High school football: OHSAA championship games from Columbus area to Massillon

Coldwater High School athletics director Eric Goodwin also shared the news via Twitter after the OHSAA met with state title game participants Thursday morning.

The move comes one day after a stay-at-home advisory and travel restrictions were announced for Columbus and Franklin County in the wake of an increasing number of positive tests for COVID-19.

The games were to be held at Fortress Obetz in Columbus, where Cincinnati St. Xavier won the Division I title last weekend by blowing out Pickerington Central.

“This is a big change at the 11th hour, but Massillon Washington can accommodate these games and the number of fans that are permitted to attend,” said OHSAA senior director of officiating and sport management Beau Rugg said in a statement. “We are pleased to be playing football this weekend and are excited that these 12 schools will be able to finish their seasons.”

Coldwater is set to play New Middletown Springfield at 5:15 p.m. Sunday for the Division VI championship while fellow Midwestern Athletic Conference member New Bremen is scheduled to play Warren John F. Kennedy in the D-VII title game at 1:15 p.m. Friday.

Massillon Washington hosts Akron Hoban in the DII championship at 6:15 Friday in a game that will now take place in the Tigers’ home stadium, which has regularly been among the sites for the championships in the past.

On Saturday, Kirtland and Ironton are set to play the DV championship game at 1:15 p.m. with Columbus DeSales taking on Chardon at 6:15 in the DIII finale.

The other game Sunday features Van Wert against Mentor Lake Catholic at 12:15 p.m.

Stark County hosted the state championship games in Massillon and Canton from 1990-2013.

After three years at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, they returned to Canton and were played at the expanded Tom Benson Stadium the past three years. That was to be the host again this year until COVID-19-related restrictions on attendance made playing at a smaller venue more practical according to the OHSAA.

The ending is not the only unusual aspect of the 2020 high school football season in Ohio. Although it began on time in late August, the regular season was shortened to six games at the urging of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine with the state department of health predicting a resurgence of coronavirus in late fall/early winter.

All teams who chose to take part made the playoffs, and schools that were not in the postseason were allowed to schedule regular season games even as the playoffs were going on in October and November.

Some teams who opted into the playoffs were forced out early as a result of a positive test or tests and the resulting contact tracing, including Fairborn and Northmont.

With COVID-19 case counts rising throughout the state and Franklin and Montgomery Counties among local departments issuing new health orders restricting movement, the decision to play the playoffs early appears prescient.

“Completing this weekend’s state championship games is very important to the schools, student-athletes and communities, so we felt strongly about finding a place to play,” new OHSAA executive eirector Doug Ute said in a statement. “These 12 schools just want to play and we thank them for accepting this change. We would also like to especially thank Massillon Washington High School for stepping up to host, and also Hoban for agreeing to play there.”