The OHSAA is making a permanent change to their football schedules, beginning with the 2021 season. The season will begin one week earlier. This is needed to accommodate the expansion of the playoff brackets, growing from eight teams per region to twelve.

When it comes time for the playoffs, the top four schools in each region will receive byes for that week. The bracket will look like:

Week 11 -

Seeds 1-4 have byes.

Seed 5 hosts Seed 12

Seed 6 hosts Seed 11

Seed 7 hosts Seed 10

Seed 8 hosts Seed 9

Week 12 -

Seed 1 hosts winner of 8 vs 9

Seed 2 hosts winner of 7 vs 10

Seed 3 hosts winner of 6 vs 11

Seed 4 hosts winner of 5 vs 12

Weeks 13 through 15 - Single game elimination until a champion is crowned.

https://www.ohsaa.org/Sports/News/ohsaa-to-expand-football-playoffs-in-2021