TOP FIRST ROUND PLAYOFF GAMES IN EVERY CLASS
 
CLASS 6A
 
OLATHE EAST (3-5) AT FREE STATE (5-3)
 
Postseason rematches of regular-season games can always be intriguing, may times with the tables being turned. And with the way these Sunflower League rivals ended the season, their playoff rematch got a lot more interesting. 
 
When Free State edged East 35-27 in Week 4, the Firebirds seemed on their way to capturing the league crown. The win came as part of a four-game winning streak that moved the Firebirds to 5-0 in league play and atop the league standings.
 
But Free State couldn’t close it out, falling to Olathe North in Week 7 and then getting upset by cross-town rival Lawrence 24-6 last week with the Lions going into the game winless on the season.
 
East, meanwhile, pulled out of its four-game slide that encompassed the loss to Free State with wins in its final two games, including a 21-19 win over Olathe North a week after the Eagles upset Free State.
 
CLASS 5A
 
BLUE VALLEY NORTH (3-5) AT KC WASHINGTON (7-1)
 
Don’t be fooled by Blue Valley North’s record. One only needs to look back one year to see how dangerous the Mustangs can be when the postseason arrives.
 
A year ago, North had just one win in the regular season and were matched up in the first round against a De Soto team that looked poised to make a deep run. Instead, the Mustangs not only stunned the Wildcats with a 34-27 upset win, but rode the momentum to the state quarterfinals before falling to St. James Academy.
 
This year, North has the same win total it finished last year with, posting three regular-season wins with the most notable of those a 24-20 win over Bishop Miege in Week 7. Once again, the Mustangs draw a 7-1 team in the first round, this time a KC Washington team enjoying its best season in many years.
 
Behind the dynamic duo of Savion Stone and CamRon Fields, Washington had rolled through its first seven opponents with no game closer than 20 points. But a perfect regular season was halted last week by Highland Park, which knocked off the Wildcats 42-30.
 
Washington will need to recapture the momentum it had prior to the loss to get past a tough draw in North.
 
CLASS 4A
 
AUGUSTA (3-5) AT MCPHERSON (5-3)
 
Remember that comment about postseason rematches? Well it certainly applies to this showdown between Ark Valley Chisholm Trail Division III rivals.
 
When they met in Week 7, Augusta was just 1-5 but was coming off a string of three straight near-misses that saw the Orioles lose 26-23 to Mulvane, 49-48 to Wellington and 3-0 to Abilene. Augusta took out its frustrations from those close losses on McPherson, ending a nine-game losing streak to the Bullpups with a convincing 50-29 victory.
 
It was the second straight loss for McPherson, which had gotten blown out 34-3 by Mulvane a week earlier. And with a showdown with Buhler in Week 8, the Bullpups were staring at potentially going into the postseason on a three-game losing skid.
 
Instead, McPherson regrouped and knocked off Buhler 21-15 last week to turn things back around. The Bullpups will be hungry for a little payback with the Orioles after losing to them for the first time since 2015.
 
CLASS 3A
 
WICHITA COLLEGIATE (3-5) AT HUGOTON (7-1)
 
It’s been an unusual season for Wichita Collegiate, which just finished off its first losing regular season since the 1991 squad finished the season 4-5. Only six times in the 33 seasons since have the Spartans failed to win at least seven games.
 
But Collegiate simply hasn’t been able to get much going this season, despite starting 2-1 which included a solid 21-10 win over Rose Hill. After beating El Dorado 42-0 the following week, Collegiate dropped four straight before ending the regular season on a high note with a 28-14 win over Chaparral, which was 5-2 after winning just one game each of the previous two seasons.
 
Was that a sign that Collegiate has turned it around for the postseason? The Spartans will find out right away as Hugoton has posted its most wins since going 10-1 in 2009.
 
The Eagles started the year 6-0, which included a 17-14 win over Scott City -- the program’s over the Beavers since 2005. The bid for an undefeated season ended with a 20-14 loss to Holcomb in Week 7 but the Eagles bounced back last week with a 52-7 rout of Goodland, one of five games this season in which they’ve given up a touchdown or less to their opponent.
 
