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Who will be leaguechampions thisseason? Members ofThisWeek’s sports staffmake their picks:

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Jarrod UlreySportswriter

OCC-Capital New Albany New Albany New Albany New Albany New Albany New Albany New AlbanyOCC-Cardinal Hilliard Darby Westerville Central Westerville South Westerville Central Westerville Central Westerville Central Westerville CentralOCC-Central Hilliard Davidson Hilliard Davidson Hilliard Davidson Hilliard Davidson Hilliard Davidson Hilliard Davidson Hilliard DavidsonOCC-Ohio Pickerington Central Pickerington North Pickerington North Pickerington North Pickerington North Pickerington Central Pickerington CentralCCL-Gold Hartley Hartley Hartley Hartley Hartley Hartley HartleyCCL-Silver Watterson DeSales DeSales St. Charles DeSales DeSales DeSalesCity-North Brookhaven Brookhaven Beechcroft Beechcroft Beechcroft Beechcroft BeechcroftCity-South Marion-Franklin Marion-Franklin Marion-Franklin Marion-Franklin Marion-Franklin Marion-Franklin Marion-FranklinLCL-Big School Licking Valley Granville Licking Heights Licking Valley Granville Granville GranvilleLCL-Small School Johnstown Johnstown Newark Catholic Johnstown Newark Catholic Johnstown Newark CatholicMSL-Buckeye Hamilton Township Liberty Union Hamilton Township Hamilton Township Liberty Union Circleville Liberty UnionMSL-Cardinal Fairfield Christian Fairfield Christian Harvest Prep Harvest Prep Harvest Prep Harvest Prep Fairfield ChristianMSL-Ohio West Jefferson Columbus Academy West Jefferson Columbus Academy West Jefferson West Jefferson West Jefferson

FEATURESPlayers to watch............42012 standings ............6Player profile ..............11

OCC-OHIOGahanna-Lincoln ..........7Grove City ....................8Lancaster ....................10Groveport Madison ......10Newark ......................12Reynoldsburg ..............12Pickerington Central ....13Pickerington North ......14

OCC-CENTRALHilliard Davidson..........21Central Crossing ..........22Dublin Coffman ..........23Upper Arlington............25Thomas Worthington....26Olentangy Liberty ........27Marysville....................27Westland ....................28

OCC-CARDINALHilliard Bradley ............31Hilliard Darby ..............32Westerville North ........33Dublin Jerome ............34Canal Winchester ........35Dublin Scioto ..............36Westerville Central ......37Westerville South ........38

OCC-CAPITALFranklin Heights ..........41Big Walnut ..................42Mount Vernon ..............42New Albany ................43Olentangy....................44Olentangy Orange........45Worth. Kilbourne ..........46Delaware Hayes ..........47CITY LEAGUE-SOUTHMarion-Franklin ..........48Walnut Ridge ..............48Eastmoor Academy......49Independence..............49Briggs ........................50Columbus South ..........50Africentric ..................51Columbus West ..........51

CITY LEAGUE-NORTHWhetstone ..................52Brookhaven ................53Mifflin ........................53Northland ....................54Columbus East ............54Beechcroft ..................55Centennial ..................56Linden-McKinley..........56

CCLWatterson....................58DeSales ......................59Hartley ........................60Ready ........................60St. Charles ..................61

LCLWatkins Memorial........62Licking Heights............63Johnstown-Monroe ....64Utica ..........................65Northridge ..................65Granville......................66Heath..........................66Licking Valley ..............67Lakewood ..................67Newark Catholic ..........68

OTHER AREA TEAMSGrove City Christian ....69Hamilton Township ......70Bexley ........................70Harvest Prep ..............71Jonathan Alder ............71Buckeye Valley ............72Whitehall-Yearling........72Columbus Crusaders ..73Columbus Academy ....75Grandview Heights ......75

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ON THE COVERWesterville Central quarterback Jared Drake is the only returneefrom last year’s ThisWeek Super 25 Football Team.PHOTO BY JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

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Drake driven to fulfilldream of Division I QB

Jared Drake is not afraid tothink big.

During his first season atquarterback for the Wester-ville Central High School foot-ball team last fall, the 6-foot-2, 210-pounder fit in quicklyeven though he had just joinedthe program after transferringfrom Upper Arlington.

Of the six quarterbacks inDivision I who made first-team, second-team or specialmention all-district last sea-son, Drake was the only under-classman.

