As the football playoffs begin tonight around the state, it's worth noting that while Baltimore has long held a well deserved reputation as a high school hoops hotbed, the truth is, at least for this season, that the road to the championship of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's football tournament runs through Charm City and its suburbs.

To wit, Dunbar, River Hill and Hereford earned the top overall seeds in their respective classes, 1A, 2A and 3A, meaning that none of them has to board a bus for a playoff game until the state finals at M&T Bank Stadium three weeks hence.

While top-ranked River Hill and No.2 Dunbar earned their home-field advantages by relatively narrow margins, under the MPSSAA's complicated point system. fifth-ranked Hereford has a more than two-point lead over the closest rival from another region.

And let's not forget that half the state champions from last season, Dunbar and Edmondson, are from the Baltimore area and both are back to defend their titles.