It’s the final countdown.
3-2-1 Playoffs.
There are three weeks before Maryland high school football teams begin the chase for a state championship.
Now is where all the fun begins. This is when team begin really jockeying for playoff positions
Qualifying for the playoffs isn’t a pressure anymore in Maryland, ever since the state adopted its all-inclusive, everyone-in-the-pool format. Every single team – from undefeated to winless and everything in between – is playoff bound.
It’s just a matter where they find in their respective pods.
Maryland has divided the football-playing teams into six divisions – up from the original four – with four eight-team divisions (East, West, North and South). The divisions are Class 1A, 2A/1A, 2A, 3A, 4A-3A and 4A.
The student population determines the division where a school participates.
Smithburg, Boonsboro, Clear Spring and Hancock are Class 1A and all are in the West Division, except for Boonsboro, which is positioned in the North.
Williamsport Class 2A/1A, while North Hagerstown is Class 3A and South Hagerstown was elevated to Class 4A/3A this season. All are in the West Divisions.
So, what’s to play for.
In the divisions with the full compliment of eight teams, the top four earn the right to host first-round playoff game. Highest remaining seeds play at home in the second round.
When the 32-team division gets down to eight teams – two from each divisional bracket – they are reseeded for the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds with the highest ranked teams hosting the games.
The two finalists in each division will play for the title at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis on Dec. 4-6.
In essence, the highest-ranking teams avoid traveling and play on their home field … with is an advantage.
So, let the games begin. Week 7 is the starting point of figuring this all out.
Thursday
South Hagerstown at Williamsport, 6
Last Meeting: 2024 – Williamsport 20, South Hagerstown 13
Series record: South Hagerstown leads, 13-6
Last week: South Hagerstown (2-4) lost to Saint Frances Regional, 40-21; Williamsport (4-2) lost to North Hagerstown, 28-20.
Notes: Williamsport enters the game on a two-game losing streak after starting 4-0. South enters the game on a loss after winning two consecutive games … South Hagerstown is currently fourth in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association Class 4A/3A West rankings. The Rebels would be projected to host Wootton in a first-round playoff game. … Williamsport is currently second in the MPSSAA Class 2A/1A rankings. The Wildcats are projected to host Owings Mills in a first-round playoff game. … Williamsport completes the “Washington County gauntlet” by facing Boonsboro, North and South Hagerstown in consecutive weeks. The Rebels represent the third run-heavy opponent of the Wildcats. … South lost to Saint Frances Academy, a team it picked up to fill a late opening in it schedule. … JoJo Davis scored two touchdowns and Tavon Harris added a third in the loss to the Panthers. … Davis has been on a tear for the Rebels with nine touchdowns in the last three games. … Williamsport’s struggled against North Hagerstown with 164 yards of total offense. The Wildcats rushed for minus-11 yards. … Quarterback Gabriel Parker connected on 19 of 35 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown. North held him to minus-28 yards rushing. He has thrown for 1,343 yards and 11 TDs this season. … Williamsport managed three touchdowns in the loss, but two came on kick returns by David Grayton. With Williamsport down 28-0 in the second half, Grayton returned a kickoff 98 yards for one score, followed by an 88-yard punt return for the other to cut the deficit to 16 points. Grayton also led Williamsport with 49 yards receiving … Tae’myji Boyce-Brown was held in check with 11 yards rushing and 36 yards receiving with a TD. He has rushed for 336 yards and four TDs this season. Williamsport has 497 yards rushing as a team. … Tyson Cleary had 17 tackles to pace Williamsport’s defense, while Xavier Bowie added a huge impact with 15 tackles, including one sack, four for losses, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. … Cleary leads the Wildcats with 60 tackles.
Next week: Liberty at South Hagerstown, 6; Williamsport at Mountain Ridge, 6:30
Friday
Boonsboro at SEED, 4:30 p.m.