Now a senior and with anexperienced cast around him,Drake enters his final prep sea-son looking to help theWarhawks make the playoffsfor the second time in programhistory – while disprovingdoubters.

While his speed and sizehave made him an attractiveprospect to Division I collegesas an athlete, Drake refuses tolet go of the idea that he canplay quarterback for a Foot-ball Bowl Subdivision pro-gram.

He currently has one schol-arship offer at quarterback,from Indiana State of the Foot-ball Championship Subdivi-sion.

“I grew up playing footballand it’s always been a dreamof mine to be a Division I quar-terback,” Drake said. “I wantto take that dream to its fur-thest potential. I know if itdoesn’t work out, going as anathlete is a backup option. ButI’m going to compete to reachmy dream.”

Drake’s opportunity to shineone last time at the prep levelcomes during a season inwhich there are few knowncommodities in central Ohioat the skill positions.

Of the players from the2014 recruiting class who haveverbally committed to FBS

programs, five are projectedto play on the offensive lineand eight others are collegeprospects on defense.

Drake is the only returningmember of last season’sThisWeek Super 25, and only

three of the 32 who madeSuper 25 honorable mentionreturn.

The only quarterback tocommit to a Division I college

By JARROD ULREYTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Westerville Central quarterback Jared Drake is hoping to earn a Division I scholarship to playquarterback. Most colleges are recruiting him as an athlete. PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

The 10 spotBelow are 10 players you need to know heading into the 2013 central Ohiohigh school football season:

LESLIE ANOKYENew Albany Sr. RB/DB

Few teams in central Ohio return a running back as experienced asAnokye (5-9, 190), who finished with 1,147 yards and 12 touchdowns ayear ago.

CHAYCE CROUCHNewark Catholic Sr. QB/P

A few months after helping the Green Wave earn a Division VI state runner-up finish, Crouch verbally committed to Illinois. He passed for more than1,200 yards and 11 touchdowns last season.

JARED DRAKEWesterville Central Sr. QB/DB

The top returning quarterback in central Ohio is Drake, who helpedthe Warhawks finish 7-3 last year. He was special mention all-district inDivision I.

CODY FARLEYJohnstown-Monroe Jr. RB/LB

The 5-11, 190-pounder was special mention all-state and first-team all-district after rushing for 1,792 yards and 16 touchdowns on 285 carries.

CHRIS FREYUpper Arlington Sr. RB/LB

A verbal commit to Michigan State at linebacker, this 6-2, 215-pounderrushed for 645 yards and had 136 tackles and 3.5 sacks last season.

DARRYL LONGWesterville South Sr. TE/DL

At 6-5, 228 and a verbal commit to Kentucky, Long had 27 catches andmade second-team all-district last season.

PHILLIPIE MOTLEYHilliard Davidson Sr. WR/DB

A 5-11, 173-pounder who started at cornerback last year and is expectedto play slotback, Motley has verbally committed to Pittsburgh.

ALONZO SAXTONHartley Sr. RB/WR/DB

The latest standout athlete for the Hawks is this 6-0, 185-pounder who hasverbally committed to Duke as a defensive back.

BRADY TAYLORReady Sr. OL/DL

The 6-5 Taylor hit the weight room hard enough to get up to 275 pounds,and it has paid off in a scholarship to Virginia Tech.

KYLE TROUTLancaster Sr. OL/DL

The only player from central Ohio to verbally commit to Ohio State, Troutshould be about 6-6, 290 when he lines up at left guard and defensivetackle this fall.

AREA >> 11

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2012 LEAGUE STANDINGSOHIO CAPITAL CONFERENCE

Ohio DivisionTeam League OverallPickerington North ........6-1 ........12-2Pickerington Central......6-1 ..........7-3Reynoldsburg ...............5-2 ..........7-3Gahanna.......................4-3 ..........7-3Grove City.....................4-3 ..........5-5Lancaster .....................2-5 ..........3-7Newark ........................1-6 ..........2-8Groveport .....................0-7 ..........1-9Central DivisionTeam League OverallDublin Coffman.............6-1 ..........9-2Hilliard Davidson...........6-1 ........10-3Olentangy Liberty..........5-2 ..........7-3Upper Arlington.............5-2 ..........6-4Marysville.....................3-4 ..........3-7Thomas Worthington.....2-5 ..........2-8Central Crossing ..........1-6 ..........2-8Westland ......................0-7 ..........1-9Cardinal DivisionTeam League OverallHilliard Darby................7-0 ........11-1Dublin Scioto ................6-1 ..........8-3Westerville South..........5-2 ..........8-2Westerville Central........4-3 ..........7-3Dublin Jerome..............3-4 ..........4-6Worth. Kilbourne ...........2-5 ..........3-7Hilliard Bradley .............1-6 ..........4-6Westerville North ..........0-7 .......0-10Capital DivisionTeam League OverallNew Albany ..................7-0 ........11-3Olentangy.....................6-1 ........10-2Big Walnut....................4-3 ..........6-4Olentangy Orange.........4-3 ..........6-4Mount Vernon ...............3-4 ..........5-5Delaware .....................2-5 ..........3-7Watkins Memorial ........2-5 ..........2-8Franklin Heights............0-7 ..........2-8

