Place your guesses
Odds are postseason will be loaded with surprises
I'm not a gambler, but I'd venture to say IHSA playoff pairings night was a lot like playing craps blindfolded for many area coaches -- there was no way to know which way their team would fall when the brackets were announced. Some teams came up "Yo-eleven." Others came up snake eyes.
The big "winner" was Geneva in Class 7A. The Vikings felt they would be bracketed with fellow powers Glenbard West and Wheaton Warrenville South, if not East St. Louis (again). But no -- those teams fell to the lower bracket, along with Thornton and St. Rita.
(Beacon News file photo)
You won't get anyone in Geneva to say Prospect, Carmel or Cary-Grove are pushovers, but I'll say this -- the Vikings have a better than decent shot at Champaign.
I'd say as a No. 14 seed, Kaneland is playing with house money in Class 5A. If the Knights can somehow stop Sterling's rushing attack, things might open up.
Their bracket is full of Chicago public teams that traditionally falter in the playoffs. Kaneland could easily face a down Morris team in Round 2 and then host Rochelle in the quarterfinals -- but everything hinges on whether the Knights can stop the run.
Other Beacon News coverage area teams were not as fortunate. In Class 6A, Oswego faces a speedy Rich East team in Week 1, which could present problems. A victory could lead to a Rock Island trip in Round 2, and it only gets trickier after that -- a potential date against Oak Forest, Providence Catholic or Joliet Catholic. Ouch.
The three teams that really were hit hard were the three Class 4A participants -- Aurora Christian, Sandwich and Plano.
First, the Reapers and Eagles meet each other in the first round. Then the winner would play Coal City or Sandwich.
It wasn't a good draw all the way around. If Sandwich upsets Coal City, they'll host the Eagles in what could be that town's first home playoff game. Not exactly inviting stuff for Aurora Christian.
Then, waiting in the wings should be seven-time defending state champion Driscoll. All that just to get to a semifinal. Waubonsie was the hardest hit in 8A. The Warriors open at Lincoln-Way East. Ugh. Then, should they pull that mammoth upset, they'd face Naperville Central or Mount Carmel. D'oh! Then, it's likely defending 8A champion Naperville North would await in the quarterfinals. Not good.
It would be easy to say it could be a short postseason for many of these teams. But if I've learned anything covering high school football all these years, there's no such thing as a sure bet.
