Prep football: Wednesday night primer

The playoff picture is becoming more clear ... or not. According to state high school football guru George Felt, 31 teams have clinched a playoff berth with another 41 spots still up for grabs.

Felt reports that no Class 5A team is in the playoffs, while five teams in 4A and another five in 3AA have punched their tickets to the postseason. We've got four of eight decided in 3A and nine of 12 in 2A. Seven of the eight in 1A are locked in, with next week's game between Whitehorse and Monument Valley determining the final spot.

Now a look at a few of the Wednesday night games with heavy playoff implications.

Weber at Syracuse

The Warriors need to win this game to keep their remarkable turnaround headed toward Playoff Town. Weber lost 23 consecutive games entering the season, but the Warriors have turned around things this season. Syracuse has the chance to dash Weber's playoff dreams. The Titans are 3-1 in Region 1, and the offense had averaged 35.7 points per game over their last three games.

Jordan at Brighton

The Beetdiggers try to bounce back from a 48-27 loss to Bingham, which featured four interceptions by Jordan quarterback Austin Kafentzis. Brighton also is coming off a lost to Bingham — 38-27. The game features Bengals running back Osa Masina, a load to bring down, against the Beetdiggers defense. With the exception of a Week 6 shutout of Copper Hills, teams are averaging 38.3 points against Jordan this season. Of course that includes two games against out-of-state opponents, a 38-6 loss to Cathedral Catholic and a 56-26 setback to Bergen Catholic.

Manti at Judge

The Bulldogs are riding a six-game winning streak after dropping their first two games. The defense is giving up just 10.5 points per game during the winning streak. Manti's winning streak is a game shorter (five), and the Templars' lone loss this season came in overtime at Grantsville. Judge must figure out a way to slow down senior Kamren Fowles, who rushed for 411 yards and five TDs in the team's win over Juab last week,

Orem at Skyline

The Eagles have qualified for the playoffs for the last 28 years, but the streak is in jeopardy. They need another win, and this week they get the Tigers, one of the teams they're looking up at. Orem is tied for second in Region 7 and would grab a share of the lead with a win. Senior receiver Nolan Gray is putting together an impressive season — 57 catches for 885 yards and 10 TDs.

Herriman at Lehi

Region 4 already is a mess, and a win by the Pioneers muddies the water even more. The Mustangs are coming off a win over Riverton in the closing seconds, while Lehi knocked off American Fork in Week 8. Herriman must figure out how to slow down Caden Calton, who is averaging 211.8 yards on the ground per game.

Give a listen

If you want even more high school football news and notes, check out the TribPreps Radio, which is ready for download. —

Wednesday's schedule

All games at 7 p.m. unless noted

North Summit at Layton Christian, 4 p.m.

Alta at West Jordan

Altamont at Rich

Ben Lomond at Bear River

Bonneville at Roy

Canyon View at Emery

Copper Hills at Bingham

Desert Hills at Snow Canyon

Dixie at Cedar

Fremont at Viewmont

Granger at West

Grantsville at Delta

Herriman at Lehi

Hillcrest at Hunter

Jordan at Brighton

Juab at Union

Layton at Davis

Logan at Hurricane

Manti at Judge

Monticello at Duchesne

Mountain Crest at Box Elder

Murray at Timpanogos

North Sanpete at Morgan

North Sevier at South Sevier

Olympus at Mountain View

Orem at Skyline

Payson at Pine View

Richfield at Carbon

Sky View at Ogden

Springville at Juan Diego

Stansbury at Park City

Taylorsville at Cottonwood

Uintah at Tooele

Weber at Syracuse

Woods Cross at Corner Canyon