{"id":159448,"date":"2022-10-27T03:42:46","date_gmt":"2022-10-27T08:42:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=159448"},"modified":"2022-10-27T03:42:46","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T08:42:46","slug":"pigskin-pickem-opening-round-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2022\/10\/27\/pigskin-pickem-opening-round-playoffs\/","title":{"rendered":"Pigskin Pick’Em: opening round playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another regular season is in the books and just like that, it\u2019s playoff time around Ohio. Whether you like the 16-team per region format or not, here we are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, upsets can and will happen but I feel like those will be few and far between, at least in the opening round. However, a handful of area games have the potential to be very competitive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week I managed to go 17-3, which took my overall record to 176-45, or 79.6 percent. This week, 20 playoff games are on the slate, featuring WBL, NWC, GMC and MAC teams, along with Lima Sr. and Lima Central Catholic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Games of the Week<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Division VII Region 26<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardin-Northern (6-4) at Antwerp (10-0)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second seeded Archers are riding high after completing the program\u2019s first ever 10-0 season, complete with an outright GMC championship. The ride will continue with a victory over the Polar Bears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pick: Antwerp<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delphos Jefferson (6-4) at Ayersville (7-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There has to be at least one upset, right? Ayersville is the No. 7 seed while Delphos Jefferson is No. 10. The Pilots lost two of their last three games while the Wildcats have won three straight. Make no mistake, Jefferson is the underdog, but I like the underdog in this one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pick: Delphos Jefferson<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delphos St. John\u2019s (4-6) at Arlington (9-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A stunning upset by the Blue Jays over state ranked New Bremen was a real eye opener and now, I think this game has upset written all over it. Arlington has been very good this year but Delphos St. John\u2019s comes in MAC battle tested. Even if the Blue Jays don\u2019t win, it should be a good game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pick: Delphos St. John\u2019s<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Division VI Region 26<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black River (6-4) at Columbus Grove (8-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re a Columbus Grove fan, be thankful this game is at home. Black River High School, while very nice, is in the middle of nowhere. It\u2019s in Ashland County, but practically right on the border of Lorain and Medina counties. Anyway, the Pirates opened the season with four straight losses and are now riding a six game winning streak. This has the potential to be a close game but I\u2019ll go with the home team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pick: Columbus Grove<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division IV Region 14<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wauseon (6-4) at Van Wert (9-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can\u2019t put my finger on it but this game makes me slightly nervous. Forget about last year\u2019s 33-point Cougar win, that doesn\u2019t mean anything this year. Wauseon has some very nice athletes and a very good defense. I\u2019m not going to overthink it but I really believe this really could be a somewhat close game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pick: Van Wert<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best of the Rest<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division II Region 8<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lima Sr. at Edgewood: Edgewood<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division III Region 10<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defiance at Cloverleaf: Cloverleaf<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division III Region 12<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wilmington at Wapakoneta: Wapakoneta<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Celina at Bellbrook: Bellbrook<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division IV Region 14<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buckeye Valley at St. Marys Memorial: St. Marys Memorial<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division V Region 18<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

North Union at Coldwater: Coldwater
Tinora at Highland: Highland<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division VI Region 22<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wayne Trace at Ashland Crestview: Ashland Crestview<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division<\/strong> VI Region 24<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anna at Marion Local: Marion Local
Lucasville Valley at Allen East: Allen East
National Trail at Versailles: Versailles<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division VII Region 26<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tiffin Calvert at Lima Central Catholic: Lima Central Catholic
Edgerton at Gibsonburg: Gibsonburg<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Division VII Region 28<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cedarville at New Bremen: New Bremen
St. Henry at Fort Loramie: Fort Loramie
Fort Recovery at Minster: Minster<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent editor Another regular season is in the books and just like that, it\u2019s playoff time around Ohio. Whether you like the 16-team per region format or not, here we are. Yes, upsets can and will happen but I feel like those will be few and far between, at least in the opening round. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-159448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-30 20:56:55","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159448"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159448\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":159449,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159448\/revisions\/159449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=159448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=159448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}