Playoff Preview

THE ROAD TO A CHAMPION STARTS HERE

The regular season is complete. The field is set. Eight teams remain in the chase for the 2026 Forsyth County Middle Schools football championship.

After eight weeks of regular-season games, Liberty earned the No. 1 seed with a perfect 7-0 record, while Hendricks secured the No. 2 seed at 6-1.

Behind them, the race was much tighter.

Vickery Creek, North Forsyth and Lakeside all finished 5-2, requiring tiebreakers to determine the No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 seeds. South Forsyth secured the No. 6 seed at 4-3, while another tiebreaker was needed between Little Mill and Otwell for the final two positions.

Now the standings are settled and the postseason begins.

From this point forward, there is no margin for error.

Win and advance. Lose and the season is over.

2026 PLAYOFF BRACKET

HOW THE SEEDS WERE SET

The final records didn't tell the entire story. Two sets of ties required tiebreakers to determine the final playoff seeding.

THE 5-2 LOGJAM

Vickery Creek, North Forsyth and Lakeside each finished 5-2, creating a three-team battle for the No. 3 through No. 5 seeds.

Vickery Creek's head-to-head victory over North Forsyth gave the Vipers the advantage and the No. 3 seed.

That left North Forsyth and Lakeside tied for the next spot. Both teams lost to top-seeded Liberty, but Lakeside also lost to No. 2 Hendricks, while North Forsyth did not face the Hawks.

That gave North Forsyth a 0-1 record against the top two seeds compared with Lakeside's 0-2 mark, providing the edge in the tiebreaker. North earned the No. 4 seed, while Lakeside landed at No. 5.

The result? Two teams that finished with identical records will meet immediately in the opening round.

THE BATTLE FOR NO. 7

The other tiebreaker went much deeper.

Little Mill and Otwell both finished 3-4, and four tiebreakers weren't enough to separate them.

The decision eventually reached the fifth tiebreaker — highest-seeded road win.

Little Mill owned a road victory over Riverwatch, while Otwell did not record a road win during the regular season. That was enough to give the Mustangs the No. 7 seed, with Otwell taking the No. 8 seed.

After eight weeks, the playoff field was finally set.

NO. 1 LIBERTY VS. NO. 8 OTWELL

Liberty enters the postseason as the team everyone is chasing.

The Patriots completed a perfect 7-0 regular season, scoring 260 points while allowing just 90. Their +170 point differential was the best in the league, and they enter the playoffs riding a seven-game winning streak.

Otwell comes in at 3-4 with an opportunity to wipe the slate clean. The Bulldogs had impressive moments during the regular season, but their postseason begins with the biggest challenge on the bracket: knocking off the undefeated No. 1 seed.

NO. 4 NORTH FORSYTH VS. NO. 5 LAKESIDE

On paper, this might be the most evenly matched game of the quarterfinal round.

Both teams finished 5-2, and a tiebreaker was required just to determine which would receive the No. 4 seed.

North Forsyth produced a league-high 270 points during the regular season and finished with a +156 point differential. Lakeside scored 214 points and enters the postseason having won its final two games.

They finished with the same record. Now they get to settle it on the field.

NO. 3 VICKERY CREEK VS. NO. 6 SOUTH FORSYTH

Don't let the three-seed difference fool you.

Vickery Creek finished 5-2 and emerged from the three-team tiebreaker with the No. 3 seed. The Vipers scored 212 points while allowing just 107, giving them a +105 point differential.

South Forsyth enters at 4-3, but perhaps more importantly, the Eagles enter the playoffs hot. South closed the regular season with three consecutive victories, giving the Eagles the second-longest active winning streak among playoff teams behind Liberty.

Vickery Creek has the higher seed. South Forsyth has momentum.

NO. 2 HENDRICKS VS. NO. 7 LITTLE MILL

Hendricks put together one of the strongest regular seasons in the county.

The Hawks finished 6-1, with their only loss coming against top-seeded Liberty. Hendricks allowed just 111 points and closed the regular season with three consecutive victories on the way to securing the No. 2 seed.

Little Mill finished 3-4 and needed a tiebreaker to earn the No. 7 seed, but none of that matters now.

The Mustangs are in.

One win would send them to the semifinals and eliminate one of the championship favorites.

2026 Final standings

The final numbers show both Liberty's dominance and just how crowded the field became behind the Patriots.

Those numbers helped determine how they got here.

Now they have to settle it on the field.

FOLLOW THE PLAYOFFS

FCMS-Athletics.com will be the home for the 2026 postseason.

Playoff Central will be updated throughout the postseason with scores, an updated bracket, semifinal matchups, championship information, recaps and more as the field moves from eight teams to one champion.

Bookmark this page and check back after each round as the road to the championship continues.

Eight teams. Seven games. One champion.

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