A Roy High School special-teamer attempts to block an extra point in the final game of the regular season to decide playoff seeding. Roy High is one of several local teams to compete in the high school playoffs.
Today marks the start of the high school football playoffs, and many Weber State University students will be able to see their local schools involved in the tournament.
The high school football regular season has come to an end. Now 16 teams from each division will battle for the prize of state champion.
After a grueling 10-week season, the top four teams from each region have been seeded and the matchups have been decided.
“This is an exciting time of year,” said Craig Anhder, head coach for Sky View High School. “Only 16 teams will continue their season, and we are happy to be one of them.”
The Layton High Lancers will take on Herriman High. This game will be held at Herriman High at 4 p.m. The Lancers hope to turn their 4-6 regular season record into a winning record with a run in the playoffs. They will have to get through Herriman first, which has proved to be a strong program in spite of its youth as a school overall.
South of Layton sits Davis High, which will have Pleasant Grove High coming into its stadium. The game is set to kick off at 5 p.m. The Darts hope to keep their record perfect with a win and to extend their record for most wins of any school in the state. Pleasant Grove, on the other hand, comes into Davis on a three-game winning streak, ending its season with a respectable 8-2 record.
Finishing off the 5A bracket are two more Davis County schools, Northridge and Syracuse High. Northridge finished the season with a 4-5 record and goes to Riverton High, which finished 7-2. The game will be played at 5 p.m. The Knights hope to upset Riverton.
“We won the last three out of four games,” said Erik Thompson, head football coach for Northridge. “We are now excited for a fresh start in the playoffs and to play a great team like Riverton.”
Syracuse goes into the playoffs with an 8-1 record, having lost to Davis earlier this year. It will take on Lone Peak, which is 6-4, in its own stadium in hopes of getting back to the 5A title game again.
The 4A bracket is filled with plenty of local teams matched up with tough opponents.
Bountiful High is scheduled to play Logan High at 5 p.m. The undefeated Logan Grizzlies handed the Bountiful Braves a loss earlier this year. The Braves will now go to Logan with a 5-5 record and hopes to upset the Grizzlies.
“We have a long history of playing them (Bountiful), and it is always a great game,” said Logan High head coach Mike Favero. “I look at it as two great programs going at it and trying to win, so I plan on it being a great game again.”
Another team familiar with playing Logan is Roy High, which made it into the playoffs with a 6-3 record. Roy will go to East High, which finished the season with an impressive unblemished record. That game will be played at 3:30 p.m.
The final local 4A matchup will be between two teams that some students at WSU might call home. Box Elder High, at 6-4, will take on Woods Cross High, which fought to a 9-1 record in the regular season. Woods Cross had a successful season, only losing to undefeated East. The game will be at Woods Cross High at 3 p.m.
For each division ranging from 1A to 5A, up to 16 teams make the state playoffs. These spots are picked by looking at each school’s record both in and out of region play.
The Utah High School Athletic Association has organized the brackets. The best teams in each region receive a No. 1 seeding, and the second team the No. 2 seeding. This process goes on until the fourth seed of each region is awarded.
After this week, the winners of each game will go on to the second round of the playoffs. Teams that make it to the semifinals will earn the opportunity to play at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The games will be broadcast live on KJZZ.
