OHIO — The Ohio High School Athletic Association celebrates a milestone this weekend in Canton, as the 50th state football tournament concludes with the crowning of seven state champions.
A lot has changed since 1972, when only three classes (A-AA-AAA) competed, versus the seven divisions we have now. But the honor of winning a championship is still the same, and it lasts a lifetime.
Spectrum News 1 and the Spectrum News App will air all seven games, with one Thursday, and three each on Friday and Saturday.
Thursday 7 p.m. – Hoban vs. Winton Woods (Division II)
The very first OHSAA football championship game played in the renovated Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton was the Division II final in 2017 featuring Hoban and Winton Woods. The Knights were 42-14 winners that night, part of a run of four straight state titles.
Hoban is the defending Division II champion, having beaten Massillon on its home field last year, 35-6. The Knights make a habit of playing their best when they get to this game, winning five state titles (all since 2015) by a combined 182-68 score, with the average margin of victory nearly 23 points (22.8) a game.
As usual, Hoban has a strong, dominant offensive line, which has paved the way for running back Lamar Sperling’s season of 2,822 yards and 41 touchdowns. In just five playoff games, he’s run for 1,289 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Winton Woods got off to a 4-3 start before winning its last eight games. It’s the first year leading the Warriors program for former Hamilton and Northwest coach Chad Murphy. He took over for Andre Parker, who left for Princeton.
The lowest seed to reach the state finals (seventh in Region 8), Winton Woods last won it all in 2009. Two of the losses in the regular season were to La Salle & Kings, who the Warriors beat in playoff rematches.
Keep an eye out for Winton Woods running back TyRek Spikes, and you’ll need to look closely. He is generously listed at 5’7”, 165 pounds, and like his Hoban counterpart, he has over 1,000 yards (1,020) in the playoffs alone.
Friday 10:30 a.m. – Ursuline vs. Clinton-Massie (Division VI)
In the Division IV championship, both Ursuline and Clinton-Massie will be looking to return to glory.
The Fighting Irish won three-straight state titles from 2008 to 2010 under Dan Reardon, who is back for a second stint at Ursuline.
The Irish have won seven straight games, averaging over 47 points during that span. Running back Demarcus McElroy has a school-record 41 rushing touchdowns, while quarterback Brady Shannon overtook former Penn State signal caller Darryl Clark’s career passing record.
The Falcons also won consecutive state titles, accomplishing the feat in 2012-13. Clinton-Massie’s only loss was in week two (its first game of the year) against Division I Anderson.
Head coach Dan McSurley sticks with what works, and that’s the rushing attack. For every pass, the Falcons carry the ball 13 times. It’s yielded two 1,000-yard rushers (Carson Vanhoose at 1,843 and Colton Trampler with 1,085), and a third (Carter Frank) just 35 yards short of joining that group.
McSurley’s impact on the program is impossible to overstate. Clinton-Massie won 62 games in the first 22 years of program history, covering 219 games. Since then, the 26-year head coach has accumulated a 249-63 record.
Friday 3 p.m. – Chardon vs. Badin (Division III)
The only match-up of undefeated teams this weekend is Chardon and Badin in Division III. The Hilltoppers could be the first ever OHSAA program to complete a 16-0 season, a feat that Marion Local could match on Saturday.
Mitch Hewitt’s Chardon team returned just five starters from his 2020 Division III state champions, but the program has kept rolling, entering Friday with a 27-game winning streak.
The Hilltoppers are a complete team, running the “Delaware Wing-T” offense that’s been a program staple for 41 years. On defense, they’ve only allowed 38 points in the entire playoffs.
Badin hopes to secure its first state title in 23 years (1998), and the Rams defense has been butting heads with opposing offenses, just like Chardon. They’ve only allowed 19 points in five playoff games, with three shutouts.
On offense, starting quarterback Landyn Vidourek is out with an injury, so Badin will lean on running back Jack Walsh, who has run for a school-record 1,803 yards this year. Vidourek was injured in the playoff win against Bellbrook, when the Rams rallied from a 9-0 deficit in the fourth quarter to pull out a 21-9 win.
Friday 7:30 p.m. – St. Edward vs. Springfield (Division I)
One school (St. Edward) is seeking a fifth state title since 2010. The other (Springfield) is in a state championship game for the first time ever, after falling each of the past two years in the state semifinals.
