The Ohio High School Athletic Association state football playoffs have arrived in Cincinnati this week while Northern Kentucky has one more week of regular-season action. It's time to run down some of the top matchups to watch on each side of the river.
Making picks are Cincinnati Enquirer writers Shelby Dermer, Scott Springer, James Weber, Alex Harrison and Brendan Connelly, along with high school sports digital content coach Melanie Laughman.
West Clermont (5-5) at Princeton (8-2)
What to watch: Princeton missed out on a Top-4 seed in Division I, Region 4 after falling to Mason, 10-7, in the regular-season finale. Will the Vikings' offense rebound after being held to under 200 total yards against the Comets?
The matchup seems like a get-right spot for the Princeton offense, directed by quarterback R.J. West, who is second in the GMC in passing yards (1,487) and touchdowns (15). Princeton can beat you multiple ways with a deep receiving group (led by Riley Woods) and a backfield with four players with over 350 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
They'll face a West Clermont team that went 0-3 against teams with a winning record this season and gave up 38.3 points per game in those losses. Offensively, the Wolves have scored 26-plus points in six of their last seven games. Quarterback Bryson Earley has thrown and run for 12 touchdowns. He is one of three West Clermont rushers with over 400 yards on the year, led by Mysaun Sanders (645). They will, however, face a Princeton defense that has posted four shutouts in the last nine games and ranked first in the GMC in rushing defense (71.6 yards per game).
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