The 2025 high school football season is moving quickly as Geauga County High Schools have completed seven weeks of regular season play and are battling for playoff spots.
Kenston football photos click here.
The 2025 high school football season is moving quickly as Geauga County High Schools have completed seven weeks of regular season play and are battling for playoff spots.
In addition, seniors throughout the county are being honored for their hard work and perseverance while participating in their chosen sport over the past four years. It is truly an exciting time at county stadiums as schools host senior nights and football games.
This excitement was on display throughout the county during week 7 as six Geauga County High Schools are currently in playoff contention.
Playoff contenders include the Kenston Bombers, Chardon Hilltoppers, NDCL Lions and West Geauga Wolverines, who all hosted home games on Oct. 3, and the Hawken Hawks and Berkshire Badgers who traveled to neighboring counties.
Heading into week seven, the Hawks (third), Bombers (sixth), and Hilltoppers (10th) were all battling for playoff spots in Division III, Region 9 as all three schools were ranked within the top 12.
This season, only 12 schools in each region qualify for the state playoffs, down from 16 in 2024.
The Bombers, coming off a thrilling 42-38 victory over the Eastlake North Rangers on Sept. 26, hosted the Willoughby South Rebels in a week 7 WRC matchup.
In this contest, the Bombers got behind early, and trailed 27-3 at halftime.
In the second half, they regrouped, scoring a touchdown and giving up a touchdown as the Rebels claimed a 35-11 victory over the Bombers.
Afterwards, Bombers Head Coach Jeff Grubich said that his team did not come out as fast as he wanted. As a result, South took an early lead, capitalizing on big plays.
Also, Coach Grubich said that his staff emphasizes the importance of limiting turnovers, and against South, the Bombers had two costly giveaways.
“We can’t turn the ball over, and that’s something we take a lot of pride in is taking care of the football,” said Coach Grubich. “And we didn’t do that tonight.”
Even though the Bombers got down by 24 points at the half, Coach Grubich kept his team focused and positive by emphasizing the importance of concentrating on one play at a time during the second half.
Junior Will Hamm agreed with Coach Grubich that the Bombers had a slow start and were not executing the things they needed to do to have success.
A bright spot against South and throughout the year, Hamm has been the Bombers leading rusher this season (106 carries for 500 yards, 4.7 yards per carry average).
However, his abilities as a receiver were showcased against the Rebels as Hamm caught 10 passes for 74 yards.
As the Bombers prepare for their October 10th matchup with the WRC leading Riverside Beavers, Hamm said that it will be imperative to put the South game behind them and begin to focus on getting ready for next week’s game. He emphasized that they can use their performance against the Rebels as a motivational tool in preparing for the Beavers.
With the loss, the Bombers dropped to 4-3 on the season, and now are ranked 10th in Division III, Region Nine.
Also, on October 3rd, the Hawks traveled to Rocky River to take on the Lutheran West Longhorns.
Against the Longhorns, the Hawks got on the board first on a 13-yard Donovan Moorhead touchdown pass to Charlie Mallett with 7:53 remaining in the first quarter. Moorhead then found Mallett open in the endzone again for the Hawks second touchdown of the quarter as they took a 14-0 lead heading into the second quarter.
In the second quarter Moorhead threw his third touchdown pass to Mallett and also connected for a touchdown pass with Tommy Wright as the Hawks led 28-6 heading into halftime.
The Hawks took a 30-6 lead on the final play of the third quarter when junior Miles Hamilton tackled the Lutheran West quarterback in the endzone for a safety.
For the game, Moorhead, the NCAA DI Jacksonville State commit, was 26-40 through the air for 220 yards and four touchdowns.
Also, in playoff contention heading into week seven were the NDCL Lions and the West Geauga Wolverines. The Lions were the second ranked team in Division IV, Region 13, while the Wolverines came into week seventh ranked 11th.
In a week 7 contest at home, The Lions were dominant in a 48-6 victory over the Padua Franciscan Bruins.
The Lions took a 14-0 first quarter lead on touchdown runs by Rob Bonchak and Dylan Hoenigman. The Lions then added a two yard touchdown run by Braedyn Rayn and two touchdown passes from Brady Capel to Blake Dumermuth and Casey McInnerney to lead 35-0 going into halftime. The Lions then added two additional touchdowns after intermisdion to go up 48-0 heading into the fourth quarter.
Also, the Wolverines defeated the Harvey Raiders, 28-14. Senior running back MIles Baker ran for 282 and three touchdowns in the victory.
After week 7 the Lions are now currently ranked third and the Wolverines are ranked 10th in Region 13 as both teams picked up week 7 victories.
