2024 high school football: Top games to watch each week during season

The high school football slate is shaping up to make for some memorable Friday nights this fall in northwest Ohio.

Here's a look at (potentially) the best games each week of the 2024 season.

WEEK 1 (Aug. 23)

■ Southview at Northview: In the battle of Sylvania, the rivals clash in the opener for the second straight season. The Cougars, who won the inaugural Northern Lakes League Cardinal Division title in 2023, defeated the Wildcats 34-0 at home last season. Southview holds a 28-17-1 lead in the annual Crosstown Classic. A renovated Cats Stadium makes its debut, featuring new seating areas, a new press box, and and the installation of an all-weather track.

■ Findlay at Central Catholic: The defending Division III state champion Irish open 2024 against the Trojans, who are led by star quarterback Ryan Montgomery. Central Catholic is coming off a 16-0 season with another roster stacked with Division I college prospects. Findlay looks to make an early statement behind the arm of Montgomery, who has committed to play at the University of Georgia.

■ Genoa at Archbold : The Comets went 5-2 last year in the Northern Buckeye Conference, while the Blue Streaks were 6-1 in the Northwest Ohio Athletic League.

■ Bowling Green at Otsego : Battle of the NLL and NBC pits two programs that appear to be on the rise.

WEEK 2 (Aug. 29 and 30)

■ Blissfield at Whiteford : The season opener in Michigan features the Bobcats, who went 13-1 and finished as state runner-up against the Royals (5-5 last season). Whiteford prevailed 28-21 in the 2023 season opener.

■ Whitmer at Central Catholic : The Panthers, who will be led by running backs Jaden Jones and Joey Morales and OL Carter Lowe (Ohio State commit), get a good test early. The Irish face another familiar foe from the former Three Rivers Athletic Conference before they start their second season in the Detroit-based Catholic High School League.

■ Elmwood at Eastwood : The former longtime NBC rivals clash in the Battle of the Woods. The Eagles won 42-7 last season. The Royals, now members of the Blanchard Valley Conference, ended their 20-year losing streak to Eastwood with a 56-49 win in 2021 and defeated the Eagles 28-7 in the 2022 D-V playoffs.

■ Anthony Wayne at St. John’s Jesuit : A good early-season, non-league barometer for both programs. The Generals won the meeting 48-19 last season.

WEEK 3 (SEPT. 6)

■ Liberty-Benton at McComb : The Tigers (15-1) reached the D-V state title game and fell by a TD. McComb (11-3) fell by a point to Patrick Henry in the D-VII regional final.

■ Fremont Ross at Perrysburg : The Yellow Jackets (8-4) started last season 6-0, including a momentum-building 49-20 win over Ross in Week 3 last year. The Little Giants (4-7), led by OL Kaden Mayle (Kent State commit) play the Yellow Jackets, Whitmer, and Findlay in consecutive weeks.

■ Springfield at Start : The upstart Spartans, who finished second in the City League, host a Blue Devils team that also looks to get back to consistent success.

■ Central Catholic at Detroit Catholic Central : In their first foray into the CHSL, the Irish prevailed 42-21 at home over DCC and went on to win the league title. Central Catholic holds an 11-7-1 edge in the all-time series against the 10-time Michigan state champions.

WEEK 4 (Sept. 12 and 13)

■ Findlay at Clay : The rising Eagles get a good measuring stick in a cross-over NLL matchup that features two of the top signal-callers in the area. Findlay QB Montgomery threw for 325 yards and five touchdowns in a 42-7 win last year. Clay QB Mason Heintschel, who has committed to the University of Pittsburgh, finished with 2,140 passing yards and 20 touchdowns last season.

■ Archbold at Liberty Center : This early key matchup might eventually determine the winner of the NWOAL title. The two-time defending champion Tigers (15-1, 7-0) defeated Archbold (10-2, 6-1) on the road 42-14 last season.

■ Oak Harbor at Maumee : The Rockets won the NBC in their first season in the league (7-0), while fellow newcomer Maumee went 3-4. Potential statement game for the Panthers, who are led by RB Cody Wulf (973 yards and scored 11 touchdowns) and WR Carson Graetz (764 yards, 15 TDs). Oak Harbor QB Michael Lalonde threw for 1,758 yards and 22 TDs.

■ Start at Scott : The teams finished second and third in the City League with Start going 5-1 and Scott 4-2 last season. Start edged Scott 30-26 at home last season.

WEEK 5 (Sept. 20)

■ St. Francis de Sales at St. John’s : Longtime rivals meet on Airport Highway with the Knights looking to snap the Titans' 10-year winning streak. St. John's rolled to a 40-23 victory at the Glass Bowl last year. Former Otsego coach Josh Lindke takes over at St. Francis, while Larry McDaniel enters his eighth season at St. John's.

■ Southview at Whitmer : The Cougars won the first NLL Cardinal Division (small school) title with a 4-0 record, and the Panthers tied for the first NLL Buckeye Division (4-1). Whitmer edged Southview 35-28 last fall.

■ Clay at Perrysburg : Great quarterback matchup between Perrysburg's Josh Takats (22 passing TDs) and Heintschel (2,140 passing yards).

■ Northview at Bowling Green : This NLL Cardinal game was decided by two points last season with BG prevailing 41-39 on the road.

