By Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

DARKE COUNTY — We’re entering the final stretch of the high school football season with three weeks left of the regular season. Teams are now playing for playoff seeding or trying to sneak into the playoffs.

Sixteen teams from each region will make it to the postseason. It’s easier to sneak into the playoffs in some regions compared to others.

The playoff standings are generated by a points system. Teams earn more points for winning against teams in higher divisions and get credit for the wins of the opponents they defeated.

Here are where the Darke County teams stand in the playoff picture. This is based on Joe Eitel unofficial playoff rankings.

Division III, Region 12:

Greenville has some work to do. They currently sit at 0-7 after a 30-0 loss to Stebbins. They have 28 teams in their region, but the projected 16th seed is 2-5. It seems like the Green Wave will need to win out or at least win two of their last three to have a shot to get in.

They have Fairborn on Oct. 6 at home. The Skyhawks have two wins, at West Carrollton and against Xenia. Those two teams are Greenville’s next two games after Fairborn. Greenville will get credited with more points for wins against Fairborn and Xenia as both are Division II schools. Those two wins will be the key to seeing if they have a shot entering the final week of the season. Fairborn is 2-5 and Xenia is 4-3. The level two points from both of the team’s wins could put Greenville in a favorable spot for a late season playoff push.

Division VI, Region 24:

Versailles is the second ranked team in the region at 6-1 after a 41-14 win at Anna. The loss to Marion Local is difference so far, but the Tigers have many chances ahead to grab the one seed. They have a home game against St. Henry Oct. 6. Then, they go to Coldwater and then host Minster to end the season.

Coldwater is currently 7-0 and fifth in Division V, Region 18. Minster is fifth in Division VII, Region 28. Both wins should give Versailles a boost in the rankings as long as they take care of business against St. Henry. But, the current one seed in Williamsburg do have three straight games against Division V schools. It won’t be against the top tier competition that Versailles is facing, but the point system could favor Williamsburg in this situation. The final two weeks will be important for Versailles.

Not too far behind is Tri-Village sitting at sixth place with a 6-1 record after winning 43-0 over Arcanum. The Patriots are hurting a bit after not getting the win over Ansonia, but still should have a shot at getting a higher seed. They have a road game against Dixie on Oct. 6 and the Greyhounds are 3-4. They then host Bradford and go to National Trail. Dixie and National Trail would provide more points as they are in the same region as Tri-Village. A win over Bradford helps as they have three wins that could boost the Patriots resume.

Some things would have to break the Patriots way for them to get a four seed to host the first two rounds of the playoffs. West Liberty-Salem is the fifth seed at 6-1 and Cincinnati Country day is fourth with a 7-0 record. West-Liberty Salem doesn’t have as good of a remaining schedule as the Patriots. Tri-Village could jump them if both win out. Cincinnati Country Day has one tough game left on their schedule, a loss could drop them and the Patriots could jump them.

Arcanum is currently at 22nd with a 2-5 record after their loss to Tri-Village. The 16th seed in Valley is 1-6, but the win is over a Division V two-win team. Both of Arcanum’s wins are over winless teams. The Trojans do have three great opportunities coming up to take that last playoff spot. They have a road game on Oct. 6 against Division V five-win Preble Shawnee. Then they host Division VI Dixie and are at Division VII Bradford. All three have multiple wins this season.

Two wins out of the last three should give them a playoff spot. A win over the Arrows would put the Trojans in the drivers seat to secure a playoff spot sooner rather than later.

Division VII, Region 28:

Ansonia is the second seed with a 7-0 record. Unless a team can upset Marion Local, they will likely stay the second seed as long as they win out. The Tigers won 30-0 over a higher division school in National Trail.They will travel to Tri-COunty North on Oct. 6 and have a game at Preble Shawnee and close out the season with their game against Mississinawa Valley.

A win over Preble Shawnee could try to compete for the one seed, but will more than likely give them distance away from the three seed where Riverside currently sits. Marion Local has games against higher level competition like Anna and Coldwater remaining to cement their spot as the top seed.

Bradford had the past week off and are sitting in the 12th spot with a rated record of 3-2. The team’s win over Middletwon Christian doesn’t count towards the OHSAA rankings. The team has their last three games against Division VI teams. They host Twin Valley South on Oct. 6 and then go to Tri-Village and host Arcanum to end the season.

The Railroaders could already be set for a spot in the postseason, but a win against any one of those teams should lock them into a spot.

Mississinawa Valley is 0-7 and tied for 21st after a 35-0 loss over East Clinton. The season isn’t completely over for the Blackhawks as the 16th place team is 2-4 and the opponents they faced have a combined record of 1-10. A win could get sneak them into the playoffs with the schedule they have. But more than likely, two wins would be needed to get in.

They are at National Trail on Oct. 6. That game is a key game for Mississinawa Valley as it’s their last remaining higher division game. They then host Tri-County North and then end with a road game at Ansonia. Getting a win over Ansonia would be a huge boost for Mississinawa Valley. But getting wins over National Trail and Tri-County North could be enough to get them into the 16th spot or even a bit higher.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]