It’s Week 7 of the Ohio high school football season, and The Dispatch’s live coverage Oct. 3 features three games that will impact league and playoff races: Big Walnut at Worthington Kilbourne, Franklin Heights at Columbus Academy and Olentangy at Marysville.
Follow this live blog for updates throughout the games.
Watch Ohio high school football on NFHS Network
OHSAA scores, updates from Week 7 of Ohio high school football season
Columbus Academy widens lead
Parker Stoner’s 2-yard touchdown run gives Columbus Academy a 14-0 lead with 5:22 left. The Vikings went 48 yards in seven plays, their longest drive of the night.
Olentangy continues to dominate Marysville
Olentangy leads Marysville 42-10 after three quarters. Six players have scored for the Braves.
Columbus Academy, Franklin Heights locked in defensive struggle
The offensive statistics have grown worse for both teams, with Academy holding a 7-0 lead with 8:52 left. Academy has 36 total yards in the half, and Franklin Heights has 25.
Big Walnut’s Buirley scores again to end third quarter
One play after Kilbourne tied the game, Nolan Buirley raced 80 yards for a touchdown to put Big Walnut back ahead of Kilbourne, 27-20 as the third quarter ends. Buirley has 158 yards and four touchdowns on 14 carries.
Worthington Kilbourne ties Big Walnut late in third
Jackson Szabo found a wide-open Grayson Benjamin on a play-action pass, and Benjamin waltzed into the end zone for a 53-yard touchdown reception to pull Kilbourne into a 20-20 tie with Big Walnut with 20 seconds left in the third quarter. The drive started when Kilbourne’s Griffin Miller intercepted Big Walnut quarterback Eli Stumpf at his own 27.
Olentangy forces running clock at Marysville
Elijah Wyse’s 35-yard touchdown run gives Olentangy a 42-10 lead with 9:15 left in the third quarter. The running clock is now in effect at Marysville.
Kilbourne held to field goal, gets within 7
Grady Fuller’s second field goal in as many possessions, this one from 23 yards, gets Kilbourne within 20-13 of Big Walnut with 4:49 left in the third quarter. The field goal capped an 18-play, 71-yard drive that took 7:06.
Franklin Heights stops Columbus Academy again
Academy’s offense continues to struggle in Franklin Heights territory. Michael Tishkoff is intercepted for the second time on third-and-5 at the Falcons’ 22-yard line. Academy holds a 7-0 lead with 5:33 left in the third quarter.
Impressive second quarter gives Olentangy big lead at halftime
After trailing 10-7 early in the second quarter, Olentangy scores its fourth unanswered touchdown as Luke Chilicki hits Trace Newsome for a 3-yard score and 35-10 lead with 33 seconds left in the second quarter. The Braves take that 35-10 lead into the intermission. Chilicki has completed 13 of 15 passes for 263 yards and four touchdowns.
Halftime: Big Walnut 20, Worthington Kilbourne 10
Grady Fuller’s 25-yard field goal in the final minute of the first half got host Kilbourne within 10 points at halftime of an OCC-Capital clash, and the Wolves will have the ball coming out of halftime.
Kilbourne has outgained Big Walnut 216-215 but committed the game’s only turnover, a Brady Taylor interception of Jackson Szabo in the end zone. Kilbourne has 122 yards on the ground and 94 through the air; Big Walnut has 160 rushing yards and 55 passing.
Big Walnut running back Nolan Buirley has 11 carries for 71 yards and all three Golden Eagles touchdowns. Quarterback Eli Stumpf is 4-of-5 passing for 55 yards and has rushed for 89 yards on four carries.
For Kilbourne, Szabo is 9-of-11 passing for 94 yards, a touchdown and an interception and has rushed for 69 yards on six carries. Luke Page has 52 yards on 14 carries and 41 yards and a touchdown on two catches.
Columbus Academy leads Franklin Heights 7-0 at halftime
The Vikings lead thanks to a 21-yard touchdown run by Gabe Davis-Ray late in the first quarter. He has 52 yards on five carries, and Parker Stoner has 37 yards on six carries. Three of Academy’s five first-half drives started in Falcons territory, but Franklin Heights has come up with two fourth-down stops and ended Academy’s opening drive with an end-zone interception. Franklin Heights quarterback Ali Jama is 5-of-5 passing for 38 yards, and Dae’Shaun Cowan has 58 yards rushing on 19 carries.
Olentangy strikes again
Olentangy takes a 28-10 lead on Luke Chilicki’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Huff with 5:10 left in the first half. Noah Schuler’s fumble recovery helped set up score.
Olentangy builds on lead
Olentangy opens a 21-10 lead as Luke Chilicki connects with 6-foot-9 tight end Jackson Mangham for a 31-yard touchdown with 7:14 left in the first half. A 13-yard punt by Marysville helped set up the score.
Big Walnut’s Buirley scores third TD
Nolan Buirley scored his third touchdown, this one from 3 yards, putting the Golden Eagles ahead 20-7 with 5:04 left in the first half. The big play on the drive, which started after Brady Taylor’s end-zone interception of Jackson Szabo, was a 57-yard run for quarterback Eli Stumpf to the Kilbourne 15. Buirley now has 71 yards on 11 carries.
