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Rocky Mountain offensive line at the snap against Meridian
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Around the State: Two Weekends That Decide Idaho's Football Playoffs

Cody Smithies
Tuesday, October 13, 2026·14 min read
Rocky Mountain offensive line at the snap against Meridian
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Eight unbeaten teams. A brand-new seeding era where every MaxPreps rating point counts. Nine-plus de facto championships on Oct. 23 alone. FLOWW's class-by-class guide to the final two weekends of Idaho's regular season.

With 18 days until the Round of 12 kicks off on Saturday, Oct. 31, the 2026 Idaho high school football regular season comes down to two weekends. Eight teams statewide are still unbeaten. Nine-plus de facto conference and division championships land on the night of Friday, Oct. 23 alone. MaxPreps computer rankings have seeded Idaho’s playoff brackets since 2020 — but this year the system goes further in 6A: for the first time, MaxPreps rankings determine where the top four 6A seeds land in the bracket, and the higher seed hosts through the semifinals. First-round byes, home-field advantage, and at-large berths all ride on what happens over the next two weekends.

One thing worth knowing about this new seeding era: the computers only count what gets posted. IHSAA rules require scores in MaxPreps by midnight Pacific on the Saturday preceding the state tournament — miss the deadline and it’s a $1,500 fine per sport, with late scores excluded from the final rankings. Every rating point matters now. Here’s the state of play, class by class.

6A — The ratings race

Coeur d’Alene (7-0) sits No. 1 in the Oct. 11 statewide MaxPreps rankings, with Rocky Mountain (6-1) at No. 2 and Rigby (6-1) at No. 3 — three teams separated by fractions of a rating point. The curiosity of the class: Boise is 7-1 and nowhere in the statewide top 10, a rating quirk the Brave can start fixing on Friday.

The format: 12 teams — five from the West, two from the North, two from the East, three at-large. The four first-round byes go to the North, East, West No. 1 and West No. 2 champions, ordered 1-4 by the final rankings. Quarterfinals are re-seeded, and the higher seed hosts through the semifinals.

Friday, Oct. 16:

  • Boise (7-1) at Rocky Mountain (6-1) — the week’s best 6A matchup, and Boise’s regular-season finale. Both are playoff-bound, so this is purely about rating points and the bye race; a Boise win would be the Brave’s best of the season.
  • Coeur d’Alene (7-0) at Lake City (5-2) — the de facto Inland Empire League championship. A Timberwolves win clinches the IEL outright; a Vikings win sets up a must-win finale at winless Post Falls.
  • Mountain View (5-2) at Owyhee (3-4) — the Mavericks need it to keep the Oct. 23 finale a winner-take-all Foothills title game, and to protect a rating dented by the 21-14 loss to Meridian.
  • Eagle (5-2) at Meridian (5-2) — Eagle has already clinched the River Division (28-8 head-to-head over Boise), so this is about protecting a bye résumé against the hottest 5-2 team nobody’s talking about.
  • Madison (6-1) vs. Thunder Ridge (4-3) — a 6A-vs-6A East seeding game. With only two East auto-bids, the Titans are playing to stay in the hunt.

Friday, Oct. 23:

  • Rocky Mountain at Mountain View — winner-take-all Foothills title game. Both teams’ Oct. 16 games are non-division and nobody else in the division can catch them, so the winner takes the division outright and likely a first-round bye.
  • Madison vs. Rigby (Rexburg) — decides East No. 1 and No. 2. The winner has a real shot at a top-four bye; the loser opens on the road Oct. 31.
  • Owyhee at Middleton — pure bubble. The Storm need the win to stay alive for one of three at-large bids in a season decided by computers.
  • Coeur d’Alene at Post Falls — a 9-0 regular season is on the table if the Vikings handle Lake City.

Players to watch:

  • Wayne Bower, Boise QB (soph) — 15-of-21, 209 yards, 1 TD vs. Owyhee; efficient in a run-first offense.
  • Logan McDonald, Boise RB (sr) — 180 yards vs. Capital, 112 vs. Lake City; the bell-cow if he’s back after missing Oct. 9 (availability TBD).
  • Qhycyn Schellhous, Rocky Mountain QB — 31-of-38, 524 yards, 6 TDs over his last three games.
  • Tannar Stern, Coeur d’Alene QB — 2,390 total yards, 33 total TDs; the state’s premier dual-threat.
  • Brayden Van Leuven, Lake City RB (sr) — 194 yards/4 TDs vs. Sandpoint; he is the Vikings’ ground game.
  • Oakley Baxter, Rocky Mountain RB (sr) — 289 yards, 6 TDs in two games since returning from injury.
  • Ryder Hollifield, Mountain View QB (sr) — 21-of-22, 267 yards in his first varsity start.
  • Madison vs. Rigby caution: Rigby has no verified 2026 stats on MaxPreps and an uncertain QB situation — a true toss-up.

