Stark County High School Football | Top games, who makes OHSAA playoffs & more for 2nd half

The second half of the Ohio high school football regular season kicks off Friday in Greater Canton .

What should fans expect over the final five weeks of the regular season ? Here's your guide to Weeks 6-10: A look at five games to watch and five players who could break out in the second half of the regular season, and who we predict to win league titles and who we project to make the 2024 playoffs .

5 OHSAA football regular-season games to watch in second half featuring Stark County-area high schools

• McKinley at Green, Sept. 27: Green fell 28-27 at McKinley last year, but it was more evidence the Summit County Bulldogs have turned a corner in the Federal League; they share the league lead at 2-0.
• Northwest at Triway, Oct. 18: Northwest is a whisker away from being 5-0, the record the surprising Titans have attained for the first time in 10 years.
• Green at Lake, Oct. 25: Both teams are 4-1 and capable, and this could be for a share of the Federal League championship.
• Northwest at Canton South, Oct. 25: Both teams seem headed for the Division IV playoffs, but Northwest is in a much rougher division than South, and will want to do some Pac-7 celebrating as the regular season ends.
• McKinley at Massillon, Oct. 26: The Bulldogs haven’t tamed the Tigers since 2015, but their 38-7 rout of resurgent Perry brightens red-and-black prospects.

5 breakout player candidates for the second half

Ja’dyn Williams

Massillon, linebacker

Massillon has a bevy of talented players but don’t overlook Williams. The linebacker has recorded 48 tackles, five tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a pass broken up. Williams had a huge sack against St. Edward and could be primed for a monster second half.

John Collins

North Canton Hoover, quarterback

Collins is growing more comfortable as the Hoover starting quarterback after being pressed into service due to the season-ending ACL injury to Zac Braucher. Collins is a strong runner (252 rushing yards in first half of season) and is improving rapidly as a passer.

Owen DiMarzio

Louisville, running back

DiMarzio seems to be improving weekly for Louisville at running back. His role also seems to be growing in the Louisville passing game. DiMarzio could be poised to have some big games down the stretch for Louisville. He has run for 357 yards and four touchdowns and caught 19 passes for 208 yards in the first half of the season.

J.R. Jackson

Alliance, quarterback

Jackson has made an immediate impact after taking over as the primary quarterback for Alliance midway through the first half of the season. Jackson is 27-of-45 passing for 321 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He is also the second-leading rusher on the team with 233 yards and a touchdown on 36 carries. Jackson could prove to be a bright spot in a rebuilding year for the Aviators.

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Evan Reed

Green, running back

Green has not been known for running the football with sometimes in past years having just one player listed at the position on the official roster on game nights. Reed has changed that this season. He ran for 259 yards and a touchdown in the first half of the season and has brought some balance to the Bulldog offense. Reed catches the ball well also and also has three receiving touchdowns for Green.

Predicting the champions of the Federal League, PAC-7, EBC and IVC

• Federal League: Canton McKinley. ... The two-time defending league champs are off to a 2-0 start in the league, winning by a combined score of 73-13.
• PAC-7: Manchester ... An overtime win over Northwest quickly put the resurgent Panthers in the title conversation. A Week 8 showdown with current unbeaten Triway could determine their fate. If they stumble along the way, a shared title is a good possibility.
• EBC: West Branch. ... West Branch rolled through five weeks of non-league play, going 5-0 and winning by an average of 31 points per game. Expect more of the same in the EBC, as the league's other five teams combined to win just seven games the first five weeks.
• IVC North: Malvern. ... Newcomerstown at Malvern on Oct. 11 puts the capable Hornets up against a team that has outscored its foes 209-21.
• IVC South: Garaway. ... Unbeaten Indian Valley’s 45-41 win at Dover suggests a clear and present danger to defending champ Garaway when the teams collide in Sugarcreek on Oct. 4. Garaway is on a 35-game regular-season winning streak.

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Projecting Canton-area OHSAA football playoff qualifiers

Pairings for the OHSAA state playoffs are released Oct. 27, the Sunday after the regular season ends. The opening round of the playoffs begin five days later on Nov. 1. How many Greater Canton teams will be the postseason? We're projecting 17 teams from the area qualifying, including 12 from Stark County, six from the Federal League.

Here's the 17:

DIVISION I

• Region 1
  • Jackson: It has been a five-week roller coaster ride for head coach Jay Rohr’s Polar Bears. When the regular season ends, they should find themselves preparing for a playoff opponent.
  • McKinley: The Bulldogs have missed the playoffs just twice in the last 20 seasons. With the talent they have, that run won’t be ending this year.

DIVISION II

• Region 5
  • Green: With impact players on offense and defense, the Bulldogs could be a dangerous team to face in the postseason.
  • Hoover: The Vikings faced adversity when All-Ohio receiver-defensive back-turned QB Zac Braucher suffered a season-ending injury in Week 2. They will be battled tested when the playoffs arrive.
  • Lake: Players come and go, and the Blue Streaks just keep sending team after team to the postseason.
  • Louisville: Second-year head coach Chris Kappas has brought renewed hope to the Leopards. Getting to the playoffs after a full season for the first time since 2015 is a good possibility.
• Region 7
  • Massillon: Barring the most catastrophic scenarios, the Tigers will have a shot to defend their Division II state championship.
  • Perry: Beating Lake in Week 4 vaulted the Panthers in position to possibly host a first-round game.

DIVISION IV

• Region 13
  • Northwest: Head coach John DeMarco has taken Northwest to the playoffs in each of his four seasons. It doesn’t appear this season will be any different.
  • West Branch: West Branch once again has the look of a team that will be tough to beat in the Eastern Buckeye Conference and in the postseason.
• Region 15
  • Canton South: Life after record-setting quarterback Poochie Snyder was initially rough for the Wildcats. Now head coach Matt Dennison’s team is finding an identity.

DIVISION V

• Region 17
  • Central Catholic: Two straight wins after an 0-3 start have the Crusaders back on the postseason path.
  • Fairless: The Falcons still have some meat left on their schedule. A few more wins may be required to send them to the playoffs for a fifth straight season.
  • Manchester: Next year is here. The days of seeing the Panthers in the playoffs are back.
  • Sandy Valley: The Cardinals were facing an uphill battle when they lost their first two games. Can they beat one of the Inter-Valley Conference South kingpins to assure themselves a berth?

DIVISION VI

• Region 21
  • Dalton: The 2023 Division VII state runners-up moved up a division this year. Their standing as a playoff team remains the same.

DIVISION VII

• Region 25
  • Malvern: The Inter-Valley Conference North’s best team should see postseason play for a sixth straight year.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Stark County High School Football | Top games, who makes OHSAA playoffs & more for 2nd half