their 2023 state final appearance. These teams have never played each other in the postseason.

No. 10 Loomis (7-2) at No. 7 Archangels Catholic (8-1), 4:30 p.m. Loomis washed away (some of) the hurt from last year’s first-round dismissal, impressively beating Cambridge by 33 points, after the Trojans had played unbeaten Hitchcock within a touchdown the week prior. Wolves have got some explosive offensive weapons, and they are riding high after their first postseason win since 2021. Archangels was a 2024 semifinalist, and has qualified for a second year in a row or 31st year in a row, your choice. Another bruising, physical team which has lost only to unbeaten Howells-Dodge.

No. 18 Deshler (7-2) at No. 2 Central Valley (9-0), 7 p.m., at Wolbach. Deshler, coming off its first-ever playoff win, is the epitome of one playing with house money, but good for you guys for all you’ve done this season. Could well be this is the best Central Valley yet (gasp!), as the defending D-2 state champs have allowed eight points or less in all but one game, and they won that one by 40. This is no flue, the last five years the Cougars have been state champs, after reaching the quarterfinals, two semifinals, and another quarterfinal.