The longest active high school winning streak in the nation will be on the line Friday night in western Ohio.
It's Marion Local taking on St. Henry in a gigantic clash in the storied Midwest Athletic Conference.
The MAC (the high school version) is the best league in Ohio, with more state titles as a group than anyone else.
And on Friday night, it deserves the highest billing for this major showdown. The Flyers of Marion Local, which is based in Maria Stein, make the trip to St. Henry, a town by that name.
How long is Marion Local's football winning streak?
Marion Local carries a 66-game win streak into its game on Friday, Sept. 5 at St. Henry.
That's the longest active high school football winning streak in the country.
It's also the longest in the history of Ohio high school football.
Marion Local has won four state titles in a row, and 15 state championships overall.
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Can St. Henry beat Marion Local?
We'll turn this one over to top-notch local journalist Sonny Fulks, who wrote up his prediction Thursday for the magnificent Press Pros Magazine:
Marion’s 66-game win streak is squarely on the line, and St. Henry would proudly claim it if they could be the one to end that run. Two things, however. St. Henry has yet to play its best football, albeit they’ve been tough to score on and the late points last week at Archbold came when there were replacements on the field. They’re going to have to throw better than they have, because Marion will come after the running attack from all directions. And…it’s likely that Marion is not nearly as depleted as Tim Goodwin made it sound in July, despite the loss of all those seniors from the 64-game streak. Brennen Hess appears to have assimilated to the quarterback position nicely, but he hasn’t faced a defense like he’ll see this week at St. Henry. And Goodwin respects that size and St. Henry’s experience. This time St. Henry has the seniors. So I expect a defensive contest, but I also think that Marion’s experience in big games will be a factor, despite the loss of all those players. The replacements have already played a lot of varsity in back-up roles. Expect a huge crowd, a big 50/50, but I, nor anyone else at this point, can logically pick against Marion Local based on their start to the season and reputation. That doesn’t mean St. Henry can’t win. Beware of turnovers, you know – and all the cliches’ about playing clean. Should be a good one, but don’t be surprised if Marion finds a way to win by a score, or more.
This is one of St. Henry's best teams in a long time. They haven't won the MAC since 1996, and their last state title was in 2006.
They'll certainly enter Friday night as believers.
How to listen to Marion Local vs. St. Henry football
The Marion Local at St. Henry football game will be streamed on radio:
- Radio station: 96.7 The Wave
- Website: WSCMRadio.com
The link above will get you to the radio station's page, and from there, just click on 96.7 The Wave in the center of the screen to get to the radio broadcast.
It's worth tuning in for.
You can also follow scores on X at @MACScores.
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