5A — Two unbeatens on a collision course

Defending champion Bishop Kelly (7-0, No. 5 statewide) and Hillcrest (7-0, 5-0 in the High Country) are both perfect — and could be on a Milk Bowl collision course. The 12-team field gives four district champions automatic berths and eight at-large bids by final MaxPreps rankings, with byes for the top four seeds.

Friday, Oct. 16:

  • Hillcrest (7-0) at Skyline (3-4) — the Idaho Falls showdown. The Knights tighten their grip on the High Country race; Skyline needs it for the conference crown and at-large seeding.
  • Nampa (5-2) vs. Ridgevue (2-5) — a Bulldogs win sets up a de facto SIC championship game at home against Bishop Kelly.
  • Sandpoint (6-1) at Lewiston (3-4) — Lakeland already beat Lewiston 21-14 on Oct. 9, so a Sandpoint win sets up a North title game at Lakeland.

Friday, Oct. 23 (all contingent on Oct. 16):

  • Bishop Kelly at Nampa — the likely SIC championship.
  • Hillcrest at Blackfoot — the likely High Country championship.
  • Twin Falls at Minico — the likely District IV championship. Twin Falls (3-0 in league) can win it outright; Minico (2-1) takes it head-to-head with a win, with Burley (2-1) needing help.
  • Sandpoint at Lakeland — could decide the North, where a three-way tie would mean another Kansas Plan tiebreaker, exactly like 2025.

One more note: Centennial’s first season in 5A after dropping from 6A has been rough at 1-6, but the Patriots close with two winnable games and a 3-6 finish is on the table.

Players to watch:

  • Logan Taylor, Hillcrest QB — 262 yards/3 TDs vs. Thunder Ridge; unbeaten as a first-year starter replacing a graduated 5A player of the year.
  • Elam Miner, Hillcrest RB — back-to-back 126+ yard games.
  • Jaxson Brady, Bishop Kelly QB (sr, UC Davis commit) — 14 pass TDs, 5 rush TDs, 83.7 rush yards/game; the state’s most complete dual-threat.
  • Rocky Reyna, Nampa QB — authored a 21-yard game-winning TD plus the 2-point conversion to beat Skyview 15-14.
  • Parker Wright, Blackfoot RB — 24 carries, 323 yards, 5 TDs vs. Skyline; the entire Bronco offense runs through him.

4A — The hunt for unbeaten Homedale

Homedale (7-0, No. 4 statewide) is the only unbeaten team among 4A’s 19 programs — and it hasn’t been easy. The Trojans survived 22-20 at Weiser and 34-30 against Fruitland. Right behind them: Sugar-Salem (6-1, No. 8 statewide), winners of six straight since the season-opening loss at Homedale. The bracket is new this year — 12 teams instead of 16, with five district champions and seven at-large bids by final MaxPreps rankings, and no district play-in games.

Oct. 16 weekend:

  • Emmett (6-1) at Weiser (5-2), Friday — the SRV eliminator. Both sit a game behind Homedale, and the loser is likely out of the conference title race. It’s the front half of a brutal close for Emmett, the 5A drop-down sitting 6-1 in its new home: at Weiser, then Homedale.
  • Homedale (7-0) vs. Cole Valley Christian (5-2), Saturday Oct. 17 at Owyhee High School — the unbeaten watch; the Trojans’ toughest remaining test before the finale.
  • Timberlake (3-4) at Bonners Ferry (4-3) — the de facto District I championship in a two-team district.
  • Sugar-Salem (6-1) at South Fremont (5-2) — the “Cold War.” A Diggers win clinches the District VI title outright.

Oct. 23 weekend:

  • Emmett vs. Homedale, Friday Oct. 23 — the likely SRV title game, with Homedale’s perfect season on the line.
  • Kimberly (3-4) at Gooding (4-2) — the potential District IV title game if both win on Oct. 16 (Kimberly hosts Filer; Gooding hosts Wood River).
  • American Falls (4-3) at Preston — District V positioning. The Indians’ Oct. 9 result at Snake River was still unreported as of Tuesday, so the 42-35 upset of South Fremont remains the form line.
  • Cole Valley Christian at Fruitland — two SRV middleweights playing for MaxPreps position.

