Members of the central Ohio high school football Predictions Panel don’t wager on their picks, but Dispatch sports reporter Dave Purpura is rolling the dice this week.
Purpura ended up with four Lone Wolf picks, meaning he is going against the other nine panelists in those games. Will his Week 6 gamble pay off in the race for 2026 bragging rights?
The panel is 4-13 in Lone Wolf picks for the season after going 0-5 in Week 5.
Tom Wilson made two Lone Wolf picks this week, and Lee Cochran has one. Cochran is currently one game behind leader Kurt Snyder.
This week’s picks include the games The Dispatch will be covering Sept. 25: DeSales vs. Watterson at Ohio Dominican, Grove City at New Albany and Upper Arlington at Hilliard Bradley.
See all our Week
6 picks below.
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Central Ohio high school football predictions Week 6
Big Walnut (5-0) at Ironton (5-0)
Big Walnut: Unanimous pick
DeSales (4-1) vs. Watterson (5-0) at Ohio Dominican
Watterson: Unanimous pick
Dublin Jerome (1-4) at Marysville (2-3)
Jerome: Unanimous pick
Grove City (4-1) at New Albany (4-1)
Grove City: Tom Wilson
New Albany: Ryan Baker, Steve Blackledge, Lee Cochran, Frank DiRenna, Eric Frantz, Scott Gerfen, Dave Purpura, Kurt Snyder, Dave Weidig
Hamilton Township (3-2, 1-0) at Circleville (4-1, 1-0)
Hamilton Township: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Circleville: Purpura
Hartley (2-3) at St. Charles (5-0)
Hartley: Wilson
St. Charles: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Purpura, Snyder, Weidig
Hilliard Davidson (2-3) at Olentangy Orange (2-3)
Davidson: Purpura
Orange: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Newark (3-2, 1-1) at Canal Winchester (2-3, 1-1)
Newark: Purpura
Canal: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Newark Catholic (4-1) at Johnstown (3-2)
Newark Catholic: Cochran
Johnstown: Baker, Blackledge, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Purpura, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Olentangy (1-4) at Thomas Worthington (2-3)
Olentangy: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Thomas: Purpura
Olentangy Berlin (3-2) at Hilliard Darby (3-2)
Berlin: Blackledge, Frantz, Gerfen,
Darby: Baker, Cochran, DiRenna, Purpura, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Pickerington North (4-1) at Westerville Central (3-2)
North: Unanimous pick
Upper Arlington (4-1) at Hilliard Bradley (4-1)
UA: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Gerfen, Purpura, Weidig, Wilson
Bradley: Frantz, Snyder
Westerville South (2-3, 1-1) at Westerville North (3-2, 1-0)
South: Blackledge, Wilson
North: Baker, Cochran, DiRenna, Frantz, Gerfen, Purpura, Snyder, Weidig
Whitehall (3-2) vs. Ready (3-2) at Fortress Obetz
Whitehall: Baker, Blackledge, Cochran, DiRenna, Gerfen, Purpura
Ready: Frantz, Snyder, Weidig, Wilson
Standings through Week 5
Snyder: 11-4 last week; 59-21 overall
Cochran: 12-3; 58-22
Blackledge: 12-3; 56-24
DiRenna: 12-3; 54-26
Weidig: 12-3; 54-26
Baker: 12-3; 53-27
Frantz: 11-4; 52-28
Purpura: 11-4; 52-28
Wilson: 11-4; 52-28
Gerfen: 12-3; 51-29
High school sports editor Andy Resnik can be reached at aresnik@dispatch.com and at @DispatchPreps on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Top central Ohio high school football games in Week 6, and our predictions
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