Predicting the Winners of the Louisiana High School Football Non-Select Quarterfinals

High School on SI is going on the record to make our predictions on the LHSAA playoffs

Southside Sharks take on Ruston for the second straight year / SCOTT CLAUSE/USA TODAY Network / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

High School on SI brought the crystal ball out of storage last week to pick some upsets in the regional round of the Louisiana high school football playoffs. We were just getting warmed up to predict the winners of the quarterfinals, starting with the non-select brackets.

Division I Non-Select

No. 8 Southside (10-2) at No. 1 Ruston (9-2)

We picked the Sharks in this game last year, and they began well by methodically driving down the field to score on a Ramon Singleton touchdown for a quick lead, but that dissipated in a 49-7 loss.

Coach Jess Curtis and the Sharks may be a year away from their best team, seeing as how the top three rushers are all juniors. Fullback Justin Williams has rushed for 1,435 yards, quarterback Parker Dies has 1,216 yards on only 177 carries, slotback Kollen Francois has 874 yards on 71 carries, and Coby Broussard has added another 481 yards. The group has combined for 60 rushing touchdowns.

Ruston's only losses were to Stephenville (12-0), the No. 17 team in Texas, and Alexandria. The Bearcats did allow 99 points in the loss to ASH (45-28) and a 49-44 win over West Monroe. Which Southside team shows up, the one that lost to Notre Dame in the opener or the one that rushed for 700 yards on Carencro?

Southside loves to bring the house against opposing quarterbacks. The Sharks will have to be careful not giving up the big play to five-star TE Ahmad Hudson and the Bearcats' other receivers.

Pick: Southside

Southside DB Emanual Collins (La. Tech commit) / Mike Coppage

No. 13 Zachary (8-3) at No. 5 Central - B.R. (9-2)

The defending state champion Wildcats won this district matchup in the regular season, 35-33. Quarterback Max Gassiott began the game completing 5-of-6 passes and put it on ice with a 42-yard run for a first down. Zachary is hard to get a hande on. The Broncos ran for 270 yads with a pair of 100-yard rushers in last week's 44-21 win over No. 4-seeded Denham Springs but lost three of their last four regular season games. We'll go with Gassiott and Brody Diel, who had a crucial pass break-up in the first meeting.

Pick: Central

No. 14 Ouachita Parish (8-4) at No. 6 Parkway (11-1)

The one screams "upset." Ouachita Parish is a physically potent team taking on a Parkway club out of a weak District 1-5A. Quarterback Montrell Conner and tailback MJ Dade got past a No. 3-seeded Destrehan team that has more weapons than Parkway.

Pick: Ouachita

No. 26 Barbe (7-5) at No. 2 Neville (8-3)

Barbe is a hot topic after wins over No. 7 Northwood-Shreveport and No. 10 West Monroe. Quarterback Jelandon Gray and running back Jordin Griffin run up against a Neville team that wasn't healthy earlier in the season. The Tigers end Barbe's Cinderella run as quarterback Parker Robinson connects with underrated receiver Ze'Land Young on three touchdown passes.

Pick: Neville

Division II Non-Select

No. 8 Franklinton (9-3) at No. 1 North DeSoto (11-0)

Franklinton is trying to make it back to the Dome. The Demons lost three of five games early in the year but haven't lost since. North DeSoto kept cruising to wins even with running back Kenny Thomas out. Now that he's back, Thomas and Braelyn Latin have each rushed for over 1,000 yards with 40 touchdowns. Luke Delafield will bring his team back to the state finals after leading the Griffins to a runner-up finish to Lutcher as a freshman.

Pick: North DeSoto

No. 13 Cecilia (7-4) at No. 5 Plaquemine (10-1)

This is a semifinal rematch from last year, when the No. 18 Bulldogs topped No. 6 Plaquemine, 55-35. The good news for the Green Devils is that quarterback Diesel Solari, who scored six TDs last year, graduated. The bad news is that Braylon Calas, who rushed for 200 yards last week and had a sack that stopped a Plaquemine drive in timely fashion last year, is back. Calais has over 1,000 yards rushing and is the second-leading receiver behind Jermaine Davis (32-552, eight TDs), but he'll mainly be at quarterback if Collin Dore remains out with injury. Plaquemine hasn't lost since Week One to Zachary, the same way its season went last year.

