LHSAA Playoff Brackets: Storylines, Prospects | D-I Non-Select

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Louisiana's high school football playoffs kick off this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The LHSAA's third postseason under a tweaked format features eight brackets — four "nonselect" and four "select" —&nbsp;full of impressive teams and prospects and intriguing matchups and storylines.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We'll give a quick preview of each, including the top five seeds, two lower seeds to watch for a potential run, up to eight top-ranked prospects, up to five sleeper prospects, an intriguing first-round matchup, a most intriguing potential second-round matchup and an overarching storyline entering the tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This season is also the first in a new two-year classification cycle, so a few notable programs have changed divisions, which we'll note as well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Check out the Division-I Non-Select capsule below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eR0faNk22k","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eR0faNk22k </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 5 seeds: </strong>No. 1 Ruston, No. 2 Neville, No. 3 Destrehan, No. 4 Denham Springs, No. 5 Central </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lower seeds to watch:</strong> No. 13 Zachary, No. 14 Ouachita Parish</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 champion:</strong> Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 runner-up:</strong> Ruston</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top prospects: </strong>2027 Ruston DB [player_tooltip player_id='1356159' first='Jayden' last='Anding'], 2028 Westgate EDGE [player_tooltip player_id='1372214' first='Chance' last='Archangel'], 2026 Ouachita Parish DL [player_tooltip player_id='401954' first='Dylan' last='Berymon'], 2026 Airline WR [player_tooltip player_id='1237613' first='Kenny' last='Darby'], 2026 Central LB [player_tooltip player_id='401111' first='JaMichael' last='Garrett'], 2027 Ruston TE [player_tooltip player_id='469439' first='Ahmad' last='Hudson'], 2026 Destrehan WR [player_tooltip player_id='212340' first='Jabari' last='Mack'], 2026 East Ascension OL [player_tooltip player_id='740981' first='Brysten' last='Martinez']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sleeper prospects: </strong>Terrebonne RB [player_tooltip player_id='1757532' first='Quincy' last='Adams'], Ouachita Parish ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1348505' first='Wydell' last='Clark'] Jr., Denham Springs QB [player_tooltip player_id='1348428' first='Da'Jean' last='Golmond'], Barbe RB Jordin Griffin, West Monroe RB [player_tooltip player_id='401946' first='Christian' last='Ponti']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Intriguing first-round matchup: </strong>No. 14 Ouachita Parish vs. No. 19 St. Amant</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most intriguing possible second-round matchup:</strong> No. 3 Destrehan vs. No. 14 Ouachita Parish</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Overall Storyline:</strong> A loaded District 2-5A represents not just the top two seeds in Ruston and Neville, but three of the top 10 and four of the top 14 with West Monroe and Ouachita Parish both double-digit seeds worth watching for potential deep runs. And the northeast Louisiana contingent — including a potential Neville vs. West Monroe rematch — isn't the only region with notable rematch potential on the horizon. Familiar Baton Rouge area programs Central, Denham Springs, East Ascension, Zachary and Dutchtown teams all in a single quadrant of the bracket, and Destrehan and Hahnville are another realistic quarterfinal. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->