Division VI regional final football preview

Zac Jackson, OhioHSsports.com, November 12, 2008 3:27 p.m.

ROUND TWO OVERVIEW: The big boys of the small-school division handled their business on the second weekend of the postseason. Six of the final eight teams playing this weekend are undefeated, the most of any division. Though what was expected to be a wide-open race is really just beginning, it’s a huge weekend as two games, Ada-Delphos St. John and Norwalk St. Paul-Bascom Hopewell-Loudon, are between top title contenders. This is a race that likely won’t be decided until the fourth quarter on Nov. 28.

STATEMENT GAMES: Matt Wilde ran wild, going for 181 yards and four touchdowns as Norwalk St. Paul thumped previously unbeaten McDonald, 34-0…Malvern kept rolling with a 53-24 win over Shadyside. Vince Larson’s TD catch, field goal and six PAT kicks put him over 200 points for the season. Do-it-all QB Tyler Tucci accounted for four touchdowns, three of them passing, and threw for 203 yards...Sidney Lehman scored a nice revenge win, dominating Springfield Catholic Central, 42-6, as Zac Schmitz scored three times. The Cavaliers were blown out by SCC, 48-14, in last year’s regional final.

LOOKING AHEAD: Hannibal River has scored 82 points in its two playoff games but will need its defense – and maybe 40 more points – to keep pace with Malvern Friday night…Ada is unbeaten and on quite a roll, but Delphos St. John’s has the edge in big-game experience and played a tougher schedule coming out of the mighty MAC. DSJ is the only previous champion remaining in the DVI field. This year’s seniors were freshmen the last time the Blue Jays won the title…Mechanicsburg, second in the final AP poll, hasn’t been tested this postseason. But that changes this week as Ethan Price, the leader of the Mechanicsburg defense, and his teammates take on a Sidney Lehman squad that ran for more than 400 yards last week.

MARQUEE MATCHUP: Bascom Hopewell-Loudon vs. Norwalk St. Paul. They’re familiar foes to say the least as this marks the fourth-straight regional title game matchup between the two, with two of the last three going to Hopewell-Loudon. Hopewell-Loudon was the top-ranked team in the AP Poll and crushed Mogadore last week as its defense put the clamps on the Wildcat running game and Tyler Brown threw four TD passes. St. Paul counts on Wilde and QB Eric Schwieterman to spark a high-powered offense.

LAST WORD: Six unbeatens still alive makes it impossible to pick a favorite. Can anyone keep pace with Tucci and Malvern? Is the Hopewell-Loudon and St. Paul winner the favorite? Maybe, but who can pick a winner? The Mechanicsburg-Lehman winner will have a strong case, too, but there’s still a lot of football left to be played.