First Meeting
Last week: Boonsboro (4-2) lost to Musselman, 37-14; SEED (4-2) defeated Perryville, 17-14
Notes: This game is a showdown between to top two teams in the MPSSAA Class 1A North rankings. SEED is first with a one-point lead in the region with three games remaining. The Warriors, at second, are currently projected to host Catoctin in the playoff opener. … Boonsboro’s loss to Musselman ended a four-game winning streak. … Boonsboro trailed 37-0 until scoring twice in the fourth quarter against the Applemen. Quarterback Blake Main ran for one score and threw a 50-yard pass play to Jadon King for the second score. … The Warriors were held to 153 yards rushing, led by King with 71 yards, which included a game-high 30-yard run. … Musselman rolled up 382 yards of offense, including 241 yards and five TDs on the ground. … Main was 5 of 14 passing for 131 yards, including two catches for 60 yards by King. … Landon Sallerson led Boonsboro’s defense with 16 ½ tackles, while Elijah Weddle added 10. … King has produced 13 touchdowns offensively for Boonsboro, nine rushing and four receiving. The junior leads the team with 545 of the team’s 1,505 yards rushing. … Main has connected on 50% of his passes for 590 yards and nine touchdowns. … SEED, located in Baltimore, enter the game on a three-game winning streak. The Sabers have outscored their opponents 180-87 this season (30-14.5 average), including 122 in the last three games. … In their five-game statistics, Domonic Wilkins tops the Sabers with 488 yards and six touchdowns rushing … Sophomore quarterback Malcolm Smith Jr. has hit on 37 of 75 passes for 543 yards and seven touchdowns. … Elijah Williams is the top receiver with 13 catches for 205 yards. … SEED’s defense has forced 12 turnovers, including 10 interceptions.
Next week: North Hagerstown at Boonsboro, 7
Tussey Mountain at Clear Spring, 6
Last Meeting: 2024 – Tussey Mountain 20, Clear Spring 13
Series record: Tied, 1-1
Last week: Tussey Mountain (5-3) defeated Everett, 26-7; Clear Spring (2-4) defeated Smithsburg, 14-7
Notes: Clear Spring’s win broke a four-game losing streak. The Blazers’ other victory was in the season opener against Green Street Academy. … Clear Spring is currently fourth in the MPSSAA Class 1A West rankings. The Blazers would be projected to host Allegany in a first-round playoff game. … Clear Spring defeated Smithsburg in a defensive battle. … Alex Mattheus ran for both Blazers touchdowns. He broke the tie with a 3-yard TD with about nine minutes remaining in the game. … Kayden Selby sealed the victory with a late sack … The Blazers have been outscored 192-100 this season. Tussey Mountain has been in tight games, only holding a 148-123 edge in score for eight games (18.5-15.4) … The Titans enter the matchup on a three-game win streak. They have scored 79 points in the three wins to bounce back from a 2-3 start. … Clear Spring and Tussey Mountain have Everett as a common opponent. The Blazers lost to Everett 41-7 on Sept. 19, while the Titans defeated Everett 26-7 last week. … Noah Lucko leads Tussey Mountain with 956 yards and six touchdowns rushing. He has produced 64.2% of the Titans’ 1,487-yard rushing attack. … Quarterback Owen Miller has thrown for 578 yards and seven touchdowns. … Travis Witters is Tussey Mountain’s top receiver with 12 catches and 139 yards. … The Titans’ defense is anchored by Kyler Reed with 124 tackles. … Tussey Mountain has forced 18 turnovers, including 14 interceptions. Isaiah Gambol leads the team by picking off six.
Next week: Southern Huntingdon at Clear Spring, 6
North Hagerstown at Fort Hill, 7
Last Meeting: 2014 – Fort Hill 46, North Hagerstown 8
Series record: Series tied, 1-1
Last week: North Hagerstown (5-1) defeated Williamsport, 28-20; Fort Hill (3-3) defeated Mountain Ridge, 62-0 stats.
Notes: North Hagerstown enters the game ranked second in the MPSSAA Class 3A West rankings The Hubs are currently projected to host Rockville in a first-round playoff game. … Fort Hill has assumed the No. 1 spot in the MPSSAA Class 1A West rankings, replacing Smithburg. The Sentinels would be hosting Hancock if the playoffs were starting this weekend. … After some early miscues, North put together an impressive outing to defeat Williamsport in a battle of 4-1 teams. … The Hubs held a 28-0 lead until late in the third quarter. … The Hubs ran effectively against the Wildcats while the defense shut down Williamsport’s running game, collected three turnovers and halted some fourth-down attempts. … Ty’Qwell Fauntleroy led North’s attack by rushing for 149 of the Hubs’ 166 rushing yards and scored three touchdowns. Fauntleroy has rushed 734 yards and 10 TDs in the first six games. His yardage is just under one half of North’s 1,497 yards on the ground. Michael Stewart is North’s second leading rusher with 492 yards … Quarterback Cam Butts connected on 7 0f 9 passes for 107 yards and a TD. He has 367 yards passing and three TDs on the season. … Tight end Garett Forrest hauled in a 44-yard TD pass. … Damean Thomas anchored North’s defense with 12 tackles while adding a fumble recovery, an interception and blocking a punt near Williamsport’s goal line. He leads the Hubs with 67 tackles and has recovered three fumbles this season … Bryant Noubissie has made an impact on North’s defense in three games with 35 tackles, three sacks, eight tackles for losses and three forced fumbles. … Linebackers Blake Custer is third on the Hubs with 63 tackles and Ben Distefano has 9 ½ tackles for losses, 4 ½ sacks and five hits on the quarterback. … Two of Williamsport’s three touchdowns came on a kickoff and a punt return. … North has outscore its opponents 160-70 this season. … Fort Hill is a surprising 3-3 on the season and needed the win over Mountain Ridge to get back to .500. … Despite the record, the Sentinels have outscored their opponents 182-126 this season. … Fort Hill scored nine touchdowns against Mountain Ridge, seven by rushes. … Braelyn Younger led the way with 103 yards rushing and four TDs on 12 carries. He has 748 yards rushing and nine TDs on the season … Receiver Jameson Powell caught four passes for 131 yards and two TDs vs. Mountain Ridge. He leads the team with eight catches for 256 yards and four TDs. … Fort Hill averages 210 yards per game rushing, compared to North’s 249.