CITY LEAGUENorth DivisionTeam League OverallBeechcroft....................7-0 ..........8-2Brookhaven..................6-1 ..........7-3Mifflin...........................5-2 ..........7-3Northland .....................4-3 ..........5-5Whetstone ...................3-4 ..........4-6Columbus East .............2-5 ..........5-5Centennial ....................1-6 ..........1-9Linden..........................0-7 ..........1-9South DivisionTeam League OverallMarion-Franklin ............7-0 ........11-2Walnut Ridge ................6-1 ..........7-3Eastmoor Academy.......5-2 ..........6-4Independence...............4-3 ..........6-4Columbus West.............3-4 ..........5-5Columbus South ...........2-5 ..........4-6Briggs ..........................1-6 ..........1-9Africentric.....................0-7 ........0-10

CENTRAL CATHOLIC LEAGUESilver DivisionTeam League OverallWatterson.....................2-0 ..........7-4DeSales........................1-1 ..........5-5St. Charles....................0-2 ..........6-4Gold DivisionTeam League OverallHartley .........................1-0 ........13-1Ready ..........................0-1 ..........7-2

MID-STATE LEAGUEOhio DivisionTeam League OverallGranville.......................6-1 ..........9-2Newark Catholic ...........6-1........`12-3Licking Valley................6-1 ..........7-3Columbus Academy ......4-3 ..........5-5Heath ...........................3-4 ..........4-6Whitehall ......................2-5 ..........3-7Bexley ..........................1-6 ..........2-8Lakewood ....................0-7 ..........1-9

Buckeye DivisionTeam League OverallCanal Winchester..........7-0 ..........9-3Hamilton Township .......4-3 ..........7-3Circleville......................4-3 ..........6-4Logan Elm....................4-3 ..........6-4Teays Valley..................4-3 ..........5-5Bloom-Carroll ...............3-4 ..........5-5Amanda-Clearcreek......1-6 ..........3-7Fairfield Union ..............1-6 ..........2-8Cardinal DivisionTeam League OverallLicking Heights.............7-0 ........10-1Liberty Union ................6-1 ........11-3West Jefferson .............5-2 ..........7-3Harvest Prep.................4-3 ..........6-4Grandview....................3-4 ..........5-5Fisher Catholic..............2-5 ..........3-7Berne Union..................1-6 ..........1-9Millersport....................0-7 ........0-10

MID-BUCKEYE CONFERENCETeam League OverallDanville ........................7-0 ........11-2Johnstown ...................6-1 ........10-3Loudonville...................5-2 ..........8-3Centerburg ...................3-4 ..........5-5East Knox .....................3-4 ..........5-5Fredericktown ..............3-4 ..........5-5Northridge ....................1-6 ..........3-7Utica ............................0-7 ..........1-9MID-OHIO ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

Blue DivisionTeam League OverallPleasant .......................6-3 ..........7-3Cardington ...................3-6 ..........3-7Mount Gilead ................2-7 ..........2-8Northmor......................1-8 ..........2-8Ridgedale .....................0-9 ........0-10Red DivisionTeam League OverallNorth Union ..................9-0 ........11-1River Valley...................7-2 ..........8-3Buckeye Valley .............7-2 ..........7-3Highland.......................5-4 ..........5-5Elgin.............................4-5 ..........4-6

Newark Catholic’s Chayce Crouch, who has committed to Illinois, is wrappedup by Granville’s Blake Marlowe last season. Both teams finished 6-1 to tieLicking Valley for the MSL-Ohio Division title. However, in a shakeup of areaconferences, all three left for the reformation of the Licking County League.THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH FILE


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Whether it can offset whatit lacks in experience withdepth and athleticism is thebiggest question facing theGahanna Lincoln High Schoolfootball team heading into theseason.

