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The intensity and anticipation that surrounds high school football will be dialed up a lot this weekend.
That urgency comes with the start of the playoffs. The format is simple -- it's a six-week, single-elimination tournament with the goal for players and fans to be the last team standing during championship weekend in Canton. It's win and you play on -- lose and you put the equipment away until August.
Five area teams have earned playoff spots this year, and all will open play at 7 p.m. Friday.
Steubenville Big Red (9-1) will begin its run for a Division IV title when it meets Carrollton (6-4) in Harding Stadium. Big Red is making its 23rd-consecutive trip to the playoffs and 36th overall and carries a 73-31 post-season record. That includes four state championships, five times as runner-up and 19 appearances as final-four team. Carrollton, meanwhile, is 4-5 in post-season play.
Catholic Central will take a 9-1 record into its opening-round Division VII game at Lowellville (9-1). The Crusaders hold a 12-13 post-season mark including one state championship, one runner-up finish and three appearances as a final-four team. Lowellville holds a 3-7 all-time playoff record.
Also in Division VII, Toronto (9-1) will host Norwalk St. Paul (6-4). The Red Knights hold a 5-11 playoff record, while St. Paul is 45-23 in post-season play, having won one state title while finishing runner-up four times.
In Division IV, Edison (7-3) will travel to Ridgewood (7-3). The Wildcats, who have made the playoffs four previous times, will be looking for their first playoff win, while Ridgewood holds a 13-17 playoff record. Also in Division IV, Harrison Central (8-2) will host Triway (5-5). The Huskies hold a 5-9 post-season mark, while Wooster-based Triway is 4-10 in the playoffs.
While the opening of the playoffs is an exciting time, questions continue to be raised about Ohio's expanded post-season format, which is entering its third season. That means 448 schools across the state -- right around half --have qualified for post-season play. While that certainly means more money for the Ohio High School Athletic Association and teams that get to host two playoff games, it has created a situation where teams can be mismatched in opening-round games.
It also leads to an extra burden being placed on athletes -- to win a state football title in Ohio, a team will have to play 16 games, 10 in the regular season and six in the playoffs. That's more than is asked of athletes at the elite level of college football, whose schedule includes 12 regular-season games, a conference championship game and two playoff games. Players in the National Football League, meanwhile, play 17 regular-season games.
And, while schools in Ohio are preparing for the playoffs, West Virginia schools still have two weeks of regular-season play left before they begin their playoff runs, with the goal of being the last team standing in Wheeling Island Stadium.
You won't find any predictions in this space about how this weekend's games will turn out. That does not keep us from wishing all of our teams well as the playoffs begin. With that in mind, we offer congratulations to Big Red, Catholic Central, Toronto, Edison and Harrison Central for earning spots in the playoffs, and wish everyone involved in their programs good luck as their post-season journeys begin.