THE 10 BEST GAMES TO SEE IN THE STATE OF OHIO THIS WEEK
By Kyle Holsinger
Below are the top ten games for Week 2 of the 2024 season of Ohio high school football. The games are picked through a combination of analysis, rankings, competitiveness, and statistics. If you’d like us to cover your region, please contact us at heartofohiosports.com. Any recruiting rankings are from 247sports.com.
Here is Week 1's article: https://heartofohiosports.com/the-10-best-games-to-see-in-the-state-of-ohio-this-week/
Okay, here we go...
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: Withrow lost at home to Elder, 28-6; Alter lost the Battle of Kettering at Fairmont, 24-7.
Previous Meeting: Unknown.
Intrigue: Both teams are coming off of tough losses.
Kentucky commit WR Quintin Simmons, Jr. had a 92-yard TD run in their game against Elder last week for Withrow. Aside from that run, Withrow was held to a mere 12 yards on 23 carries. Simmons ended the game with 164 all-purpose yards.
Alter was only able to muster 110 yards through the air, and 88 yards on the ground last week. Senior QB Gavin Connor scored the lone TD for the Knights against Elder. Connor was 9-of-15 for 110 yards and also had 24 yards rushing.
Senior LB Connor Watkins made 17 tackles (12 solo) in his team’s losing effort.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: Orange beat Marysville at home, 49-13; North blanked crosstown-rival Central, 34-0.
Previous Meeting: Oct. 23, 2020; Orange won at North, 13-10.
Intrigue: Both of these teams performed at a high-caliber last week. Now, let’s see if they can keep it up against a more evenly-matched opponent to themselves.
This is one of the tougher games on North’s schedule. Orange plays one of the tougher schedules in Division I, and because of that they’re going to need every win they can get in order to get a home playoff game. The computer points earned from this game could be enough to clinch either team a home playoff game or two at the end of the regular season.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: H-L won on the road against Carey, 27-22; Pleasant got over on North Union, 44-0.
Previous Meeting: Unknown.
Intrigue: Pleasant performed phenomenal last week. Hopewell-Loudon wasn’t perfect in Week 1, but they got the job done against a top-tier program in NW Ohio and Division VI. The Spartans may even be more of a challenge for the Chieftains than the Blue Devils were.
H-L’s Braylon Martinez was the spark plug for the Chieftain’s offensive engine against Carey last week. He had over 200 all-purpose yards and two total TDs (including the go-ahead TD with 17 seconds remaining).
There’s a chance that both of these teams represent NW Ohio in the state semifinals this season.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Last Week: Coldwater won at home against Valley View, 38-0; Clinton-Massie beat Waynesville 31-21 in the Battle for the Paddle.
Previous Meeting: Aug. 31, 2018; Coldwater beat Clinton-Massie at home, 31-28.
Intrigue: Coldwater played as if they had twelve players on the field last Friday against Valley View. They did have a twelfth player with them, in spirit: senior center Cale Wenning. Wenning passed away the day before from injuries sustained in a biking accident. The Cavaliers play for him this year.
Their senior QB Baylen Blockberger completed 10-of-12 passes for 163 yards and four passing TDs in his team’s Week 1 effort.
Clinton-Massie’s Logan Chesser ran for 129 and two TDs as the Falcons only threw the ball four times last Friday. QB Kaden Pantene WAS 3-of-3 for 81 yards and two total TDs as it appears the fourth pass, thrown by Chesser, was incomplete.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: St. Xavier lost on the road to Lakota West, 17-13; Centerville beat Lakota East on the road, 31-21.
Previous Meeting: Nov. 7, 2009; St. Xavier beat Centerville at home in the Region 4 quarterfinals, 37-12.
Intrigue: St. Xavier QB Chase Herbstreit, son of Buckeye legend and sports analyst Kirk Herbstreit, plays against his father’s alma mater. Herbstreit rushed for 92 yards and two scores in his team’s tough defeat last week.
St. Xavier has a brutal schedule. So much so that they could potentially get two home playoff games with a 7-3 regular season record or better.
Centerville junior RB Parker Johnson rushed for 105 yards and a TD, and junior Quincy Capogna had four catches, 83 yards, and a TD also for the Elks in Week 1.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 8 p.m.
