LHSAA Playoffs Division-I Non-Select updates entering quarters

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Louisiana's high school football playoffs kicked off this past weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Each week, we'll give a quick update of some of the notable outcomes and top performers in each division and potential matchups to watch in the next round.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Check out the latest Division-I Non-Select capsule below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Biggest upset by seeds:</strong> No. 26 Barbe over No. 10 West Monroe, 42-35.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other upsets:</strong> No. 14 Ouachita Parish over No. 3 Destrehan, 21-19; and No. 13 Zachary over No. 4 Denham Springs, 44-21.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Closest game:</strong> No. 14 Ouachita Parish over No. 3 Destrehan, 21-19, was the closest final margin, but No. 6 Parkway went to overtime to hold off No. 11 Hahnville, 37-31.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Biggest margin:</strong> No. 1 Ruston over No. 16 Westgate, 51-13. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Biggest surprise: </strong>No. 26 Barbe upending No. 10 West Monroe, 42-35, was the most surprising of the upsets and kept alive an impressive run by the Buccaneers as the lowest-seeded team to advance in any bracket. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top performers:</strong> 2026 Ouachita Parish DL [player_tooltip player_id='401954' first='Dylan' last='Berymon'], 2027 Parkway RB Braxxton Black, 2028 Neville RB [player_tooltip player_id='1851107' first='Jarvis' last='Blackston'], 2026 Ouachita Parish ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1348505' first='Wydell' last='Clark'] Jr., 2026 Ouachita Parish QB/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='283985' first='Montrell' last='Conner Jr.'], 2027 Destrehan RB [player_tooltip player_id='1402701' first='Malachi' last='Dabney'], 2026 Ouachita Parish RB [player_tooltip player_id='1247371' first='Macario' last='Dade Jr']., 2026 Ouachita Parish DB/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1348504' first='Orlando' last='Freemont'], 2027 Central (Baton Rouge) QB [player_tooltip player_id='934573' first='Max' last='Gassiott'], 2026 Parkway ATH [player_tooltip player_id='401735' first='Antonio' last='Gladney'] Jr., 2026 Denham Springs QB [player_tooltip player_id='1348428' first='Da'Jean' last='Golmond'], 2027 Barbe RB Jordin Griffin, 2027 Central (Baton Rouge) DB/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1356113' first='Marvin' last='Joseph'] Jr., 2027 Zachary RB Tylek Lewis, 2026 Destrehan WR/ATH [player_tooltip player_id='212340' first='Jabari' last='Mack'], 2027 Zachary RB Jeremy Patton, 2026 Neville DB [player_tooltip player_id='1243414' first='Jayden' last='Reed'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other notes:</strong> As mentioned above, No. 26 Barbe is the biggest cinderella story in any bracket from a seeding and upsets standpoint. The Buccaneers are in their first quarterfinal since 2017. No. 1 Ruston, No. 2 Neville, No. 5 Central (Baton Rouge) and No. 8 Southside were all quarterfinalists a year ago — including a Ruston-Southside matchup that the Bearcats and Sharks will reprise Friday. No. 14 Ouachita Parish is back for the first time since 2022 and Parkway for the first time since 2021. Zachary meanwhile returns after having a long streak of quarterfinal appearances broken in 2024, and the Broncos' upset of former district rival Denham Springs sets up a rematch with current district rival Central (Baton Rouge), the reigning champs who got the best of an Oct. 30 meeting, 35-33.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Intriguing quarterfinal matchup:</strong> No. 5 Central (Baton Rouge) vs. No. 13 Zachary</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most intriguing possible semifinal matchup:</strong> No. 1 Ruston vs. no. 5 Central (Baton Rouge) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->