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COLUMBUS — Week 9 of the 2025 high school football season is in the books.

 

Football players from all over Ohio put up some amazing performances in the ninth week of the season. Here, the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association compiles the best of the best with the OPSMA High School Football Notebook.

 

Let’s take a look.

 

-Ontario’s Gavin Miller completed 14-of-18 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns in the Warriors’ 35-0 blowout win over Highland. Miller also ran for 50 yards and a touchdown on six carries and had five tackles with a tackle for loss on defense. Kooper Kilgore ran for 77 yards on 13 attempts with a touchdown while Guy Trader caught two passes for 30 yard and a score, returned a punt 68 yards for a score and recorded eight tackles with one tackle for loss. Alex McWhorter had two catches for 83 yards and a TD. Trenton Maglott led the way defensively with 10 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. Carson Moritz collected 18 tackles, a tackle for loss, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery and Mason Augustine had six tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble.

 

-Shelby’s Brayden DeVito completed 8-of-9 passes for 177 yards and four touchdowns while also running for 154 yards on seven carries with two TDs and a two-point conversion and recording a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery for a TD to lead the Whippets to a 55-10 win over Pleasant. Travis Slone added 79 yards rushing on two carries with a touchdown and collected seven tackles on defense. Michael Shepherd had three catches for 63 yards and three touchdowns while Carter Kessler caught a 26-yard touchdown pass. Sam Gwirtz led the way defensively with 10 tackles, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Griffin Yeager also had eight tackles and a tackle for loss. The Whippets clinched at least a share of the 31^st league championship in program history and sixth Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title in the last seven years.

 

-Clear Fork’s Ben Campbell was a one-man wrecking crew as he threw a 13-yard touchdown pass, ran for 203 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries and recorded three tackles for loss, three sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in the Colts’ 44-7 win over River Valley. Devyn Oswalt added 111 yards rushing on five carries with a TD and caught a 13-yard touchdown while also recording a sack on defense. Trey Sellers had three tackles and an interception to top off the highlights.

 

-Lexington’s Markale Martin piled up 124 rushing yards on 12 attempts with two touchdowns in the Minutemen’s 49-17 win over Madison. Joe Caudill added 112 rushing yards on eight carries with a score and completed 8-of-10 passes for 140 yards and two TDs. Seven Allen had 17 rushing yards with a score and caught four passes for 95 yards and a TD. Brayden Fogle added 16 rushing yards and a TD while Cole Eichorn caught a 3-yard touchdown pass to cap off the highlights for the Minutemen.

 

-Lucas’ Brady Guegold piled up 85 rushing yards on 22 carries with three touchdowns in the Cubs’ 26-12 win over Division III Lutheran East. Tim Daley provided a solid combo with 115 rushing yards on 15 carries and caught a 38-yard pass and had the game-sealing interception on defense. Brady Anstutz also had an interception while Alegacy Grose and Noah Kinnard had sacks for the defensive highlights.

 

-Dom Bell and Zane Bungard had two of the greatest all-around performances in Sullivan Black River history during a 48-7 Lorain County League win over Wellington. Bell, a freshman, completed 20-of-27 passes, set school records for passing yards (402) and touchdowns (5), picked off two passes at cornerback and made a touchdown-saving tackle to end the first half. Bungard, a senior, reset school records for receptions (11) and receiving yards (256) while tying another mark with three receiving TDs to go with eight tackles (2 for loss, sack).

 

-Medina Highland led by two scores before running a play from scrimmage in a 49-7 win over Richfield Revere that clinched a piece of the Suburban League American Conference championship. Lucas Gerding returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown — the Hornets' 20th punt return for a TD under 11th-year coach Mike Gibbons — while Dan Miller returned a fumble 2 yards for a score. 

 

-All-Ohio running backs Cooper Gray (11 carries, 179 yards, 3 TDs) and Gavin Madigan (9, 132, 3) starred again with a combined line of 20 carries, 311 yards and six touchdowns as Wadsworth clinched a share of the Suburban League National Conference title with a 50-20 blowout of Stow.

