Polls, standings as Region 2 football teams head into final three weeks of regular season

It’s that time of year — the nine-man football football playoffs are less than a month away.

And, in turn, so are the Division A playoffs.

As of Sept. 30, there are three games left in the regular season for nine-man and A.

New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock remains the No. 1 in nine-man, with 13 of the 17 first place-votes in the North Dakota Associated Press Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association poll released Wednesday.

The Rockets are 6-0. They most recently beat Midway/Minto in Maddock’s homecoming game. Their program winning streak is up to 31 — tied with 1975-77 Shanley for the seventh-longest in North Dakota high school football history across all levels. One more win would tie the Rockets for sixth all-time with the 1978-80 Watford City Wolves. They have Nelson County, North Star and Four Winds left on their schedule, in that order.

Cavalier’s playoff chances are looking comfortable with a 5-1 record; after that is where it gets crowded in Region 2. Four Winds and North Prairie are both 4-2, while North Border is 3-3 and has a potential tiebreaker over Four Winds. St. John is trending upward, with a 3-3 record after recording back-to-back shutouts. Among Four Winds, North Prairie, North Border and St. John, only two teams can join the Rockets and Tornadoes in the playoffs.

Cavalier is the lone unranked nine-man team to receive votes in the latest poll. The Tornadoes came back from a 24-0 deficit to Four Winds last Friday, winning 34-24 for their fifth consecutive victory.

Four Winds has a key matchup with North Prairie this Friday and St. John on Thursday, Oct. 8.

In Division A, Langdon Area/Munich remains on the outside looking in at the top five. The Cardinals are the lone unranked team receiving votes.

With a 5-1 overall record, and 3-1 in Region 2 play, LA/M is tied with Grafton for second place in the region. The Cardinals won’t play Grafton until the final week of the regular season, so the tiebreaker isn’t determined yet. But LA/M is in line to get the No. 2 or 3 seed even after losing 41-13 to Harvey/Wells County in its region opener. The Cardinals have won three straight region games, all in decisive fashion.

LA/M hosts Carrington (2-4, 2-2) on Friday.

Here are the latest state NDAPSSA polls, plus a look at the standings ahead of Oct. 2 Friday night football action.

Nine-man and Division A playoffs will begin Oct. 24.

Nine-man poll

1. New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock (13) – 89 points (Previous: 1)
2. LaMoure-Litchville/Marion (4) – 75 points (Previous: 2)
3. Linton/HMB – 58 points (Previous: 3)
4. Napoleon/Gackle-Streeter – 23 points (Previous: 5)
5. Alexander – 21 points (Previous: 4)

Received votes: Cavalier

Nine-man, Region 2 standings as of Sept. 30

1. New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock (6-0)
2. Cavalier (5-1)
3. Four Winds (4-2)
4. North Prairie (4-2)
5. North Border (3-3)
6. St. John (3-3)
7. North Star (2-4)
8. Larimore (2-4)
9. Midway/Minto (1-5)
10. Nelson County (0-6)

Division A poll

1. Velva/Drake-Anamoose/Garrison (12) – 78 points (Previous: 1)
2. Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm (5) – 71 points (Previous: 2)
3. Northern Cass – 42 points (Previous: 3)
4. Harvey/Wells County – 37 points (Previous: 4)
5. Central McLean – 16 points (Previous: 5)

Received votes: Langdon Area/Munich

Division A, Region 2 standings as of Sept. 30

1. Harvey/Wells County (4-2, 4-0)
2. Langdon Area/Munich (5-1, 3-1)
3. Grafton (5-1, 3-1)
4. Rugby (4-2, 2-2)
5. Thompson (4-2, 2-2)
6. Carrington (2-4, 2-2)
7. Park River Area (1-5, 0-4)
8. Turtle Mountain (0-6, 0-4)