“In the back of our minds, we figured this was going to happen,” Marion Local coach Tim Goodwin admitted. “As close as we were last year with each other and both teams had a good group back, too.”
Those are just two of the remaining area teams that will play in all seven divisional regional finals today and Saturday. The winners move on to Week 14 state semifinals.
Marion Local has gotten defensive since falling 17-14 to Midwest Athletic Conference rival Coldwater in Week 3. The Flyers have posted six shutouts and allowed 19 points since. They’re also coming off a 22-0 blanking of MAC rival St. Henry, the second time they’ve beaten the Redskins in three weeks.
That defense will be pushed to the limit by Mechanicsburg and its outstanding cast. None is better than senior quarterback Kaleb Romero, who’s amassed more than 10,000 yards of offense in his four-year career. Mechanicsburg also can get defensive; last week’s 56-20 drubbing of Delphos Jefferson snapped a streak of 10 straight games in which the Indians allowed seven points or less.
Last year’s Marion Local-Mechanicsburg game was held in rain and wind that Goodwin estimated at 35 miles per hour. A Flyers’ field goal midway through the fourth quarter was the difference.
This is a state championship caliber matchup, “and it should be like this in a regional final,” said Goodwin.
• Wayne (D-I), Miamisburg (D-II) and Trotwood-Madison (D-III) will represent the Greater Western Ohio Conference in Week 13. Wayne and Trotwood have been in contests this deep into the playoffs of late, but this is new territory for Miamisburg. The Vikings had never won a playoff game before this season.
Wayne (11-0-1) gets the best remaining D-I team from the Columbus area in Pickerington Central (11-1) in a Region 3 final at London today. It’ll be the second straight week Wayne has played there.
Miamisburg (10-2) gets Greater Catholic League South champ and two-time defending state champ Cincinnati La Salle in a Region 8 final at Mason, also today. Trotwood (10-2) meets one of two Western Buckeye League teams remaining in St. Marys Memorial (11-1) in a Region 12 final at Piqua on Saturday.
Alter (12-0) plays Cincinnati Wyoming (12-0) in a D-IV, Region 16 final at Monroe today. That’s one of two unbeaten showdowns throughout the state.
• The Ohio High School football Coaches Association has just said no to Big Ten football being played on Friday nights beginning next season.
“Our association is vehemently opposed to this action as it infringes on a great American tradition of high school football, is not in the best interest of student athletes, cripples the small budgets of high school athletic departments, disrupts the relationships between high school coaches and Big Ten coaches, and hinders the recruiting process,” president Matt Dennison said in a statement on Thursday.
Most area coaches are members of the OHSFCA. The organization has joined similar associations in Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin in opposing the Big Ten’s announcement this fall that it’ll play Friday games. That is seen as a potential threat to the high school associations because their games traditionally are anchored on Fridays.
Michigan and Penn State already have declared they won’t participate in six Big Ten Friday games that are scheduled for next season.
“It is a complete financial decision that was made to create revenue for the Big Ten,” Dennison said. “The Big Ten’s quest for money is greater than the great game of football. We would hope that they would reconsider this decision and that Ohio State would follow the lead of Michigan and Penn State in not participating in this endeavor.”
• State semifinal pairings were announced by the Ohio High School Athletic Association on Thursday for all divisions except one.
Based on geography, the pairings match this week’s regional final winners for next week’s state semifinals. D-II will be determined following Friday’s results. All neutral sites and home teams will be announced by the OHSAA on Sunday.
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