Taking out a great Franklin team is one thing. Lining up against Trotwood-Madison is a much different task.

“They’re the big boys on the block,” Cincinnati Turpin football coach Rob Stoll said of Trotwood following last week’s Division II, Region 8 defeat of Franklin. “I think our kids will be up to the challenge.”

That’s been the sentiment about T-M for two-plus seasons by opposing coaches. Turpin (12-0) is up next at 7:30 p.m. Friday in a regional final at Kings.

Turpin wore out Franklin 42-14 last Friday at Mason. That earned the Spartans a Week 13 game against Trotwood. All the Rams did to stay alive for another game was overcome a 20-7 fourth-quarter deficit to stun Winton Woods 27-20 in overtime.

Trotwood (10-2) had to beat Vandalia Butler in the regular-season finale just to secure a spot in the postseason. Now the Rams have won nine straight, are finally healthy throughout their formidable lineup and are getting consistent play from freshman quarterback Messiah DeWeaver, a trouble spot for too much of the regular season.

Trotwood also is looking to defend its D-II state title and has played in the last two state championships.

Conceded Turpin QB Connor Jansen: “They’re a great team and we know it.”

The winner will play the Region 7 winner between New Albany (10‐2) and Columbus Marion‐Franklin (11‐1) in next week’s state semifinals.

Come on down: Once the playoffs get this far, it’s not unusual for teams to be matched up from faraway locales. That’s especially evident in D-III, Region 12 on Saturday when Thurgood Marshall (11-1) plays The Plains Athens (11-1) at Columbus suburb Reynoldsburg (7 p.m.).

The distance between the schools is about 140 miles. The Ohio High School Athletic Association’s goal is to pick a neutral location about halfway between schools. But sometimes that’s not possible.

Stadium owners/operators must submit an application during the regular season to be a playoff host. Sometimes sites aren’t available for Weeks 12-14, but might be for one or two of those dates. The OHSAA would prefer these games be played on artificial surfaces, but for now, that’s not a requirement.

Sometimes a logical location isn’t available. That’s how Region 4 finals sometimes are played at Welcome Stadium, yet both teams might be located near Cincinnati. That’s not the case this season; Colerain (12-0) plays Moeller (9-3) at the University of Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium on Saturday.

Higher seeds host first-round Week 11 games. Week 15 championship weekend is split between Canton and Massillon.

On the road: Springboro senior tight end/defensive lineman Jordan Rigg is headed to South Bend on Saturday for an unofficial visit to Notre Dame.