Pick: Cecilia

Cecilia DB Franky Frank / Mike Coppage

No. 11 West Feliciana (8-4) at No. 3 Belle Chasse (10-1)

The run-oriented Cardinals, who own a shutout win over defending D2 select champion Archbishop Shaw, avoided the upset bug last week with a 7-6 win over Opelousas, while West Feliciana turned the tables on No. 6 Brusly after dropping the regular season meeting. Cardinals get back on track with their ground attack.

Pick: Belle Chasse

No. 10 Lutcher (8-4) at No. 2 Iowa (11-0)

The Lutcher program knows how to win games. The Bulldogs had an uncharateristic 3-4 start to the season and are coming off an impressive 42-41 win at No. 7 Franklin Parish. This feels like Iowa's year, however, after the Yellow Jackets lost to Franklinton in last year's semis. Iowa hung 68 points on Northwest last week.

Pick: Iowa

Division III Non-Select ,

No. 8 Mansfield (9-2) at No. 1 Jena (10-1)

We picked against Mansfield last week and lost as the Wolverines claimed a 62-60 shootout win over Marksville. Jena, which beat Marksville 62-46 in district, scored over 60 points in four games during the regular season with its powerful ground game.

Pick: Jena

No. 12 Union Parish (7-5) at No. 4 Kinder (11-0)

QB Isaiah Thomas and the Yellow Jackets haven't convinced many message boards critics that they're a legit contender, but we like Kinder to get past tradition-rich Union Parish, which was held under 150 yards and managed five first downs in a 14-9 win over another undefeated team in Erath.

Pick: Kinder

No. 6 Oak Grove (10-2) at No. 3 St. James (9-2)

What a matchup of north vs. south programs. Oak Grove owns a win over Division IV select frontrunner Ouachita Christian, while St. James was our preseason pick to win state. We'll stick with our gut instinct, especially playing at home in Vacherie.

Pick: St. James

No. 7 Loreauville (9-3) at No. 2 Sterlington (9-2)

Loreauville defended its home turf against a solid Church Point team, but Sterlington's only two losses are to Neville and Ouachita Parish (by 11 and seven points). We've been sleeping on the Panthers in the top 25 rankings.

Pick: Sterlington

Division IV Non-Select

No. 9 Jonesboro-Hodge (9-3) at No. 1 Haynesville (11-0)

Dakota Knox and the Tigers' run ends at the undefeated Golden Tornado in a meeting of north Louisiana small schools with storied pasts. Haynesville won at J-Hodge in the regular season, 43-0.

Pick: Haynesville

No. 5 Logansport (9-3) at No. 4 Jeanerette (10-1)

This feels like a trap game for Jeanerette, which has succeeded despite major injuries and blew out Grand Lake 53-7 after surrendering the first points. We'll take the Tigers at home, but it wouldn't be a good idea to start slowly again.

Pick: Jeanerette

No. 6 North Iberville (10-2) at No. 3 South Plaquemines (8-2)

South Plaquemines, the defending champs, got a wake-up call in a 6-0 win over No. 14 West St. Mary that was too close for comfort. North Iberville was able to contain Elton's Makelin Lemoine sufficiently to negate another of our upset picks. The Hurricanes have a huge home-field advantage against one of the best stories in the past two years in a rejuvenated North Iberville program.

Pick: South Plaquemines

No. 7 East Feliciana (9-3) at No. 2 Mangham (9-2)

East Feliciana upset Mangham's district rival Ferriday in a defensive struggle (19-8). Mangham outlasted Ferriday 56-48. We'll take Dragons' QB Colby Casey in what is quietly an excellent matchup.

Pick: Mangham

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