Next week: North Hagerstown at Boonsboro, 7
Catoctin at Smithsburg, 6
Last Meeting: 2024 – Catoctin 43, Smithsburg 0
Series record: Catoctin leads, 14-3
Last week: Catoctin (1-5) lost to Walkersville, 59-6; Smithburg (3-3) lost to Clear Spring, 14-7
Notes: Catoctin has won the last 12 meetings with Smithsburg, dating back to 2007. Four of those wins were by shutout … Smithsburg enters the game ranked third in this week’s MPSSAA Class 1A West football rankings. Currently, the Leopards are projected to host Mountain Ridge in a first-round playoff game. … Catoctin is seventh in the Class 1A North and could be headed with rematch at Boonsboro in the first round. … Catoctin was overwhelmed by Walkersville’s rejuvenated offense. … Catoctin was led by quarterback Chase Cregger, who completed 13 of 20 passes for 134 yards, including a 20-yard TD pass to Konnor Dodson in the second quarter. … Tyler McCallion caught seven passes for 70 yards and rushed four times for 13 yards. Ben Bingman had recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass in the end zone for the Cougars. … Smithsburg led 7-0 against Clear Spring in the second quarter, scoring on an 88-yard pass from Luck Scott to Nick Roncone. … It has feast or famine for the Leopards this season. They have averaged 30 points per games in wins and 9.3 points in their losses.
Next week: Smithsburg at Fort Hill, 7
Connexions Leadership Academy at Saint James
Last Meeting: 2023 – Saind James 49, Connexions Leadership Academy 8
Series record: Saint James leads, 1-0
Last week: Connexons Leadership Academy (0-4) was off last week; Saint James (5-2) defeated Maret, 51-34
Notes: The Saints have won five straight games since opening 0-2. … Saint James quarterback Jayden Yates accounted for six touchdowns – four passing and two rushing – to lead the Saints past Maret. The senior connected on 14 of 17 passed for 264 yards and ran 18 times for 100 more. Yates has thrown for 1,152 yards and 11 TDs on the season. He also tops the Saints with 637 yards rushing and 11 more TDs. … Arvid Ryberg caught seven passes for 168 yards and two TDs, while Calvin Moss pulled in fur passes for 69 yards and two TDs. … Marcello Anderson ran for a TD. … Alex Miltimore led the Saints defense with 10 tackles, while Aiden Owens and William Taffe added nine each. … Saint James’ defense has 16 quarterback sacks this season. … Connexons Leadership Academy has lost by forfeit in three of its four games … The other game was a 7-0 loss to Northeast, so the CLA has been outscored 13-0 this season.
Next week: Potomac School at Saint James, 1 Saturday
CANCELLED
Atlantic Shores Christian at Hancock
Last week: Hancock (0-6) lost to Stonewall Jackson, 20-8
Notes: Hancock was originally scheduled to face Madonna Academy, from Weirton, West Virginia, but the school has disbanded its football team because a lack of participation. Atlantic Shores Christian (4-4) was planned to be the replacement game, but the Seahawks are scheduled to play Hampton Roads Academy on Friday … Hancock is currently ranked eighth in MPSSAA ranking for the Class 1A West. The Panthers are projected to face top-ranked Fort Hill in the opening round of the playoffs. … The Panthers have been outscored 239-22 this season. They scored their third touchdown of the season against Stonewall Jackson.
Next game: Clear Spring at Hancock, 7 on Oct. 31.
