Three central Ohio high school football teams took the field Friday night to play for a trip to the state finals. Hilliard Bradley (Division I), Watterson (Division III) and Harvest Prep (Division V) were in action in the state semifinals.

Watterson 27, Celina 14

XENIA — Watterson allowed 200 yards of offense in the first 15 minutes and two unanswered touchdowns before its offense recorded its initial first down in Friday’s Division III state semifinal.

But after the Eagles recorded that first down, on a 10-yard pass from quarterback A.J. McAninch to wide receiver Tommy Haley 9:52 into the second quarter, they settled in on both sides of the ball, leading to a comeback win and a trip to the state finals.

“It’s surreal, right?” Watterson coach Brian Kennedy said. “We got to the regional final last year, (and) a lot of these guys played a lot. I mean, we (have) got great senior leaders and they carried us through.”

Watterson (14-1) will take on Toledo Central Catholic (15-0) at 3 p.m. next Friday at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton.

Watterson will play for a state title for the first time since 2010, the last time it won a championship. The Eagles have won two state titles and have appeared in five state finals.

“It’s every kid’s dream to get to the state final,” McAninch said. “But you don’t want to just get there and throw the towel in and just give it to the other team. I mean, we’re going to give it a fight. We think we can win this game.”

After recording 4 yards of offense on two three-and-outs in the first quarter, Watterson tallied 357 yards over the final three quarters — leading to a 1-yard touchdown run from Zack Weber and a 9-yard touchdown pass from McAninch to Cal Mangini — while Celina was limited to 111 yards and threw three interceptions.

Dominic Purcell, a finalist for Ohio Mr. Football, secured Watterson’s spot in the state final, intercepting a pass from Celina quarterback Bobby Morris midway through the fourth quarter and returning it 42 yards for a touchdown.

“It was just an awesome feeling to celebrate with my guys,” Purcell said. “I mean, we all work our tails off. We just have a special connection, and to be able to make that play at that moment and just celebrate with my teammates, it felt amazing.”

Rudy Kessinger kicked field goals off 22 and 40 yards for Watterson.

Celina quarterback Braylon Gabes put on an offensive showcase in the first quarter.

Gabes, a senior, ran through Watterson’s defense, carrying 11 times for 111 yards. He scored each of the Bulldogs’ two touchdowns, capping off a 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 1-yard score with less than 4 minutes left in the first quarter. Gabes struck again three plays into the second quarter with another 1-yard touchdown run.

“Boy oh boy, they came out fast,” Kennedy said. “They punched us right in the mouth, man. Good on them. (Gabes), that’s the best football player we've seen this year by far.”

In the second half, Watterson “went back to basics,” Kennedy said, admitting to “trying to do too much” on his team’s initial defensive game plan.

After allowing a 24-yard run by Zander Jones to start the third quarter — a play that did further damage after a late hit penalty call — Watterson’s defense settled in, shutting out the Bulldogs (12-3) in the second half and allowing 101 yards of offense. Fifty-four of those yards came on the final drive, which ended with an interception by senior linebacker Braxton Rundio.

Purcell said Watterson made “great adjustments” at halftime.

“Just do your job,” Purcell said. “That’s all it comes down to. I mean, if we work together, not a lot of teams can really play with us.”

After finishing the regular season with a 27-24 loss to CCL rival DeSales, Watterson has outscored opponents 155-44 during its playoff run.

Next Friday, Watterson will face a Central Catholic team that has not lost since Aug. 19, 2022, and has outscored teams 606-159 in 2023, including a 35-7 win in a state semifinal against Chardon.

“I mean, it’s the state final, right? It’s one game,” Kennedy said. “I know we’re playing the greatest team ever assembled, but we’ll see what happens.”

—Colin Gay

Lakewood St. Edward 26, Hilliard Bradley 3

MANSFIELD — The best season in Bradley history came down to a week of anticipation, just not the kind of the Jaguars wanted.

The health of senior dual-threat quarterback Bradyn Fleharty took center stage as Bradley prepared for its first Division I state semifinal against St. Edward. And although coach Mike LoParo and his team held out hope that the Mr. Football finalist would overcome a left ankle injury suffered at the end of last week’s regional final, Fleharty ultimately did not play, changing the complexion of Friday’s loss at Arlin Field.

Freshman Declan O’Neil started in Fleharty’s place.

“We tried everything we could with his surgeon, doctors … everything we could do and we just couldn’t heal him up,” LoParo said. “He couldn’t raise up on his toes, so we knew if he couldn’t jump, run or raise up on his toes, he couldn’t play.

“Bradyn has done an excellent job of mentoring Declan, though. He’s done everything he can to make sure Declan was ready, and the moment wasn’t too big for him. He did the best he could as a freshman.”

O’Neil appeared to settle in after a few drives. He was 12 of 21 passing for 101 yards with an interception, but the Jaguars (13-2) — who came in averaging 28.5 points — struggled to gain any offensive momentum largely because they were held to a single yard rushing on 18 carries.

All seven of Bradley’s first downs came in the second quarter.