There were about 90 play-ers in grades 10 through 12participating during the pre-season, with another 50 fresh-man also out.

But what only a few of thoseplayers have – particularly ondefense – is a history of play-ing on Friday nights.

Many on the roster, includ-ing junior and new startingquarterback Ronald Robinson,will be playing key roles forthe first time when the Lionsopen Friday,Aug. 30, at HuberHeights Wayne.

“It’s a work in progress,” saidcoach John Snoad, who is 29-23 in five seasons. “We grad-uated 10 full-time starters ondefense. Offensively, I likewhere we’re at.”

After 2012 graduate TylerGrassman led Gahanna to theplayoffs at quarterback twoyears ago, 2013 graduate AlecTuohy completed 134 of 245passes for 1,452 yards with 10touchdowns and seven inter-

ceptions last season.Robinson (6-foot, 185

pounds) saw action in sixgames and attempted just fivepasses.

He did, however, participatein a camp in July that is run byKenton native and former WakeForest and University ofCincinnati quarterback BenMauk, who was Ohio’s Mr.Football in 2002 and passedfor more than 17,000 careeryards during his prep career.

The Lions return seniorsKevin Randolph (5-11, 190)and Tank Davis (5-8, 155) atwide receiver. Last season, Ran-dolph had a team-best 38catches for 374 yards and threetouchdowns and Davis added35 receptions for 468 yards andtwo scores.

Junior Jordan Hall (5-10,155) and seniors Jimmer Ryan(6-0, 175) and Drew Mitchell(5-5, 142) are other widereceivers.

Senior Boomer Lowe (6-1,190) is the backup quarterbackand should start at tight end.

Tuohy, who is playing base-ball for the University of Buf-falo, was the leading rusherwith 359 yards and two touch-downs. Also gone from thebackfield is 2013 graduate

Gahanna Lincoln

Lions’ defense counting on newcomers

Kevin Randolph had a team-high 38 receptions for 374 yards and three touchdowns last season as the Lions finished 7-3 overall.EAMON QUEENY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH


LIONS >> 20

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Dawgs are ready tocontend in division

With several returningstarters, including senior quar-terback Cameron Meece, GroveCity High School footballcoach Matt Jordan believes theDawgs can contend with thetop teams in the OCC-OhioDivision.

The Dawgs began last sea-son 1-3, but they went 4-2 overtheir final six games to finish5-5 overall and 4-3 in theleague.

“We expect to be better thanthat this year,” Jordan said.“You bring back eight guys ondefense and seven guys onoffense, you expect that to bethe case.”

Grove City closed last sea-son with a 13-10 win over Pick-erington North, forcing a tiebetween the Panthers and Pick-erington Central for the leaguetitle at 6-1.

North reached a Division Istate semifinal before losingto eventual champion Cincin-nati Moeller 26-21.

Jordan and his players areusing the win over North asmotivation.

“But more importantly, youuse it as a stamp to prove toyour players and everybodythat you can play with anybodyon the schedule,” Jordan said.

The Dawgs open Friday,Aug. 30, at perennial areapower Hilliard Davidson. Lastseason, the Wildcats beat GroveCity 26-14 in the opener butlost to North 21-0 in a regionalfinal.

The 5-foot-11, 195-poundMeece again will direct theteam’s triple-option offense.

Last season, he rushed for ateam-high 1,102 yards and 16touchdowns on 160 carries andcompleted 46 of 121 passes for662 yards with five touch-downs and three interceptions.

He was first-team all-leagueand honorable mention all-dis-trict in Division I.

“I want to throw a littlemore,” Meece said. “I know Iran a lot last year, but I wantto distribute the ball a lot moreand get my teammates involvedand help us win.”

Seniors Corey Williams (5-10, 210) and Jake Norbut (6-0, 200) will look to lead therunning game. Williams rushedfor 479 yards and two touch-downs on 84 carries last sea-

son, while Norbut rushed for198 yards and three touch-downs on 44 carries.

Seniors Ike Pack (5-11, 195)and Jakub Sayers (5-11, 220)and junior Nate Boll (5-10,160) also will see time at run-ning back.

Jordan said senior PaulSaunders (6-1, 170) has shownpotential at wide receiver. Otherreceivers are senior CorayNapier (6-2, 195) and sopho-more Nathan Hawk (6-1, 165).

Senior Austin Burgett (6-3,210) and sophomore BrandonChapman (6-5, 225) are tightends.

