Loomis at South Loup preview: what's at stake in Week 8

No. 4 Loomis (7-0) travels to South Loup (4-3) on Friday in a Week 8 D2 Nebraska high school football game with a ranked Loomis team trying to protect its spot in the Hurrdat Sports coaches poll and wildcard points that count toward NSAA playoff qualifying and seeding on the line. Records are from NSAA's wildcard standings, pulled Oct. 12 at 10:42 p.m. This one matters because Loomis puts an unbeaten record on the line and South Loup gets a shot at a ranked opponent.

Loomis sits No. 4 in D2 in the latest Hurrdat Sports coaches poll (2026-10-11). Loomis is 7-0 in NSAA results. Loomis has won seven straight in our synced finals. Most recently, it beat Franklin 62-8, beat Bertrand 20-18 and beat Wilcox-Hildreth 38-12. Across its 7 games with verified finals, Loomis averages 54.6 points and allows 13.4.

South Loup is 4-3 in NSAA results. In its last three games with a final in our synced scores, newest first, South Loup lost to Bertrand 53-6, lost to Arapahoe 38-0 and beat Franklin 56-0. Across its 7 games with verified finals, South Loup averages 27.7 points and allows 28.7.

What's at stake

Loomis carries a 43.1429 NSAA wildcard points average, 3rd of 36 teams in D2 by average; its path to the playoffs is a district title or an at-large spot (projection, not official). South Loup carries a 38.4286 NSAA wildcard points average, 16th of 36 teams in D2 by average; its path to the playoffs is a district title or an at-large spot (projection, not official). In D2, the 6 district champions qualify automatically, and the 10 best averages among non-champions fill the rest of the 16-team field. Wildcard points decide who qualifies and how the field is seeded; see the Nebraska high school football wildcard standings and the playoff format.

Matchup to watch

The matchup to watch is Loomis's defense, which has allowed 13.4 points per game, against a South Loup offense that scores 27.7. Both have played Bertrand: Loomis beat Bertrand 20-18, and South Loup lost to Bertrand 53-6. Both have played Franklin: Loomis beat Franklin 62-8, and South Loup beat Franklin 56-0.

Our pick

Our NEB Preps Power Index favors Loomis, giving it a 90% chance to win (87.6 to 52.6 on the index, with a small home-field edge for South Loup). This is NEB Preps' own computer pick from verified finals, not a poll or a betting line.