WEEK 6 (Sept. 27)

■ Whitmer at Anthony Wayne : A 42-28 Whitmer home win over AW led to a three-way tie for the NLL Buckeye Division title between the Panthers, Generals, and Findlay. All three went 4-1 in the division's inaugural season. AW is led by QB Grant Kinnee (954 rushing yards), and RB Braden Gardner (891). Whitmer QB Brady Ford (1,446 passing yards,14 TDs) has committed to play at Eastern Illinois

■ Ottawa Hills at Northwood : The Green Bears won a second consecutive Toledo Area Athletic Conference title, which included a 39-7 win over the Rangers. Northwood, which won three straight TAAC titles from 2018 to 2020, looks to climb back to the top.

■ Wauseon at Patrick Henry: Key NWOAL clash features programs that look to move back to the top after finishing in the middle of the pack. PH, which won 30-24 last year, was 5-2 and Wauseon was 4-3.

■ Bowling Green at Clay: The Bobcats’ run game goes up against the Eagles’ pass game in a game of schools looking to claim the second NLL Cardinal title.

■ Napoleon at Fremont Ross: Big road test for the Wildcats as both programs also will look to get in position to win the second NLL Cardinal title.

WEEK 7 (Oct. 4)

■ Whitmer at Perrysburg: Two of three Division I teams in northwest Ohio along with Findlay (after realignment by the OHSAA) meet in a key NLL Buckeye Division clash. The teams split last season with Whitmer winning 25-15 in the first meeting of the schools as NLL members last fall and Perrysburg getting revenge with a 20-14 win in the D-I playoff opener.

■ Findlay at Anthony Wayne : A second critical NLL Buckeye game in the same weekend. Findlay handed AW an 18-14 setback in the first meeting of the schools as NLL members last season.

■ St. John’s at Central Catholic : The Irish led just 13-7 at halftime before pinning the Titans with a 35-7 loss last season.

■ Clay at Fremont Ross: Two programs hoping to have breakout seasons look to stay in contention for the NLL Cardinal Division titles.

■ Liberty Center at Patrick Henry : Winner of the Henry County rivalry could be in the driver's seat for the NWOAL title. Both were unbeaten and state-ranked in the meeting between the schools that are just 18 miles apart, but Liberty Center rolled to a 62-0 home win.

■ Bedford at Saline (Mich.): The Mules head up U.S. 23 to face a Hornets team that went undefeated (7-0) to win the Southeastern Conference Red Division title. Bedford (4-5) looks to avenge a 48-0 loss last season.

WEEK 8 (Oct. 11)

■ Perrysburg at Findlay : The Trojans dropped the Yellow Jackets 42-35 on the road last season, pushing Perrysburg out of the race for the NLL Buckeye title. Both teams return plenty of talent to make for another barn burner.

■ Fremont Ross at Southview : Key NLL Cardinal Division tilt pits the defending champion at home against the rising Little Giants. Southview defeated Ross 26-14 on the road last fall.

■ Genoa at Oak Harbor : It will be the 100th meeting for the Battle for the Celestial Ball between the schools that are now members of the NBC. Defending league champ Oak Harbor holds a 50-45-4 edge in the series after defeating the Comets 21-0 on the road last season.

■ Wauseon at Archbold : Two of the top programs in the NWOAL will look to stay in contention for the 2024 title. Archbold defeated Wauseon 35-14 last season.

WEEK 9 (Oct. 18)

■ Whitmer at Findlay : The NLL Buckeye title could be on the line with two of the three tri-champions of the league meeting in the penultimate game of the regular season. The Trojans won 40-14 last season.

■ Clay at Southview : The NLL Cardinal title could be at stake with the Eagles traveling to Sylvania for a crucial division showdown. The Cougars topped the Eagles 32-25 en route to going undefeated in league play last season.

■ Eastwood at Oak Harbor : The Rockets earned a share of the NBC title in their first season in the league with a 35-21 win at Eastwood last fall. Oak Harbor joined the NBC after winning a Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division title in 2022. The Eagles had won six of the previous 12 NBC titles since the league's creation in 2011, including in 2022.

■ Archbold at Patrick Henry : Archbold (10-2 in 2023) beat PH (12-3) at home 59-22 before finishing second in the NWOAL. The Blue Streaks won or shared three straight NWOAL titles from 2019-21. The Patriots won the 2018 NWOAL title.

WEEK 10 (Oct. 25)

■ Lima Senior at Start: Defending City League champion Lima Senior travels to runner-up Start in a battle of Spartans that most likely will decide the 2024 league championship. Lima Senior won 26-14 to clinch the title in the regular-season finale last season.

■ Perrysburg at Anthony Wayne : In a reshaped and strengthened NLL with the addition of Whitmer and Findlay, these two perennial league powers surely will have a say in the 2024 title race. Anthony Wayne and Perrysburg have combined to win 10 of the past 11 NLL titles. AW cruised to a 35-10 road win to clinch a share of the title last season in the regular-season finale.

■ Southview at Napoleon : Regular-season finale could determine which school wins the second NLL Cardinal title. Each team was undefeated in league play when the Cougars won the 2023 title outright with a 20-14 home win over the Wildcats in the season finale — Southview's first league title since 2011.

■ Genoa at Eastwood : Oak Harbor should play a big role in whether this game is for all the marbles in the NBC, but the longtime league foes will play another key game right before the start of the playoffs. Eastwood won 36-29 last season.

■ Liberty Center at Wauseon : A potential three-peat for the Tigers could come down to this regular-season matchup. Liberty Center rolled to a 42-0 home win to complete a perfect 10-0 regular season.