Franklin Heights gets another defensive stop
Another Academy drive starts in Franklin Heights territory at the 32-yard line, and the Falcons’ defense comes up with another stop nearly midway through the second quarter. Michael Tishkoff’s pass fell incomplete on fourth-and-5. Academy leads 7-0.
Do we have a shootout brewing at Marysville?
Olentangy takes a 14-10 lead on Andrew Wilber’s 14-yard touchdown run with 9:24 left in the second quarter. Both offenses are enjoying success against strong defenses.
Marysville takes its first lead against Olentangy
Marysville takes a 10-7 lead on JJ Henry’s 19-yard touchdown run with 11:14 left in the second quarter, capping an 11-play, 91-yard drive.
Marysville is on the move
Marysville trails Olentangy 7-3 after one quarter, but the Monarchs are on the move. Marysville will have a second-and-7 at the Olentangy 24 to begin second quarter. JJ Henry’s 2-yard gain on a fourth-and-1 at the Marysville 18 kept the drive alive.
Big Walnut surges ahead as first quarter ends
Three combined drives in the game have resulted in touchdowns. The Golden Eagles lead 14-7 after a quarter thanks to a 4-yard touchdown run for Nolan Buirley, his second score of the night. He has eight carries for 56 yards, including a 26-yard score on the previous drive. A 39-yard pass from Eli Stumpf to Brody Hatfield on a screen set up Buirley’s second touchdown.
Columbus Academy takes lead on Franklin Heights
Gabe Davis-Ray’s 21-yard touchdown run gives Academy a 7-0 lead with 28 seconds left in the first quarter. The Vikings had a third straight drive that began in Falcons territory after Franklin Heights faked a punt on fourth-and-5 at its own 32-yard line but the pass was incomplete.
Page TD catch pulls Kilbourne into tie
Kilbourne quarterback Jackson Szabo turned what initially looked like a busted play into an 18-yard touchdown pass to running back Luke Page, tying the Wolves with Big Walnut at 7 with 2:53 left in the first quarter.
Flushed to his right and nearly out of bounds, Szabo found Page, who zigged and zagged his way to the end zone. He also had five carries for 26 yards on the drive.
Another Columbus Academy drive comes up short
The Vikings come away empty on another drive that reached the red zone – but then went backward. Michael Tishkoff’s pass was incomplete in the end zone on fourth-and-19 from the 27-yard line. There’s no score with about 3 minutes left in the first quarter.
Franklin Heights turns away Columbus Academy
A 64-yard kickoff return by Gabe Davis-Ray gave Academy great field position on its opening drive at the Franklin Heights 28-yard line, but quarterback Michael Tishkoff was intercepted in the end zone by Mouloukou Kaba to end the drive. That play came on first-and-10 at the Falcons’ 17.
Buirley touchdown run gives Big Walnut early lead
Nolan Buirley’s 26-yard touchdown run puts Big Walnut ahead of Worthington Kilbourne 7-0 with 7:43 left in the first quarter.
Big Walnut’s first possession of the game covered 60 yards in seven plays and took 4:12. Buirley’s scoring run, in which he initially went right and then cut wide to the left and got into the end zone almost untouched, came on first-and-15 after a delay of game penalty.
Marysville responds to Olentangy’s opening touchdown
Marysville pulls to within 7-3 on Isaac Heller’s 38-yard field goal with 8:37 left in the first quarter. JJ Henry’s 50-yard run helped set up score.
Olentangy strikes quickly at Marysville
Visiting Olentangy wastes little time in opening the scoring at Marysville. After Luke Chilicki connected with Kaden Gebhardt for a 42-yard gain on the game’s first play, Chilicki hit Mike Alexander for a 38-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead 36 seconds into the game.
Ohio high school football schedule Week 7
This is Worthington Kilbourne’s chance to make a statement. Two years removed from going 0-10, the Wolves will have sole possession of first place in the OCC-Capital with a win over Big Walnut.
Kilbourne started its comeback last season, going 5-7 and earning a first-round playoff win over a Walnut Ridge team that had a 10-0 regular season. This fall, the Wolves are tied for fourth in Division II, Region 7, one spot behind Big Walnut, which reached a 2024 state semifinal.
Kilbourne sophomore quarterback Jackson Szabo and Big Walnut junior running back Nolan Buirley are two players to watch in this matchup.
Coming off a win over previously unbeaten Buckeye Valley, Franklin Heights takes on Columbus Academy in a matchup of teams that are 1-0 in the Central Buckeye League. Franklin Heights has a star in senior defensive end Anthony Jalloh and Academy has started to hit its stride, winning three in a row and scoring 40 points in each game.
Franklin Heights is 14th in Region 7, two spots from the final postseason berth, while Academy is sixth in Division V, Region 19.
Marysville and Olentangy are both 1-0 in the OCC-Cardinal, but the bigger story is what a win could do for Marysville in terms of the playoff picture. The Monarchs are 13th in Division I, Region 2, so their postseason hopes would skyrocket with a win over an Olentangy team that is fourth in Division I, Region 3.
Marysville senior running back/linebacker JJ Henry is a player to watch in this game. He has 545 yards rushing and 52 tackles.
Click here for the full schedule of Columbus-area Week 7 games.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio high school football scores, live updates from Columbus-area Week 7 games
Reporting by Frank DiRenna, Scott Gerfen and Dave Purpura / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