Fleharty, one of eight finalists for Mr. Football who passed for 2,810 yards and 32 touchdowns this season and ran for another 1,360 yards and 17 scores, was on the sidelines in street clothes and a walking boot. He exchanged pleasantries at midfield after the game with St. Edward coach Tom Lombardo, who earlier this week compared him to former Minnesota Vikings great and Pro Football Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton because of his scrambling and passing abilities.

“Our defense stepped up, no question, but that freshman is a good one,” Lombardo said. “We had a plan for (Fleharty) all week and then you get a different guy. Obviously you’d rather (face) a freshman in there than a Mr. Football candidate, so we’re not complaining too much.”

St. Edward (14-1) rushed for 298 yards, with 240 of those coming from sophomore Brandon White. White scored three touchdowns on 40 carries, powering the Eagles into next Friday’s state championship game against Springfield.

St. Edward defeated Springfield in each of the past two state finals.

White scored on runs of 3, 1 and 12 yards and now has 1,682 yards and 20 touchdowns on the season.

An offensive line led by Ohio State commits Deontae and Devontae Armstrong (6-foot-7, 295 pounds and 6-5, 305, respectively) on the left side and 6-7, 320-pound right tackle Ben Roebuck, a Michigan commit, paved the way.

“We knew in order to have a shot in this game, we had to be able to stop the run, and we weren’t able to do that consistently,” LoParo said. “There is nothing to hang our heads about. We reached a new milestone and a new goal for the school, but we came in here and fought without our starting quarterback. You have to be proud of that.”

—Dave Purpura

Perry 22, Harvest Prep 8

SHELBY — Harvest Prep dug itself an early hole and could not recover, falling in a Division V state semifinal.

Perry (15-0) opened a 16-0 lead with 3:31 left in the first quarter and advanced to its first state title game.

The Pirates, who are guided by former Dublin Jerome coach Bob Gecewich, will play Liberty Center in the state final next Saturday.

Harvest Prep coach Milan Smith pointed to the slow start as a key in the loss.

“Just like any other game, a couple momentum plays, it just happens,” Smith said. “That’s football. They didn’t do anything to surprise me.”

Gecewich entered the game concerned with Harvest Prep’s defense, but said the strong start made a difference.

“To be up 16-0 on a predominant running team, that helps quite a bit,” he said. “(Harvest Prep has) a great defense. You guys heard the hits. They thump people. They fly (to the ball). They close everything.”

Perry grabbed a 7-0 lead when Walter Moses connected with Brayden Edwards for a 58-yard touchdown on the game’s third play from scrimmage.

The Pirates made it 9-0 when Harvest Prep’s Shavez Watkins was unable to get off a punt in his end zone, with the ball going out of bounds for a safety.

Perry increased its lead to 16-0 when Moses and Owen McKoon teamed up for a 17-yard touchdown on a fourth-and-13 play with 3:31 left in the first quarter.

Harvest Prep (12-2) moved into Perry territory three times in the second quarter, but lost the ball on downs twice and saw the other threat end with a McKoon interception.

The Warriors scored on the opening possession of the second half. Marchello Cox Jr. ran 14 yards for a touchdown and Lenny Wicks added the two-point conversion to make it 16-8 with 10:03 left in the third quarter.

The Pirates closed the scoring on Moses’ 39-yard touchdown pass to Richards with 10:36 left in the game. Moses passed for 145 yards with two interceptions.

Wicks rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries to lead Harvest Prep.

—Frank DiRenna

Ohio high school football state semifinal scores

Division I

Lakewood St. Edward 26, Hilliard Bradley 3

Springfield 26, Cin. Moeller 19 (OT)

Division II

Akr. Hoban 17, Avon 14

Massillon Washington 55, Cin. Anderson 7

Division III

Watterson 27, Celina 14

Tol. Cent. Cath. 35, Chardon 7

Division IV

Cle. Glenville 42, Can. South 21

Kettering Alter 48, Steubenville 0

Division V

Perry 22, Harvest Prep 8

Liberty Center 14, Germantown Valley View 10

Division VI

Kirtland 17, Sugarcreek Garaway 0

Versailles 30, Columbus Grove 13

Division VII

Dalton 55, Caldwell 7

Maria Stein Marion Local 42, Hamler Patrick Henry 0

Ohio high school football state finals schedule

All games at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton

Division I

Lakewood St. Edward (14-1) vs. Springfield (10-5), 7:30 p.m. Dec. 1

Division II

Akron Hoban (13-1) vs. Massillon Washington (15-0), 7 p.m. Thursday

Division III

Watterson (14-1) vs. Toledo Central Catholic (15-0), 3 p.m. Dec. 1

Division IV

Cleveland Glenville (12-3) vs. Kettering Alter (12-3), 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2

Division V

Perry (15-0) vs. Liberty Center (15-0), 3 p.m. Dec. 2

Division VI

Kirtland (14-1) vs. Versailles (13-2), 10:30 a.m. Dec. 1

Division VII

Dalton (13-1) vs. Maria Stein Marion Local (15-0), 10:30 a.m. Dec. 2

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OHSAA football playoffs: State semifinal scores, central Ohio recaps