High school football playoffs are here, and 10 of Lexington County's 15 schools qualified for a chance to compete for a state championship. 

Eight of those teams will be in action this week, including four hosting their first playoff match. The other four teams will hit the road, while Dutch Fork and Batesburg-Leesville earned a first-round bye.   

This is the first playoff under the new classification format. Previously, 5A championships were split in two, while every other class had one title game. This season, 1A will be the classification that’s split, and the other four will play one championship game, including 5A. 

That means for teams like Dutch Fork, its path to a fifth straight trophy could be more difficult. 5A should be as competitive as ever with all the largest and best teams in one bracket. Northwestern, the back-to-back Division II state champion, is in the same half of the bracket as the Silver Foxes as well. If they were to face off, it would happen in the semifinal round.   

River Bluff, Gray Collegiate, Gilbert and Irmo are the four teams hosting this week. All four finished top-two in their region or had a high enough RPI to host.   

The Gators finished the year 8-2 and went 4-1 in 5A Region 3 games, good for second place. The team will host Spartanburg, (2-8) overall and (0-5) in 5A Region 2. 

River Bluff will aim to advance further this year than the team did in 2025. Last season, the Gators hosted their first two games but were eliminated by Stratford. 

Gray Collegiate is on the opposite side of the 5A bracket and will host Socastee after finishing the year 4-6 overall and 2-2 in 5A Region 4 standings. The War Eagles ended third behind Sumter and Ridge View.   

Irmo will welcome region rival South Aiken in the first round of the 4A playoffs. The Yellow Jackets went 7-3 overall and 4-1 in their region. 

In their previous meeting, Irmo beat South Aiken 38-14 on the road. 

Down in 3A, Gilbert put together a solid 8-2 season to take second place in its region. The Indians host Atlantic Collegiate to kick off their postseason run. 

Lexington finished third behind River Bluff in the 5A Region 3 standings. The pair met in a game last week that was the difference between traveling and hosting a first-round contest. 

With the loss, the Wildcats are forced to hit the road and travel to Fort Mill to start the playoffs. The Yellow Jackets finished the regular season 8-2 and 3-2 in their region. 

Chapin finished fourth in the big Lexington County 5A region, sneaking into the playoffs thanks to their RPI.

The Eagles will travel to Hillcrest after ending the regular season at an even 5-5. 

It was a strong turnaround year for Chapin, which finished 2025 0-10 and missed the postseason altogether. 

White Knoll was the only Lexington County 5A school to miss the playoffs. 

In the lower classifications, Swansea and Northside Christian will also play this week.   

Swansea earned a crucial win over Brookland-Cayce last week to lock up its spot in the postseason. The Tigers will play Hanahan this Friday. 

Northside Christian’s 8-0 start set the team up nicely, but the Crusaders dropped each of their final two games to fall to third in the region. The team still managed to lock up a playoff spot and will travel to First Baptist in the first round of the SCISA 3A playoffs. 

Below is the full playoff schedule and results from last week. 

Round 1 playoff schedule 

Chapin at Hillcrest - 5A Round 1

Lexington at Fort Mill - 5A Round 1

River Bluff vs. Spartanburg - 5A Round 1

Gray Collegiate vs. Socastee - 5A Round 1

Irmo vs. South Aiken - 4A Round 1

Gilbert vs. Atlantic Collegiate - 3A Round 1

Swansea at Hanahan - 3A Round 1

Northside Christian at First Baptist - SCISA 3A Round 1

Dutch Fork (BYE) - 5A Round 1

Batesburg-Leesville (BYE) - A Division I Round 1

Final region placements 

5A Region 3

1. Dutch Fork - X

2. River Bluff - X

3. Lexington - X

4. Chapin - X

5. White Knoll - E

5A Region 4

3. Gray Collegiate - X

4A Region 5

2. Irmo - X

3A Region 4

2. Gilbert - X

3. Swansea - X

4. Brookland-Cayce - E

6. Airport - E

2A Region 4

5. Pelion - E

6. American Leadership - E

1A Region 2 

1. Batesburg-Leesville - X 

SCISA 3A Region 1

3. Northside Christian - X

Last week’s top performances 

Britton Davis threw four touchdown passes in Irmo’s win over Fox Creek.   

Daniell Preston scored two touchdowns as Gilbert beat Lower Richland.   

Deandre Caldwell ran for 140 yards to help Swansea beat Brookland-Cayce. 

Michael Robinson ran for two touchdowns in Dutch Fork’s win versus White Knoll. 

Lexington County scoreboard

Dutch Fork:  49, White Knoll: 7

River Bluff: 28, Lexington:  14

Irmo: 73, Fox Creek: 0

Camden: 69, Airport: 27  

Gilbert: 42, Lower Richland: 22

Swansea: 45, Brookland-Cayce: 28

Pelion: 38, American Leadership: 7

Batesburg-Leesville: 49, Ridge Spring-Monetta: 6

Wilson Hall: 34, Northside Christian: 9