Kansas football regionals: Three things to watch

KANSAS REGIONALS

1. Brutal matchups

Although it is the first week of games in the Kansas football Class 6A state bracket, the pairings pit standout teams from the Sunflower League and Eastern Kansas League against one another.

The first of these games feature a pair of one-loss teams in Blue Valley North and Olathe North. Blue Valley North has won seven consecutive games since a Week 2 loss. Olathe North, meanwhile, was undefeated until Week 8.

The other game has Shawnee Mission West squaring off against Blue Valley. Both teams have just two losses. SM West is coming off a loss last week, but the Vikings won four consecutive games prior to the loss. Blue Valley swept its district with three straight victories.

2. Defending state champions

The Kansas City area produced two Kansas state champions last season — SM East and Bishop Miege. Both appear to be strong contenders again this season.

SM East, the Class 6A defending state champion which has just one loss this season, plays host to Blue Valley Northwest.

Bishop Miege won the Class 4A Division I state title last season. Despite losing a Division I quarterback, the Stags are on the hunt again with an 8-1 record.

Miege will play host to Piper.

3. Class 5A breakdown

Eight of the 16 teams in the Class 5A state bracket lost two or fewer games during the regular season, and three of them are from the Kansas City area.

Mill Valley and St. James Academy lead the way with 8-1 records, but Mill Valley has an advantage with a head-to-head victory over St. James.

Mill Valley also topped St. Thomas Aquinas, which enters the regional playoffs with a 7-2 record. The Saints lost in the Class 5A state title game a year ago.

This story was originally published November 5, 2015 at 6:50 PM with the headline "Kansas football regionals: Three things to watch."