Springfield City School District to release students early on Friday so that families and staff may travel to Canton to watch Springfield High School play in the State Championship football game.
The Friday game will be a State Championship rematch with the Wildcats facing Lakewood St. Edward for the third year in a row.
Michael Cooper is a freelance sports writer with The Springfield News Sun and Dayton Daily News. He tells WYSO’s Jerry Kenney the game is significant in several ways.
(The following transcript has been edited for length and brevity)
Michael Cooper: Well, really, this is something that the state's only seen one time. Only two other programs I've met in the state championship game three times in their history, that would be Coldwater and Canton Central Catholic played three times between 2014 and 2016 in the state championship game. So, what's going to happen on Friday night is really rare. Springfield lost to Lakewood St. Edward each of the past two seasons. It was 23-13 in 2021 and 28-14 last season. Springfield is really hoping that this third time is kind of a charm against the Eagles.
Jerry Kenney: This is a pretty big deal for Springfield City School District. They're allowing the students out three hours early to get ready for this game. Tell me a little bit about what it means, actually, for the community that you're in.
Cooper: It means a lot for the community here in Clark County. The city really loves the football program and has really kind of come together over the last five years. Springfield has made it to the state final for five years in a row, and they've made it to the state championship game the last three years. This is kind of, not new territory for them, but they're really excited to try to go back to Canton and actually win a state championship this time around.
Kenney: The 3-hour early dismissal for the students is to get prepped and up to where the game is happening in Canton, Ohio.
Cooper: Yes, absolutely. It's going to take about three hours for them to get there. So, they're going to give the students and fans a chance to get there early. The games a 7:30pm start so they should have plenty of time to get there on Friday night.
Kenney: Tell me a little bit about the Wildcats and how they've been doing so far. Obviously, they're doing really well. This is the third time for the matchup with Lakewood.
Cooper: This has been kind of a great story here for Springfield this season. The past two years, Springfield has had a really powerhouse team. They've only lost one or two games during regular season in the past two years. This fall, they started 1-3 and were 3-5 at one point. Since that time, they've won seven straight games in route to the state championship game here this week.
They've really kind of had a, I don't necessarily think they would call it a Cinderella story, but a lot of people did not expect them to make it to the state tournament at this point. They were the 12th seed in their region, meaning they're actually the highest seed ever against the state championship game in OHSAA's history. They're doing a lot of things differently this year than in the past, but it's been quite a great story for the Wildcats this season.
Kenney: What is your personal assessment of how the team might do in this championship game?
Cooper: Springfield's 10-5 and if they were to win the state championship game, they'd be the first 11-5 team to ever win the state championship. Three years ago, the OHSAA state playoffs were expanded to six games. Instead of it taking five games win a state championship it now takes six, so no 12th seed has ever won a state championship game as well.
Springfield got some great players. They've got a a cornerback named Aaron Scott who is an Ohio State recruit. He'll be playing corner, and he also plays quarterback a little bit for the Wildcats. They're coached by Maurice Douglas, the former Trotwood Madison coach — who won a state championship in 2011. This is actually his ninth time in the state tournament. I think it is, I know it's the third state chairmanship game for Coach Douglas. If he were to win on Friday night, he would be the first black coach to ever win the Division I state championship game as well. Springfield has a chance to make a lot of history this week in Canton.
Kenney: The game is in Canton, but can people watch it anywhere? Is it going to be streaming any place?
Cooper: So, the game is available to watch on streaming at OHSAA.TV. So, if you want to watch the game at home, it is available to stream on your TV at home. It's also streaming on Spectrum News 1 as well. If you have Spectrum TV, you can also stream it that way.
Kenney: Michael Cooper is a freelance sports reporter for the Springfield News Sun and the Dayton Daily News. Michael, thanks so much.
Cooper: Thank you.
