What a week of high school football. Games were decided by the last possession of games and some even in overtime. It was one of the most exciting weeks of football in not just Northeast Ohio, but the entire state. With wins this past weekend, there are just four teams left in each of Ohio’s seven football divisions. Teams need one more win to reach Columbus and play for the State Championship. But before we get to that, Week 3 of the playoffs had some great games and performances from the remaining teams.
So, what happened in Week 3 of the Ohio high school football playoffs? Let’s take a look at what went on this week in the high school football in Northeast Ohio.
NEO HS Football Recap: Season Preview, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Playoff Preview, Playoff Wk 1, Playoff Wk 2, Playoff Wk 3
Notable Scores from Northeast Ohio
Division I
St. Ignatius 38 St. Edward 31
Olentangy Liberty 24 Lorain 20
Pickerington Central 17 Huber Heights Wayne 14
St. Xavier 35 Sycamore 28
Division II
Hudson 24 Warren Harding 21
Massillon Perry 17 New Albany 6
Anthony Wayne 38 Olmsted Falls 31
La Salle 45 Miamisburg 14
Division III
Archbishop Hoban 34 New Philadelphia 3
Toledo Central Catholic 19 Lexington 0
St. Francis DeSales 49 Hamilton Township 6
Trotwood-Madison 34 St. Mary’s Memorial 27
Division IV
Perry 22 Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin 9
Steubenville 29 Shelby 15
Bishop Hartley 38 Ottawa-Glandorf 35
Kettering Archbishop Alter 35 Wyoming 7
Division V
Canton Central Catholic 40 Garrettsville Garfield 13
Edison 27 Norwayne 20
Coshocton 30 Wheelersburg 20
Coldwater 35 Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy 21
Division VI
Cuyahoga Heights 17 Kirtland 0
Maria Stein Marion Local 26 Mechanicsburg 15
Newark Catholic 41 Fort Frye 7
Hamler Patrick Henry 21 Ayersville 19
Division VII
Warren JFK 48 Norwalk St. Paul 13
McComb 35 Crestview 28
Harvest Preparatory 29 Waterford 15
Minster 35 Fort Recovery 33
Best Performance
Cuyahoga Heights shuts out Kirtland, 17-0
Cuyahoga Heights put on the best performance of the week, blanking Kirtland, 17-0, to eliminate the defending champions, the second such a shutout this season.
Kirtland was only able to muster 134 yards of offense against the Redskins defense, including just 117 yards rushing, which was the team’s offensive backbone. On offense Cuyahoga Heights was led by their passing duo of quarterback Brett Lowther and receiver Dylan Drummond. Lowther threw for 208 yards and two touchdowns, while Drummond caught seven passes for 174 yards and two touchdowns. It is the first time Kirtland has been held scoreless in a game twice in a season since 2005, according to the News-Herald.
Biggest Surprise
The amount of close finishes and overtime games
The results of Week 3 may not be huge surprises, but the way the games finished were somewhat surprising. Three games went into overtime this past weekend. St. Ignatius beat St. Edward in the first overtime period; St. Xavier outlasted Sycamore in the first overtime; and McComb beat Crestview in the second overtime period.
There were also games that were close finishes as 12 contests were decided by a touchdown or less, including the three games that went to overtime. Yes, games should be closer when we get this far into the playoffs, but the amount of games decided so late made this weekend so great and surprising.
Best Individual Performance
RB Todd Sibley, Archbishop Hoban
Running back Todd Sibley had the best individual performance of the week in leading Archbishop Hoban to 34-3 blowout win over New Philadelphia. Sibley rushed for 187 yards and two touchdowns in the victory. He scored touchdowns from 10 yards and 68 yards out.
Final Regular Season Top 10-Week 3 Results
Medina– Already Eliminated
Cuyahoga Heights– Win
Chardon– Already Eliminated
Midview– Already Eliminated
St. Edward– Loss
Avon– Already Eliminated
Solon– Already Eliminated
Stow– Already Eliminated
St. Ignatius– Win
Archbishop Hoban-Win
5 Big Game Picks for Week 4 of the Playoffs
St. Ignatius over Olentangy Liberty
Hudson over Massillon Perry
Archbishop Hoban over St. Francis DeSales
Cuyahoga Heights over Newark Catholic
Pickerington Central over St. Xavier
Last Week’s Results and Overall Game Pick Record
St. Ignatius over St. Edward- Correct
Warren Harding over Hudson- Wrong
Anthony Wayne over Olmsted Falls- Correct
Cuyahoga Heights over Kirtland- Correct
Archbishop Hoban over New Philadelphia- Correct
Overall Record: 12-3
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All stats come from Cleveland.com or noted otherwise