The first opening round in the history of the Illinois high school football playoffs is complete, and it raises an obvious question: was expanding the field a good idea? The Illinois High School Association increased the number of qualifiers from 32 teams per class to 48. The top 16 seeds in each class received byes, while some teams with records of 3-6 or 2-7 got to play their way in on the field.

Some opening-round games were lopsided, and more are likely to follow. Still, many teams proved they were better than their records suggested, particularly those from tough conferences, including Glenbard North, St. Charles East, St. Francis and Nazareth. Naperville Central and Warren played a competitive game, and Rolling Meadows, which entered at 2-7, got past Addison Trail in one of the bigger surprises.

The case for expansion may rest on what it meant to the players. Reavis and Elgin, each without a playoff win in more than a decade, played a lively game with two fourth-quarter lead changes and a late defensive stop before Reavis prevailed 31-28. The Rams will probably struggle this week against East St. Louis, which beat Mount Carmel in its season opener. Under the old format, though, Reavis would not have qualified, and Elgin would have gone directly to East St. Louis. This way, Reavis earned a win and some lasting memories. One way to look at it is as a 10th game for most schools.

In Class 8A, the featured game sends Barrington to Sandburg. Barrington lost to Lyons in Week 1 despite high expectations. Sandburg started 0-4 and used four quarterbacks because of injuries, but it has won six straight. Barrington is ranked No. 22 in the Chicago Tribune's Top 25. No. 2 Mount Carmel remains the team to beat, and No. 1 Lincoln-Way East is expected to play a second-round game at Hinsdale Central. A win would give Hinsdale Central a home quarterfinal against Mount Carmel. Possible second-round matchups include No. 10 St. Ignatius at No. 14 Maine South and No. 24 York at No. 3 Loyola.

Class 7A offers a near toss-up in Glenbard East at Kenwood. Kenwood improved after a rough start, playing No. 18 Morgan Park close in the city championship game, while Glenbard East cleaned up early mistakes and collected some solid late wins. Brother Rice and East St. Louis are viewed as the top contenders, with Hersey also mentioned. The forecast calls for Jacobs to have a tough test against Glenbard North, and for Moline, which beat Benet on a last-second play, to find less luck at Glenbard West.

In Class 6A, Joliet Catholic travels to Wheaton Warrenville South. The home team has only six senior starters but has arrived ahead of schedule. Joliet Catholic is 6-4, with losses to No. 21 Fenwick, No. 19 Providence, No. 2 Mount Carmel and No. 5 IC Catholic, and finished third in the DuKane Conference. Geneva is seen as the team to beat, led by receiver Bennett Konkey, who received an Ohio State offer last week but visited Champaign on Saturday and said he remains committed to Illinois. The bracket is considered top-heavy, with arguably 10 of the 16 best teams in the top half. The prediction is that the Joliet Catholic and Wheaton Warrenville South winner reaches the downstate rounds.

Class 5A features defending champion St. Francis at Kaneland. Kaneland lost only to No. 23 Morris, while St. Francis went 4-5 against a very difficult schedule and has plenty of college-level talent, making the Spartans strong favorites. Providence at Kankakee is a close second, as Kankakee led Lincoln-Way East in the fourth quarter in Week 2. Undefeated Mahomet-Seymour is the team to beat. Morgan Park and King are predicted to advance as Public League teams.

In the smaller classes, the top half of the 4A bracket could be decided in the second round if Montini and Morris meet. Class 3A may not get interesting for a few weeks, until unbeaten Byron and Richmond-Burton can face IC Catholic. In Class 2A, Aurora Christian is probably the Chicago-area team with the best chance to make noise.