Jordan said there are severalcandidates competing for play-ing time on the offensive line,

including juniors Cole Smoot(5-10, 210) and Austin Tren-eff (6-2, 305), who are vyingto start at center.

Seniors Matt Brown (6-4,280) and Zach Kennedy (6-3,260) and junior Jacob Mined(6-1, 220) are tackles, and sen-iors Joe Johnson (5-10, 285),Matt McKibben (5-10, 245)and Ryan Uhrin (5-10, 285)and junior Brandon Skeen (6-5, 290) are guards.

“It’s an open battle up front

trying to figure out who thetop five guys will be,” Jordansaid.

Junior Drew Capehart (6-1,180) and sophomore JonahMonhemius (5-11, 155) arecontending for kicking dutiesin place of 2013 graduate DrewNankivell, who was first-teamall-league and honorable men-tion all-district last season.

Senior Tyler Cowles (6-0,195) and junior Kyle Kimball(6-1, 160) are punters.

The Dawgs again will uti-lize a base 50 defense thatshould be led by senior line-man Ryan Serafini (5-11, 225),a returning starter who had 29tackles and two sacks and wassecond-team all-league last sea-son.

Other linemen are McK-ibben, Smoot, seniors JustinBelmonte (5-9, 215), ChandlerEvanichko (6-2, 245) and

Cameron Meece rushed for 1,102 yards and 16 touchdowns and threw for 662 yards with fivemore scores while leading the triple-option offense for the Dawgs. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

By FRANK DiRENNATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

OCC-OHIO DIVISION

DAWGS >> 18

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........at Hilliard DavidsonSept. 6..........................vs. FindlaySept. 13 ........vs. Westerville South*Sept. 20..............at Reynoldsburg*Sept. 27 ..................vs. Groveport*Oct. 4 ..........................at Newark*Oct. 11 ....vs. Pickerington Central*Oct. 18.......................at Gahanna*Oct. 25....................vs. Lancaster*Nov. 1..........at Pickerington North

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 4-3 OCC-Ohio)Hilliard Davidson..............L, 26-14Westerville North...............W, 41-7Westerville South .............L, 42-20*Reynoldsburg .................L, 26-16

*Groveport ......................W, 42-24*Newark .........................W, 34-14*Pickerington Central .........L, 28-7*Gahanna ........................L, 31-20*Lancaster ......................W, 31-12*Pickerington North.........W, 13-10*League contest

INSIDE THE DAWGS•Coach: Matt Jordan, fifth season•Top players: Peyton Bowyer (DB),Austin Burgett (TE/LB),Tyler Cowles(DB/P), Cameron Meece (QB), MattMcKibben (OL/DL), Ryan Serafini (DL)and Corey Williams (RB)•Key losses: Tyler Conner (LB),Bran-don Glover (OL), Chad Moore (LB/P)and Drew Nankivell (K/RB)


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Lancaster

Lack of depth continues to be problemThe Lancaster High School

football team has plenty ofstarting spots up for grabs, andcoach Rob Carpenter is hop-ing that competition will bringout the best in his players andreveal some newcomers whocan contribute on Friday nights.

“Our biggest problem thelast couple of years has beendepth, but I think that affectsa lot of programs in centralOhio,” said Carpenter, whoseteam opens against Logan onFriday, Aug. 30, at home.

“It takes a lot of work tocome out here and play highschool football.”

With so many spots unset-tled, Carpenter has choices ateach position as he enters his16th season.

Injuries – especially at quar-terback – have been an issuein recent seasons, including ayear ago when the GoldenGales finished 3-7 overall and2-5 in the OCC-Ohio Division.

Junior Alex Butsko is thefront-runner to start under cen-ter after filling in because ofinjuries at that position the pasttwo seasons, and senior CollinYoung, who transferred fromFairfield Christian Academy,also will compete for playingtime.

“As a team, we’ve got to allcome together,” said Butsko,who earned playing time a yearago after 2013 graduate RileyTheiss was sidelined. “We’vegot really good team chem-istry this year.”

Lancaster does have depth

in the backfield, with seniorsJared Thompson and IsaiahDexter at tailback and juniorsJerry King, Harrison Taylorand Blake Patterson also com-peting for spots.

The wide receivers will beled by seniors Jake Ferris, RileyHamilton, Clay Hoey and jun-ior Matt Young, and seniorsAlex LaVeck, Matt Moore,Kawai Moku and Phelan Shaware competing at tight end.

