OHSAA championships preview

The OHSAA football championships will take place this weekend from Thursday through Saturday at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton (Ohio). As always, the weekend features some great match-ups.

The Division I game always seems to give us a great matchup of traditional powers and this year is no different. Pickerington Central is looking for its second state championship in three seasons and has reloaded this fall after losing a wave of talent in each of the past two years.

Elder brings in a veteran team spearheaded by a pair of Ohio State commits in senior offensive tackle Jakob James and senior tight end Joe Royer. Senior offensive guard Luke Kandra is also one of Ohio's top prospects and is committed to Indiana.

Central comes in riding high after a 28-21 win over nationally ranked and previously undefeated Mentor but Elder knows what it takes to win close games, having won its last three games all by seven points or less.

Ultimately this game will likely come down to who can win the line of scrimmage when Elder has the football. The Panthers have arguably the state's best offensive line, but Pickerington Central's front seven is fast and athletic, led by Ohio State commit Ty Hamilton.

Prediction: Pickerington Central 28 Elder 21

This might be the best game of the weekend on paper. Two powerhouse programs loaded with talent with both coming into this contest very battle tested.

Massillon is led on offense by senior quarterback Aidan Longwell, a Kent State baseball commit who also holds several Division I football offers. He has a ton of weapons at his disposal, notably junior Ohio State wide receiver commit Jayden Ballard and fellow junior receiver Andrew Wilson-Lamp, a major Division I recruit in his own right.

La Salle is loaded with underclassmen, including Ohio State targets Jaylen Johnson (2021), Devonta Smith (2021), and Gi'Bran Payne (2022) as well as 2020 OSU kicker pledge Jake Seibert, one of the nation's best at his position.

Massillon has been absolutely dominant this fall, playing only two competitive games, a 10-point road win over bitter rival Canton McKinley and a three-point playoff win over Hoban. La Salle has been dominant in the playoffs, winning all games by at least 14-points.

The key matchup will likely be Longwell and the talented Massillon receivers against La Salle's athletic secondary. Both teams have put up a lot of points this year, however, so if the weather permits, there should be plenty of scoring. Massillon's balance on offense has been impressive, totaling over 5,000 yards this season but a nearly 50/50 split between rushing and passing, thanks in large part to 1,578 yards on the ground from Terrence Keyes.

Massillon hasn't won a state championship during the playoff era, will this storied program finally break through?

Prediction: Massillon 34 La Salle 31

Mansfield has been a good program for many years, but this will be its first trip to the state championship game against a program in Trotwood that is accustomed to making deep playoff runs.

While Trotwood enters the game with three losses, those losses are by a combined five points and the Rams played a heavy-hitting schedule against predominantly bigger schools.

While Mansfield's regular season schedule was not as challenging, the Tygers have shown a lot of grit in the playoffs, winning their last two matchups in overtime to make it to Canton.

Trotwood's size and speed on the outside will be tough to contain with seniors Sammy Anderson and Carl Blanton Jr. accounting for 16 receiving touchdowns and both going at least 6--foot-2. Both guys will pull double-duty as they anchor one of the state's top secondaries.

Prediction: Trotwood 35 Mansfield 21

One of the more interesting matchups this weekend as the team with the best record faces the team with the worst. Don't be too fooled by Clyde's four losses, however. The Fliers made the playoffs as an eight-seed, barely squeaking in by two tenths of a point, but all four of those losses were to programs in bigger divisions (II and III) and to teams who made the playoffs in those bigger classifications.

In fact the Fliers only played three teams in their Division IV classification during the regular season, so this is a team that has tested itself against strong competition and had to overcome some adversity, including a mid-season three-game losing streak.

Licking Valley's regular season was not so daunting. The Panthers won every game by at least two touchdowns and boasted wins over three playoff teams, not including last year's Division V runner-up Johnstown-Monroe.

Things got a bit more competitive during the playoffs, however, with Licking Valley beating John Glenn by just six points and slipping away from Poland Seminary last week with a one-point win.

I'm going against the grain here.

