NORTH PLATTE, Neb. — The road to a Nebraska high school football state championship is officially set, with several teams from west-central Nebraska preparing for postseason action following the release of the 2026 Nebraska School Activities Association football playoff brackets.
North Platte St. Patrick's, Gothenburg, Sidney and several other area programs are among the teams looking to make deep postseason runs when the playoffs begin Friday, Oct. 30.
North Platte St. Patrick's Leads Area Teams in Class D2
The North Platte St. Patrick's Irish enter the postseason with a perfect 9-0 record and the No. 2 seed in Class D2.
The Irish will host No. 15 Bertrand (6-3) in the opening round. St. Patrick's is one of just two undefeated teams in the Class D2 bracket, joining top-seeded Shelby-Rising City.
Also in Class D2, No. 4 Loomis (9-0) will host No. 13 Neligh-Oakdale (7-2), while No. 12 Hitchcock County (6-3) travels to face No. 5 Lourdes Central Catholic (7-2).
Hershey, Gothenburg Represent Area in Class C2
Hershey secured the No. 16 seed in Class C2 after finishing the regular season 5-4. The Panthers face a difficult opening-round assignment, traveling to take on undefeated No. 1 Grand Island Central Catholic (9-0).
Gothenburg, meanwhile, earned the No. 7 seed following a 7-2 regular season. The Swedes will host No. 10 Scotus Central Catholic (6-3) in the opening round.
Sidney Tops Class C1 Bracket
Sidney enters the Class C1 playoffs as the No. 1 overall seed after completing an undefeated 9-0 regular season. The Red Raiders will host No. 16 Central City (4-5).
Cozad also earned a postseason berth, claiming the No. 13 seed with a 4-5 record. The Haymakers will travel to face undefeated No. 4 Pierce (9-0).
Other western Nebraska qualifiers include No. 3 Chadron (8-1), which hosts No. 14 Auburn (5-4), and No. 15 Alliance (5-4), which travels to No. 2 Boys Town (9-0).
McCook Heads East in Class B
McCook enters the Class B playoffs as the No. 11 seed following a 4-5 regular season. The Bison will travel to face No. 6 Blair (8-1).
Scottsbluff earned the No. 3 seed with an 8-1 record and will host No. 14 Omaha Gross Catholic (2-7).
Area Eight-Man and Six-Man Teams Prepare for Playoff Action
In Class D1, No. 16 Amherst (5-4) will travel to face top-seeded Johnson-Brock (9-0).
Class D3 features several teams from the region. No. 11 Brady (8-1) travels to No. 6 Dundy County Stratton (6-2), while No. 12 Anselmo-Merna (7-2) visits No. 5 Wausa (8-1).
No. 7 Twin Loup (8-1) will host No. 10 Deshler (7-2), while No. 14 Cambridge (7-2) travels to No. 3 Archangels Catholic (8-1).
In six-man football, No. 2 Wallace (7-1) will host No. 15 High Plains Community (5-3).
No. 6 Medicine Valley (7-1) will host No. 11 Lewiston (6-2), while No. 7 Arthur County (6-2) welcomes No. 10 Southwest (5-3).
No. 3 Garden County (7-1) will also open the playoffs at home against No. 14 Meridian (5-3).
Championship Games Set for November
The opening round of the playoffs is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 30, with subsequent rounds taking place in November.
The Class D3 and six-man state championships are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 20, in Kearney, while the remaining state championship games will be played Nov. 23-24 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln.