Louisiana Bubble Watch: 5A
The season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, and playoffs are going to be starting in just over a week, with teams and brackets being announced on Monday. With that being said, we wanted to look…
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Continue ReadingThe season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, and playoffs are going to be starting in just over a week, with teams and brackets being announced on Monday. With that being said, we wanted to look at which teams are still fighting just to get a seat at the table when it comes to playoffs. With the Select/Non-select playoffs beginning this year, more teams than ever are going to be making it to the playoffs, but non-select schools still have to battle it out down the stretch to earn a spot. We wanted to take a look at the teams that are still fighting to keep their season alive beyond this week. These are the 5A teams still on the bubble.
30. Thibodaux (13-15)
Current Power Ranking (13.33) Final Game: Hahnville
Before Tuesday’s win against Destrehan, Thibodaux was in mist of a four game losing streak, their third time this year losing at least four games in a row. This losing streak could not have come at a worse time, and could come down to whether or not their season ends before playoff time. Their final game coming against a Hahnville team that won’t be making the playoffs doesn’t do Thibodaux any good.
31. West Jefferson (15-16)
Current Power Ranking (13.25) Final Game: Bonnabel
West Jeff is nearly the complete opposite of Thibodaux, in that they were riding a five game winning streak heading into Tuesday’s game against Landry-Walker, which West Jeff lost. With Landry-Walker being a lower-end playoff team, that win could have certainly helped secure a playoff spot. The good news is that West Jeff still has a chance to play their win in with their final game. A win against Bonnabel certainly won’t come easy, but will almost certainly secure West Jeff a spot in the big dance.
32. Fontainebleau (20-12)
Current Power Ranking (13.23) Final Game: St. Paul’s
Generally when a 5A team has 20 wins, they are a lock for the playoffs, but this certainly isn’t the case with Fountainebleau. Most of those wins have come against weaker competition, with only seven wins coming against 5A teams, and only a single one of those wins comes against a current 5A playoff team. The good news is that win came this week, and hasn’t been accounted for in their current power ranking. The fact that they have head-to-head wins over both Live Oak and Northshore this season also bodes well going forward. A win over St. Paul’s would also almost nearly guarantee a playoff bid.
33. Live Oak (15-16)
Current Power Ranking (13.08) Final Game: Central B.R.
After starting the season 15-7, Live Oak is currently on a nine game losing streak, losing every single district game that it has competed in. I realize that they are in a very tough 4-5A district, but if you want to make the playoffs, you can’t lose 9 straight in district. Their final game is against Central B.R., a non-playoff team, so their only prayer for making the playoffs relies on them winning that game and luck being in their favor.
34. Northshore (14-17)
Current Power Ranking (12.75) Final Game: Slidell
Northshore is another team that is on the outside looking in as far as the playoff race is concerned, and they can’t blame anyone but themselves. If you want to make the playoffs, you have to do better than 1-8 down the stretch of the season. They are also nearly a half-point behind #32 right now, so it will be tough to catch up in one game. Their only hope is to get a win over a tough Slidell team currently in the playoffs, and hope for another team to slip up.
Only 3/5 of these teams are going to make the playoffs.
PHLA Pick: Thibodaux, West Jeff, and Fountainebleau.
We expect things to stay chalk heading into the playoffs. The only team that I can see falling from this group would be Thibodaux, but I think that they have given themselves a big enough lead over Northshore to get in. I think that Northshore has a better shot at getting in over Live Oak simply because their final game has the potential to give them more power points, but I also think that they are behind too much right now to make up ground on the teams ahead of them.