On pairings night, the 7A bracket definitely had a vibe connected to it.

Simply put, there were a lot of hypothetical directions the bracket could have gone.

And with just three of the top 10 seeds still standing after the first two rounds the bracket clearly chose chaos.

First-round predictions: 15-1

Second-round predictions: 4-4

Quarterfinal round matchups

Hersey vs. St. Rita: Hersey has carried its high-octane offense over to the postseason as it has dropped nearly 100 points in two playoff games, including 42 in boosting a top-seed (Richards) from the draw. St. Rita is one of just four teams still playing with four regular-season losses, but almost no one can claim a schedule that prepared them better for the rigors of the postseason.

Pick: St. Rita

Batavia vs. Glenbard North: Batavia volunteered to play up to Class 7A claiming more familiarity with the playoff field in that class. Well, that certainly proved correct in this case as a conference rival awaits them in the quarterfinal round. Batavia won the regular season matchup between the two, 41-13 back in Week 3, but Glenbard North looks like a much different team right now than it did then.

Pick: Batavia

Downers Grove North vs. Lincoln-Way West: Downers Grove North was probably one of the most deceptive No. 15 seeds in recent memory as the fully-equipped Trojans with QB Owen Lansu under center is a dangerous group. Lincoln-Way West has beaten two Chicago Public League teams to get to this point, but don’t misunderstand that as a team that isn’t worthy of a quarterfinal slot as a solid defense coupled with RB Jahan Abubakar makes the Warriors a dangerous squad to deal with.

Pick: Downers Grove North

St. Charles North vs. Brother Rice: St. Charles North was able to do what very few other schools have been able to do in jettisoning a CCL/ESCC team from the playoff draw as it beat Carmel in Round 2. And now the North Stars will have to try to do it again against a Brother Rice team that has just been brutalizing opponents thus far.

Pick: Brother Rice