ASHLAND — Ashland County is throwing a football party tonight.
Only once before in the history of high school football in the county have two teams made it to the third round of the playoffs in the same year (2010).
After a season that has seen Ashland and Hillsdale combine for a 23-1 record, it’s finally happening again.
Both squads have rolled through their first two weeks of postseason play after hosting a pair of games each.
The Arrows (12-0) did so by collecting their first-ever playoff shutout (42-0 over St. Charles), then by knocking off three-time state champion St. Francis DeSales (27-14) in a shining all-around performance.
The Falcons (11-1), meanwhile, ran roughshod over their first two opponents, triggering running clocks against both Fairport (55-12) and Windham (43-14).
Ironically, both Ashland and Hillsdale enter their respective games tonight with .500 records in their playoff histories.
The Arrows are 14-14, giving them the most postseason wins of any team in the entire Ashland area, while Hillsdale (12-12) will be competing in its 25th playoff game.
Additionally, both squads are looking to break their own school records for single-season wins tonight.
The only other season the Falcons won 11 games was in 2010. The Arrows, meanwhile, won 12 games in both 2006 and 2007.
With all surviving playoff teams in Ohio now playing at neutral sites, Ashland drives west to Marion Harding while Hillsdale heads east to Massillon Perry.
Here’s a glimpse at what fans can look for with trips to the regional championship game on the line.
Ashland
DIVISION II, REGION 7 SEMIFINAL vs. BIG WALNUT
Seeded fourth in their region, the Arrows get a matchup with the top-seeded Golden Eagles (11-1), who finished ranked No. 8 in the final AP state poll.
Champions of the Ohio Capital Conference, Big Walnut has been building a pedigree as one of the most successful programs in Ohio recently.
This marks the third time in the last four seasons the Golden Eagles have made the regional semifinals. They are riding an 11-game win streak after opening their season with a 20-0 loss against Division III state poll champ Bishop Watterson.
Arrows defensive coordinator Ryan Stackhouse said Big Walnut is very comparable to DeSales, adding they likely would have played a very close contest had they met this season.
Sophomore Nolan Buirley is a downhill running back with 1,615 yards and 22 TDs. He ran for 291 yards and three scores in last week’s 35-24 win over Massillon Perry and has been a fantastic complement to sophomore quarterback Eli Stumpf (115-of-180 passing for 1,547 yards and 18 TDs).
Sophomore Jackson Bowers was the team’s quarterback last week while Stumpf helped in the run game, throwing just six times – once for a touchdown.
Second-year Big Walnut coach Curtis Crager is a 1992 West Jefferson graduate who had assistant coaching stops at both Dublin Coffman and DeSales.
He told Ashland Source this week that the Golden Eagles have roughly seven seniors considering college careers at either NCAA Division II or III programs.
Meanwhile, the coach said 6-4, 220-pound junior tight end Owen Pollock has been offered by Miami (Ohio) University and a few other Mid-American Conference schools, while drawing interest from some Power 5 college programs. He has 252 yards and four TDs on 21 catches this season.
Junior speedster Brody Hatfield has been a two-way monster at both wide receiver (42-543-7) and defensive back (seven INTs), and junior Jake Neff is one of the best kickers in program history (53-of-53 on PATs, 8-of-9 on field goals this season).
Ashland and Big Walnut have strikingly similar resumes. Both had 42-0 first-round shutouts in the playoffs, both had overtime wins in the regular season and both have scored at least 24 points in all but one game.
The Golden Eagles have a 22-10 all-time record in the playoffs and won a state title in 2007 – the same year Ashland made its lone trip to the Final Four.
BACK TO NEUTRAL
The last time the Arrows competed in a playoff game at a neutral site was 2017, when they dropped a 28-7 outcome to Massillon at Wooster High School.
Ashland is 5-6 all-time at neutral sites in the postseason, with its last win coming in 2010 – a 49-7 rout of Tallmadge at Massillon.
In an ironic twist, the only other time the Arrows have had a playoff game at Marion Harding came in 2006. That contest – a 14-9 win over Tiffin Columbian – also came in the regional semifinals during what to that point was an undefeated season for AHS.
Head coach Scott Valentine was leading the charge that night. Now in his 19th season with the Arrows, he’s 147-66 at his alma mater.
The winner of tonight’s game will advance to play the winner of No. 3 Massillon (10-2) vs. No. 7 Teays Valley (8-4) for a regional championship.
“We won all three aspects of (the DeSales game last week),” Arrows senior Tyler Sauder said. “It was huge to see everything come together finally. We’ve just got to carry that momentum into this week.”
Hillsdale
DIVISION VII, REGION 25 SEMIFINAL vs. MALVERN
The Falcons have spent the last 16 seasons rewriting their football history, as they currently boast an Ashland-area-record nine consecutive playoff appearances.
Hillsdale’s No. 2 seed in this year’s region is the highest it’s ever had and the Falcons finished ranked No. 5 in the final Division VII AP state poll – two spots higher than the third-seeded Hornets (11-1).
Malvern is storming into tonight with momentum after advancing beyond the second round for the first time since 2009.
The Hornets feature one of the best 1-2 offensive punches in the state with senior quarterback Jared Witherow (6-4, 180) and senior receiver Rodney Smith (6-3, 170).
Witherow has thrown for at least 2,200 yards and 24 touchdowns in three straight seasons, giving him nearly 7,000 passing yards and over 80 passing TDs for his career.
He was the Inter-Valley Conference North Division Player of the Year.
Smith has been on the receiving end of plenty of that, with school records for career receiving yards and TDs to his name. This fall he has 1,073 yards and 18 TDs receiving, along with six interceptions.
That duo is a big reason Malvern averages 35.5 points per game – barely trailing Hillsdale’s scoring pace (37.9). The Falcons need just 18 points to break their school scoring record (472 in 2010).
The Hornets are 13-15 all-time in the playoffs with a Final Four appearance in 2008 under their belts.
Hillsdale head coach Trevor Cline said this foe reminds his staff of Dalton with its athleticism in space.
“They have been able to, for the most part, do whatever they wanted to on the offensive side of the ball,” Cline said.
The Falcons and Hornets have a common opponent in Lucas. Malvern beat the Cubs 40-26 in the first round of the playoffs – when Witherow threw for six touchdowns – and Hillsdale held Lucas down in a 26-8 victory in Week 2.
There are some similarities between the coaches in this one as well.
Just like Cline, Malvern’s Matt Chiurco is in his seventh season leading his alma mater after spending time there as an assistant.
Cline has a 54-25 record while Chiurco is 53-23.
Hillsdale is trying to reach Week 14 for the first time ever. The Falcons lost in the regional finals in both 2017 (9-4 record) and 2010 (11-2).
BACK TO NEUTRAL
The Falcons haven’t played a neutral game in the playoffs since 2019, a 7-0 loss to Carey at Willard, and tonight will be the first time they have ever taken the field at Massillon Perry.
Hillsdale is 2-5 all-time in neutral-site playoff games, with its last win coming in 2017 at Highland in a 41-0 blanking of Carey.
Tonight’s winner will advance to play the winner of No. 5 Warren John F. Kennedy (10-2) vs No. 9 Cuyahoga Heights (7-4) for a regional championship.
“There are a lot of unsung heroes that have allowed us to break records this year,” Cline said. “It’s a very talented group of players coming through the program right now and we hope to continue this run.”
