Ihsa Football Playoffs: Ottawa, Fcw Draw Road Games; Sandwich Will Be At Home

Get on the bus that's what two of the three Times-area prep football playoff teams learned Saturday night.

The Illinois High School Association announced the following pairings: Class 5A, Ottawa at Peoria Richwoods; Class 4A, Chicago Harper at Sandwich; Class 1A, Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland at Lexington.

Ottawa's Pirates (6-3), who clinched a playoff berth and a share of a conference title Friday night, face a serious challenge. Ottawa drew the No. 8 seed and will face the 9-0 Richwoods Knights, the top seed in the lower bracket of Class 5A.

After losing their regular-season finale, the 8-1 Sandwich Indians get to host a home playoff game. Sandwich is the fourth seed in the upper bracket of 4A; Harper's Cardinals (6-3) hold the No. 13 seed.

In a matchup of 6-3 teams, fifth seed FCW has a return bout against Heart of Illinois Conference rival Lexington. The Warriors nipped the Minutemen 13-12 on Sept. 3 at Lexington.

Dates and starting times for these games will be announced in the next couple of days. Complete playoff pairings are available online at www.ihsa.org. Additional playoff coverage will be in Monday's edition of The Times.