CLASS 2A
 
ELLSWORTH (5-3) AT HILLSBORO (5-3)
 
Another rematch of a regular-season game in which Hillsboro rolled to a 54-32 victory over the Bearcats in Week 5.
 
At the time, it was a bit of a stunner. Ellsworth had been dominant to that point, rolling to a 4-0 mark by averaging 46.5 points per game while allowing just 10 points a contest. Hillsboro, meanwhile, was just 2-2.
 
But Hillsboro jumped all over the Bearcats, leading 26-6 at halftime and 41-13 going into the fourth quarter. That started a streak that has seen the Trojans win four of five games going into the playoffs with the lone loss coming to No. 1 and unbeaten Southeast of Saline.
 
Ellsworth, meanwhile, has dropped three of its last four games, also losing to Southeast of Saline as well as Beloit.
 
CLASS 1A
 
CONWAY SPRINGS (3-5) AT INMAN (7-1)
 
Prior to the start of this season, a meeting of these two would have been one perhaps envisioned as deep as the state semifinals. Conway Springs was coming off back-to-back Class 1A state championships and had won 24 straight games while Inman seemed poised for a big bounce back after going just 4-5 last year.
 
Not to mention the two programs have been the west representative in the Class 1A state championship game the past four years – Conway the past two seasons and Inman as the runner-up finisher in 2021 and 2022.
 
But while Inman has delivered on that preseason promise, suffering its lone loss by one point to undefeated Sterling, 21-20 in Week 3, Conway Springs has endured its first losing season since 1995. 
 
After edging Nickerson 28-20 in the season opener, the Cardinals dropped five straight games before pulling out a 17-14 double-overtime win over Ellinwood in Week 7. Conway beat South Sumner County 48-35 last week behind a huge rushing performance from Logan Osner, who ran for 384 yards and 6 touchdowns.
 
Osner and the Cardinals will have to be at their best to make a run at a third straight state title, and there may be no bigger test they face than the Teutons this week.
 
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION I
 
CENTRAL PLAINS (5-3) AT SYLVAN-LUCAS (7-1)
 
While not a rematch from a regular-season game this season, it’s a rematch nonetheless for Central Plains and Sylvan-Lucas.
 
The two met in the playoff opener a year ago and it was a thriller. The game went to overtime with Central Plains converting its two-point conversion and stopping Sylvan-Lucas on its conversion attempt as the Oilers pulled out a 40-38 overtime victory.
 
That was one of four nail-biter playoff victories Central Plains pulled out on its way to the Division I championship game where it finished runner-up to Hoxie. Sylvan-Lucas ended the season with a 6-3 mark.
 
The situation is nearly identical going into this year’s game with Sylvan-Lucas this year boasting a 7-1 mark with its lone loss to Lincoln in Week 7. Central Plains is suffered a last-minute loss to Division II unbeaten Victoria in Week 2 and then dropped district contests to Little River and Ell-Saline.
 
A victory this year could spark the winner to a similar run the Oilers made a year ago.
 
EIGHT-PLAYER DIVISION II
 
ST. JOHN (4-4) AT ARGONIA-ATTICA (5-3)
 
After starting the season 1-4, St. John has won three straight games. And the Tigers certainly could be better than their record indicates.
 
A three-game losing streak ahead of the current win streak came to three teams that were unbeaten at the time – Kinsley, Hodgeman County and Victoria. Those three teams are a combined 22-2 this season.
 
St. John has scored at least 56 points in its last three games, which began with a solid 56-28 win over Minneola.
 
Argonia-Attica got back on the winning side of the ledger last week with a 56-6 win over Pretty Prairie after dropping two straight following a three-game win streak. The Titans lost in double overtime in Week 2 to Central-Burden – the Raiders’ lone win this season – and also lost in Week 7 to six-man power Cunningham.
 
The Titans won last year’s game 70-20.
 
SIX-PLAYER
 
WESTERN PLAINS (2-6) AT MOSCOW (2-5)
 
Thanks to low numbers and forfeits there are only two games being played in the six-player bracket this week with Pawnee Heights (4-4) hosting Triplains-Brewster (0-8) in the other.
 
Western Plains has beaten Chase and Triplains-Brewster this year for its only wins. Moscow’s two wins have come against Triplains-Brewster and Rolla.