 

-Columbus Grove got a record-shattering night from Trevon Baxter in a 33-25 win over Lima Central Catholic in a matchup for sole possession of first place in the Northwest Conference. Baxter caught a single-game record 18 passes for 172 yards and a score as Grove, after an 0-3 start against a gauntlet of strong teams, won its sixth straight and clinched at least a share of the NWC title, its third straight and sixth in seven seasons. To win the title outright, the Bulldogs (6-3, 6-0 NWC) will have to beat another state-ranked team when they go up against Bluffton (8-1, 5-1 NWC) on Friday. Baxter not only set a single-game reception record in Friday’s win, he also set new standards for receptions in a season (52) and career (103). Grove quarterback Landon Best was 23-of-24 passing for 221 yards and three TDs.

 

-Pandora-Gilboa quarterback Cory Gerten played just the first half, but etched his name in the record books when he completed 8-of-10 passes for 104 yards and a TD in the Rockets’ 41-6 win over Ada. Those 104 yards gave Gerten 6,406 career passing yards, surpassing the previous record (6.350) set by Jared Breece in 2015-18.

 

-McComb quarterback Grady Schroeder accounted for five touchdowns – four passing, one rushing – all in the first half in the Panthers 47-0 win over Riverdale.

 

-Convoy Crestview senior running back Braxton Leeth had 238 carries for 238 yards and three touchdowns during Friday's 33-27 win over Spencerville. Leeth now has 223 carries for 2,120 yards and 31 touchdowns this season. 

 

-Wapakoneta earned at least a share of their seventh straight Western Buckeye League title with a 41-10 victory over Elida. Senior quarterback Caleb Moyer completed 21 of 27 passes for 273 yards with three touchdown passes. Moyer also rushed for 34 yards on five carries and had a 1-yard TD run on the opening drive of the game. Wide-out Kaden Page caught nine passes for 116 yards and had a 54-yard TD pass on the second possession of the game. Teammate Jarrett Mullen had six receptions for 73 yards and also led the Redskins with 81 rushing yards on seven carries and had two TDs.

 

-Leipsic improves to 8-1 with a 37-6 victory over Arlington. Avery Paris catch eight passes for 139 yards and a TD. Marc Kirkendall was 17-22 with 245 passing yards and a TD pass. Aaron Hazelton ran the ball 8 times for 36 yards and 3 touchdowns. Marquis Williams had 46 yards rushing, 57 receiving, and a rushing TD. 

 

-With its 21-16 win over Edgewood, the Franklin Wildcats won the SWBL Southwestern Division championship. Franklin had touchdown runs by Ryan Michael (79 yards) and Bryant Ferguson (17 yards) and a 30-yard passing touchdown from Michael to Jack Berry in the win. It was the fourth consecutive win for FHS, which started the season 0-5.

 

-Anthony Valenti had seven carries for 122 yards and two touchdowns in leading Valley View to a 27-7 win over previously undefeated Brookville. The win secures a second straight SWBL Buckeye Division title for the Spartans.

 

-Kolby Morgerson, Drew Conger and Alex Collins exploded offensively in leading Carlisle to a 46-8 win over Madison. Morgerson, a junior quarterback, completed 21-of-29 passes for 303 yards and three touchdowns. Conger caught one of those TD passes and totaled 125 receiving yards on six catches while Collins was the workhouse running back with 155 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown. 

 

-A 14-point third quarter helped Springboro rally to beat Centerville 30-20 on Friday. The Panthers trailed 17-13 at halftime, but got a pair of touchdown passes from Max Miller in the third period to take the lead. Miller connected with Brady Guttman on a 6-yarder and then on a 14-yarder to Noah Billinski. Miller finished the game with 352 yards on 25-of-31 passing and three touchdowns. Guttman totaled 171 receiving yards on 13 catches and a score. Billinski had 8 receptions for 148 yards and two scores.

 

-Parker Johnson was unstoppable in Centerville’s 30-20 loss to Springboro. He ran the ball 32 times for 240 yards and a touchdown in the loss. It was his first 200-plus yard game of the year putting him over 1,000 for the season.

 

-Tytus Bettendorf had a 99-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to seal Miamisburg’s 28-14 win over Northmont. He also had a 2-yard score in the first half and completed 7-of-10 passes for 157 yards in the game.

 

-Fairmont handed Springfield its first league loss when Kole Krejny kicked a 33-yard field goal with just over three minutes left to play. Damien Pattin led the ground game for the Firebirds with 128 yards on 27 carries.

 

-Elijah Grigsby threw for 262 yards and three touchdowns on 19-of-38 passing as West Carrollton snapped its scoreless streak at two games albeit still in a loss at Sidney 31-28. Damani Yow caught seven of those passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns to lead the receivers.