Prediction: Clyde 28 Licking Valley 27

Another big-time matchup here as a pair of small school powers will face off with a combined record of 27-1. It seems like Kirtland is here every year, and they kind of are. The Hornets are the reigning Division VI state champions and will be competing in a state championship game for the eighth time in nine seasons.

The calling card of this program has always been defense and that is very evident again this season. Kirtland has shutout seven of its opponents this season and is giving up just under seven points per game on average.

Kirtland's recent dominance paired against Ironton's rich tradition and history makes for a compelling matchup on Saturday night to close out the games. Ironton features Ohio State linebacker commit Reid Carrico who might not come off the field on Saturday as he is also their top ball-carrier on offense.

The Tigers' only blemish this season came during an overtime loss to Ashland (Ky.) Blazer, so both of these teams enter the game undefeated within the state of Ohio. Ironton's run through the playoffs has been a dominant one. The Tigers have wins by 50, 28, 24, and 10 points respectively during this run to Stark County.

This is setting up to be a fantastic game and I look for a physical, defensive battle.

Prediction: Kirtland 15 Ironton 13.

Even with a loss on the resume, Anna has been one of the state's most dominant football teams this season. The Rockets have won 13 games by 21 or more points and are just a three-point loss to Division VII No. 1 ranked Marion Local from a perfect record.

Of course, Springfield does have a perfect record at 14-0. While the Tigers do have a couple of close calls, an overtime win over South Point and a one-point win over Trimble in the second round of the playoffs, they have also put together a pretty dominant season with 11 wins by 17 or more points.

Even more interesting is that both programs went through tough playoff runs in likely the two best regions in Division VI so each team has been thoroughly tested along the way so something will have to give here.

While Anna's defense has been stout, it's the offense that really jumps off the page. The Rockets have scored 40 or more points in 12 of their 14 games with the loss to Marion Local and the 36-6 win over Mechanicsburg last week being the two outliers.

That high powered offense and gauntlet through the MAC, maybe the nation's best small school football league, give Anna the edge this weekend.

Prediction: Anna 35 Springfield 24

Marion Local has quite simply been the best football program in Ohio over the past decade. The Flyers have been dominant once again in the post-season. Outside of an overtime win over Fort Loramie, Marion Local has won its other three playoff contests by at least 27 points.

This program is now a staggering 80-11 all-time in the playoff era (good for the best winning percentage in the state) and has tied an OHSAA record with its 14th championship game appearance. A win this weekend would tie St. Ignatius for the OHSAA record of 11 state championships.

On the other sideline, Lucas has went through a gauntlet to get here, beating traditional small school powers like McDonald, Cuyahoga Heights, and Harvest Prep. The defense has allowed just 20 or more points three times all season, never allowing more than 21 in a single game.

Much like the D5 game, this looks like a lower scoring game on paper as both defenses have been stingy.

Always difficult to go against Marion Local and the motivation will be there after last year's loss to Kirtland in the finals and a chance to tie the state record of 11 championships.

Prediction: Marion Local 23 Lucas 14

All Games at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, Canton

Home team listed first. Pairings shown with record and final rank.

Division II State Championship: No. 1 Massillon Washington (14-0) vs. No. 6 Cincinnati La Salle (12-2) is Thursday, Dec. 5, 7:00 PM

Division VI State Championship: No. 1 Anna (13-1) vs. No. 2 New Middletown Springfield (14-0) is Friday, Dec. 6, 10:00 AM

Division III State Championship: No. 9 Mansfield Senior (13-1) vs. No. 7 Trotwood-Madison (11-3) is Friday, Dec. 6, 3:00 PM

Division I State Championship: No 9 Cincinnati Elder (12-2) vs. No. 3 Pickerington Central (13-1) is Friday, Dec. 6, 8:00 PM

Division VII State Championship: No. 7 Lucas (12-2) vs. No. 1 Maria Stein Marion Local (12-2) is Saturday, Dec. 7, 10:00 AM

Division IV State Championship: No. 4 Newark Licking Valley (14-0) vs. (not ranked) Clyde (10-4) is Saturday, Dec. 7, 3:00 PM

Division V State Championship: No. 5 Ironton (13-1) vs. No. 1 Kirtland (14-0) is Saturday, Dec. 7, 8:00 PM