Here's what to know about South Dakota's opening-round high school football playoff games

The 10th week of the 2022 South Dakota high school football season is a unique one with all games Thursday.

That includes first-round playoff games in Class 11B and 9AA, 9A and 9B along with final regular-season games for the state's Class 11AAA, 11AA and 11A teams.

Historically, the first-round playoff matches are often one-sided, especially in the nine-man ranks. Only three of the 24 first-round nine-man games last year were decided by 10 points or fewer. Four of the eight first-round Class 11B games were closer than 10 points.

We've broken down the Watertown and Aberdeen area teams into playoff tiers this week:

Five unbeaten teams continue quest for perfect seasons

That's right, four Aberdeen area teams (No. 2 seed Aberdeen Roncalli in Class 11B, No. 1 seed Warner in Class 9A and No. 1 seed Herreid-Selby Area and second-seeded Hitchcock-Tulare in Class 9B) have all had dominant seasons to date and enter the playoffs with 8-0 records.

Roncalli, which was ousted in the state quarterfinals last fall, opens by hosting a 4-4 a Mobridge-Pollock team the Cavaliers beat 56-6 earlier this fall. Warner, which also lost in the state quarterfinals a year ago, hosts a 1-7 Burke team. Roncalli is ranked third in Class 11B and Warner No. 1 in Class 9A in the media polls.

Herreid-Selby Area, which advanced to the state Class 9A championship before falling to Howard in 2021, hosts 2-6 Lemmon-McIntosh. Thursday's meeting is a rematch from early in the season when the Wolverines won 60-6. They are No. 1-ranked in Class 9B.

Hitchcock-Tulare, which also lost in the state quarterfinals a year ago, hosts 3-5 Jones County. Hitchcock-Tulare is ranked second in the 9B media poll.

The fifth unbeaten team is Elkton-Lake Benton, which plays in the Dakota Valley Conference against a number of Watertown area squads. The second-seeded and fourth-ranked Elks host 2-6 Kimball-White Lake in a Class 9AA first-round game.

There's a good chance, barring injury or other unforeseen circumstances, that standouts like Brenden Begeman of Herreid-Selby Area, Maddox May and Jackson Isakson of Aberdeen Roncalli, Hunter Cramer of Warner, Landon Puffer of Hitchcock-Tulare and Ryan Krog of Elkton-Lake Benton are going to help lead their teams to successful playoff runs.

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Not perfect, but there are three other very talented local teams

There are three Watertown area teams (Hamlin, 7-1 in Class 9AA; Deuel, 7-1 in Class 11B and Castlewood, 6-2 in Class 9A) who have each enjoyed successful seasons in their own right.

Hamlin's only blemish is an 8-0 defeat at Warner in a game where the Chargers held a sizable advantage in yards but didn't take advantage of some opportunities. Fifth-ranked Hamlin opens the playoffs by hosting Viborg-Hurley.

Deuel lost 14-7 to Roncalli in its second game of the season and has followed with six straight wins. The Cardinals host St. Thomas Moreof Rapid City in a matchup of No. 8-No. 9 seeds on Thursday.

Castlewood is a 6-2 and ranked fourth in Class 9A. The Warriors' only losses have come to Hamlin and then last week to Elkton-Lake Benton on a last-second Hail Mary pass. The Warriors host 5-3 Timber Lake in their playoff opener.

Castlewood lost to Herreid-Selby Area in the 9A quarterfinals last fall. Hamlin and Deuel each suffered first-round playoff losses.

All three teams have a host of good players with Luke Fraser of Hamlin, Owen Quail of Deuel and Lane Tvedt of Castlewood among those to watch.

More:Winner, Howard, Warner, Herreid/Selby Area lead 11B-9B polls ahead of playoffs

Only one other team gets to open at home

OK, home-field advantage isn't a complete guarantee, but it certainly can't hurt. Put it this way, the teams playing at home are seeded higher than the teams that are playing on the road.

Only one other area team, De Smet in Class 9B, has a first round home playoff game Thursday. The Bulldogs (5-3) host Colome.

De Smet is ranked fifth in Class 9B poll but is actually the sixth seed. The Bulldogs reached the state Class 9A semifinals last fall before losing to Herreid-Selby Area.

Many area teams hitting the road for playoff openers

A majority of the northeastern South Dakota playoff teams are hitting the road Thursday.

That group includes Sioux Valley (5-3), Mobridge-Pollock and Redfield (5-3) in Class 11B. Sioux Valley visits McCook Central-Montrose (7-1), Mobridge-Pollock meets Roncalli and Redfield travels to take on Woonsocket-Wessington Springs-Sanborn Central (6-2). Sioux Valley lost in the quarterfinals and Redfield in the first round in 2021.

The McCook Central-Montrose/Sioux Valley game is a rematch from the regular season, which MCM won 18-14 in Volga.

Class 9AA teams on the road include Ipswich (6-2), Florence-Henry (4-4), Britton-Hecla (4-4) and Leola-Frederick Area (5-3). Ipswich visits Bon Homme (5-3), Florence-Henry takes on Freeman-Marion/Freeman Academy, Britton-Hecla heads to Howard and Leola-Frederick travels to Parkston. The Florence-Henry game is a rematch from last week that Phoenix won 36-14.

Ipswich lost in the Class 9AA quarterfinals a year ago and Florence-Henry and Leola-Frederick Area each lost in the opening round. Britton-Hecla dropped a first-round game in Class 9A.