The offensive line will beanchored by senior right guardKyleTrout (6-foot-6, 305), whohas committed to play at Ohio

State, but the other four spotshave not been decided.

In the mix are seniorsAustinAlexander, Jacques Moyer andJeremy Thrush and juniorsBillyArnold, Christian Herold,Mitch Roseberry, Kyler Mess-ner and Jacob Crosten.

On defense, Trout will be attackle along with junior BryanVaughn, and Herold andCrosten also should see action.At defensive end will be jun-ior Zac McNeal, Shaw andMoku (64 tackles, 19 for lossand 4.5 sacks).

Linebackers will include

senior Doug Keels, junior JoshCook, sophomore Eric Deluse,Dexter (76 tackles, 4 for loss,1 forced fumble), Moore andPatterson.

In the defensive backfield,senior Beau Stewart, juniorsNick Hutton and Michael Pom-peo and sophomore DrewSmith are among the candi-dates along with Butsko, Kingand Taylor.

“With Alex Butsko takingover as a freshman in midsea-son and then last year as asophomore again in midsea-son, we’re banking on Butsko,”

Carpenter said.Lancaster will open league

play with back-to-back gamesagainst last season’s confer-ence co-champions, Picker-ington Central and Pickering-ton North.

The Golden Gales face theTigers on Sept. 20 at home andtravel to face the Panthers onSept. 27.

The Golden Gales last qual-ified for the postseason in 2009after making five consecutiveappearances from 2003-2007,and this year’s team is lookingto end that streak.

After the OHSAA added aseventh division to the play-offs last spring, Lancaster will

compete in Division I, Region2.

Division I now consists ofschools with 608 or more boys,and it will be divided intoNorthern and Southern regionswith 16 teams making the play-offs in each region. The tradi-tional postseason format inwhich the top eight teams ineach region qualify for theplayoffs will remain in Divi-sions II through VII.

“We definitely want thatwinning record,” Butsko said.“Fundamentally on offense anddefense we want to make astatement.”

[email protected]

By KYLE NEWPORTTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Isaiah Dexter (right), shown forcing a fumble against Pickerington Central last season, is expectedto share duties at tailback with Jared Thompson. Dexter, a senior, also will play linebacker.TIM REVELLE/THISWEEKSPORTS


Markel Davis will be a primary threat at receiver for first-yearcoach Bryan Schoonover. JOHN HULKENBERG/THISWEEKSPORTS

Groveport Madison

New coach settling in with CruisersFirst-year Groveport Madi-

son High School football coachBryan Schoonover is uncertainhow good his team will be orhow many wins it will record.

He is confident, however,that the changes he and his staffhave made will produce a pos-itive environment in whichallows athletes can improve andthrive.

“We have a solid group ofsenior leaders who are work-ing hard to change the cultureof the program,” saidSchoonover, whose first gameas a head coach will be Friday,Aug. 30, at Westerville South.“With their dedication we’reseeing a lot of our younger play-ers buying into our program.

“We have three goals. First,we want to be great role mod-els on and off the field.We wantto create a tradition that makesour community proud and, ofcourse, we want to win.”

Schoonover takes over forTim Brown, who was 38-64 in10 seasons. Groveport had three

winning seasons under Brown,going 7-3 in 2007 and 6-4 in

both 2009 and 2010.Last season, the Cruisers

went 1-9 overall and 0-7 in theOCC-Ohio Division.They beatWalnut Ridge 21-20 in the non-league finale but lost two closeleague games, falling 35-34 toLancaster when they failed toconvert a late two-point con-version attempt and 16-14 toNewark in consecutive weeks.

Schoonover, a 1998 Grove-port graduate, was offensivecoordinator at Lancaster thepast three seasons.

“Change is always tough, butwe have good kids and they’vestuck by me and stuck with ussince Day 1,” Schoonover said.“We have a senior-driven teamand those seniors are workinghard to get better and be moredisciplined. I’m proud of theirwork ethic and their leadership.”

Schoonover brings that bull-ish mindset and strong runninggame philosophy from Lan-caster with him to Groveport,which lost just five starters tograduation.

