OHIO — We’re still a week away from the Ohio High School Athletic Association football regional finals, two weeks to the state semifinals, and three weeks until state championship games.
That doesn’t mean there are significant changes this weekend for the regional semifinals.
First off, games are now played at neutral sites after the first two weeks were at the home fields of the higher seeded teams. Additionally, the games are now spread out, with Divisions IV, VI and VII moving to Saturday.
For Friday’s OHSAA Game of the Week on Spectrum News and the Spectrum News App:
- NE Ohio: Division I, Region 1 – 5. St. Ignatius (8-3) vs. 1. St. Edward (11-1) at Euclid
- Central Ohio: Division I, Region 3 – 3. New Albany (9-3) vs. 2. Upper Arlington (10-2) at Westerville Central
- SW Ohio: Division I, Region 4 – 3. Lakota West (12-0) vs. 2. Elder (10-2) at Princeton
Plus, there will be bonus coverage available on Spectrum channel 314:
- Division I, Region 2 – 3. Centerville (10-2) vs. 2. Springfield (10-1) at Northmont
It’s always worthy of attention when rivals St. Ignatius and St. Edward get together, and that’s ratcheted up even more, with just the fifth all-time playoff meeting. The Wildcats have won three of the previous four, although it was the Eagles taking the most recent edition in 2018.
On top of that, this marks the final season in the illustrious career of legendary St. Ignatius head coach, Chuck Kyle. After the 2021 season, he announced that this year—his 40th as head coach at his alma mater—would be his last.
Kyle has amassed a 377-107-1 career record with the Wildcats, with 33 playoff appearances, 15 regional titles, 11 state championships and three (unofficial) national titles.
It’s more than fitting—win or lose—that Kyle will patrol the sidelines against St. Edward one more time. He’s 26-17-1 all-time against the Eagles, although it’s been five straight losses for St. Ignatius in the series, going back to the 2018 post-season.
This version of the “holy war” has been contested annually since 1971, and was first played in 1952. All-time, The Wildcats hold a slim 32-29-1 lead.
St. Ed was a 48-6 winner in the regular season meeting, back on October 1st, and is the defending state champion in Division I.
In central Ohio, New Albany and Upper Arlington don’t have much of a history together, with the only recent meeting coming a year ago, but it was a big one. Both the Eagles and Golden Bears were undefeated heading into the 2021 Region 3 semifinal, with UA winning 41-10 on the way to a regional title.
New Albany can light up a scoreboard, hitting for 40 or more points in six of 12 games so far this season. Upper Arlington counters with a defense that has allowed two touchdowns or fewer in 10 games. The Golden Bears have permitted just 30 total points in their last five contests.
While St. Edward (Region 1) and Upper Arlington (Region 3) made the state semifinals a year ago, so, too did Springfield in Region 2. In fact, the Wildcats have come out of that region the last three straight seasons. Springfield finally broke through the state semis in 2021, before falling 23-13 in the Division I championship game to St. Edward.
Most Spectrum video customers will see bonus coverage of Springfield’s Greater Western Ohio Conference rematch with Centerville on Spectrum channel 314.
The Wildcats were 38-10 winners over the Elks on October 7th, the fifth straight win in a series that’s been held every year since the Springfield schools (North & South) consolidated for the 2008-09 school year. In 15 meetings, Centerville has won eight match-ups, on the strength of a seven-game winning streak from 2009-15.
The Elks hope to move one step closer to the school’s first regional championship since 1991.
The coverage rounds out in Region 4, and another highly-anticipated match-up in the OHSAA Game of the Week in southwest Ohio.
Lakota West was the only Division I team to make it through the regular season unscathed, but now the work really begins with Elder in the regional semi.
The Panthers have won all six games in the series history, including a 42-17 triumph in the 2019 playoffs, Tom Bolden’s first year with the Firebirds.
Both teams will be looking to end droughts, as Elder is shooting for its first state title since winning back-to-back in 2002-03. Meanwhile, Lakota West has never won a regional title since the school opened in 1997, or even previously as Lakota High School.
The head coaches have combined for nearly 400 career wins, as Bolden sits at 180, and Elder’s Doug Ramsey at 210.
Following the games, join Brett Hiltbrand, Matt D’Orazio and Antonio Pittman, who will break down all of the action, and look ahead to Saturday’s contests, as well as “the road to Canton”.
Other games Friday, only available at http://OHSAA.tv:
- Division I, Region 1 – 3. Mentor (8-3) vs. 2. Medina (11-1) at Twinsburg
- Division I, Region 3 – 4. Pickerington Central (9-3) vs. 1. Gahanna (11-1) at Columbus DeSales
- Division I, Region 4 – 5. Mason (10-2) vs. 1. Moeller (11-1) at Middletown
- Division II, Region 5 – 5. Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (8-3) vs. 1. Hoban (11-1) at InfoCision Stadium
- Division II, Region 5 – 3. Hudson (12-0) vs. 2. Riverside (11-1) at Maple Heights
- Division II, Region 6 – 5. Olmsted Falls (10-2) vs. 1. Avon (11-1) at Strongsville
- Division II, Region 7 – 5. Big Walnut (10-2) vs. 1. Massillon (10-1) at Mansfield
- Division II, Region 7 – 4. Kings (11-1) vs. 1. Winton Woods (12-0) at Mason
- Division III, Region 11 – 5. Bloom-Carroll (11-1) vs. 1. Sheridan (11-1) at Lancaster
- Division III, Region 12 – 4. Wapakoneta (11-1) vs. 1. Badin (12-0) at Trotwood-Madison
- Division V, Region 19 – 5. Portsmouth West (11-1) vs. 1. Ironton (12-0) at Portsmouth
It all leads up to the state championships, Dec. 1-3 from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, and you can see each final live on Spectrum News 1 and the Spectrum News App.
