Teams still have chance to qualify

Just one week remains in the high school football season, and the playoff picture has become much clearer.

The postseason invitations in the WBL are set, as Defiance, Wapakoneta, Celina, St. Marys and Van Wert are in the playoffs and the other five teams are out of contention.

The picture is a little murkier in the MAC. Six teams have locked up postseason bids (Coldwater, Marion Local, Versailles, New Bremen, Minster and Fort Recovery) and no one has yet been eliminated from contention.

That leave Parkway, Anna, St. Henry and Delphos St. John's who are still fighting for their playoff lives. Anna travels to Parkway in a game where the loser is out, and the winner probably finishes 16th in the standings and travels to play Marion Local next week.

St. Henry hosts Fort Recovery needing a win to likely get into the playoffs with the No. 16 seed, thus earning a trip to Ansonia next week. Delphos St. John's is definitely in the playoffs if it upsets New Bremen and has a slim chance to get in even with a loss.

For more analysis of the teams in west central Ohio, download and listen to Bruce Monnin's Computer Points podcast. The computer points for the entire state, and especially the five regions involving most area teams (Regions 12, 14, 18, 24 and 28) can be found throughout the season at: user.nktelco.net/bdmonnin/football.htm.

Division III Region 12

Team - Ranking (Computer Points)

Wapakoneta - 4th (19.81)

Bellbrook - 5th (19.67)

New Richmond - 8th (12.17)

Tecumseh - 9th (12.00)

Monroe - 10th (11.46)

Celina - 12th (10.84)

Elida - 21st (3.51)

Shawnee - 25th (2.61)

Wapakoneta fell two spots last week but gained them both back after its win over Celina. The Redskins are expected to remain in fourth place with a win over Defiance. Wapakoneta will drop to fifth place if they lose to Defiance or if Bellbrook pulls off a mild upset over Valley View.

Celina dropped one rung on the ladder to 12th after its loss to Wapakoneta. A loss to St. Marys should keep the Bulldogs as the 12th seed and earn them a first-round playoff trip to either Wapakoneta or Bellbrook.

If Celina upsets St. Marys, the Bulldogs are expected to rise to eighth place and earn the right to host their initial playoff game, likely against Monroe but possibly against Tecumseh or New Richmond.

Division IV Region 14:

Van Wert - 5th (20.96)

St. Marys - 8th (14.51)

Buckeye Valley - 9th (12.15)

Kenton - 21st (0.56)

Bath - 22nd (0.00)

Van Wert has few points available when it plays winless Bath this week, and as such is expected to finish in sixth place in the region.

St. Marys fell one position to eighth place after defeating Bath. The Roughriders are expected to remain in eighth whether or not they defeat Celina this week. St. Marys should expect to host Delaware Buckeye Valley in the opening round of the playoffs.

Division V Region 18

Coldwater - 2nd (18.56)

Marengo Highland - 3rd (17.24)

Elmwood - 4th (16.69)

Eastwood - 5th (15.68)

Archbold - 6th (15.24)

Huron - 7th (14.84)

Ottawa-Glandorf - 28th (0.56)

Coldwater remains in second place after its overtime victory over Versailles. A win against Marion Local not only secures the MAC title but allows the Cavaliers to remain in the second spot.

A loss should drop Coldwater to fourth place, though the differences between Eastwood, Elmwood, Huron, Archbold and Highland are expected to be quite small. Some shuffling of positions between these teams is likely if any small upsets occur.

Division VI Region 24

Marion Local - 1st (22.38)

Tri-Village - 3rd (14.20)

Williamsburg - 4th (13.23)

Versailles - 5th (12.17)

Dayton Christian - 18th (3.57)

Parkway - 19th (3.43)

Anna - 20th (3.38)

Marion Local will end the regular season as the top team in the region, whether it defeats undefeated Coldwater this week or not. The potential teams favored to open the playoffs in Maria Stein are currently Anna, Parkway and Dayton Christian.

Versailles dropped two positions in the standings after its overtime loss to undefeated Coldwater. Even a win over Minster probably would not allow the Tigers to break back into the top four, unless Tri-Village or Williamsburg is upset this week.

Parkway fell three spots out of playoff contention after losing to Delphos St. John's, while Anna is now four spots short of the top 16 after defeating Fort Recovery.

Only the winner of this week's game between Anna and home-standing Parkway has a chance at the playoffs. Both teams are favored to rise to 16th place with a win, and then face Marion Local to open the postseason.

Division VII Region 28

Ansonia - 1st (17.70)

Riverside - 3rd (11.81)

New Bremen - 5th (11.65)

Minster - 6th (9.11)

St. Bernard-Elmwood Pl. - 8th (7.24)

Cin. College Prep - 10th (6.90)

Cedarville - 11th (6.67)

Fort Recovery - 12th (6.64)

Miami Valley Christian - 13th (4.30)

St. Henry - 19th (0.81)

New Bremen fell one position after beating Minster, but the Cardinals are within a hair of the third- and fourth-place teams. A win over Delphos St. John's should get New Bremen up into fourth, as long as Riverside does not upset Milton-Union. Miami Valley Christian Academy seems most likely to travel to New Bremen next week.

Minster also fell one spot in the standings. The Wildcats should remain sixth if they upset Versailles, while a loss probably only drops them to seventh. This would make Cincinnati College Prep, Fort Recovery and Cedarville the most likely teams to visit Minster next week.

Fort Recovery also dropped one step in the regional rankings after losing to Anna. With a win over St. Henry, the Indians will likely finish in 10th or 11th place, making a rematch at Minster a real possibility. St. Bernard-Elmwood Place is also a likely host for the Indians. A loss seems likely to drop Fort Recovery to 12th, setting up a possible trip to Riverside.

St. Henry completes the foursome of local teams dropping one position. It appears most likely that if the Redskins upset Fort Recovery, they will finish in 16th place and travel to Ansonia next week.

Other Regions of Interest
Division III Region 10

Defiance is now 11th after defeating Ottawa-Glandorf. The Bulldogs are not an absolute mathematical lock for the playoffs, but it would take several major catastrophes to keep them out of the postseason. An upset win over Wapakoneta probably only moves Defiance up to 10th.
Division VII Region 26

Delphos St. John's is still two spots out of the playoffs at 18th after beating Parkway. The Blue Jays need to upset New Bremen, which should move them up to 12th. St. John's could finish 16th with a loss, but would require an unlikely set of upsets.