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Ohio Playoffs: Regional Rounds


OdbCle

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9 hours ago, OdbCle said:

I think we will get a rematch. Ignatius can absolutely beat McKinley with Haddad and Ritt back. 

Ritt took a nasty hit on his knee returning the second half opening kick and did not return to the game. He looks to be questionable going forward but hopefully okay. 
 

Haddad got shaken up but did return to catch the game winning TD.

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On 10/28/2023 at 4:54 PM, hardhit1 said:

Ritt took a nasty hit on his knee returning the second half opening kick and did not return to the game. He looks to be questionable going forward but hopefully okay. 
 

Haddad got shaken up but did return to catch the game winning TD.

That's definitely a blow. He's a valuable weapon in the return game and a nice compliment to Washington out of the backfield. But as long as Haddad is still a go, I think the Cats have a punchers chance against McKinley. 

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Nothing too crazy in the opening round of the D1 and D2 playoffs. With most of the fat trimmed, the games should get more interesting moving forward. Top games in round two:

R1: McKinley v. Ignatius - The Wildcats survived a late Mentor FG attempt once again to advance. Haddad provided the only offensive score, and he will likely have to give them even more to advance this weekend. McKinley finished the year very poorly with two losses (including a beatdown against Massillon), but had no problem with Strongsville. Neither of these teams should be a legit threat to Ed's in R1, but this game could be interesting. 

R1: Wadsworth v. Medina - These Medina County foes get a rematch of their week 3 game that Medina won 40-23. Wadsworth will get the game at home this time around, but I still expect the Bees offense to be too much for them. 

R2: Centerville v. Springfield - Another regular season rematch which was won by Centerville. Springfield just handled a Wayne team that Centerville lost to in week 10. All these GWOC teams are very familiar with each other. It's been a mixed bag for Springfield this year, but if they've finally figured it out then they could be a legit threat in R2 with the athletes on their roster. 

R3: Upper Arlington v. Pick Central - These two did not meet in the regular season this year, but both are legit dark horse candidates to favorites Gahanna and Pick North. UA will want to slow this game down and try to win with ball control and defense, similar to their R3 title game back in 2021. Pick Central will want to hit on some big plays early and build a lead that UA is not equipped to crawl back from. 

R4: St. X v. Moeller - Probably the most intriguing round 2 game given the name-brand recognition of these programs. Moeller rebounded from their poor start to the season with a 20-10 victory over X in week 5. X went into the tank a bit after that with consecutive losses to Elder and Trinity(KY). They've since won 4 in a row, but have not looked great doing it. I'd have Moeller a pretty comfortable favorite if not for the absence of Jordan Marshall. 

R4: Lakota West v. Elder - LW has kind of been flying under the radar since starting the year 0-2 and looking like they were allergic to offense. Since then, they've only been held under 30 once (a 10-7 win over a good defensive Mason team). Granted the GMC is pretty bad this year, but LW is thoroughly in the wide open R4 mix. Meanwhile, Elder has not looked like the team that pushed Ed's to the brink earlier in the year. They were crushed by Moeller and Bishop Chatard, and only beat Oak Hills 28-14 this past weekend. Offense is coming at a premium for them right now and Lakota West has a smothering defense. 

R8: Withrow v. Winton Woods - I think this is the most interesting D2 game of the weekend with the offensive skill of Withrow against the defensive skill of WW. Withrow has been cruising through the Cincy Metro portion of their schedule while WW has been in dog fights pretty much every week since week 6. That could be the difference in this one. 

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https://www.cleveland.com/sports/2023/11/ohsaa-announces-football-state-championship-schedule.html

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OHSAA announces 2023 football state championship game schedule with kickoff times

 

OHSAA really lucked out when the NFL and Hall of Fame upgraded and renovated Tom Benson Stadium a few years back.  It’s a great facility, and the perfect size for a high school title game.

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