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Below are some quick takeaways from Level 1 of the high school football playoffs. Look for a full preview of each division to come out next week on WisSports.net.

Road teams did quite well on Friday night, as lower-seeded teams won 23 of the 109 match-ups, a winning percentage of 23%. Not bad for a group of teams that some people feel shouldn't be in the playoffs. EDIT: All three home teams won on Saturday, so road teams won 23 of 112 games in Level 1, a winning percentage of 20.5%.

It was the most successful showing by road teams since 2012, the first year the WIAA went to true 1-8 seeding in regional groupings. That year, 27 of 112 road teams claimed victory for a winning percentage of 24.1%. That percentage had gone down each of the last two years, from 19.6% in 2013 to just 15.2% last season.

There were a number of anomalies in 2012 as coaches adjusted to seeding regions themselves. A total of nine teams seeded 7th or lower won that year, including three #8 seeds. That number had fallen to just three in 2013 and one in 2014 however.

Last night, we saw the success by #7 seeds increase significantly, as seven such teams claimed victory. In addition, six #6 teams knocked off #3 squads. The full list of #6 or #7 upsets is below:

#6 Eau Claire Memorial over #3 Bay Port 29-0
#6 Cedarburg over #3 Slinger 8-0
#6 Oregon over #3 Milton 14-7
#6 Mosinee over #3 Antigo 21-0
#6 Tomahawk over #3 Black River Falls 19-0
#6 Highland over #3 Wild Rose 28-26

#7 Sun Prairie over #2 Middleton 30-23
#7 Union Grove over #2 Greenfield 27-6
#7 Wisconsin Lutheran over #2 New Berlin Eisenhower 18-7
#7 Fox Valley Lutheran over #2 Sheboygan Falls 20-14
#7 Brookwood over #2 Markesan 33-0
#7 Racine St. Catherine's over #2 Kenosha St. Joseph 7-0
#7 Cambridge over #2 Cuba City 14-7

It was a tough night for several prominent conferences. Perhaps most notably, the Woodland-East and -West combined to go just 1-6, with the only victory by Whitnall over Saint Francis (who left the Woodland prior to last year). Woodland champion Greenfield was a 2-seed but fell to the fourth place team from the Southern Lakes, Union Grove, by a final of 27-6. Woodland-West co-champs New Berlin Eisenhower and Greendale also lost. 2nd-seeded Ike fell to #7 Wisconsin Lutheran, the defending D3 champion, 18-7, while Greendale was blown out at home, 39-6 to Wilmot.

The Big Eight Conference qualified seven teams for the WIAA playoffs in Division 1, but that group went just 2-5, as both victories came over other Big Eight schools. League champion Middleton was a #2 seed, but lost to suburban rival Sun Prairie 30-23. Verona did make a very good showing against Arrowhead before falling 10-3, and 8th-seeded Madison East hung tough with unbeaten Oconomowoc, however.

The Milwaukee City Conference has been much maligned in the last few years, and the league struggled once again. Milwaukee King, who made headlines with a victory over Menomonee Falls last year, beat league foe Milwaukee Washington 40-14. It was the only victory for the conference, as the other six league teams lost by a combined score of 338-14.

The Mississippi Valley Conference is another league that struggled, finishing 1-4 in Level 1. La Crosse Logan's 36-6 win over Madison Edgewood was the lone victory. The other four MVC teams all faced off against squads from the Badger-North, and things did not go well.

Waunakee beat Tomah, DeForest topped Holmen, Mount Horeb/Barneveld defeated West Salem, and Reedsburg was all over Onalaska. The combined score in those four games was 173-26. In the next round, Logan will host Reedsburg, as those two teams have scrimmaged against each other in the pre-season for several years.

Somerset narrowly snuck into the playoffs as one of the last teams in, finishing under .500 in conference play. Wisconsin Lutheran won its final game of the regular season to qualify as well, in a year where the defending champions struggled as a whole. Three of them went down last night. Below is the full recap of how they did.

D1: Kimberly beat Green Bay Preble, 38-14
D2: Menasha beat Hortonville, 38-15
D3: Wisconsin Lutheran beat New Berlin Eisenhower, 18-7
D4: Somerset lost to Saint Croix Central, 35-14
D5: Lancaster lost to Westby, 39-6
D6: Saint Mary's Springs beat Shiocton, 41-6
D7: Owen-Withee lost to Clayton, 33-22

From my house in Reedsburg I traveled to Mount Horeb, the first time I've watched a home game of Mount Horeb/Barneveld. Through the mist and fog, I saw four sets of Friday Night Lights during my travels: Reedsburg, River Valley (Spring Green), Wisconsin Heights (playing an extra game vs Parkview), and Mount Horeb. It's always cool seeing the glow of the lights as you pass through small towns, and the effect of the mist and haze made it seem like the football fields were lighting up the whole town.

This was my first chance to see Mount Horeb/Barneveld quarterback Max Meylor in person, and I came away very impressed. He's put up big numbers since his sophomore year, and moved into 8th position on the state's passing yards list with 142 last night, despite the wind, rain, and blowout score. He's just 22 yards from moving up into 6th place. 

He's the real deal, and D1-FCS schools are completely missing the boat on him right now, as he has no offers to date. He's got all the tools you look for in a quarterback, including good size (6-3, 215), arm strength, and athletic ability. Playing in the fast-paced offense that Mount Horeb/Barneveld utilizes, he can hurt you in so many ways. If there's any doubt about his skills, put on the tape of a second quarter touchdown pass from 22 yards out. Meylor sat in the pocket, but when no one broke open, he rolled to his left. He was able to square his shoulders and fire a 35-yard dart to Ryan Vogel in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. It was a big-time, D1-caliber throw.

Let's not forget his competitiveness, fully on display in football but also on the basketball court where he was the team's best player at the state hoops tourney last year when the Vikings won a Division 2 title. Someone get the kid a scholarship already.

Mount Horeb/Barneveld showed they are a team built to win in a multitude of fashions however, as they ran the ball 57 times for 247 yards and 3 touchdowns in the poor weather. Matt Blome was very impressive picking his way through the West Salem defense, and Tristan Simpson provides a nice complimentary back. The Vikings lost a close one to Monona Grove in Week 1, and a rematch awaits in Level 2 of the playoffs. 

I would be remiss if I did not mention the outstanding Mount Horeb High School marching band. They had over 200 members there, from a school enrollment of just 758. It is easily the largest high school marching band I've seen, and they were outstanding. A credit to the school and Director of Bands, Mr. Will Janssen.

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.