LHSAA Playoff Brackets: Storylines, Prospects | D-I 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 Select capsule below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLbd5ZGr4QE","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=BLbd5ZGr4QE </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 5 seeds: </strong>No. 1 Edna Karr, No. 2 Teurlings Catholic, No. 3 St. Augustine, No. 4 Catholic (Baton Rouge), No. 5 Alexandria</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lower seeds to watch:</strong> No. 10 St. Thomas More, No. 11 Archbishop Rummel, No. 12 Brother Martin, No. 14 Acadiana, No. 19 Carencro</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 champion:</strong> Edna Karr</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 runner-up:</strong> Alexandria</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top prospects: </strong>2026 Edna Karr DL [player_tooltip player_id='710991' first='Richard' last='Anderson'], 2026 Catholic (Baton Rouge) DB [player_tooltip player_id='401737' first='Blaine' last='Bradford'], 2026 Edna Karr DB [player_tooltip player_id='401932' first='Aiden' last='Hall'], 2027 Evangel Christian QB [player_tooltip player_id='261907' first='Peyton' last='Houston'], 2026 Edna Karr DB [player_tooltip player_id='710970' first='Hayward' last='Howard Jr.'], 2026 Acadiana DL [player_tooltip player_id='920606' first='Darryus' last='McKinley'], 2027 Catholic (Baton Rouge) RB [player_tooltip player_id='739720' first='Jayden' last='Miles'], 2027 Brother Martin WR [player_tooltip player_id='723579' first='Easton' last='Royal']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sleeper prospects: </strong>2026 St. Paul's DL [player_tooltip player_id='1737480' first='Gage' last='Brown'], 2026 St. Augustine QB [player_tooltip player_id='1348424' first='Vashaun' last='Coulon'], 2026 Acadiana WR/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1237761' first='Travis' last='Gallien'], 2026 Edna Karr WR [player_tooltip player_id='1737078' first='Floyd' last='Jones'], 2027 Alexandria DB [player_tooltip player_id='1611413' first='Letravious' last='Williams']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Intriguing first-round matchup: </strong>No. 14 Acadiana vs. No. 19 Carencro</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most intriguing possible second-round matchup:</strong> No. 7 John Curtis vs. No. 10 St. Thomas More</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Overall Storyline:</strong> The Division-I Select bracket has a history of being a gauntlet with teams up and down the seed line capable of mounting deep runs. This year, top-seeded and undefeated Edna Karr is as clear a favorite as the bracket ever sees. The Cougars are loaded with both talent and experience and have been hungry, well-coached and consistent throughout this fall in their pursuit of a repeat. But plenty of teams in the tournament appear to possess championship mettle in their own right, headlined by a Catholic (Baton Rouge) program that has historically battled Karr as effectively and consistently as anyone through the years.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->