Springfield lost to Wayne 27-22 in Week 4 in one of the wildest finishes of the season. Trailing 21-14 late in the fourth quarter, Springfield recovered a Wayne victory formation fumble, scored on a 72-yard TD pass from senior Aaron Scott to Jayvin Norman and took the lead on Scott’s two-point conversion pass to Da’Shawn Martin with 26 seconds remaining.
The lead didn’t last long. Wayne’s Jussiah Williams-West returned the kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown to give the Warriors a 27-22 victory.
The Wildcats had won five straight against Wayne, including a playoff victory in a second-round game in 2020.
After starting the season 3-5, Springfield has won back-to-back games against Miamisburg and Northmont. They’ve lost four games by eight points or less.
The Wildcats have finished runner-up in D-I each of the past two seasons, falling to Lakewood St. Edward both times. Springfield advanced to the state semifinals in 2019 and 2020.
The final OHSAA football playoff pairings were released on Sunday afternoon. 448 schools — the top 16 in 28 different regions — qualified for the playoffs in seven different divisions.
The top eight teams in each region will host first-round games beginning Friday. The top four are in line to host twice. The playoff games will move to neutral sites starting with the regional semifinals on Nov. 10. The state championship games will be held Nov. 30 through Dec. 2 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton.
No Clark County team has won a state football championship since the Ohio High School Athletic Association playoff era began in 1972.
Only three programs in Clark County history have advanced to the state championship game — Catholic Central (1991), Shawnee (2011) and Springfield (2021, 2022).
Here’s a look at other playoff games scheduled for Week 11 in the News-Sun coverage area:
D-IV, Region 16
No. 10 Waverly (6-4) at No. 7 Shawnee (9-1): The Central Buckeye Conference Mad River Division Braves qualified for the playoffs for the sixth straight season and will host a playoff game for the fourth time in five seasons.
Shawnee has won six straight games since falling the CBC Kenton Trail champion London, which finished10-0.
Waverly, which is located in Pike County south of Chillicothe, has qualified for the playoffs for eight straight seasons. In Week 2, the Tigers handed second-seeded Chillicothe Unioto its only loss of the season.
No. 15 Urbana (7-3) at No. 2 Chillicothe Unioto (9-1): The Hillclimbers advanced to the postseason for the second straight season.
Urbana won its first playoff game since 2003 last season, beating rival Graham 42-35 before falling to Clinton-Massie 56-42 in a second-round game. Unioto also lost to Clinton Massie in a first-round game 38-0.
D-V, Region 20
No. 10 Greeneview at No. 7 Northeastern: After upsetting D-IV top-ranked West Jefferson in Week 10, Northeastern (7-3) will host a playoff game for the third straight season. They’ll face the OHC South champion Rams (7-3), who have won six straight games.
A year ago, the Jets handed Greeneview its only loss in a 21-20 thriller. The winner plays either No. 2 Waynesville or No. 15 Carlisle. Greeneview lost to Waynesville 24-20 in Week 2.
D-VI, Region 24
No. 13 Lucasville Valley at No. 4 West Liberty-Salem: The OHC North co-champion Tigers (9-1) will host Lucasville Valley (3-7), which is located in Scioto County just north of Portsmouth. Valley started the season 0-5, but won three of its last five games to qualify for the playoffs. The Indians will drive more than two hours to face WLS in Champaign County. The winner will face either No. 12 National Trail or No. 5 Tri-Village.
D-VII, Region 28
No. 11 Fort Loramie at No. 6 Southeastern: Southeastern (7-3) advanced to the playoffs for the second straight season, which has happened just one other time in the program’s history (2001, 2002).
They’ll face Fort Loramie (5-5) for the second straight season. Last season, Fort Loramie beat Southeastern 55-27 in a second-round game in Shelby County.
The winner will play No. 3 Riverside or No. 14 St. Henry.
No. 10 Mechanicsburg at No. 7 St. Bernard-Elmwood Place: The Indians (6-4) qualified for the playoffs for the 11th straight season.
Mechanicsburg beat St. Bernard 59-0 in a 2021 first-round game. St. Bernard is seeking its first-ever playoff victory. It lost to Catholic Central 33-0 last season.
The winner will play No. 2 Ansonia or No. 15 Lockland.
No. 9 Lehman Catholic at No. 8 Cedarville: Cedarville (7-3) qualified for the playoffs for the second straight season.
Lehman Catholic (7-3) started the season 2-2, including a 30-21 loss to Southeastern in Week 2. They’ve won five of their last six games with their only loss coming to third-seeded Riverside.
The winner will play either No. 1 Marion Local or No. 16 Tri-County North.
PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Friday, Oct. 27
Division I, Region 2
No. 12 Springfield at No. 5 Wayne
Division IV, Region 16
No. 10 Waverly at No. 7 Shawnee
No. 15 Urbana at No. 2 Chillicothe Unioto
Division V, Region 20
No. 10 Greeneview at No. 7 Northeastern
Division VI, Region 24
No. 13 Lucasville Valley at No. 4 West Liberty-Salem
Division VII, Region 28
No. 11 Fort Loramie at No. 6 Southeastern
No. 10 Mechanicsburg at No. 7 St. Bernard-Elmwood Place
No. 9 Lehman Catholic at No. 8 Cedarville
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