The real racing in the San Diego Section playoffs, including competition in the Open Division, begins tonight with quarterfinals games on fields drying out from recent rain.
Teams with championship hopes also have their sights set beyond, to the state playoffs which begin in  three weeks,  following section championships.
Oceanside is seventh in Cal-Hi Sports‘ Top 25 for the third consecutive week, with Cathedral  17th, and El Capitan 24th.
Oceanside is fifth in Division IÂ South, El Capitan first in D-III South, and Christian first in D-IV South.
Cathedral is 13th in D-I South, while Helix, Eastlake, and Mission Hills tread cautiously on the bubble.
San Diego’s Open Division champion, be it Oceanside or Cathedral, likely will get strong consideration for a berth in the State D-I playoffs.
Oceanside would be a longshot for a state Open invitation, logically because Southern Section contenders for the Open would have gone through a competitively much tougher playoff run.
Cathedral  would not be considered  even if it won San Diego’s Open.  The Dons would not be able to live down the 55-10, season-opening loss to Folsom.
El Capitan would be favored for a D-III state playoff berth should it win out in D-II in San Diego. Â Christian, because it has less than 500 students, would drop from D-III to D-IV if it gets that far.
Rancho Bernardo, Sweetwater and San Marcos rank 8, 9, and 10 respectively in D-III South.
State playoff divisions are determined in part by enrollment, “competitive equity” (good wins vis-a-vis bad losses, strength of schedule), and politics.
