The game of the week was, to no one’s surprise, held in Xenia.

As was the case last year, Tippecanoe came out on top against the Buccaneers at revitalized Doug Adams Stadium, but this one was closer than Tipp’s 35-21 triumph of 2024.

The Red Devils needed a 19-yard field goal from Preston Harding in the fourth quarter and a defensive stop to improve to 7-0, and both quarterback Larkin Thomas and Tipp coach Matt Burgbacher said they were happy to have to dig so deep for their 16-14 win.

That included not only absorbing a 195-yard night from stud Xenia running back Deaunte White but also overcoming multiple touchdowns being wiped out by penalty.

“Our kids did a great job and made the plays when we needed them,” Burgbacher told Press Pros’ Bruce Hooley. “There were a lot of big plays and there were a lot of things we missed, so there’s a lot to clean up that we can learn from. I believe we’ll do that. I believe this one will help us in the long run.”

Tipp remained No. 1 in the Division III, Region 12 playoff race (per Joe Eitel) while Xenia slipped to fifth in Division II, Region 8.

Region 12 looks loaded, by the way, with five undefeated teams — Tipp, London, Hamilton Badin, Washington Court House and Talawanda — plus Kettering Alter lurking in sixth place with a 5-2 record…

In another strong contender for Game of the Week, Miami East knocked Lehman Catholic from the ranks of the unbeaten.

The Vikings improved to 6-1 by harassing star Cavaliers quarterback Turner Lachey all night. He still threw for more than 400 yards, but he also threw two interceptions. One of his star receivers — CJ Olding — was lost to injury early, but Evan O’Leary came through with 13 catches for 225 yards, his fourth 200-yard game.

That wasn’t enough to overcome a star performance from Miami East quarterback KJ Gustin and the East defense, though, as detailed by Alan Brads.

I went to Vandalia for a third time this season and saw Butler get whacked for the third time by one of the top teams in the Miami Valley League.

If the early playoff flameouts of Tippecanoe and Xenia raised questions about the overall quality of the league last season, Butler could be an indicator of its depth this time around.

The Aviators have a nice collection of skill players who are all seniors — including QB Luke Moeller, RB Cory Rice, WR/P Julius Rusk and LB Riley Seibert — but they’ve been totally outclassed by Tipp, Xenia and most recently Troy.

To their credit, they kept playing after falling behind to the Trojans. That didn’t look like the white-washings they suffered against the Buccaneers and Red Devils, but mistakes undid Butler. Dropped passes, errant throws and especially undisciplined penalties.

I couldn’t fit this into my story, but Troy coach Troy Everhart compared them to the 1990s Dallas Cowboys (yes, really), and it made sense based not only on the QB-RB-WR trio but more so their style of play.

In day and age when it seems like everyone is running some version of spread offense (Tipp and Xenia) or the Wing T (like Troy), Butler lines up in the I formation and has a lot of drop-back and play-action passes in its playbook.

Winning is about much more than athletic skill, of course, and you still need 22 players to win, not four or five, but Troy’s star quarterback Aiden Kirkpatrick called Seibert the best linebacker he has seen, and he’s started 31 games so that seems like a good reference point.

Only one team can win and one can lose every Friday night, but the Avs could be a team to watch in the playoffs (if they get in, which is harder this year with the field shrinking to 12 per region).

So is Troy, of course, but they still have a lot to play for in the regular season — especially in two weeks at Tipp…

In the MAC, Marion Local improved to 7-0 with a 41-7 win over Fort Recovery (that’s 71 in a row), but the but the big story came out of Anna, where the Rockets topped Versailles 35-7.

Jeff Gilbert witnessed an Anna offensive display that features multitalented quarterback Logan Ziegenbusch and a handful of weapons who play multiple positions, including Zeb Plieman and T.J. Roberts.

“It opens up so many possibilities,” Ziegenbusch said of the various directions the ball can go. “Because everybody’s eyes are on 4 [Pleiman]. You got to know where 4 is, and it opens up everything else. And our guys are good enough to make plays on the perimeter and do what they do best.”

On defense, the Rockets also have talented ends Julian Stearns and Nolan Wilt, who are the frequently found in the backfield thanks to an extensive blitz package.