Other area Class 9A teams on the road include Estelline-Hendricks (4-4), Iroquois-Lake Preston (2-6) and Deubrook Area (4-4). Estelline-Hendricks visits Philip (7-1), Iroquois-Lake Preston travels to Gregory (7-1) and Deubrook Area plays at Wolsey_Wessington (5-3).

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The Class 9B field also features Faulkton Area (4-4) and Potter County (3-5). Faulkton Area visits Avon (4-4) and Potter County (3-5) heads to Sully Buttes (6-2). Potter County defeated Faulkton Area in the semifinals last fall before falling 44-42 in overtime to Dell Rapids St. Mary in the state championship game. Potter County lost to Sully Buttes 36-6 earlier this season.

The complete schedule, times and sites for all area playoff games are listed at the bottom of the story.

Aberdeen Central, Watertown, Milbank close out regular seasons

Third-rated Class 11AA Aberdeen Central is on fire. The Golden Eagles started 0-3 and will put a five-game winning streak on the line Thursday when they host fourth-rated Class 11AAA Sioux Falls Lincoln (5-3) at 6 p.m.

Aberdeen Central is currently the No. 3 seed in the Class 11AA standings and the Golden Eagles certainly don't want to drop from there.

Watertown (3-5) has used back-to-back wins to clinch a playoff berth and the Arrows close out the regular season by hosting second-rated Tea Area (7-1) at 6 p.m. at Watertown Stadium. The Titans suffered their first loss last week against No. 1 Pierre, falling 35-30.

The Arrows are currently No. 7 and Tea Area No. 2 in the Class 11AA standings, so a rematch could be possible next week in the first round of the playoffs.

Milbank (2-6), which advanced to the state Class 11A championship game last fall, may not only be playing its final regular-season game but also its final game of the season Thursday. The Bulldogs host second-rated West Central (7-1) at 7 p.m.

Milbank is currently 10th in the Class 11A standings. Only the top eight teams qualify, so the Bulldogs likely need to pull an upset to make the playoffs.

More sports:Begeman's big runs lead Herreid/Selby past Britton/Hecla, into playoffs with 8-0 record

South Dakota high school football playoff pairings

All games are Thursday, all times are Central.

Class 11B

No. 16 Lead-Deadwood (4-4) at No. 1 Winner (8-0), 6 p.m.

No. 9 St. Thomas More (5-3) at No. 8 Deuel (7-1), 6 p.m.

No. 13 Tri-Valley (4-4) at No. 4 Mount Vernon/Plankinton (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 12 Sioux Valley (5-3) at No. 5 McCook Central/Montrose (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 15 Mobridge/Pollock (4-4) at No 2. Aberdeen Roncalli (8-0), 7 p.m.

No. 10 Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan (5-3) at Hot Springs (6-2), 7 p.m.

No. 14 Rapid City Christian (4-4) at No. 3 Elk Point-Jefferson (8-0), 6 p.m.

No. 11 Redfield (5-3) at No. 6 Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central (6-2), 7 p.m.

Class 9AA

No. 16 Stanley County (3-5) at No. 1 Wall (8-0), 7:30 p.m.

No. 9 Ipswich (6-2) at No. 8 Bon Homme (6-2), 7 p.m.

No. 13 Viborg-Hurley (4-4) at No. 4 Hamlin (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 12 Platte-Geddes (4-4) at No. 5 Hanson (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 15 Kimball/White Lake (2-6) at No. 2 Elkton-Lake Benton (8-0), 7 p.m.

No. 10 Florence/Henry (4-4) at No. 7 Freeman/Marion/Freeman Academy (6-2), 7 p.m.

No. 14 Britton-Hecla (4-4) at No. 3 Howard (8-0), 6 p.m.

No. 11 Leola/Frederick Area (5-3) at No. 6 Parkston (7-1), 7 p.m.

Class 9A

No. 16 Burke (1-7) at No. 1 Warner (8-0), 7 p.m.

No. 9 Canistota (4-4) at No. 8 Alcester-Hudson (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 13 Chester Area (3-5) at No. 4 Harding County/Bison (6-2), 6:30 p.m.

No. 12 Estelline/Hendricks (4-4) at No. 5 Philip (7-1), 6:30 p.m.

No. 15 Oldham-Ramona/Rutland (2-6) at No. 2 Lyman (7-1), 6 p.m.

No. 10 Timber Lake (5-3) at No. 7 Castlewood (6-2), 6 p.m.

No. 14 Iroquois/Lake Preston (2-6) at No. 3 Gregory (7-1), 7 p.m.

No. 11 Deubrook Area (4-4) at No. 6 Wolsey-Wessington (5-3), 7 p.m.

Class 9B

No. 16 Lemmon/McIntosh (2-6) at No. 1 Herreid/Selby Area (8-0), 7 p.m.

No. 9 Faulkton Area (4-4) at No. 8 Avon (4-4), 6 p.m.

No. 13 Potter County (3-5) at No. 4 Sully Buttes (6-2), 7 p.m.

No. 12 Irene-Wakonda (3-5) at No. 5 Corsica-Stickney (6-2), 7 p.m.

No. 15 Jones County (3-5) at No. 2 Hitchcock-Tulare (8-0), 7 p.m.

No. 10 Dell Rapids St. Mary (4-4) at No. 7 Faith (6-2), 6:30 p.m.

No. 14 New Underwood (2-6) at No. 3 Kadoka Area (5-3), 7 p.m.

No. 11 Colome (4-4) at No. 6 De Smet (5-3), 7 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: South Dakota Class 11B, 9-man football teams open playoffs Thursday