 

-Bryce Peet from Geneva has established himself as the program's all-time leading rusher, surpassing an 11-year record previously held by Aaron Rossi at 3,898 yards. He achieved this remarkable feat with a performance of 181 yards on 18 carries, which played a significant role in securing a share of the Chagrin Valley Conference-Lake Division title during their victory against Madison, with a score of 35-7.

 

-Strongsville's K Vincent Roncone equaled the school record for the most field goals made in a single game, achieving 3 successful attempts during a victory against Shaker Heights with a score of 17-0. His longest field goal of the evening was from a distance of 47 yards, while he also successfully converted two others from 32 yards and 24 yards. Furthermore, Roncone recorded 2 touchbacks. 

 

-AJ Pearson of Girard had an impressive performance against Hubbard, throwing for 289 yards and 4 touchdowns while also rushing for 134 yards and two touchdowns. That offensive output helped Girard secure a 9-0 season record and hand Hubbard a 7-2 record, and put themselves atop the Northeast 8 Athletic Conference in a 48-20 win. He utilized his receivers, Mario Lipinski, Braxton Sloan, and Joey Aljars. 

 

-Liberty Center head coach Casey Mohler has succeeded Hall of Fame coach Rex Lingruen (254-104, 1985-2016) and won at even a higher clip than his former coach. The ninth-year coach of the Division V No. 1 Tigers earned his 100th career victory in Friday’s 56-0 shutout of Wauseon, moving him to 100-16 as LC mentor (.862 win percentage). In almost nine seasons, LC has only lost eight NWOAL games with 32 straight league wins entering week 10.

 

-Garrison Kruse was again busy for unbeaten Liberty Center in the win over Wauseon, rushing for 100 yards on eight carries with two TDs to put him at 1,085 yards on just 75 attempts (14.5 ypc) this year. Kruse also caught a 10-yard TD pass and racked up eight tackles, four TFL and two sacks on defense.

 

-Colt Hunt had a hand in all five Paulding touchdowns in week nine’s historic 36-10 win at Tinora. Hunt completed 16-of-26 passes for 233 yards and three TDs while rushing 10 times for 58 yards and two touchdowns as Paulding secured the Green Meadows Conference title, the program’s first football league title since 1988 when they won the Northwest Conference. Jordan Manz was the top performer with Hunt, catching nine passes for 214 yards and three TDs along with five tackles on defense and a forced fumble.

 

-Defiance’s Kelten Gibbs hit the 200-yard mark for the fourth time in five games, tallying 232 yards and two TDs on 20 carries while catching two passes for 17 yards and completing a 62-yard pass on a fake punt in the Bulldogs’ 39-21 loss to Lima Bath.

 

-Ayersville’s Dane Ewers ripped off a 40-yard touchdown run, caught a 37-yard TD pass, returned a kickoff for an 87-yard go-ahead touchdown and made five tackles and an interception as the Pilots defeated Antwerp, 20-15.

 

-Antwerp had two standouts in the loss to Ayersville. Keegan Gray-Wyckoff recorded 10 tackles, five TFL, three sacks and forcing and recovering a fumble. Hampton Rogge completed 17-of-32 passes for 189 yards and a TD and picked off three Ayersville passes on defense, returning one for a touchdown.

 

-Johnstown junior Ryan Sager piled up 384 yards on 34 carries, scoring on runs of 14, 78, 47 and 7 yards in a 56-20 win against Utica.

 

-Granville senior Kyle Kirby had only 10 carries, but scored on half of them, all in the first half of a 52-8 win against Zanesville. He had two TD runs of 47 yards, and the others came from 33, 6 and 3 yards out, giving him 25 on the season. He totaled 198 yards.

 

-The Nelsonville-York Buckeyes vanquished the Vinton County Vikings 54-12 on Friday night in Tri-Valley Conference Ohio Division action, raising their undefeated record to now 9-0. Cameron Sullivan completed 10-of-12 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 69 yards and two touchdowns on six carries. Caeleb Layton made 13 tackles including four for loss and two sacks from his defensive end position. Nelsonville-York plays at fellow 9-0 Athens on Friday night for a perfect regular season and the TVC-Ohio outright championship. 

