There are a few things to keep in mind when preparing to view this weekend’s Class 5A quarterfinals.

First, it’s about the scoring. The eight quarterfinalists are within the top 11 point totals of 2018 and not just because they are still alive and played extra football. Hardly. Keep in mind all of them had a bye the previous week. And when they resumed play in the second round, these guys each scored at least 30 points and six of them had 41 or more.

Second, it’s about familiarity. Three of the four meetings this round will be rematches, each of them in league.

Third, it’s about power, as in the same district and former league challengers. No one is shocked that the old Centennial League’s — and Cherry Creek District members — Cherry Creek, Eaglecrest, Grandview and Valor Christian are here. Same thing goes for Jefferson County’s Columbine, defending state champion Pomona and Ralston Valley.

And fourth, it’s about status quo. Even with the first byes in playoffs for big schools since the switch was made from 4A to the short-lived 6A from 1990-93 — the off weeks lasted for the first two seasons — the top eight seeds are still here.

Below are the latest matchups, three on Friday and one on Saturday, labelled and broken down for your viewing pleasure:

(8) ThunderRidge (9-2) vs. (1) Valor Christian (11-0), Friday, 7 p.m., Valor Christian

Valor beat the Grizzlies 38-17 in Week 9 in the Metro South League. … ThunderRidge looked pretty crisp in the second round in handling Fairview 30-13. Sure, the Knights didn’t have to deal with junior quarterback Aidan Atkinson (recently pledged to Northwestern), who was leading the nation in passing — he has been out since Week 10 with an injured thumb that required surgery — but that wasn’t the Grizzlies’ problem. They dominated the game, never trailed and are looking forward to the rematch with the Eagles. … QB Ryan Gilmore was only 5-of-13 passing for 40 yards and no touchdowns against Fairview, but was a huge part of the 207 yards rushing rang up by the Grizzlies. Gilmore had 85 and ran for a TD, Spencer Lambert had 104 yards on 14 carries and two TDs, and junior Chase Higgins added 18 yards rushing. … Ethan Frasier was in on 18 tackles in leading the defensive parade and Cy Paul had a hand in 11. Jordan Cutter was in on seven tackles and had an interception. … Valor is 37-2 in the playoffs since joining play late the past decade. No other 5A team is remotely close. .. ThunderRidge had only played Valor one other time before this season, losing 49-3 in the 5A semifinals in 2012. … The Eagles are coming off a 44-6 spanking of Regis Jesuit. Senior QB Luke McCaffrey was a fairly modest 14-of-25 for 169 yards, two TDs and an interception, but freshman Gavin Sawchuk erupted for 215 yards rushing on 18 carries and a TD. In seeing action in only five games to date, he also had 197 yards rushing and two TDs against Highlands Ranch on Oct. 26. … McCaffrey also rushed for 86 yards and a TD last week. … Junior Chase Lopez had six receptions for 103 yards and a TD against Regis, and Kaiden Keefe, another junior, had three catches for 52 yards and another TD.

(5) Grandview (10-1) vs. (4) Eaglecrest (10-1), Saturday, 1 p.m., Legacy Stadium

They played in Week 6 to open the new Metro East and Eaglecrest won 36-35. There are two ways to look at it and it depends on which side of Southeastern Aurora you stand — either Eaglecrest rallied from a big deficit to win or Grandview blew a two touchdown lead in the fourth quarter to lose. … Over 15 seasons, Grandview holds a 10-5 edge in head-to-head meetings. … The Wolves gradually wore down Legacy last week, winning 45-21, and shook off 16 penalties for 164 yards to roll to 24 first downs and 488 yards of offense. … In powering to 358 yards rushing, senior Jordan Billingsley (153 yards and a TD) and sophomore Noah Schmidt (138 yards) led the way. … QB Jacob Burr, another sophomore, had the biggest day, going 7-of-10 passing for 130 yards and three TDs, and rushing for 39 yards and another two TDs. … Eaglecrest, the 2017 state runner-up, is on its third head coach in less than two seasons, but still hasn’t missed a beat. In addition to having its previous head coach resign after this year’s opening game, the school principal and athletic director were penalized for not being diligent in checking a player’s eligibility. So, yes, these Raptors know how to handle themselves in the face of poor adult performance. …  The Raptors, whose only loss was by a point to Cherry Creek in Week 8, bashed Lakewood 48-15 last week. Isaiah Emecheta ran for 214 yards and two TDs, and QB Dylan James went for 172 and two TDs as Eaglecrest piled up 475 on the ground.

(7) Pomona (7-4) vs. (2) Columbine (11-0), Friday, 7 p.m., Jefferson County Stadium

Columbine beat the Panthers 35-13 in Week 9 in the Metro West. … In its last 16 meetings with Columbine, Pomona is 7-9, and just about all of them have been punishing and physical. … The Panthers, who also are bidding for their fourth consecutive finals appearance, have lost as many as four times only twice in eight seasons. And they annually play one of big schools’ most-demanding schedules. … Injuries have played a huge part in Pomona’s season, but it refuses to blink. Tough is part of its makeup. … The Panthers beat rival Arvada West 34-7 the past round, their second victory over the Wildcats in six weeks. The first score was 41-27. … Riley Welsch hooked up with David Ross for a 51-yard TD pass to open the scoring last week and Dominic Bettini ran for four TDs. He scored on runs of 1, 1, 8 and 3 yards. … Isaiah Tshimanga’s interception set up Pomona’s first score. … Columbine remains well-rounded — the Rebels’ 449 points stand second among big schools and their 140 permitted are fifth. … They needed only 39 plays from scrimmage for 15 first downs to beat down Highlands Ranch 49-7 in the second round. … Logan DeArment, perhaps Columbine’s most-effective quarterback since Tanner Rogers early in the century, threw for 138 yards and two TDs, and rushed for 119 yards and three TDs. … Fact — the Rebels are very good, strong and big up front and ahead of junior running backs Adam Harrington and Tanner Hollens (14 TDs each) and their defense has excelled at keeping plays in front of it. … Senior Cole Parrott (6-3, 225) has been in on 55 tackles.

(6) Ralston Valley (9-2) vs. (3) Cherry Creek (10-1), Friday, 7 p.m., Stutler Bowl

It’s the only one of the quarterfinals matchups that’s not a season rematch, although the three head-to-heads between them — Cherry Creek has won all three — have come over the past four years. The most recent two were in the 2016 and 2017 preliminaries, and the first was in the 2014 semifinals. The Bruins went on to win the state title, by a point over Valor Christian. … In last week’s 52-0 whipping of Cherokee Trail, the Mustangs allowed only 26 yards rushing, 58 passing and grabbed two interceptions. …  Ralston Valley defensive end Isaac Townsend (6-6, 235) has pledged to Oregon, which currently owns the fourth-best recruiting class. … Ralston Valley has won six of its past seven games, the only blip being a 29-14 setback to Columbine. The Mustangs were runners-up to the Rebels in the Metro West. … Cherry Creek has only stumbled once and been in multiple close games, which can only come in handy during the playoffs. The Bruins beat Santa Margarita, Calif., 21-14; got past Pomona 35-34 in OT; slipped by Eaglecrest 14-13; and lost 28-21 to Grandview in 2OT. … Senior QB Alex Padilla, headed to Iowa’s Hawkeyes, continues with an excellent TD-to-interception ratio — he has thrown for 23 scores and just one pick. … Junior Jayle Stacks heads Cherry Creek with nine rushing TDs. Eight different Bruins have caught TD passes, topped by sophomore Chase Penry’s seven.