Because of the jumble that is the District 10-5A (Garland ISD) playoff race, Lake Highlands may not know its first-round playoff opponent, or even where or when the Wildcats will play, until the dust settles Friday night.
There have been discussions between the RISD and GISD, and contingencies are in place. There are too many possibilties to list here, but LH could end up playing on Thursday night, or hosting a "home" game at Eagle-Mustang. If Berkner makes the playoffs and plays Garland, Berkner gets use of The Boneyard on Friday night because last year Berkner had to play at Garland’s home field, Williams Stadium, on a Friday night. It’s a UIL rule that when one team wins a home-and-home flip, the next time those same teams meet in the playoffs the other team automatically gets home field. If both LH and Berkner win coin flips for home playoff games, LH might claim Eagle-Mustang as a home field. And if Berkner is home on Friday night, then LH would likely play Thursday. Confused yet?
Of course, a lot of football has to be played before that scenario – or any scenario – comes to fruition. The wheels start to go in motion tonight with Berkner playing W.T. White – Berkner is in with a win, or a loss by less than 13 points. In 10-5A, South Garland plays Naaman Forest – the winner of that game clinches a playoff berth, the loser can make the playoffs but needs other teams to lose.
Oh, and if Berkner loses and doesn’t make the playoffs? That would bump LH up to Division I (big school) and make the Wildcats the second seed from 9-5A, behind Skyline. Most projections have LH being the top seed in Division II (small school) but the other possibility does exist. I don’t think LH, which has traditionally been aligned with the huge Plano schools, has ever been in the big-school bracket.
