As the upper-level trough transitions from a neutral to negative tilt Friday night, rapid pressure falls are expected near the Mississippi River at 6 AM Saturday. An extremely strong low-level jet is anticipated in advance of a well-organized QLCS, with mid to upper 60s dewpoints overspreading the forecast area by noon Saturday. As it stands, a significant severe weather event appears likely beginning as early as 9 AM in our western counties. SBCAPE is currently modeled at 500-1000 J/kg by most model guidance, but my hunch is that these values may be a little on the low side due tothe effects of erroneous-looking QPF as noted in the ECMWF data Even taking CAPE a face value, strong forcing combined with extreme low-level winds and wind shear would result in a QLCS capable of producing widespread damaging winds and embedded tornadoes. The ECMWF shows a wide swath of 70-80 kt 700mb winds with pockets up to 100 kts, meaning that a derecho cannot be ruled out particularly across our northwestern counties. The potential for supercells ahead of the QLCS will depend on the state of the warm sector. If the warm sector is relatively uncontaminated and the current timing holds true, temperatures would rise into the 70-74F range during the late morning and early afternoon hours, aiding in the formation of cellular convection ahead of the QLCS. In order for any cellular activity to become tornadic in the presence of extreme wind shear, robust updrafts will be required. Otherwise these updrafts will be torn apart.