Top 10 Games of the 2025 Ohio High School Football Season

Aug. 1 signals the beginning of Ohio high school football as practices can begin taking place and teams can prepare for the 2025 season. What coaches and players are looking forward to around the Buckeye State are some of the juicy matchups that have been setup during the offseason.

As the avid fan you’re probably wondering which games might be the best ones taking place this fall. If you’re looking for one to check out, we’ve got you covered with our list of the 10 best games of the 2025 Ohio high school football season.

1. Mount Carmel (Ill.) at Archbishop Moeller (Ohio), Aug. 30

Any chance you get to see the Ohio Player of the Year seems like a good reason to go watch the game, right? Well, this regular season opener has much more to it than Kentucky commitment Matt Ponatoski. Archbishop Moeller’s out-of-state opponent that challenged them the most in 2024 was North Carolina’s Mallard Creek, whom defeated them 21-17. Mount Carmel is considered one of Illinois’ best programs and they should give the Crusaders everything they can handle and more.

2. Archbishop Moeller at St. Edward, Oct. 18

Considered by many as arguably the top two programs in the state, depending where they are at this fall, it could be a meeting of undefeated teams. The 2024 clash was one of Ponatoski’s best outings as the quarterback completed 17 of 24 passes for 191 yards and five touchdowns. Ponatoski will be up against the Eagles’ elite secondary that will be surely a chess match between both coordinators. There’s so many reasons this game has the potential to being the best of ’25.

3. Walsh Jesuit at Archbishop Hoban, Sept. 26

There’s nothing better than a matchup between a couple of the state’s powerhouses that go at it in the regular season and postseason. The two programs split last year’s meetings, with Archbishop Hoban winning when it counted, defeating Walsh Jesuit, 21-7, in the playoffs. What is likely a preview of two playoff teams that will meet later on once again, not having this one marked on your Ohio high school football calendar would be a miss.

4. Glenville at Avon, Sept. 5

If you’re into defensive stalemates in a day and age where offensive football reigns supreme, this game might be the one that piques your interest. On their way to winning the state’s Division II state championship, Avon defeated Glenville in a defensive slugfest, 13-12. A go-ahead field goal in the second half of that one proved to be the deciding factor as Avon went on to go 16-0. We think this season’s version will play out very similar.

5. Rabun Gap Nacoochee School (Ga.) at Massillon Washington, Sept. 5

Games like these are what the Massillon Washington Tigers live for season to season. A chance to get back in the national spotlight and though Rabun Gap-Nacoochee may not be Buford or Milton, they are one of the better high school football programs in the Southeast. We’d have to believe a victory here by the Tigers would truly do wonders the rest of the way and beyond.

6. Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.) at Central Catholic, Sept. 5

Two teams with names you could easily confuse with one another and just also coincidentally are both state championship contenders in their respective states. Last year’s meeting was in Michigan, with the Shamrocks upending the Fighting Irish, 21-7. Both programs remain in the hunt for a state title in both Michigan and Ohio, with this game serving as an opportunity to see how they fair. For Central Catholic, its one week after they face another Michigan power, Cass Tech.

7. Olentangy Berlin at Olentangy Liberty, Sept. 12

Battle of Olentangy. Berlin upended Liberty, with the latter going on to win the Division 1 state championship. The last time Liberty has defeated Berlin was on Sep. 9, 2022 in a 21-17 decision. There’s very little reason to believe this game won’t come down to the wire in deciding. If last year told us anything, you’ll you want to get comfy and watch this one all the way through.

8. Glenville at St. Edward, Sept. 12

What ended in a heartbreaker last season for St. Edward was an instant classic that folks need to see again. The Eagles lost 28-27 in the final minutes to the Tarblooders as they decided to go for two, but were thwarted away by the Glenville defense. A chance to see a pair of Ohio State commitments in Tarblooders’ Cincere Johnson and Samir Perez against a very talented St. Ward’s offense might be worth catching.

9. Trinity (Ky.) at St. Xavier, Oct. 3

What we like about these interstate games is when another state’s top team heads into town. That’s exactly what’s happening here as St. Xavier welcomes Trinity from Kentucky in a battle between two state powers. The Bombers’ defense is loaded with talent looking to slow down Shamrocks’ 2027 quarterback Zane Johnson. This has the makings of being a game that could be much higher up on this list when it’s all said and done.

10. Marion Local at Minster, Oct. 17

Hear us out on this game. Marion Local currently is riding the longest winning streak in the country with 64 straight victories. Mostly every single game the Flyers played during the regular season was a running clock blowout. There was one game that didn’t get out of hand and that was against Minster, a 21-0 victory at home. Now Marion Local has to travel over to Minster and we believe the Flyers will be undefeated heading into the contest. Is this the time when the winning streak possible comes to an end?