Until we get this year's ADM numbers, it is futile to try to project exactly who will be seeded where (not even East-West split can be totally determined until the 2A/2AA split is done), but one thing we can start to pin down is which 64 teams will qualify for the playoffs. Here is the rundown conference by conference around the state in 2A:
Northeastern-Coastal: First place will come down to Northeastern vs. Hertford, Holmes is all but locked in to third, Bertie is looking good for a wild card if they can hold serve against the teams they should beat, last week Pasquotank was also looking like a wild card, but their loss at First Flight not only temporarily leaves them on the outside looking in, but puts First Flight in a position for a wild card if they can win one of their last four, best chance will be home against a Currituck team they lost to once
East Central: Very intriguing race for the top three spots in this league; even with Northside forfeiting their non-conference wins, they are still very much alive for first place, but both East Duplin and Croatan may have something to say about that, North Brunswick might stir things up if they knock off any of the above, and would be in a position for a wild card if they can beat SW Onslow and Dixon, neither of whom are mathematically eliminated but would both have to pull off huge upsets to make the playoffs
Eastern Plains: SW Edgecombe is clearly the on-paper favorite, still undefeated in mid-October, and they have games remaining at home against the teams that figure to be their stiffest competition, in Washington and Beddingfield, if SWE runs the table, then the battle for second will probably come down to Beddingfield and Washington, two teams that both played brutal non-conference schedules, Farmville Central is going to have a rough time contending for the top spot but could find themselves in the playoffs if they can pick up a couple of conference wins, best chances against North Johnston and North Pitt
Eastern Carolina: First place will come down to the game between Kinston and Greene Central, third place will come down to the game between Ayden-Grifton and Goldsboro, whoever comes in fourth among these two will most likely get a wild card berth, provided they take care of business against North Lenoir and South Lenoir
Three Rivers: It's always tough to figure out a split conference but even tougher when there is so much parody that there could be multiple ties, the power ratings point to Red Springs as the favorite in the 2A division of this conference but those same power ratings projected the Red Devils to beat Whiteville last week, which did not happen...whoever wins the Fairmont/South Columbus game this week will have a shot to take the top seed in 2A if they can also beat Red Springs, and/or if they can beat Whiteville
Four County: All four of the 2A teams are almost locks for the playoffs already with five wins. Clinton looks the strongest and already has wins over East Bladen and Midway, and will be heavy favorites in their next three games before playing Wallace-Rose Hill in what could be for the outright conference championship, though both are looking at being seeded as #1s in their respective playoff brackets, the East Bladen win over Midway will help the Eagles' playoff positioning and probably result in the Raiders facing a near impossible first round opponent
Northern Carolina: Bunn has been the on paper favorite here all season, loaded with size and speed, they dropped a couple of tough non-conference games but have looked dominant in recent weeks, but second through the bottom appears to be wide open, defending champ Roanoke Rapids has a good overall record, and would love to play spoiler again, but this year they travel to Bunn...that instant classic between Franklinton and South Granville last Friday could very well go along way toward settling third place in the conference, Southern Vance does not have a good record but they always have good athletes with game changing speed, Warren lost their best players from last year to graduation and also had a coaching change late in the game, these bottom four have all struggled in non-conference play, some against absolutely brutal competition, but could get into the playoffs if they can pick up three conference wins
Mid-State: Reidsville is the heavy favorite according to the power ratings, with in all likelihood, having Cummings being the only team standing in their way, behind those two, it appears that everybody else is battling for third, and outside of Carrboro, what an intriguing battle it could be every Friday night as Jordan-Matthews, Bartlett Yancey, and Graham all battle for third place and the last automatic playoff berth, a three way tie is possible if JM, BY, and Graham all go 1-1 against each other and 2-3 in conference, which would lead to a random draw, not for 1,2,3 in conference but whoever wins the draw would be in the playoffs, the other two would stay home, as wild card berths do not look too attainable for anybody at the bottom of this league based on overall records
PAC 6: Andrews looks dominant at the top, if they take care of the ball and avoid playing sloppy by limiting the turnovers and penalties, they probably will not even have a close game until at least the second round of the playoffs, great race for the other playoff spots though between all those teams from Randolph County: the game between Eastern Randolph and Randleman may be the game that decides second and third place, but don't count out Wheatmore and Providence Grove, either or whom could jump up and bite ER or Randleman if either stumbles, but neither would likely get a wild card, and would need to finish third in the league to make the playoffs, Trinity is also out to play spoiler and could sneak into the playoffs, if and only if they win at least two of their last four games, but three of those four are on the road
One other thing to remember: You are ineligible for the playoffs if more than three players get ejected for fighting over the course of a season, let alone in one game. If a brawl breaks out and more than three players from one team get tossed, then that team will play its last game on Nov. 6 even if they are 11-0
