Prep football playoff picture beginning to clear

Adam Candee

Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2002 | 9:06 a.m.

A look ahead?

If the 4A football playoffs started today, here is what the first-round matchups would look like:

Sunrise Region (SE-4) Silverado at (NE-1) Las Vegas

(NE-3) Eldorado at (SE-2) Green Valley

(SE-3) Basic at (NE-2) Desert Pines

(NE-4) Rancho at (SE-1) Foothill

Sunset Region (SW-4) Clark at (NW-1) Centennial

(NW-3) Palo Verde at (SW-2) Durango

(SW-3) Western at (NW-2) Cheyenne

(NW-4) Cimarron-Memorial at (SW-1) Bishop Gorman

Come gaze into the crystal ball, for playoff time is near.

With just two weeks left in the regular season, the race for tickets to the regional football tournament is on. A handful of teams already can count themselves in, and an even greater number can play themselves in this week, with a full slate of Thursday night games.

Let's tour the four divisions to see who's in, who's close, and who's just hoping to play spoiler. (We've done our best to calculate the potential sets of tied teams fighting for seedings and spots, and we hope our trusty calculator did not fail us.) Don't forget that we cannot project the potential point-differential scenarios yet. SOUTHEAST DIVISION

Tickets punched: None

Tickets please: Foothill (2-0), Green Valley (2-1), Basic (1-1)

Limited seating: Silverado (1-2), Coronado (0-2)

Sold out: None

Skinny: Our crack stats crew tells us this division could still end up in a five-way tie for first place, so nothing is guaranteed. The only team without a loss, Foothill, can wrap up its berth against a reeling Coronado squad this week, and it would take some voodoo happenings to keep the Falcons out of the dance. With starting QB Josh Daneshforooz's return from injury on the horizon, the Falcons are just gearing up for the playoffs. This week's pivotal game pits resurgent Green Valley and concerned Basic, with the winner assured the No. 2 seed and the right to avoid Desert Pines and Las Vegas in the first round. The Gators, by virtue of wins over Silverado and Coronado, are just about in. If QB Chris Montano is out for any length of time, the Wolves might be in trouble. Silverado gets ready to dance with a Coronado loss.

NORTHEAST DIVISION

Tickets punched: Desert Pines (3-0), Las Vegas (3-0)

Tickets please: Eldorado (2-1), Rancho (1-2)

Limited seating: Chaparral (0-3), Valley (0-3)

Sold out: None

Skinny: The berths are almost taken care of here, with twin juggernauts Desert Pines and Las Vegas assured of spots, and Eldorado just about in as well. The winner of next week's Jaguars-Wildcats showdown earns a path that likely avoids Foothill through to the region final. The Sundevils nearly cemented their place by winning at Chaparral last weekend. A Valley loss against Chaparral seals Eldorado's berth, while a Cowboys loss to the Vikings would be very big for Rancho. The Cowboys are almost certainly in with the No. 4 seed if they can win out while the Vikings need wins and help.

SOUTHWEST DIVISION

Tickets punched: Bishop Gorman (3-0)

Tickets please: Clark (2-1), Durango (2-1), Western (2-1)

Limited seating: Sierra Vista (0-3), Bonanza (0-3)

Sold out: None

Skinny: After their shaky start, the Gaels proved that division play is a new start. Gorman has erased fourth-quarter deficits to win its last three games. After that, only statistics majors need apply to figure out all the possibilities. Consider Clark, Durango, and Western to be pretty safe bets, however. Clark could have clinched a spot last week, but the Chargers suffered a stunning home blowout loss to Western that all but ended the hopes of Bonanza and Sierra Vista. The Gorman-Western and Clark-Durango matchups this week will help shake out the seeding mess. The loser of the Bonanza-Sierra Vista game is out, and the winner still needs some Powerball-type luck to get in.

NORTHWEST DIVISION

Tickets punched: None

Tickets please: Centennial (2-0), Cheyenne (2-1)

Limited seating: Palo Verde (1-1), Cimarron-Memorial (1-2), Mojave (0-2)

Sold out: None

Skinny: How about another division with the potential to end up at 2-2 across the board? Fuzzy math and a couple of far-fetched funky tiebreakers are the only reasons unbeaten Centennial is not in the upper category. Red-hot Cheyenne claims the No. 2 seed with a win at winless Mojave on Thursday, and the Shields would have to lose big this week and have some other cosmic forces align to keep them out. Palo Verde and Cimarron breathe a big sigh of relief with a Mojave loss this week, but an improbable Rattlers upset could still shake up the bottom of the standings.