Playoffs on the line in area small school games

Playoff spots are up for grabs in the final week of the regular season for Classes 2A, 1A, A and 8-player football. Mid-Prairie, Sigourney Keota and Pekin have already taken care of business in their respective districts, while several other area teams will decide their postseason fates Friday.

The Golden Hawks and Panthers were crowned district champs in Class 2A-6 and A-5, respectively. Pekin remained undefeated after a thrilling win over Danville in Week 7. Mid-Prairie remained in cruise control and won its district with a 62-21 blowout over Mediapolis.

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Sigourney Keota locked up second place in Class 1A-6 with a win over Durant. With one regular season game remaining, the Cobras have also secured a playoff spot.

Below Pekin, playoff scenarios get could complicated for the other area teams in Class A-5. The top four teams in the district will earn a playoff spot, per IHSAA rules.

Columbus (3-2), currently in fourth place will face Pekin while third place Wapello (3-2) takes on second place Danville (4-1). Fifth place Van Buren County (2-3) gets a forfeit win this week over New London.

If the Indians lose to the Bears and Columbus upsets Pekin, Columbus and Van Buren County will finish third and fourth. VBC gets the tiebreaker over Wapello after winning the head-to-head matchup.

Should Columbus lose to Pekin and Wapello beats Danville, Wapello would finish second, Danville third and Columbus fourth. The Wildcats hold the head to head tiebreaker over VBC.

If the Wildcats and Indians both fail to win, they, along with VBC, will be tied at 3-3 in district play. All three teams went 1-1 against each other in the regular season, which would eliminate head-to-head tiebreakers. That means the average point differential in district games, with a 17-point maximum, would be used to determine the odd team out.

In Class 8-player District 5, Winfield-Mt. Union’s matchup against Belle Plaine has major playoff implications. The Wolves clinch second place in the district with a win and if fellow Union Area side WACO loses to No. 4 Iowa Valley. WACO would finish fifth in the district in that scenario.

The top three teams from each eight-player district make the playoffs. Two at large teams that finish fourth in their districts will take the final spots. Those teams are determined by the 17-point tiebreaker rule.

WACO likely needs an upset victory over Iowa Valley to keep its playoff hopes alive. If WACO and W-MU win, both teams, along with Belle Plaine would finish 3-2 in district play with wins over each other. The 17-point tiebreaker rule would be used to determine second, third and fourth place.

If WACO wins and W-MU loses, WACO would finish third and the Wolves would get fourth thanks to their head to head tiebreaker over English Valleys. The Bears (4-3, 2-3) have a non-district game to end the regular season.

If the Wolves and Warriors both lose and drop to 2-3 along with English Valleys, the third and fourth place spots would be determined by the 17-point tiebreaker rule, as all three teams beat one another during the regular season.

Here’s the full slate of area games Friday.

Class 2A District 6

Mid-Prairie 6-1 (4-0) at West Burlington Notre Dame (3-4, 1-3) - 7 p.m. at Bill Nelson Football Field/Track

Class 1A District 6

Sigourney Keota (3-4, 3-1) at Cardinal (1-6, 1-3) - 7 p.m. at Cardinal High School

Class A District 5

Pekin (7-0, 5-0) at Columbus (3-4, 3-2) - 7 p.m. at Columbus High School

Class 8-player District 5

WACO (3-4, 2-2) at No. 4 Iowa Valley (7-0, 4-0) - 7 p.m. at Iowa Valley High School

Winfield-Mt Union (3-4, 2-2) vs. Belle Plaine (3-4, 3-1) - 7 p.m. at Winfield-Mt. Union High School Football Field