Reaching the playoffs is the goal of every high school football team in the state, and north central Ohio has always produced plenty of qualifiers.

All 20 of the football-playing schools in our three-county coverage area have qualified for the postseason at least once since the dawn of the playoff era in the fall of 1972.

It’s worth noting any team that wanted to participate was allowed to during the pandemic-altered 2020 season.

The longest qualifying drought belongs to Mount Vernon, which made the tournament in 1993. The next longest drought in north central Ohio belongs to Madison, which last qualified in 2014.

With the playoffs just around the corner — and several area teams in line to punch their tickets to the postseason — it’s a good time to take a look back at what has evolved into the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s most eagerly-anticipated championship of the school year.

Through the Years

The playoff format has gone through several facelifts in the 50-plus years since it was first introduced. From 1972 to 1979, there were three classes in Ohio high school football. The largest schools slotted into Class AAA, while the smallest schools were assigned to Class A.

There were four geographic regions per class, meaning there were 12 regions around the state. Only the top team in each region qualified for the playoffs, meaning regional champs (determined by the computer ratings system) advanced directly to the state semifinals.

The first big makeover came in the fall of 1980. The three-class format was scrapped in favor of five divisions. Schools were again divided evenly, with the biggest schools going in Division I and the smallest schools in Division V.

The top-two finishers in each of the 20 regions (still four per division) advanced to the playoffs. A regional championship game was introduced, with the winners advancing to the state semifinals. That format lasted five seasons.

From 1985 until 1993 the top four teams in each region made the playoffs. That meant teams would have to win two regional games before reaching the state semifinals.

A sixth enrollment division was added in 1994, but the format remained the same through the 1998 season.

Beginning in the fall of 1999, eight teams per region qualified for the tournament. That meant 192 teams (out of 700, give or take) made the playoffs — or 32 per division. That format lasted until 2013, when a seventh enrollment division was added.

The biggest 72 schools were assigned to Division I, with the remaining schools split evenly in Divisions II through VII. 

As mentioned earlier, any team that wanted to participate in the postseason was permitted to during the 2020 season. From 2021 until 2024 the top 16 teams per region qualified.

In June the OHSAA board of directors approved the new 12-team format. Only the top 12 teams in each region qualify for the playoffs and the top four seeds get a first-round bye.

The tournament field will include 336 teams (48 per division).

North Central Ohio History

Loudonville was the first area school to qualify for the playoffs, reaching the Division IV state semifinals in 1983. The Redbirds returned to the Final Four in 1988 and reached the Division IV state championship game in 1990, falling to Versailles 29-26 in a heartbreaker at Massillon.

North central Ohio’s first and only state championship belongs to Galion. The Tigers beat Youngstown Mooney 6-0 in the 1985 Division II final at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. It was Galion’s first-ever playoff appearance. The Tigers were coached by Lee Owens, who went on to be an assistant coach at Ohio State before becoming a head coach at Akron and Ashland and retiring in 2022.

Buckeye Central reached the Division VI state championship game in 1995, falling 10-7 to St. Henry at Massillon. The Bucks returned to the Division VI title tilt in 2011, losing a 61-21 decision to Maria Stein Marion Local.

The 2019 season was a memorable one in north central Ohio as Mansfield Senior, Lucas and East Knox all won regional championships. The Tygers and Cubs both reached the state finals. Senior High fell 14-7 in overtime to Trotwood-Madison in Division III and the Cubs lost to small-school juggernaut Marion Local in Division VII.

Hillsdale reached the Division VII title game last fall, knocking off Danville in a memorable state semifinal game at Shelby. The Falcons absorbed a 74-0 defeat at the hands of Marion Local in the finale at Canton.

Danville has reached the playoffs more than any school in north central Ohio. The Blue Devils have made the tournament 23 times and reached the state semifinals in 1999, 2004, 2015 and 2017 along with last year’s appearance. Danville has an area-best 34 all-time playoff victories.

Other area teams to reach the state semifinals include Fredericktown (1989, 2010), Centerburg (2005), Ashland (2007) and Shelby (2017).

Playoff Picture

More than half of the area’s 20 teams are likely to qualify for the playoffs this year despite the contracted field.

Ashland (Division II, Region 7), Shelby (Division IV, Region 14), Centerburg (Divison VI, Region 23) and Hillsdale (Division VII, Region 27) all sit atop their regions in this week’s computer ratings, released by the OHSAA on Tuesday. 

Lexington (Division III, Region 10) and Galion (Division IV, Region 14) are in line for first-round byes. Fredericktown (Division V, Region 18) and Crestline (Division VII, Region 27) would host first-round games if the playoffs began this weekend.

The OHSAA will release the final computer ratings and announce the playoff field on Oct. 27. First-round games will be played Oct. 31.