The wait is over for this year\u2019s Oakland County teams who qualified for the MHSAA football playoffs.<\/p>\n
Pairings for the 2026 field were unveiled on Sunday evening, and there\u2019s fewer playbacks of regular season meetings in the opening round than usual, but still plenty of fascinating pairings for the first weekend that could set the table for what would be highly anticipated rematches in the next round and beyond.<\/p>\n
The 32 schools in each of the eight 11-man divisions were seed one to eight in four separate regions, and a few Oakland County teams earned the right to play at home throughout the first three weeks of the playoffs provided they take care of business like they did to secure that opportunity.<\/p>\n
Starting in Division 1, Bloomfield Hills (5-4) will head to Clarkston (8-1), who got the No. 1 seed in Region 2. The winner of that game will take on whichever program comes out on top of Hartland (7-2) at Grand Blanc (9-0). The Wolves beat Grand Blanc 44-22 in a district final last fall.<\/p>\n
Detroit Catholic Central (8-1) got the 2-seed in Region 2 and begins its road to repeat as D1 winner with visiting Lake Orion (4-5). The Shamrocks or Dragons will have a 7-2 team waiting for them in the district final as Davison heads to face Oxford. That last game is a rematch of a recent playoff meeting as the Wildcats beat the Cardinals 21-14 in a district semifinal two seasons ago.\n<\/p>\n
If the Shamrocks win their opener, it\u2019ll lead to either the second season in a row they go through a top OAA Red team (Oxford; Clarkston in 2025), or a rematch of a 56-14 victory over Davison from Week 2 of this season.<\/p>\n
In Region 3, Northville (7-2) play at home to start against a team with an equal record in Brownstown Woodhaven. Unless Dearborn (5-4) springs an upset, the winner of Northville-Woodhaven will likely have another one of D1\u2019s remaining unbeatens, Saline, waiting to host in the second round.<\/p>\n
Romeo\u2019s win against Oxford last Friday allowed the Bulldogs to finish the regular season undefeated and lock up the No. 1 seed in Region 4. They\u2019ll play Anchor Bay (5-4) to start, and the winner of that game will advance to play the victor of Dakota (5-4) at Rochester (6-3) in a district final.<\/p>\n
Two more OAA vs. MAC matchups will take place in the other district of that region. Stoney Creek (7-2) welcomes in L\u2019Anse Creuse North (7-3), and Utica (6-3) goes to play at Rochester Adams (6-3). A win by both of those Rochester teams would pave the way for another game between the Cougars and Highlanders. Adams won the rivalry crossover at home against Stoney Creek 23-14 back on Oct. 9.<\/p>\n
In terms of other D1 contenders, two more unbeatens, Howell and East Kentwood, were paired together in Region 1. Another, Cass Tech, locked up the top seed in Northville\u2019s region.<\/p>\n
Milford (8-1) will host Midland (4-5) in Region 2 of Division 2, and there could be a rematch cooking in the second round for the Mavericks. Walled Lake Western (7-2) will travel to face Midland Dow (7-2), and the Warriors could be headed back to Milford if they beat the Chargers.<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, there\u2019s more Lakes Valley Conference teams in the other district of that region and potentially another fun rematch in store as well. Flushing (5-4) heads to play South Lyon (7-2) and Saginaw Heritage (6-3) rides the bus to South Lyon East (7-2). If South Lyon and East were to win their first-round games, the Lions would be the home team against the Cougars the following weekend in what would not only be a rematch of this year\u2019s league game but of the 2025 district semifinal game that the Lions won 45-21.<\/p>\n