Glenville repeats as OHSAA Division IV state champions: Ohio high school football 2023 rewind

Glenville jumped out to an early lead and never looked back in a win over Archbishop Alter to capture its second straight OHSAA Division IV football state title

Glenville's Ruel Tomlinson runs for a touchdown in the 2023 OHSAA Division IV state championship game. Glenville defeated Archbishop Alter 38-3. / Jeff Harwell, SBLive Sports

As we get ready for the beginning of the 2024 Ohio high school football season, we wanted to take a look back at 2023 to see how the season ended in each of the state’s seven divisions with a rewind recap of the state championship game.

In this edition, we will take a look at the 2023 OHSAA Division IV state championship game, which saw Glenville repeat as state champions with a 38-3 win over Archbishop Alter.

Glenville 38, Archbishop Alter 3

Glenville left no doubt as to who was the class of the field in Division IV for the second consecutive season, defeating Archbishop Alter 38-3 to claim the state championship.

Quarterback Ruel Tomlinson accounted for four touchdowns in the first half - two rushing and two passing - as the Tarblooders took a 26-0 lead into halftime.

Tomlinson started the scoring with a 16-yard touchdown run and then hit tight end Damarion Witten for touchdown passes of 17 yards and 38 yards. The Ohio State commit finished with five catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns.

"He can play seven positions on the football field and can be a pro at all of them," Glenville head coach Ted Ginn, Sr. said of Witten. "He can kick, he can punt, he can quarterback, he can be receiver, he can be tight end, he can be a defensive end, he can be a safety. He can do it all. He's real special. And I think he's gonna be a superstar at Ohio State."

After an Alter field goal with 1:49 remaining in the second quarter cut the lead to 18-3, Tomlinson scored from two yards out with five seconds left in the half and hit Witten for the two-point conversion.

Glenville scored twice in the second half, once on an 18-yard run in the third quarter by D'Shawntae Jones, whio finished with 163 yards rushing on 30 carries. Tomlinson finished the scoring by hitting Quincy Rogers for a 78-yard score with 9:28 left in the game.

Tomlinson finished the game by completing 10-of-17 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 83 yards and two scores on 10 attempts. This was Tomlinson's only season at Glenville, as he transferred from Walsh Jesuit where he did not play for three years.

"I'm proud of him," Ginn, Sr. said. "For three years (at Walsh) he really never played. But I've known him ever since he was a little boy. To see him come and develop to lead us all the way to a state title, it shows he can achieve at the highest level in the position of quarterback."

Glenville's defense allowed just 130 total yards on 35 plays.

2023 OHSAA Division IV state semifinal results

Glenville 42, Canton South 21
Archbishop Alter 48, Steubenville 0

-- Ryan Isley | ryan@scorebooklive.com | @sbliveoh