 

-The Symmes Valley Vikings vanquished the visiting Portsmouth Notre Dame Titans 63-47 in a high-scoring Southern Ohio Conference Division I shootout on Friday night. The Vikings offense was highlighted by three big performances. Through the air, it was Bronx Carpenter and Jackson Fields. The quarterback Carpenter completed 25-of-36 passes for 359 yards and four touchdown passes. Fields caught 13 passes for 237 yards and made five touchdown receptions. The third contributor for the Vikings was Asher Maynard, as the sophomore running back finished with 19 carries for a career-high 149 yards on the ground and found the end zone twice. But even Maynard got into the act in the passing game, tossing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Fields to give the Vikings their first score. The Titans were led offensively by their dual threat senior quarterback Luke Cassidy, who accounted for 367 of Notre Dame's 466 total yards. Cassidy ran for 180 yards and scored four rushing touchdowns, and threw for 187 yards and a score. Bryce McGraw was the other Titan that contributed in the run game, running for 95 yards on 12 carries and two rushing scores in the second half. The two teams combined for 1,049 yards and 47 first downs.

 

-The Sciotoville East Tartans shut out the visiting Franklin Furnace Green Bobcats 46-0 on Thursday night in Southern Ohio Conference Division I action. The win snapped a 13-game losing streak for the Tartans, dating back to week 4 of the 2024 season, in which they won at Manchester 40-28. For the Bobcats, their last win was a 21-12 victory over East in week 9 of last season. Green's losing streak is now at nine. The run-oriented Tartans did not punt, nor attempt a pass, in the shutout of the Bobcats, rushing for 331 yards on 42 carries. Five different Tartans tallied at least three carries for at least 53 yards and one touchdown apiece. Both teams had entered the game at 0-7 and 0-3 in the SOC I. 

 

-Portsmouth West junior running back Anthony Bishop rushed for 181 yards and two touchdowns on only 10 carries in the Senators' 46-8 Southern Ohio Conference Division II win over Oak Hill on Friday night. The Senators play at undefeated Wheelersburg on Friday night with a chance to share the SOC II championship, and qualify for the state playoffs for the fifth consecutive non-COVID season. 

 

-McDermott Northwest senior quarterback Jake Brown completed 15-of-19 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns to Austin Smith, and rushed for an even 100 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries, in the Mohawks' high-scoring 59-31 win at Waverly on Friday night in Southern Ohio Conference Division II action. Smith caught five passes for 171 yards and both of Brown's TDs. The Mohawks won at Waverly for the first time in program history, and defeated the Tigers in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history. 

 

-The Lucasville Valley Indians won at Grandview Heights 41-8 on Friday night in non-league action, as the Indians amassed their most wins in a season (seven) since they went 8-1 in the regular season of 2015, part of 9-2 that year. A Valley victory at archrival Minford in the regular-season finale will clinch an Indians' playoff berth, and likely give them a first-round home game in the Division V Region 19 state playoffs. 

 

-Portsmouth junior running back Fernando Poxes carried 27 times for 187 yards, and senior quarterback Marquez Locklear completed 7-of-9 passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns, as the Trojans rolled past visiting South Point 41-13 on Friday night in their 2025 Ohio Valley Conference finale. Locklear also scored a rushing touchdown. The Trojans entered the OVC in 2015, and have never lost to South Point in now 11 all-time OVC meetings. Portsmouth is departing the OVC for the Southern Ohio Conference following the 2026-27 academic year. Portsmouth plays at non-league Ironton on Friday night - in the second-oldest Ohio high school football rivalry. Should the Trojans upset Ironton, the defending Division V state champions, then Portsmouth will host an opening-round game in the Division V Region 19 playoffs. 

 

-Fairmont RB Damien Pattin ran for 128 yards as Fairmont upset Springfield 10-7. LB Jahmiere Daniels had 14 total tackles for Springfield in the loss. With the win Fairmont is 3-3 in the GWOC. Springfield still leads GWOC (5-1) and suffers first loss in 6 games. 

 

-Kellen Reeves late TD gave Beavercreek the win over Wayne. Reeves had 33 carries for 137 yards and 2 TD on the night. Beavercreek is 3-3 in the GWOC while Wayne drops to 4-2. Jamier Averette Brown, the Ohio State recruit who recently filed a lawsuit against OHSAA regarding the NIL, had 6 catches for 61 yards in the loss. Averette Brown is considered the top junior WR in the 2027 class. 