Players to watch:

  • Eli Brennan, Emmett QB/DB (jr) — 945 pass yards/15 TDs, 822 rush yards (1,767 total); accounts for nearly everything the Huskies do.
  • Zayn Crossley, Weiser RB/LB (sr) — 8 rush TDs, 8.0 tackles/game; leads a three-headed senior ground game (with Garrett Walker and Ty Cobb).
  • Kreece Powell, Homedale QB (jr) — 14 pass TDs, 72.0% completions.
  • Ethan Minegar, Cole Valley Christian RB (sr) — 105.9 rush yards/game, 16 total TDs; the most productive scorer Homedale has faced.
  • Frank Fillmore, Sugar-Salem QB (sr) — 882 total yards.
  • Cy Hill, South Fremont QB (sr) — 1,099 total yards; a QB duel for the District VI title.
  • Titus Vidlak, Fruitland QB (sr, Montana State commit) — 1,922 total yards, 16 rush TDs; the most dangerous running QB in 4A.

3A — No unbeatens, one game of the year

There is no unbeaten 3A team in Idaho. The best marks belong to West Jefferson (7-1), winners of six straight and the classification’s wins leader; Declo (6-1); and Melba (5-1). The result that scrambled everything: New Plymouth 18, Melba 14 on Oct. 2 — ending Melba’s 4-0 start and a 199-0 scoring run, and blowing the Western Idaho Conference race open. Twelve teams make the bracket: five district champions, one extra District I-II bid, and six at-large berths by final MaxPreps rankings. The four highest-ranked champions get byes; the lowest-ranked champion hosts a play-in.

Friday, Oct. 16:

  • West Jefferson (7-1) vs. North Fremont (3-3), Terreton — the Panthers tighten their grip on a top district seed and a potential bye.
  • Salmon (5-2) vs. Ririe — the Savages need a win to stay in the district race.
  • New Plymouth vs. Marsing — fresh off the Melba upset, the Pilgrims need wins to climb into the six at-large spots.

Friday, Oct. 23:

  • Buhl at Declo — the de facto District IV 3A championship and likely a first-round bye decider. Two one-loss teams, small-town Magic Valley — the 3A game of the year in Idaho.
  • Melba (5-1) vs. Parma — the Mustangs can clinch at least a share of the WIC title.

One clarification for the confused: you may see the South Fremont–Sugar-Salem “Cold War” billed as a 3A game in some places. It isn’t — both programs are 4A in 2026, and it’s covered above as a District VI title fight.

Players to watch:

  • Traecyn Thaxton, Declo QB (jr) — 306 yards/2 TDs vs. Nampa Christian; the entire Hornet offense runs through him.
  • Raidyn Puglsey, Buhl RB — scored all four Buhl TDs vs. Gooding (three rushing, one receiving).
  • Canon Calder, West Jefferson RB (sr) — 204 yards/2 TDs vs. Grangeville; half of a 1-2 punch with Bruer Burtenshaw (119 yards/2 TDs vs. Teton) that’s powered six straight wins.
  • Rhett Franklin, Melba RB (sr) — 197 yards/4 TDs vs. Wendell; the WIC’s most productive back.
  • Gavin Watts, Marsing RB — 336 rush yards vs. Payette, a new school single-game record.
  • Hayden Wolfswinkle, Marsing DE — 16.5 sacks, leading the state.

2A (8-player) — The Malta showdown

Raft River (7-0) is the only verified unbeaten in 2A, and the Trojans have topped 50 points in five of seven games. Right there with them: Hagerman (6-1), winners of five straight since a 32-8 loss to 1A Kendrick. The 12-team bracket goes to five conference champions — the top four seeded champs get byes — plus seven at-large bids by final MaxPreps rankings, with quarterfinals re-seeded and the high seed hosting.

Friday, Oct. 16:

  • Raft River (7-0) at Valley (3-4) — the trap game. One week before the showdown, on the road, against a Vikings team riding a three-game win streak.
  • Shoshone at Hagerman (6-1) — Shoshone is the only other Snake River team with a winning record, and an upset would detonate the conference race and the bye picture a week early.

