When the time came to spotlight some of the best high school football players from Western New York to Long Island, 21 from smaller schools in Section V were named all-state. While no Section V all-star was named Player of the Year in Class B, C, D or in 8-man football by the New York State Sportswriters Association, five are first team.

Ohio State won the first-ever College Football Playoff in 2014, after reaching the field as the No. 4 seed, jumping Baylor and TCU with a dominant Big Ten championship win over Wisconsin. The Buckeyes made the field again in '16, '19 and '22, losing in the semifinals, and '20, falling to a dominant Alabama team in the national championship.