“We’re going to be a run-ori-ented offense with some vari-ables, some shotgun, some two-

By BRAD EMERINETHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

OCC-OHIO DIVISION

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...........at Westerville SouthSept. 6.................vs. Walnut RidgeSept. 13 ...........vs. Licking Heights*Sept. 20....................vs. Gahanna*Sept. 27...................at Grove City*Oct. 4......................vs. Lancaster*Oct. 11 ........................at Newark*Oct. 18 ........at Pickerington North*Oct. 25 ....vs. Pickerington Central*Nov. 1.................at Reynoldsburg

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 0-7 OCC-Ohio)Westerville South .............L, 55-14Olentangy Orange ............L, 35-10Walnut Ridge ..................W, 21-20*Gahanna ........................L, 38-14*Grove City ......................L, 42-24*Lancaster.......................L, 35-34

*Newark ..........................L, 16-14*Pickerington North............L, 35-7*Pickerington Central .........L, 44-7*Reynoldsburg ...................L, 28-0*League contest

INSIDE THE CRUISERS•Coach: Bryan Schoonover, first sea-son•Top players: Terric Bryant (WR/LB),Markel Davis (WR), Alex Hoyt (DT),Tyren Jackson (S), Daquan Mayle(LB), Cameron Oshodi (G/T), KevinSchrader (G), Malcolm Solack (C) andMecca Swain (RB)•Key losses: Ben Adkins (LB), JamesFout (LB), Dawuane Smoot (DE), Dur-rel Wood (G/NT) and Thomas Work-man (OL)

CRUISERS >> 11

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..........................vs. LoganSept. 6...................vs. Lakota EastSept. 13 .........at Canal Winchester*Sept. 20...vs. Pickerington Central*Sept. 27 ......at Pickerington North*Oct. 4 .........at Groveport-Madison*Oct. 11..........vs. Gahanna Lincoln*Oct. 18 ...............at Reynoldsburg*Oct. 25.....................at Grove City*Nov. 1.........................vs. Newark

2012 RESULTS(3-7 overall, 2-5 OCC-Ohio)Logan...............................W, 42-7Mason...............................L, 20-6Twinsburg........................L, 44-21

*Pickerington Central .......L, 14-10*Pickerington North..........L, 45-14*Groveport ......................W, 35-34*Gahanna ..........................L, 24-3*Reynoldsburg .................L, 27-20*Grove City ......................L, 31-12*Newark .........................W, 50-21*League contest

INSIDE THE GOLDEN GALES•Coach: Rob Carpenter, 16th season•Top players: Isaiah Dexter (LB),Jerry King (RB/S), Kawai Moku (DE)and Kyle Trout (OL/DL)•Key losses: Dustin Boyer (CB), ZackDaugherty (K/P), Dustin Doughty (DB),Riley Theiss (QB), Ryan Thomas (TE)


Player Profile

Trout took slow path to become a BuckeyeThe fact that Lancaster High

School senior KyleTrout grad-ually has built up strength in theweight room to complement a6-foot-6 frame might be thebiggest reason for the excite-ment surrounding him the lastcouple years.

The only football playerfrom central Ohio to have ver-bally committed to Ohio Statefrom the 2014 recruiting classso far has found some uniqueways to help his skills on thefield become more polished,too.

One of those has to do withwhat he hasn’t done – quit bas-ketball or track – the last twoyears.

A right guard and defensivetackle for the Golden Gales,Trout believes the skills andmental toughness he has devel-oped competing in other sportshave helped him in football aswell.

“When I first was beingrecruited by Wisconsin, OhioState and WestVirginia, I askedthem if they wanted me to spe-

cialize in football, and they saidthat if I quit basketball or trackthat (they) wouldn’t recruit(me),” Trout said. “Being ableto stay low in basketball helps

you to be able to stay low whenyou’re blocking.

“Just being big and athletic,I knew I could be a good cen-ter in basketball and if I hadn’t

done track, I wouldn’t have got-ten to the state meet. Highschool is the time to have fun.”

College recruiters got plentyof enjoyment watching Trout,

who has blossomed into a four-star recruit, according toScout.com.

He received his first offerbetween his sophomore and jun-ior seasons from the UniversityofToledo and was recruited bynearly every Mid-AmericanConference school as well asseveral BCS programs.

After visiting almost everyschool that offered him, Trouteventually settled on the Buck-eyes.

One feature ofTrout’s devel-opment that impressed collegescouts and that Trout believeshas helped him develop into abetter player and keep his quick-ness is the slow pace at whichhe has gained weight.

Trout weighed 260 poundswhen he got his first scholar-ship offer, about 280 last falland said he was up to 305pounds during the preseason.

Lancaster uses the wing-Toffense and likely will run mostplays directly behind Trout.

“He’s 6-6 and about 290, andhe looks skinny,” coach RobCarpenter said.