Last Week: Hamilton beat crosstown-rival Badin on the road, 15-0; Lakota West won at home against St. Xavier, 17-13.
Previous Meeting: Oct. 20, 2023; Lakota West won at Hamilton, 42-14.
Intrigue: Hamilton avenged last season’s loss and ended Badin’s 38-game regular season winning streak last week. Running back Gracen Goldsmith rushed for 95 yards and two TDs for the Big Blue.
This is likely the toughest opponent on Hamilton’s schedule.
Lakota West QB Sam Wiles was 8-of-16 for 105 yards passing with an additional 82 yards rushing against St. X last week. Grant Beerman, a Purdue-commit, had 13 tackles.
The Firebirds are poised for a deep playoff run, and this game will help decide if they’re the ‘real deal’ or not as far as Region 4 title contenders go.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: McKinley won at home against Warren Harding 26-19; Avon beat Cleveland St. Ignatius, 41-21, at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Previous Meeting: Aug. 25, 2023; Avon won at McKinley, 28-7.
Intrigue: McKinley senior RB Nino Hill had 28 carries for 161 yards and two TDs against Warren Harding.
Aside from rival Massillon in Week 10, this is likely the Bulldogs’ toughest opponent this year.
Avon gained 432 total yards on offense last week. Senior QB Nolan Good, a three-star recruit committed to Kent State, completed 14-of-22 passes for 197 yards and rushed for 64 yards as well. Junior RB Cam Wendell rushed for 93 yards as well in the victory. Senior All-Ohioan Matt Maxey had six catches for 80 yards.
The Eagles are looking to make a run at the Division II state title this year. Their very tough schedule has them potentially getting two home playoff games with a 7-3 record or better.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: Kings beat Cincinnati Sycamore at home, 42-7; Winton Woods won at Springfield, 16-6.
Previous Meeting: Sept. 29, 2023; Winton Woods beat Kings at home, 13-12.
Intrigue: Winton Woods blocked the first two punts their special teams faced last week. The first one gave them two points for a safety, and the next gave them seven as they recovered the ball and scored.
The Warriors defense only gave up 130 yards in Week 1.
Winton Woods and Kings are both looking to make a run to a regional title and beyond.
Kings had 627 offensive yards last week. They rushed for 364 yards and the remaining 263 were through the air.
With defense like Winton Woods and offense like Kings: something is going to have to give.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: Whitmer beat Dublin Coffman at home, 42-14; and Toledo Central Catholic bested Findlay at home, 54-21.
Previous Meeting: Central Catholic beat Whitmer on the road, 35-8.
Intrigue: Central Catholic gained over 500 yards offensively against Findlay, and scored on each of its offensive possessions in the game. Senior RB Tyler Morgan rushed for 141 yards and two TDs in the winning effort.
The Fighting Irish are currently on a 32-game winning streak and back-to-back state championship seasons.
Whitmer QB Brady Ford completed 12-for-16 passes and 2 TDs in their blowout of Coffman.
The Panthers are looking to make a deep playoff run themselves in Region 1.
This is likely the toughest matchup each will face in the regular season.
When: Friday, Aug. 30 at 7 p.m.
Last Week: Glenville went on the road and beat Upper Arlington, 6-0; Liberty defeated crosstown-rival Olentangy, 28-0.
Previous Meeting: Aug. 25, 2023; Glenville won at Liberty, 34-10.
Intrigue: Glenville have won back-to-back state titles, and are looking to make it a three-peat.
The Tarblooders lone TD was Jaylen Edwards’ 37-yard punt return in the fourth quarter.
Liberty senior QB Andrew Leonard, a three-year starter, had 171 total yards and two total TDs against his school’s rival. Senior WR Christian Moulton had two catches for 111 yards and a TD.
The Patriots are gunning for a Region 3 title this year, and a matchup with Glenville is a great way to prepare for a deep playoff run. This is the toughest opponent on Liberty’s schedule.
Honorable Mention - Mentor (1-0) @ St. Ignatius (0-1)…two rivals in NE Ohio going at it again. A lot of history between these two teams, and it can go either way.
The season is still early. With the OHSAA expanding the playoffs a few years back, the make-or-break importance of winning these early matchups isn't as dire as it was before to a school's playoff hopes. That being said, these games are still just as good and are still important in the playoff picture in regards to seeding for home games.
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next week!
