Making sense of the madness of the football state tournament

Tim Graves, Westside Media Group Sports Coordinator|October 28, 2014

Jerred Zegelis

Senior KaVon Neelon and junior Jack Connelly high five during the second half of Westside’s 27-24 victory over then-No. 3-ranked Grand Island. Neelon has led Westside in interceptions this season. Photo by Clair Selby

Your Westside Warriors are the district champs! Now, that’s a good thing. But what does it really mean?

In the state of Nebraska, there are a ton of high schools. To start, the Nebraska Schools Activity Association (NSAA) breaks down the schools into six classes, A, B, C1, C2, D1 and D2. Westside, one of the biggest 28 schools, is in class A.

Class A is divided into four districts, A1, A2, A3 and A4. This year, the Warriors were in district A4 with Columbus, Fremont, Grand Island, Lincoln Northeast, Millard South and Omaha Burke. Teams play every other team in their district, and district winners, runners-up and third place teams get automatic playoff berths. This year, the Warriors won district A4 by going 6-1 and only losing to Omaha Burke.

However, to complete the 16-team tournament, there needs to be four wildcard teams that are determined by a long and tedious process where every team is broken down by record.

Using this same method, the seeds for the playoff are determined. This year, the Warriors received the No. 12 seed and will play the No. 5 seed Millard West. If – sorry, when – the Warriors win, they will play the winner of the Grand Island vs. Columbus game. However, the Warriors will be the home team, according to NSAA rules.

But, the Warriors have to win first. The game is this Friday at Millard South High School. Remember that the game is at 7:30 p.m. because there is a game before. And also remember to bring your best Halloween costume, and your voice to cheer on the Warriors.