By Cort Reynolds
BLUFFTON - The Bluffton HS football team will face Riverdale Saturday, Oct. 10, in round one of the Div. VI, region 22 2020 state playoffs.
Brackets and pairings were released Thursday by the Ohio High School Athletic Association.
The coaches in region 22 voted Bluffton (2-2) the 19th seed among 26 teams. The Falcons (3-2) were seeded 14th in region 22.
The Bluffton/Riverdale winner will play at third seed Sherwood Fairview in round two on Saturday, Oct. 17. Fairview received a first round bye as one of the top six seeds.
Archbold was voted the number one seed in the region by the coaches. Colonel Crawford was seeded second and Columbus Grove fourth.
Defiance Tinora received the fifth seed, while Northwood was voted sixth.
The Div. 22 region title game will be held Nov. 7, with the winner advancing to the state semifinals Nov. 14.
All playoff tickets will be sold online through www.OHSAA.org/tickets and will be available starting Tuesday, Oct. 6.
A total of 648 Ohio high school teams will take part in the 2020 post-season.
Normally in Ohio, 224 schools qualify for the playoffs, with eight schools from each of 28 regions earning a bid through the OHSAAís Harbin computer ratings system.
This season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the playoffs will begin in Oct. 9-10, and all teams were eligible to opt in. Divisions, I, II, III and VII will play on Friday nights. Divisions IV, V and VI will play on Saturday nights. All games kick off at 7 p.m.
Schools eliminated from the OHSAA playoffs or that chose not to enter the playoffs have the option to schedule additional regular season contests through Saturday, November 14.
Unless they advance in the tournament, Bluffton will host Leipsic Oct. 23 and visit Cory-Rawson Oct. 30 to finish their season. If the Pirates lose to RIverdale, they will have a bye week Oct. 16.
