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

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Louisiana's high school football playoffs kick off this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The LHSAA's postseason 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>Check out the Division-III Non-Select capsule below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 5 seeds: </strong>No. 1 Jena, No. 2 Sterlington, No. 3 St James, No. 4 Kinder, No. 5 Erath</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lower seeds to watch: </strong>No. 8 Mansfield, No. 10 Church Point, No. 12 Union, No. 19 Red River</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 champion:</strong> Sterlington</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 runner-up:</strong> St. James</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top prospects: </strong>2026 St. James RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1191955' first='Kani' last='King-Young']</strong>, 2027 Marksville ATH [player_tooltip player_id='934563' first='Devin' last='Lavalais'], 2026 Union Parish OL/DL [player_tooltip player_id='1237632' first='Ari' last='Slocum'], 2026 St. James WR [player_tooltip player_id='401966' first='Jakias' last='Villanueva'], 2026 Avoyelles DB [player_tooltip player_id='1237778' first='Kevin' last='Jones'], 2027 Avoyelles DL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1357863' first='Kobe' last='Smith']</strong>, 2027 Donaldsonville Edge <strong>Decaleb Green</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sleeper prospects: </strong>2026 North Webster DB <strong>Donte Owens</strong>, 2026 Oak Grove DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1348534' first='Tyde' last='Hurley']</strong>, 2028 Red River ATH <strong>Elijah Lewis</strong>, 2026 Erath QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1603219' first='Jack' last='Landry']</strong>, 2026 Westlake RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1602099' first='Braylon' last='Garrick']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Intriguing first-round matchup: </strong>No. 14 Many vs. No. 19 Red River</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most intriguing possible second-round matchup:</strong> No. 13 Pine vs. No. 4 Kinder</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Overall Storyline:</strong> The two teams that played in last year's title game, Sterlington and St. James, are once again the ones to watch. We won't see a rematch in the dome because both teams are in the bottom half of the bracket and will have to meet in the Semis. Jena wants to break through on the top half of the bracket and win a state title. After beating #9 Marksville, #25 Winnfield, DIII-S #8 Bunkie, and DIV-NS #2 Mangham in the regular season, the Giants are serious contenders.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->