 

-Max Miller, one of the best senior QBs in Ohio, went 25-31 352 yards and 3 TD to lead Springboro over Centerville 30-20. WRs Brady Guttman (13-171-1) & Noah Billinski (8-148-2) was unstoppable, and Billinski TD sealed the deal. The leading rusher in the GWOC went wild in Parker Johnson (32-240-1)   

 

-Deaunte White got the party started with a 39-yard TD, and the Bucs never looked back with a 44-7 win over Greenville. Gage Stephan threw 5 TD passes (12-17-194) in a career day as Xenia moves to 7-2 overall. Defensively Christian Corbett grabbed his 3rd interception of season, while DE Otis Boyette (12 tackles) and LB Cecil Piner (11 tackles, sack) was standouts defensively.  

 

-Tippecanoe shut out Troy (21-0) in a huge battle for MVL supremacy as QB Larkin Thomas (13-18, 143 yds passing, 113 rushing) and RB Xavier Melton (18 rush, 98 yards, 2 TD) led the way offensively. DE James Merry (10 tackles, sack), DB Max Deckard (forced fumble), and DE Toby Hoover (2 fumble recoveries) were the stars on defense. Tippecanoe is ranked #3 in OHSAA polls. 

 

-The Spartans used a aggressive defense and its rushing attack and balance to defeat Brookeville 27-7. Senior RB - WR- DB Anthony Valenti ran for 118 yards and 2 TDs to lead the rushing attack (213 total yards). He also lead the receivers with 5 catches and a TD. Aden Lamb (10 tackles) and D.J. Moore (8 tackles, INT) led the defense.

 

-Junior QB Kolby Morgerson and sophomore RB Alex Collins led Carlisle to a 46-8 rout over Middletown Madison. Morgerson was 21-29 with 303 yards and 3 TDs while Collins ran for 155 yards and a TD in the win. Wr Drew Conger caught 6 passes for 125 and a TD. Senior DL Austin Benton forced a fumble and recovered it on the defensive side while soph LB Michael Anthony Lista led the team in tackles (10) and forced a fumble as well. Carlisle is 7-2 on the season.

 

-Dunbar Junior Trayvon Carr threw for 2 TDs while senior DB Derrick Hardy grabbed his League leading 4th INT. Sr DE Sean Smalls and LB Jay'Mal Whitfield led the team with 14 tackles each. Dunbar is in 1st place in the Dayton Public Schools league. 

 

-Junior LB Amari Jones had 2 sacks in the Meadowdale Lions win last game. Meadowdale is undefeated in Dayton Public Schools League. 

 

-Mohawk went into OT with its rival Carey in order to win 29-28. Mohawk pulled off a special play that they have been saving all season, The Sycamore Special, for the occasion. A pass from Owen Patrizi to Brant Kirian, who then ran in reverse to throw it from five yards out to Andon Clouse is what tied the game at 28-28. Clouse then rushed in for the two-point conversion and ended the game.

 

-Undefeated Tri-Village and Preble Shawnee battled for the top Western Ohio Athletic Conference championship.  The Patriots upended the Arrows 40-7 and the backs of a few outstanding performances.  Senior Quarterback Trey Sagester (1900 yards & 29 TDs this year) threw three touchdown passes in the first half all to jr. receiver Griffin Richards (972 yards & 16 TDs this year).  Sophomore running back Colt Camacho also rushed for 154 yards and 2 TDs in second half.

 

-The Eastern Eagles of Pike County (Beaver) won their 31st straight regular season football game Friday night in a 71-52 shootout over the South Gallia Rebels.  The Eagles moved to 9-0 overall and locked up their fourth straight Southern Ohio Conference I league title. Two Eastern players will be joining other standouts in the OHSAA football online record book. Eastern senior quarterback Eric Manley threw for 574 yards and 10 touchdowns, hitting 23 of 44 passes. Those 10 touchdown passes tie him for the top spot in the state. He shares that spot with Ja'niaus Hall who threw for 10 touchdown passes in the Lima Senior versus Toledo Waite game Oct. 11, 2024. Seven of those touchdown passes went to junior receiver Boston Webb, which puts Webb at the top of the receiving touchdown list. Six other individuals were tied at the top with six receiving TDs. Webb finished the game with 13 receptions for 347 yards and seven touchdowns. Although it wasn't a record setting performance, sophomore Trey Kelly hauled in the other three touchdown passes from Manley, finishing his night at five catches for 150 yards.