Asher Hamilton and the Upper Arlington defense pointed the way to the regionals, where the Golden Bears will face unbeaten New Albany after eliminating Reynoldsburg. (PressPros Feature Photos by John Hulkenberg).
There were many lopsided mismatches that the masses feared in Week One of the state football playoffs, but a noteworthy number of upsets mitigated the ugliness and set some teams up for future success.
In a season marred by near misses, Reynoldsburg developed a healthy case of revenge for someone and made Hilliard Davidson the first, and maybe not the last, to pay for past frustrations.
Dublin Jerome used some big plays in the passing game, including this one to David Adolph, and elusive tailback Preston Everhart to oust Olentangy Liberty (PressPros Feature Photo by John Hulkenberg).
Mismatches abound, or appear to, as the state playoffs begin with some pairings that suggest competition may not be as robust as the size of the pack chasing a title in each region (PressPros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless).