11-5-21 – Samuel Houseworth’s Week 2 Ohio Football Playoff rankings.
D-I
Despite nearly every team making the postseason from D-I, only one of the remaining teams has a losing record. That team is Dublin Coffman and they are heading north to Findlay this Friday. That’s the good news for the Trojans, who are riding a 6-game winning streak. The bad news is that they will likely get Springfield in the regional semis.
D-II
All three undefeated teams advanced past the first round last Friday. Piqua and Big Walnut should advance to the regional semis but the task won’t be so easy for Kings. The Knights, who are at the top of the AP poll but rated 7th in the Projection Index, will host Winton Woods on Friday. The Warriors come into their second round game having won 7 of their last 8 with the lone blemish being a last minute loss on the road against Anderson.
D-III
Three WBL teams will hit the field in Region 12 on Friday, but only one of them appears to be the favorite. St. Marys plays host to #13 seed Chaminade Julienne, who upset Hamilton Ross in the opening round. Expect the Roughriders’ defense to control the line as they have only allowed 6.3 points per game over the course of their 7-game winning streak. Things don’t look as rosy for Wapak (at Bellbrook) nor Lima Shawnee (at Badin) though.
D-IV
The big story from last week was Bellevue, the favorite in Region 14, getting bumped by the #16 seed, Edison. The shockwave makes Van Wert the new favorite to reach the state semifinals with Clyde and Port Clinton close behind. The Cougars are heavy favorites at home against Wauseon, as are Port Clinton (vs. Keystone) and Perkins (vs. Edison). The most competitive game in the region is easily Shelby at Clyde with both teams real contenders to win the region.
D-V
Despite being on the road, Versailles is the heaviest favorite in D-V this Saturday, heading to Carlisle for a typical MAC early round playoff game. The second biggest favorite is O-G, who should have no problems with Waynedale. Though, if you stay in northwest Ohio, Eastwood at Otsego should be an incredibly competitive contest in a loaded Region 18.
D-VI
Surprisingly, there are quite a few competitive, meaningful second round games in D-VI this Saturday. The one the readers will be interested in is Fort Recovery at Anna, a rematch of their Week 4 one-sided affair. Though, the Rockets have been a woeful 2-5 since. The winner will likely get Allen East, though their game against #10 seed Fairbanks is no cakewalk either.
D-VII
With so many games with running clock potential in the state’s smallest division, seeing former conference rivals Leipsic and McComb against each other will be a treat. The last time these two programs saw each other in the postseason was when Leipsic gave the Panthers their closest game in their state championship run of 2018. That game was a part of McComb’s 16-game winning streak that was ended by… you guessed it, Leipsic.
Complete rankings-
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