Both schools in Division I had common opponents in 2021, as St. Edward’s only defeat was to Moeller in week nine (28-21 in overtime). The Crusaders fell to the Wildcats last week (22-21) in the state semifinals. They also both beat St. Ignatius (Springfield 24-20 in the opener, St. Edward 19-14 on Oct. 2).
For St. Edward, that Moeller game was the first time the Eagles trailed all season, something that’s only happened in four games the entire season.
While Springfield hasn’t been here before, its head coach has championship experience. Maurice Douglass won a 2011 state title while at Trotwood. The Wildcats are vying to become the first school from Clark County to win a football state championship. Springfield Central Catholic reached the final in 1991, as did Shawnee in 2011.
Saturday 10:30 a.m. – Marion Local vs. Newark Catholic (Division VII)
Want an attention grabber? Look at the track record between the Division VII finalists:
State Titles – 19 (Marion Local 11; Newark Catholic 8)
Championship Game Appearances – 30 (Marion Local 15; Newark Catholic 15)
Playoff Appearances – 62 (Newark Catholic 38; Marion Local 24)
Playoff Wins – 172 (Marion Local 89; Newark Catholic 83)
Not only can Marion Local make history by going 16-0 (Chardon can also accomplish that in Division III on Friday), but the Flyers would break a tie with St. Ignatius for most OHSAA state titles with 12. What’s even more remarkable is all 11 championships have been since 2000.
Marion Local is one of three teams from the Midwest Athletic Conference, all of whom are playing on Saturday. The Flyers beat both Coldwater (Division VI) and Versailles (Division V) in the regular season. Fort Loramie was a common opponent with both owning victories (Marion Local 42-6, Newark Catholic 41-40).
The Green Wave want to ride the momentum to the school’s first state title since 2007. It’s been a familiar path the last two years for Newark Catholic, with playoff games against Danville, Shadyside and Warren JFK. The only difference was avenging a loss last weekend to JFK from the 2020 state semifinals.
Saturday 3 p.m. – Carey vs. Coldwater (Division VI)
Another defending state champion is Coldwater in Division VI. It was the Cavaliers’ seventh, all of which have come since 2005. In the past 11 years, Coldwater has only missed the state semifinals three times and have been to eight championship games.
Going back to the 2000 season, it is estimated that there have been 328 possible weeks of games, when you include the playoffs. Remarkably, the Cavaliers had played in 308 of them.
Senior quarterback Reece Dellinger has thrown for nearly 3,000 yards and leads a balanced attack.
Carey’s lone state title came 46 years ago. The 2021 version of the Blue Devils have tons of size on both sides of the ball. In fact, running back Jordan Vallejo is listed at 6’2”, 265 pounds, and has run for 1,544 yards and a school-record 34 touchdowns.
After dropping the season opener to Hopewell-Loudon (a Division VII state semifinalist), Carey has rattled off 14-straight wins.
Saturday 7:30 p.m. – Kirtland vs. Versailles (Division V)
Kirtland is in the midst of one of the greatest runs in Ohio high school football history. The Hornets have won three straight state titles, and 55 consecutive games. It’s the longest active streak in the entire country, and is the second-longest in OHSAA history, trailing only 57 in a row by Delphos St. John’s from 1996-2001.
What makes it even more impressive, is that Kirtland only had six starters returning from a year ago.
If you really want to be floored, check this statistic out. Kirtland has not trailed in a game since the 2019 playoffs against Sandy Valley, a streak of 1,408 minutes and one second.
Overall, the school has six state titles, going back to 2011. Head coach Tiger LaVerde is 198-17 at the school, and a career record of 218-27.
Versailles has six football state championship banners hanging in the school, but only the most recent one (2003) came as a member of the Midwest Athletic Conference.
The Tigers lone blemish this year was a loss to Marion Local in week 3. It’s a senior-laden team that relies on several players to log significant minutes on offense and defense.
Coverage for each game includes OHSAA Championship Gameday with Neil Sika, Brett Hiltbrand and Matt D’Orazio, which begins 15 minutes before each game, and wraps things up following the trophy presentations.
It’s all on Spectrum News 1 and the Spectrum News App, your home for high school sports.
