10 POINTS: SBC turns to divisional play as 2022 season hits halfway point

The high school football regular season has reached its halfway point. Fans heading to games Friday night will pack sweatshirts for the first time this fall. That's a sure sign that the games are getting bigger. The Sandusky Bay Conference has left behind its long trail of nonconference mismatches as division play begins. Nine of the conference's 18 football teams are off to 4-1 starts. Several area teams are contending for home playoff games, but must add quality wins to their résumés. Let's look at 10 points to ponder as Week 6 comes into view: Scheduling still an issue Teams in the SBC always seem to have problems scheduling desirable games early in the season, and that issue won't go away when the divisions are shuffled next year and the Lake and Bay move from six to five teams each and two crossover games are mandatory. That still leaves four open dates for Lake and Bay members. It's hard to tell who's really good right now and who might make a deep playoff run because area teams recorded only a handful of quality non-league wins. The 12 SBC teams in the Register's coverage area recorded plenty of early blowouts, but the cumulative record of the teams those 12 schools defeated is an ugly 59-129. Only Perkins and Bellevue have wins over three teams that currently have winning records. The Pirates' overtime win over Elyria Catholic looks like the best win by an area SBC member so far this season. A thrilling 29-28 win at Huron is also worthy of mention. Bellevue's win against 4-1 Shelby, Edison's win over 4-1 Firelands, and Margaretta's win against 4-1 Ottawa Hills also look good. Region 14 is brutal Glenville, coached by Ted Ginn Sr., is the No. 1 team in the state in Division IV, according to the Associated Press rankings. The Tarblooders are likely one of the best teams in the state, regardless of division. They have pitched three shutouts and also defeated D-II Avon, 27-21. Glenville was in Region 13 last year. Perkins, Bellevue and the rest of Division IV Region 14 would have to go through Glenville to win a regional title. It doesn't get easier behind Glenville, either, with top-10 teams West Holmes and Van Wert in the bracket along with strong Clear Fork, Elyria Catholic, St. Marys Memorial and Shelby squads. The D-IV state champion could very well come out of Region 14. Clyde and Bellevue reloading Clyde was moved up to Division III this year, which could prove to be great timing considering the Fliers previously resided in the aforementioned Region 14. The Fliers are rated No. 3 in D-III Region 10, according to the OHSAA's computer points, and are 4-1 despite replacing a bunch of quality starters from last year's 10-3 team. Clyde will find out quickly if it's a contender in the Lake with games against Perkins on Friday and Tiffin Columbian next week. Bellevue is another perennial Lake contender that had to fill a lot of vacancies in its lineup. The Redmen, who tied Clyde for the Lake title last year, returned just one starter on the offensive line. Two skill-position standout seniors (Deegan Horn, Cole Beltran) have been slowed by hamstring injuries. Bellevue has answered the call and hall of fame coach Ed Nasonti picked up his 250th career victory last week. Perkins' Lesch adjusts A season ago, everyone knew Perkins was going to give the ball to senior running back Collin Nemitz. The expectation was that the 2022 Pirates offense would do a 180. The only question was whether it would work. So far, so good. Quarterback Logan Lesch has thrown for 1,312 yards and 16 touchdowns, and last week became Perkins' all-time leader in passing yardage while only a junior. He took the passing TD record for himself earlier in the season. Perkins has receiver weapons everywhere you look, from tall targets Jayden Rowe and Drake Venerucci to athletes such as Braylon Collier, Weston Sturzinger and Kaiden Nixon. If that attack can keep working as the weather chills, the Pirates should be a tough out. Huron's experience pays off Huron was ahead of schedule last fall, riding a mostly inexperienced roster to a spot in the Division IV playoffs and a 6-4 regular season record. That trial by fire has paid off for the Tigers, who are 4-1 and the SBC Bay Division favorites behind the leadership of senior QB and safety Dylan Hohler. Veterans line up all over the field for Huron, which gets a fun Week 6 test against surprising Willard (4-1). In 2021, the learning ended in the first round of the playoffs against Keystone. Huron, moved down to Division V this year, could get the chance at a deep postseason run. Sandusky's Armstrong is electric Sandusky is a long shot to make the playoffs, but if the Streaks do make it to Week 11 it'll likely be because of Mo Armstrong. The strong, speedy senior, who missed the Streaks' opener, has nine touchdowns and 831 all-purpose yards in four games and is a threat to score any time he touches the ball. Defenses are keying on Armstrong (understandable), who can line up as a running back and wide receiver. He is the main threat on a young team that includes 29 sophomores, including promising quarterback Jason Henlon. If Sandusky can find other reliable weapons and steady its defense, it could scare some of the Lake's frontrunners. Margaretta trending up Margaretta hasn't made the playoffs in many years, but that should change next month. The Polar Bears are 4-1, and with the OHSAA expanding playoffs to 16 teams per region they are close to locking up a postseason berth. Hall of fame coach Gary Quisno has his team looking good in his return to the sidelines. Led by physical running back/linebacker Jake Boggs and a huge line, Margaretta is poised to finish in the upper half of the SBC River Division. The Bears have work to do to clinch a home playoff game in a tough Division VI Region 22, which currently includes four 5-0 teams. Edison goes to air Through five weeks, Edison quarterback Marcus Medina has attempted 64 passes and completed 32. That might not seem like a lot to some teams, but this is airing it out for the Chargers, who only attempted 89 passes across 12 games last season while running the triple-option offense. Top target Davin Wendt has given Medina a weapon on the outside to complement the always dangerous Edison rushing attack, which has seen five backs surpass 100 yards for the season. Clint Finnen's return to health in the backfield has only aided the potential variety that Jim Hall can now throw at opponents. Playoff forecast There's plenty that can change in the season's second half, but through five weeks there are two teams squarely on the playoff bubble: Sandusky and Port Clinton. The Blue Streaks are the No. 16 team in Division III Region 10, which in the expanded format that began in 2021 would make them the last team in (and match them up with top seed Medina Buckeye in the first round). The Redskins, in D-V Region 18, are currently the first team out at No. 17. Sandusky will face four teams in Lake play that currently are 4-1, so it could be tough sledding but also a path with plenty of playoff points for the taking. Port Clinton is joined in Region 18 by No. 7 Huron, No. 8 Willard, No. 11 Edison and No. 12 Oak Harbor, so the SBC Bay Division race will double as the bubble in that bracket. Games getting longer About 10 years ago, most conferences in Ohio switched their football kickoffs from 7:30 to 7 p.m., in part because games were lasting longer due to the explosion in passing offenses. Gone for good are the days of 3 yards and a cloud of dust (or rubber turf pellets). Sportswriters also lobbied for the change because deadlines were becoming difficult to hit. Here we are again. Halftimes seem to last forever, officials huddle multiple times each game to chat about who knows what, clocks stop when players run out of bounds and don't start until the ball is snapped (unlike the college game that starts the clock after the ball has been spotted). Oh, and the passes keep flying. Three-hour games are not uncommon, which is baffling considering high schools play 12-minute quarters.