DIAA Football Preview: Salesianum, Caravel and Indian River grab No. 1 seeds

Salesianum football Brady McBride hands the ball off to Jasir Gaymon. Photo by Ben Fulton

On the eve of the kickoff of the DIAA Football state championships, here’s a look into each bracket and preview some key teams and matchups.

DIAA Football Divison 3A

The Salesianum Sals have been the No. 1 seed all season, going undefeated versus in-state opponents. Their only loss came to out-of-state opponent Malvern Prep. The Sals face off against the No. 8 seed Cape Henlopen to start their quest for back-to-back state championships with a rematch from last year’s state championship in the first round. The winner will see either No. 4 Sussex Central or No. 5 Appoquinimink. Sallies defeated Appo earlier in the season, but did not face Central this year. The bottom of the bracket has No. 2 Smyrna verse No. 7 St Georges and No. 3 Middletown verses No. 6 Hodgson.

DIAA Football Division 2A

The Caravel Buccaneers have been dominant all season. They went 10-0 on the season and look to repeat as state champions. The Bucs will face off against the No. 8 seed Laurel Bulldogs on Friday night. The winner will face either  No. 4 seed Archmere (a rematch from last year’s state championship) or the No. 5 seed Woodbridge Blue Raiders. In the lower half of the bracket, No. 2 Delmar faces No. 7 Red Lion, while No. 3 Howard plays No. 6 Lake Forest.

DIAA Football Division 1A

The No. 1 seed Indian River Indians went 9-1 on the season, going undefeated in 1A play as their only loss came to 2A Delmar. The Hornets face the No. 8 Conrad Red Wolves. The winner will face either No. 4 seed Polytech or No. 5 seed First State Military. In the bottom of the bracket, the No. 2 Tatnall Hornets enter the playoffs with a 10-0 record. They want to repeat as state champions, but first, they must beat No. 7 St Elizabeth’s. In the other quarterfinal game, No. 3 Brandywine faces No. 6 Christiana.

You can see the brackets here (game times, dates, and locations), but come back here to get updates on individual games and links to replays of live-streamed games.