MANSFIELD — Four Richland County schools are alive in the playoffs and three of them will open the postseason at home this week after receiving first-round byes.
Here’s a breakdown of this week’s regional quarterfinals.
Division III, Region 10
No. 7 Tiffin Columbian (8-3) at No. 2 Ontario (9-1)
When the Tornadoes have the ball: Ontario needs to figure out a way to slow down Columbian running back Masen Seitz. The senior rushed for 240 yards and five touchdowns on a whopping 43 carries in last week’s 35-12 win over No. 10 Grafton Midview. Seitz has run for 1,592 yards and 34 touchdowns on 289 carries.
Seitz is hardly a one-man show. Quarterback Logan Gooding has completed 122-of-225 passes for 1,958 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Gooding has an arsenal at his disposal. Blake Miller has a team-leading 29 catches for 652 yards (22.5 yards per catch) and six touchdowns. Dazarius Russell has caught 28 passes for 366 yards and a pair of TDs. Daelan Brandeberry has 26 grabs for 365 yards and four touchdowns.
Ontario counters with the most opportunistic defense in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference. The Warriors led the MOAC with 21 takeaways and a plus-14 turnover margin.
Cardae Brown tied for the MOAC lead with five interceptions, while Cam Powers picked off three passes and forced a fumble. If Ontario’s cornerbacks can cover Columbian’s talented receivers man-to-man, that would allow the Warriors to load the box against Seitz.
Junior Maddix Smith (6-1, 265) has been a menace all season. Smith led the MOAC with 11 sacks and ranked second with 22 tackles for loss. Linebacker Zane Curry ranked among MOAC leaders with 101 tackles.
When the Warriors have the ball: Ontario has utilized a two-quarterback system with Sean Tanner taking a majority of the snaps. The junior has completed 73-of-120 passes for 1,347 yards and 15 touchdowns. Gavin Miller has completed 34-of-53 passes for 447 yards and four TDs and rushed for 346 yards and seven scores on 73 carries.
Max Ciroli has emerged as one of the area’s premier running backs in the absence of fellow junior Kooper Kilgore, who missed the season with a knee injury. Ciroli has rushed for 1,027 yards (7.7 yards per carry) and 10 touchdowns.
Brown is as valuable on offense as he is on defense. The junior has 40 catches for 728 yards (18.2 yards per catch) and 10 touchdowns.
Trindon Flenoury caught 19 passes for 381 yards and four touchdowns. Powers has 15 grabs for 164 yards and a score, while Tre Fowler has 14 receptions for 341 yards and four TDs.
Columbian’s defense is led by Siesel and Blake Miller, who each have 60 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Jax Diamantopoulos and Seontae Moore each have 3.5 sacks. The Tornadoes have 26 sacks as a team.
Extra Point: Ontario beat Tiffin Columbian 49-28 in Week 3 of the regular season. … The Warriors have returned three kickoffs for touchdowns this season, one each for Fowler, Powers and Jermel Powell. … The all-time series is tied 3-3. … Columbian beat Ontario 55-35 in the regional quarterfinals in 2023, the only other playoff meeting between the two.
Division IV, Region 14
No. 7 Firelands (7-4) at No. 2 Shelby (10-0)
When the Falcons have the ball: Dual-threat quarterback Liam Tobicash is the straw that stirs the drink for Firelands. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound senior completed 20-of-32 passes for 291 yards and four touchdowns in last week’s come-from-behind 34-30 win over Rossford.
All four of Tobicash’s scoring strikes went to tight end Brett Beury in the second quarter as the Falcons overcame a 21-0 first-quarter deficit. Tobicash also scored the game-winning touchdown on a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Beury had nine catches for 139 yards in the win. Lucas Green hauled in five receptions for 79 yards.
Shelby’s defense is built around linebackers Cadyn Stine, Griffin Yeager and Braydon Ream.
A junior, Stine leads Shelby with 99 tackles and a MOAC-leading 23 tackles-for-loss. Yeager has made 82 stops, including 17 TFLs, while Ream has made 67 tackles. Defensive end Luke Blevins leads Shelby with seven sacks among his 17 tackles-for-loss.
Senior Casyn Koch tied for the MOAC lead with five interceptions.
When the Whippets have the ball: Michael Shepherd’s first and only year at quarterback has been extraordinary. The senior tight end-turned-QB has completed 96-of-143 passes for 1,733 yards and 17 touchdowns with just two interceptions and rushed for a team-leading 674 yards and 16 TDs on 78 carries.
Shelby’s backfield-by-committee includes Blevins and senior Gavin Baker. Baker has rushed for 547 yards and seven touchdowns on 81 carries, while Blevins has 534 yards and four TDs on 67 attempts.
