OHSAA state football title games set

COLUMBUS — Following the state semifinals on Nov. 24, the matchups are now set for the 52nd Annual Ohio High School Athletic Association football state championship games, which kick off Thursday night at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton. Tickets for the state championships games are only available online at ohsaa.org/tickets. All seven state championship games will be televised live on Spectrum News 1. The Spectrum telecasts are also available at spectrumnews1.com, SpectrumNewsApp.com and OHSAA.tv. In addition, the games will be broadcast by the OHSAA Radio Network at ohsaa.org/news/radio. On Wednesday, the OHSAA football playoff preview show will be released for radio stations and also a video version on the OHSAA's social media platforms @OHSAASports. Top seeds roll on The No. 12 seed in its region with a 5-5 regular-season record, Springfield is now 10-5 and has reached the Division I state championship game. Of the 14 state finalists, 10 were No. 1 seeds in their region, two were No. 2 seeds, one was a No. 4 seed and one was a No. 12 seed. Poll champs in six games Six of the seven Associated Press poll champions remain alive among the final two teams in each division. Poll champions this season included Lakewood St. Edward in Div. I; Massillon Washington (Div. II), Toledo Central Catholic (Div. III), Perry (Div. V), Kirtland (Div. VI) and Maria Stein Marion Local (Div. VII). In Div. IV, Clarksville Clinton-Massie won the poll title, but was defeated by Kettering Alter in the third round. Alter blasted No. 2-ranked Steubenville last Friday, 48-0, in a state semifinal in Westerville. The Div. V matchup between Perry and Liberty Center features the No. 1 vs. No. 2 teams in the final AP poll, and both teams are each 15-0. Defending champs alive Four of the seven state champions from a year ago are among the seven games once again in their respective divisions this week. They include Lakewood St. Ed's, Toledo Central Catholic, Cleveland Glenville and Maria Stein Marion Local. Toledo CC won the state title in Div. II last season, but are in Div. III this season. Springfield (Div. I), Akron Hoban (Div. II) and Kirtland (Div. VI) are state runners-up from a year ago that are looking to come out on top this time. History on the line ThursdayThe most anticipated title game will come with the first game on Thursday in Div. II when Massillon (15-0) meets Hoban (13-1). The Tigers have infamously not won a state championship in the playoff era across 30 appearances since 1972. Massillon was voted state poll champs in its respective division 24 times from 1909-70 before the playoff format was implemented, including 13 AP poll titles from 1948-70. Norwalk native and Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown led the Tigers to six straight poll titles from 1935-40 before moving on to Ohio State. Massillon has fallen in the state title game six times, including three years in a row to Hoban and Cincinnati LaSalle from 2018-20. Meanwhile, the Knights won five state championships from 2015-20, and are in the title game for a third straight season. Hoban beat Massillon for the title in 2018 by a 42-28 score. After the two met in a semifinal in 2019, a 17-14 win by the Tigers, they lost to LaSalle for the championship by a 34-17 score. The Knights then rolled past Massillon for the 2020 title by a 35-6 score. Finally, the Knights and Tigers met in a state semifinal last season, a 41-20 win by Hoban before it lost to Toledo C.C. for the title, 28-21. Reflector Sports Editor Mark Hazelwood contributed to this story. -------------------------------------------- OHSAA football state semifinal resultsCOLUMBUS — All state championship games will be played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton. DIVISION ISpringfield 26, Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller 19, OTLakewood St. Edward 26, Hilliard Bradley 3State championship: Springfield (10-5) vs. No. 1 Lakewood St. Edward (13-1), 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1 DIVISION IIMassillon Washington 55, Cincinnati Anderson 7Akron Hoban 17, Avon 14State championship: No. 1 Massillon Washington (15-0) vs. No. 4 Akron Hoban (13-1), 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30 DIVISION IIIToledo Central Catholic 35, Chardon 7Columbus Watterson 27, Celina 14State championship: No. 1 Toledo Central Catholic (14-0) vs. No. 4 Columbus Bishop Watterson (14-1), 3 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1 DIVISION IVCleveland Glenville 42, Canton South 21Kettering Alter 48, Steubenville 0State championship: No. 5 Cleveland Glenville (12-2) vs. Kettering Alter (12-3), 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2 DIVISION VPerry 22, Canal Winchester Harvest Prep 8Liberty Center 14, Germantown Valley View 10 State championship: No. 1 Perry (15-0) vs. No. 2 Liberty Center (15-0), 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2 DIVISION VIKirtland 17, Sugarcreek Garaway 0Versailles 30, Columbus Grove 13State championship: No. 1 Kirtland (14-1) vs. No. 3 Versailles (13-2) 10:30 a.m. Friday, Dec. 1 DIVISION VIIMaria Stein Marion Local 42, Hamler Patrick Henry 0Dalton 55, Caldwell 7State championship: No. 1 Maria Stein Marion Local (14-0) vs. No. 5 Dalton (13-1), 10:30 a.m. Dec. 2