Who wants a rematch? Football teams learn playoff fates from OHSAA

COLUMBUS — You say you want a rematch, eh?You got your wish.Of the the five Muskingum Valley League teams that qualified for the high school football postseason, four will face rematch games in the first round. Another, New Lexington, received a first-round bye by virtue of its No. 2 seed in Division IV, Region 15.Pairings were announced officially by the Ohio High School Athletic Association on Oct. 25.More: Sheridan football comeback stuns unbeaten New Lex, Week 10 roundupMore: Right on time, Reese St. Clair plays hero vs. Claymont footballMore: Philo tops Maysville, shares MVL title as Lincicome ties recordHere is a look at the local matchups:Sheridan, Tri-Valley back in Region 11 fieldIn Division III, Region 11, Sheridan (8-2) jumped into a first-round home game as the No. 6 seed following its Week 10 win against the Panthers. Its opponent is one all-too familiar — MVL rival Tri-Valley (7-3), in the playoffs for the seventh straight year and a team that handed the Generals a 38-21 defeat in Week 9. The Scotties are seeded 11th.The winner plays at No. 3 seed Columbus East (9-1), of the Columbus City League, which finished 9-1. That winner plays either No. 2 Licking Valley (10-0), No. 7 Granville (7-3) or No. 10 Plain City Jonathan Alder (7-3).The other half of the bracket features No. 1 Steubenville (8-2) hosting the winner of No. 8 Columbus Linden McKinley (9-1) and No. 9 Jackson (7-3), and No. 4 Athens (9-1) welcoming either No. 5 Dover (8-2) or No. 12 Columbus South (8-2).The Generals are in the postseason for the 25th time and ninth time in 11 years under coach Paul Culver III, which included a regional runner-up finish in 2023. They have been to state tournaments in 1987, when they were runner-up, and in 1996.Tri-Valley has qualified 17 times, all since 2006, and has a 19-17 record, culminated by a state title game in 2017. Austin Jones is the fourth coach to lead the Scotties to a playoff berth in that span.Familiarity rules in Region 15New Lex, in the playoffs for the 13th time since 1976, finished 9-1 for the second straight season and gets the winner of No. 7 Fairfield Union (8-2) and No. 10 Heath (7-3); that winner gets either No. 3 West Holmes, No. 6 East Liverpool and No. 11 Columbus Marion-Franklin.In the upper half of the bracket, No. 8 seed West Muskingum lost a third-level point tiebreaker with Fairfield Union after tying with a 16.9 overall average. The Tornadoes get a home game with No. 9 Philo (7-3), a team it defeated at home, 42-21, in an MVL crossover in Week 5.The winner gets a road date with three-time defending regional champion Gnadenhutten Indian Valley, which jumped New Lex for the top seed after a 7-6 win against rival Claymont in Week 10 that secured a third straight 10-0 regular season.The Mustangs (9-1) slipped to the No. 5 seed and hosts No. 12 Lisbon Beaver Local, with No. 4 Johnstown waiting on them in the second round.New Lex is 10-13 in the playoffs, including a 4-2 record the past two seasons under coach Kevin Board and state bids in 1976 and 2008. This is the Panthers' fifth appearance in six years.Board said he is pleased to get a first-round bye to regroup after its loss to rival Sheridan in Week 10, adding it will allow his team to fine-tune their strategic focus with what figures to be a highly competitive race to reach the Final Four."Having had it last year, it gave us a week to get healthy, clean some things up and prepare for the weeks ahead," Board said. "That is no different this year. If a team is 100% healthy through three months of football, two scrimmages and 10 games, they are extremely lucky. "Everyone has guys with bumps and bruises, some more serious," Board said. "Having a full week off before prepping for your first playoff game is huge to getting guys closer to 100%. We have some guys that need that time off." In its fourth playoff in five years under coach Nathan Brownrigg, West is making its seventh postseason. All four of its wins in that time have come in his tenure.A playoff mainstay, the Electrics have seven straight playoff berths and are 5-13 all time in their 14 appearances, each since 1984. Head coach Dirk Lincicome, who needs one win to pass Sam Harfield for the most in program history, has led them to all but four of those berths and played for the Electrics in the postseason as a player in 1995.The Ridgewood Road WarriorsIn Division V, Region 19, Ridgewood (6-4) is the No. 9 seed and faces a three-hour road trip to No. 8 Proctorville Fairland (7-3), with the winner getting a road trip to top-seeded Ironton (9-1). Below them in the bracket, No. 5 Wheelersburg (7-3) and No. 12 Grove City Christian (5-5) battle for a road affair with No. 4 South Point (9-1).The other half features No. 2 Fort Frye (9-1) entertaining the winner of No. 7 Pomeroy Meigs (7-3) and No. 10 Piketon (6-4) and No. 3 Columbus Academy (7-3) hosting the winner of No. 6 Worthington Christian (5-5) and No. 11 McArthur Vinton County (6-4). The Generals are in their 21st postseason since 2003, with all but one under coach John Slusser. They are 17-20 overall in those games, which included a regional title in 2009 and regional final bids in 2019 and 2020.sblackbu@usatodayco.com; @SamBlackburnTRThis article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: Who wants a rematch? Football teams learn playoff fates from OHSAA