Dublin Coffman rolled to a 51-27 rout of Bishop Hartley on Aug. 21, but the final score masked a fourth-quarter thriller that saw Hartley pull within three points before the Shamrocks pulled away with a 21-0 closing run.

The win headlined opening night for all three Dublin football programs, which competed simultaneously in Division I for the first time since 2012, as the Ledger previewed Aug. 17. Jerome and Scioto weren't as fortunate: Westerville South edged the Celtics 20-13 in Jerome's home opener, and Thomas Worthington escaped Dublin Scioto 30-28.

Coffman pulls away after Hartley scare

The Shamrocks controlled the first quarter on the road, leading 7-0. Bishop Hartley fought back to make it 17-14 at halftime, and Coffman stretched the lead to 30-21 after three quarters.

Then Hartley made its push. The visitors scored to cut the deficit to 30-27 with 11:51 left in the fourth, according to live updates from Coffman Athletics on X. From there, Coffman's offense exploded for 21 unanswered points to turn a nail-biter into a blowout.

Before the game, the program named sophomore QB/DB Jai Boyd its Challenge Player of the Week for his two-way contributions during the week of preparation. Coffman Football's official account said Boyd had been "making plays in the defensive secondary, at receiver, and at QB" in practice leading up to the matchup.

Jerome falls in home opener

Dublin Jerome opened its 2026 season at home against Westerville South with a 7 p.m. kickoff but came up short, falling 20-13. The Celtics' loss spoiled an energetic pregame atmosphere after the program urged fans to pack the stands for Friday night lights at Jerome.

Scioto drops two-point heartbreaker

Dublin Scioto's opener against Thomas Worthington came down to the wire. The Irish fell 30-28 in a game decided by two points, according to AP scores compiled by Cleveland.com.

All three Dublin programs now turn to Week 2. Opponents and game times had not been posted as of Aug. 22.