Some outstanding matchups dot the landscape as area football teams prepare for OHSAA regional quarterfinal playoff action Friday night.
Here’s a look at the lineup:
DIVISION V PLAYOFFS
Garaway, which plays a tough schedule and should be a strong contender for another long postseason run, will travel to Portage County on Friday night to face the Garrettsville Garfield G-Men.
Garaway, which was a D-VI state semifinalist last season and moved up to D-V this year, opened postseason play with a one-sided 41-21 win over the Lakeview Bulldogs last Friday night.
“I thought we came out with a lot more energy,” said Garaway’s ultra-successful head coach Jason Wallick. “We started off quick and were aggressive defensively and offensively and (running back) Dillon Soehnlen set the all-time rushing record with 3,194 (career) yards.”
The Pirates feature a balanced and potent offense, led by quarterback Brady Geibel and Soehnlen, both returning All-Ohioans. Two of the Pirates’ top receivers are senior Bronson Speedy and junior Micah Yoder.
Garrettsville Garfield (10-1), which won the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Gray Tier title this fall, opened playoff action with a 35-26 win over the Trinity Trojans last week.
The G-Men, who are a run-dominated team, are averaging 32.6 points-per-game and yielding 15 ppg.
Friday marks the second meeting between the Pirates and G-Men. The two teams also met in the playoffs in Garrettsville in 2019 with the G-Men winning, 41-22.
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DIVISION IV PLAYOFFS
Indian Valley, which finished second in the Division IV Region 15 computer playoff rankings, will host the Waverly Tigers in the first meeting between the programs.
Indian Valley, which sports one of the top rushing attacks in the nation, averaging 404 yards-per-game, rolled to a 40-15 win over the Heath Bulldogs last Friday in Gnadenhutten.
The Braves’ All-Ohio junior running back Grady Kinsey has rushed for 2,347 yards and 33 touchdowns this autumn. Kinsey, who will likely get votes for Mr. Football in Ohio, is averaging 213 yards rushing per-game, a mark of 13.2 yards-per-carry.
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Meanwhile, the Waverly Tigers from Pike County and the 10th seed in the region, knocked off the seventh-seeded Fairfield Union Falcons 28-21 in a first-round road playoff game last week.
Indian Valley is averaging 45.5 points-per-game, one of the top marks of all of the Division IV playoff qualifiers. The Braves’ defense has improved throughout the season. They enter Week 12 giving up 18.3 ppg.
By comparison, the Tigers are scoring 27.5 points-per-game but allowing 24 ppg.
Two teams that pulled upsets over higher-ranked teams in the first round will meet Friday. It is the first meeting between the Knights and Potters.
West Holmes (6-5), which is the 13th seed in Region 15, shocked a 9-2 and No. 4-seeded Unioto team 28-21 last Friday to advance. Meanwhile, No. 12 seed East Liverpool (7-4) made its long journey to Columbus pay off with a 41-40 win over an 8-3 and fifth-seeded Columbus East squad.
Both the Knights and Potters are led by dual threat quarterbacks. West Holmes features talented All-Ohioan Morgan Smith, while East Liverpool counters with Gavin Wright. Both players are talented runners and passers. Wright has thrown for 2,001 yards and 20 touchdowns. His top target has been Blake Adkins with 56 receptions for 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns. The top rusher is Jaymin Haney with 762 yards rushing and eight scores.
DIVISION VI PLAYOFFS
It will be an all-area regional quarterfinal when Ridgewood, a member of the Inter Valley Conference South Division, hosts Newcomerstown, a member of the IVC North Division.
Ridgewood, the third seed in Region 23, is coming off a surprisingly close 28-21 first-round playoff win over Mechanicsburg (7-4) last Friday night in West Lafayette.
The Generals continue to be paced by dual threat quarterback Grant Lahmers and a stingy defense that is only allowing 10.9 points-per-game. Offensively, the Generals average 36.5 ppg.
Meanwhile, Newcomerstown, which is the No. 11 seed Region 23, posted a 23-14 road win over sixth-seeded Grove City Christian last Friday.
The Trojans, who have won opening-round playoff games two years in a row, are averaging 37 points-per-game and surrendering 12.5 ppg.
The Generals and Trojans have played 55 times in their history but Friday marks the first time they will have played one another in the postseason. Ridgewood leads the all-time series with the Trojans, 34-19-2.
DIVISION VII PLAYOFFS
Malvern, which won the Inter Valley Conference North Division title this fall and is on a six-game winning streak, will host the Lowellville Rockets.
Malvern recorded a 40-26 playoff win over the visiting Lucas Cubs last Friday, while Lowellville, a member of the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference, opened postseason action with a 34-20 win over the McDonald Blue Devils.
Malvern, which sports one of the better air games in D7, is led by 6-foot-5 senior quarterback Jared Witherow who has thrown for 2,109 yards and 25 touchdowns. He’s also scored three rushing touchdowns. His top receivers are 6-2 senior star Rodney Smith, who has grabbed 55 passes for 1,005 yards and 17 touchdowns, and junior Roy Simmons who has 54 receptions for 605 yards and three six-pointers.
Lowellville, which also loves to throw the football, is led by sophomore signal-caller Ricky Willrich who has thrown for 2,200 yards and 21 touchdowns this autumn.
Conotton Valley, which has averaged 46 points-per-game in its past three games while airing out the football, will entertain the Trimble Tomcats.
The Rockets opened the postseason with a 46-7 romp over Fairfield Christian Academy last week.
The Rockets’ senior quarterback Zach Putnam continues to put up big numbers through the airways. Through 11 weeks, Putman has thrown for 2,841 yards, one of the top marks in Ohio to go along with 34 touchdown passes. His top target has been senior Brooks Bower with 67 catches for 890 yards and 13 touchdowns and junior Kamden Wright with 69 catches for 800 yards and eight six-pointers.
Trimble, which has a rich postseason history with 20 playoff appearances, won its playoff opener last Friday in a 28-7 triumph over Lancaster Fisher Catholic.
Trimble has shown good balance between the run and pass. Sophomore quarterback Brady Jajczyk has thrown for over 1,000 yards and the Tomcats are also averaging over 200 yards per game on the ground.
Friday marks the fourth meeting between Conotton Valley and Trimble but the two schools haven’t played since 1975. The Tomcats lead the series, 3-0.
