Football divisions set, OHSAA adds region assignments

The Ohio High School Athletic Association on Tuesday announced the regional placement of all football teams and also released this coming season’s football state championships schedule. In addition, the OHSAA confirmed all football playoff games would be anchored on Fridays only through the state semifinals.

Region placement and the playoffs format were approved by the OHSAA Board of Directors last Thursday during their June meeting. The divisions each team would be assigned for this season were released in April.

GEARING UP: MVFCA NORTH-SOUTH ALL-STAR GAME

Area football teams that switched divisions and/or regions due to the new competitive balance factor or adjusted EMIS enrollment numbers:

Division I, Region 3: Centerville, Northmont from Region 4; Miamisburg up from D-II.

D-II, Region 8: Belmont, Carroll and Talawanda up from D-III.

NORTH ROSTER: MVFCA All-Star football game

D-III, Region 12: Alter, Badin, Chaminade Julienne, Dunbar and Monroe up from D-IV. Vandalia Butler and West Carrollton down from D-II.

D-IV, Region 16: Northridge and Northwestern up from D-V; Eaton down from D-III.

D-V, Region 18: Indian Lake down from D-IV.

SOUTH ROSTER: MVFCA All-Star football game

D-V, Region 20: Madison, Waynesville down from D-IV; Miami East up from D-VI.

D-VI, Region 24: Coldwater, Northeastern down from D-V; Covington, Fort Recovery, Troy Christian up from D-VII.

D-VII, Region 28: Triad down from D-VI.

All other area teams remain in the same division and region from last season.

RECRUITING ROUNDUP: Wayne’s L’Christian “Blue” Smith, others

State championship games move from Columbus to the new Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium at Canton — which replaces Fawcett Stadium — through the 2018 season, then return to Ohio State University’s Ohio Stadium at Columbus. A Division I, II, V or V-II title game will be the first to play at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30. The three divisions that don’t play on Thursday will play the next day at 10 a.m., 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The final D-II, IV and VI title games will be held Saturday, Dec. 2, at the same times. The OHSAA will announce which divisions play on what dates and times following the previous week’s state semifinals.

This is the first time since playoffs in Ohio began in 1972 that games will be lumped on Fridays only up to the championships.

“Due to so many more college football games being played on Saturday nights, attendance at our Saturday playoff games has steadily declined and more potential playoff sites have said they cannot host games on Saturdays,” OHSAA Assistant Commissioner Beau Rugg said. “We now have enough playoff sites to handle all the games on one night.”

FACEBOOK: For more high school sports you should like Marc Pendleton