LHSAA Playoff Brackets: Storylines, Prospects | D-IV 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-IV Non-Select capsule below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3QOerYz9Gc","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=M3QOerYz9Gc </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 5 seeds: </strong>No. 1 Haynesville, No. 2 Mangham, No. 3 South Plaquemines, No. 4 Jeanerette, No. 5 Logansport</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lower seeds to watch: </strong>No. 7 East Feliciana, No. 10 Ferriday, No. 11 Elton</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 champion:</strong> South Plaquemines</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 runner-up:</strong> Haynesville</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top prospects: </strong>2026 North Iberville DL/OL [player_tooltip player_id='960002' first='Jordell' last='Baise'], 2026 West St. John DB [player_tooltip player_id='1602009' first='Chance' last='Bovie'], 2026 Ferriday WR [player_tooltip player_id='457340' first='Desmen' last='Jefferson'] (Southeastern Louisiana), 2027 Franklin RB [player_tooltip player_id='1611386' first='Dashun' last='Lightfoot'], 2027 North Iberville WR/DB [player_tooltip player_id='1737490' first='Bra'jon' last='Melancon'], 2027 East Feliciana ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1250280' first='Ryan' last='Moore Jr.'], 2026 Mangham DB [player_tooltip player_id='1737491' first='Reggie' last='Roberson'] (Northwestern State), 2027 Jeanerette WR/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1137410' first='Morris' last='Walters'], 2026 Haynesville QB/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1673797' first='Isaiah' last='Washington'] (LSU), 2026 Jeanerette DL [player_tooltip player_id='1255219' first='Javonte' last='Williams']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sleeper prospects: </strong>2027 Ferriday DB [player_tooltip player_id='1812213' first='Andrew' last='Foster'], 2027 Elton RB [player_tooltip player_id='1612711' first='Makelin' last='Lemoine'], 2026 Logansport LB/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1601848' first='Hunter' last='Martin'], 2027 Ferriday WR/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1812209' first='Robert' last='Taylor']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Intriguing first-round matchup: </strong>No. 8 Vinton vs. No. 25 DeQuincy</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most intriguing possible second-round matchup:</strong> No. 7 East Feliciana vs. No. 10 Ferriday</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Overall Storyline:</strong>&nbsp;Haynesville is the No. 1 seed, one of just 10 undefeated teams in all eight divisions and the LSWA's unanimous No. 1 team in Class 1A. And the Golden Tornado, quarterbacked by the top athlete in the bracket in LSU commit [player_tooltip player_id='1673797' first='Isaiah' last='Washington'], are trying to get back atop the mountain for their first state title since 2014. Can Washington and company complete their mission and storybook finish after coming up short in the past two championships? Or can a reloaded South Plaquemines repeat for the first since since 2007 and 2008 or an ascendent and talented Jeanerette or battle-tested District 2-2A contender in Ferriday or Mangham potentially break through and bring home a trophy? </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->