Ohio high school football championships to stay in Canton

high school football state finalsTom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. Photo from Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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It’s official, the 2018 Ohio high school football championships will be played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton. The Ohio High School Athletic Association made the announcement on Wednesday.

The OHSAA also announce that playoff games in Divisions I, II, III and VI will be played on Fridays, while Division IV, V and VII playoff games will be played on Saturdays. Last year, the OHSAA experimented with having all playoff games on Friday nights during the first four rounds. In addition, all playoff games will kick off at 7 p.m. Previously, Friday playoff games kicked off at 7:30 p.m.

“We still have good attendance throughout the playoffs, but the overall total attendance dropped in 2017 when we moved all the games to Fridays,” said Beau Rugg, OHSAA Director of Officiating and Sport Management and the OHSAA’s football administrator. “Some parts of the state liked staying away from Saturdays for playoff games, but we also received quite a bit of feedback, mainly from the smaller schools, that they hoped we would return to having games on Saturdays, too, so their communities could see two games per weekend instead of one.”

In addition, the OHSAA Board of Directors approved school playoff regional assignments and the playoff schedule. The regional maps, which show the number of schools within each region, and the lists of schools in each region are posted at: http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/football.

The specific dates and times for the state championship games in Canton will be announced after the state semifinals November 23 and 24.
Below are important dates for the 2018 season:
2018 OHSAA Football Schedule
Monday, July 30 – Start date for practice (5-day acclimatization regulation in effect)
Sunday, August 5 – Mandatory day off
Tuesday, August 7 through Saturday, August 18 – Scrimmages permitted
Monday, August 20 – Regular-season games may begin
Saturday, October 27 – Regular-season ends
Sunday, October 28 – Final computer points posted and playoff qualifiers announced
Friday, November 2 – Regional Quarterfinals in Divisions I, II, III and VI
Saturday, November 3 – Regional Quarterfinals in Divisions IV, V and VII
Friday, November 9 – Regional Semifinals in Divisions I, II, III and VI
Saturday, November 10 – Regional Semifinals in Divisions IV, V and VII
Friday, November 16 – Regional Finals in Divisions I, II, III and VI
Saturday, November 17 – Regional Finals in Divisions IV, V and VII
Friday, November 23 – State Semifinals in Divisions I, II, III and VI
Saturday, November 24 – State Semifinals in Divisions IV, V and VII
State Championship Games at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, Canton (Nov. 29-Dec. 2)

 

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.