Brady Bowman is the leading receiver in program history. The speedy senior has 56 catches for 923 yards and 11 TDs. Koch has 21 receptions for 288 yards and three TDs. Yeager has 10 catches for 245 yards from his tight end spot, while Jaiden Wilson and Kayden Paz have combined for 23 grabs for 417 yards and five TDs.
The Firelands defense has surrendered 30 or more points five times this season, including last week’s playoff win. Sophomore linebacker Hadyn Tobicash recovered a fumble in last week’s win. Defensive lineman A.J. Ridenour blocked a punt.
Extra Point: The only other meeting between the schools came during the 2020 playoffs. Shelby won 49-26. … Bowman averages 26.1 yards per punt return and has returned two punts for touchdowns. … Shelby is 28-2 since moving into the Whippet Athletic Complex in 2022 and has won 26 straight home games including the playoffs.
No. 5 Otsego (8-3) at No. 4 Clear Fork (8-2)
When the Knights have the ball: Otsego runs a version of the triple option called the flexbone.
Quarterback Grady Frank is a threat with his arm and legs. In last week’s 63-27 win over No. 12 Van Wert, Frank accounted for seven touchdowns. He scored on runs of 42, 76, 26 and 3 yards and had three TD passes.
Slotbacks Mason Kramer, Dane Leiter and Dane Fatzinger power a ground attack that has piled up 3,838 yards and scored 54 rushing touchdowns. The trio has combined for 1,579 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Clear Fork boasts one of north central Ohio’s stingiest defenses, allowing just 9.9 points and 231.1 yards per game.
Linebacker Alex Schlosser is the centerpiece of the defense. He leads the team with 59.5 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and nine sacks. Fellow linebacker Trey Sellers has 40.5 tackles, nine TFLs and 6.5 sacks.
The defense was bolstered by the return of safety and four-year starter Davis Hoeflich, who suffered a foot injury in Week 2 against Zanesville and sat out several weeks. Senior safety Alekai Price has 50.5 tackles and a pair of interceptions.
When the Colts have the ball: Dual-threat quarterback Marcus Hoeflich has thrown for 771 yards and eight touchdowns and rushed for 849 yards and eight scores.
Nash Evans might be the most versatile player in north central Ohio. He has rushed for 237 yards and two TDs on 24 carries, averaging 9.9 yards per attempt. He’s also Clear Fork’s leading receiver with 14 catches for 208 yards and a score. Quentin Rinehart has nine catches for 215 yards and four TDs.
The undersized but speedy Knights pitched three shutouts during the regular season, but have surrendered 27 or more points four times.
Kramer moonlights as a defensive back and returned an interception for a touchdown last week.
Extra Point: Otsego’s Fatzinger has returned three kickoffs for touchdowns. … In addition to his offensive and defensive responsibilities, Evans punts, kicks, returns punts and returns kicks. … The Colts are 1-5 in the playoffs since 2020, including last year’s opening-round home loss to Orrville.
Division VII, Region 27
No. 10 Lucas (6-5) at No. 2 Danville (10-0)
When the Cubs have the ball: Lucas runs a double-wing, double-tight offense and relies almost exclusively on its rushing attack. The Cubs ranked third in the Northern 10 in rushing offense, averaging 251.9 yard per game during the regular season. Brady Guegold has rushed for 1,102 yards and 13 touchdowns on 193 carries after torching Beaver Eastern for 127 yards and two scores in last week’s 14-0 win. Quarterback Brady Anschutz isn’t asked to throw often, but rushed for 481 yards during the regular season.
Danville boasts north central Ohio’s best defense, led by Knox Morrow Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year Owen Gronberg. The Blue Devils allowed just 58 points and 144.3 yards per game and pitched four shutouts during the regular season. Linebacker Jacob Byers made 107 tackles, including 10 tackles for loss. Chris Mosher has 103 stops. Gronberg tied for the KMAC lead with 23 tackles for loss.
When the Blue Devils have the ball: Operating out of a balanced attack, Danville averaged 186.5 rushing and 168.3 passing yards per game.
Sophomore quarterback Parker Proper has completed 99-of-145 passes for 1,596 yards and 25 touchdowns with just two interceptions. His favorite target is Briggs Wallace, who has 37 catches for 594 yards and eight touchdowns. Brycen Burke (24-335, 7 TDs) and Aidan Mickley (18-373, 6 TDs) are also threats.
Junior running ack Cy Wallace has rushed for 898 yards and 16 touchdowns on 72 carries and needs 128 yards to become the program’s career rushing leader. Wallace was selected the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year. Nolan Ridgway has rushed for 261 yards and five scores.
The Lucas defense is led by Guegold, who made 71 tackles and 15 tackles for loss from his linebacker spot during the regular season. Carter Cox had 70 stops, while Ben Hockensmith had 65 tackles.
Extra Point: Lucas and Danville have a long history, with the Blue Devils owning a 31-8-2 advantage in the all-time series. … The two programs have combined for 40 playoff appearances, 25 for Danville and 15 for Lucas.