Friday, Oct. 23:

  • Hagerman at Raft River (Malta) — the de facto Snake River Conference championship: the conference crown, the auto berth, and likely the No. 1 seed, with two elite 8-man offenses. The 2A game of the year.
  • Butte County (4-3, 1-0 High Desert) at Grace (2-5) — winner-take-all for the High Desert title in a two-team league. The Pirates take the auto-bid with a win; the loser is in serious danger of missing the 12-team field entirely.
  • Oakley (4-2) at Shoshone — the at-large seeding swing game.

Players to watch:

  • Will Mavencamp, Hagerman QB/DE (jr, captain) — 660 pass yards/13 TDs; 12.5 sacks (1st in 2A, 6th nationally); the best two-way player in Idaho 8-man.
  • Treyce Ward, Raft River RB (sr) — 614 rush yards, 15.4 per carry, 11 TDs; the engine of the classification’s only unbeaten.
  • Teagan Babcock, Butte County RB — 546 rush yards, 13.0 per carry.
  • Keathen Edwards, Grace — 7 total TDs (3 rushing, 4 receiving).
  • Brandt Jones, Valley QB (sr) — 270 rush yards/5 TDs plus 130 pass yards/2 TDs vs. Shoshone; the face of the Vikings’ three-game win streak.

1A (8-player) — The 20-year-old coach and the unbeaten trio

Three unbeatens, one irresistible storyline. Kendrick (7-0) won four straight Class 2A state championships, dropped to 1A for this cycle, and hasn’t lost since — unbeaten under 20-year-old head coach Ty Koepp, riding a 19-plus-game win streak after an 80-14 rout of Deary on Oct. 9. Coeur du Christ Academy (7-0) and Rockland (7-0) complete the trio. And the race just got interesting: Council 18, Carey 16 on Oct. 9 ended the Panthers’ unbeaten season and blew the 1A picture open. (Note: 1A is a single classification in 2026 — the old Division I/II split ended after 2023.) Five conference champions and seven at-large teams by final MaxPreps rankings make the 12-team field; the top four seeded champs get byes, and there are no district play-ins.

Friday, Oct. 16:

  • Troy at Kendrick, 7 p.m. Pacific — the Tigers protect the unbeaten season and the inside track to the No. 1 seed.
  • Carey (6-1) at Dietrich — the bounce-back game; a second straight loss would crater the Panthers’ MaxPreps standing.
  • Council (4-2) vs. Cascade — the hottest story in 1A keeps rolling toward Riggins.

Friday, Oct. 23:

  • Council (4-2) at Salmon River (6-1), Riggins — the likely Long Pin championship decider. Winner takes the auto-bid and a probable top-four seed.
  • North Gem (2A) at Rockland (7-0), 3 p.m. Mountain — the cross-class rivalry game. Not a 1A title game, since North Gem sits in 2A in the IHSAA alignment — but it’s Rockland’s biggest remaining test, with revenge for last year’s 78-72 North Gem shootout win on the line.
  • Lighthouse Christian at Carey — the Panthers’ last chance to impress the computers after the Council loss.

Players to watch:

  • Maddox Kirkland, Kendrick QB (sr) — 67.0%, 1,274 yards, 19 TDs, 2 INTs; piloting a 19-game win streak.
  • Jim Tucker, Council QB — 129 rush yards/1 TD in the 18-16 upset of Carey.
  • Blake Shepherd, Salmon River QB — 8-of-9, 197 yards, 4 TDs vs. Cascade.
  • Clay Johnson, North Gem RB (soph) — 1,417 rush yards, 23 TDs; the state’s most productive sophomore back.
  • Xavier Parrish, Rockland QB (sr) — three straight 4+ TD passing games.
  • Zach Permann, Rockland RB (sr) — scores every conceivable way: receiving, rushing, kick returns, and defense.
  • Jonah Saili, Carey QB (jr) — 126 pass yards/1 TD plus 44 rush yards/1 TD vs. Hansen; leading the bounce-back.

What we’re watching

When the dust settles after Oct. 24, the final MaxPreps rankings lock every bracket — and then it’s win-or-go-home from Oct. 31 to the Milk Bowl on Nov. 21. Between now and then: does any of the eight unbeatens fall? Who survives the 6A West’s at-large scrum? Does the SRV send its champion — or its chaos — into the 4A bracket? And in 1A, does anyone slow down a 20-year-old coach’s machine? We’ll track it all here as the rankings drop. One housekeeping note: schedules move, especially this time of year — confirm kickoffs with the schools during game week.

Sources

Rankings, records, and player stat lines in this article are from the 2026 season. Reporting drew on the following sources:

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