Fans of high school football in Ohio know that this weekend will have a different feel.

It’s the first week of the playoffs, when teams begin their runs at what they hope will be state championships. That intensity will be much greater because of a simple reality — it’s the beginning of a six-week, single elimination tournament. Win and you play again –lose and the team is done until August.

Steubenville Big Red, Catholic Central, Indian Creek, Edison and Toronto all will be representing our area in the playoffs.

On Friday at 7 p.m., Big Red (10-0) will open its run toward a Division III title when it hosts Buckeye Valley (6-4) at Harding Stadium. Indian Creek (8-2), meanwhile, will travel to Newark to face Licking Valley (9-1) in another Division III game. Edison (7-3) will visit Girard (6-4) in a Division V game, while Toronto (7-3) will host Wickliffe (7-3) in a Division VI game.

On Saturday at 7 p.m., Catholic Central (7-3) will host River (4-6) in Harding Stadium in a Division VII game.

While the playoff field has expanded during the past few years, reaching the postseason remains an achievement. According to the Ohio High School Athletic Association, 448 schools spread among seven divisions and 28 regions earned playoff berths this year. That means about half of the teams in the state have qualified for the post-season.

Our local teams are not strangers to the playoffs. Big Red will be making its 37th playoff appearance, a run that goes back to 1981. Catholic Central will be making its 16th trip to the playoffs, while Toronto will be making its 13th playoff appearance, Indian Creek will be making its ninth appearance and Edison will be making its sixth appearance.

The end goal, of course, is to the reach the state title games that will be played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. For Division VII, that championship game will be played at 10:30 a.m. Dec. 6. The Division III title will be decided at 3 p.m. Dec. 6. The Division VI title game will be played at 10:30 a.m. Dec. 7, with the Division V title to be decided at 3 p.m. Dec. 7.

Congratulations, then, are due to our area playoff teams. While we would never venture a guess as to how this weekend’s games will turn out, there is confidence in predicting each will have a great deal of support whenever they play.