“When college coaches seethat, they have aspirations that

he can obviously be bigger. Hecould get up to as much as 330or 340, and he runs extremelywell. For him to lead our sweepsto the right and left, it shows alot.”

At the Division I state trackand field meet last June, Troutfinished seventh in the shot put(55 feet, 9 inches) and eighthin the discus (174-6).

After playing basketball dur-ing his first three prep seasons,he hasn’t decided whether he’llgo out this winter because heplans to graduate in December.Even so, he’s considering play-ing a few games before enrollingat Ohio State in January.

Before then, he’ll have onelast chance to help Lancasterget back on track after theGolden Gales finished 3-7 over-all and 2-5 in the OCC-OhioDivision last season.

“We run the wing-T, so that’swhy I play guard,” said Trout,who might end up at offensivetackle in college. “We’ll defi-nitely be able to thrive this year.It’s definitely fun playing in atough league.”

[email protected]


Lancaster lineman Kyle Trout is the only football player from central Ohio to have committed toOhio State from the 2014 recruiting class. TIM REVELL/THISWEEKSPORTS

thus far is Newark Catholic’s ChayceCrouch, who has pledged to go to Illi-nois. Crouch helped the Green Wave earna Division VI state runner-up finish ayear ago.

Drake passed for 1,308 yards and 16touchdowns and rushed for 951 yardsand 13 scores as the Warhawks went 7-3 and finished ninth in Division I, Region3, one spot from a playoff berth.

Central is among five area teams nowcompeting in the new Division I, Region1 following the OHSAA’s expansion fromsix to seven playoff divisions.

“I know Dublin Scioto graduated a lotof seniors and Westerville South gradu-ated a lot of seniors,” Drake said of theWarhawks’OCC-Cardinal Division foes,both of which made the playoffs last sea-son. “Overall in Columbus, it’ll be inter-esting to see what guys can step up.”

Below is a look at some of the area’stop players, by position:

•QUARTERBACK — While Drakeand Crouch stand out because of theirall-around abilities, Whetstone seniorRamroth Finnegan is back after passingfor 2,458 yards and 20 touchdowns.Finnegan (6-3, 250) has been offered byBuffalo.

Ready’s MattYoho and Hartley’s JaredBrandewie are seniors who made spe-cial mention all-district a year ago.

Division I programs Pickerington Cen-tral (Colby Simkins), Grove City(Cameron Meece), Thomas Worthing-ton (Danny Gordon), Hilliard Bradley(Tommy Horn), Central Crossing (LukeDuncan) and Newark (Grant Russell) allreturn starters.

•RUNNING BACK — Three of thearea’s most experienced running backs,Thomas Worthington’s Tony Harvard(1,172 yards, 11 touchdowns), OlentangyLiberty’s Daryian Davies (925 yards, 14combined rushing and receiving scores)and Hilliard Davidson’s D.D. Clark (853

yards, 5 touchdowns), play in the OCC-Central.

New Albany’s Leslie Anokye returnsafter rushing for more than 1,000 yardslast season. Johnstown returns an all-dis-trict player in Cody Farley (1,792 yards,16 touchdowns), while Ready’s Akili Tay-lor (1,060 yards, 10 scores) also is back.

Fairfield Christian’s Ben Tobin is asenior who rushed for 2,802 yards and31 touchdowns a year ago.

•WIDE RECEIVER/TIGHT END— Alonzo Saxton, a Duke recruit, shouldbecome a key part of Hartley’s offenseat wide receiver or running back.

Another player looking to stand outbased on his athleticism is Davidson’sPhillipie Motley, who has verbally com-mitted to Pittsburgh.

Two teams with multiple experiencedreceivers are Gahanna (Kevin Randolphand Tank Davis) and Granville (AjayAlderman, Hunter Orth and Brock Hill).Delaware’s Jante Wright has moved toquarterback after having 50 receptionslast year, but teammate Caleb Howellhad 42 catches and is back.

Westerville South’s Darryl Long is thearea’s top returning tight end and Tor-rodd Carter is among the Wildcats’ topwide receivers.

•OFFENSIVE/DEFENSIVE LINE— Central Ohio has a deep talent poolon the offensive line.

Verbally committing to Division Icolleges from the area are Lancaster’sKyle Trout (Ohio State), Ready’s BradyTaylor (Virginia Tech), Westerville Cen-tral’s Nick Richardson (Kentucky),Hilliard Bradley’s Skylar Hartley (Buf-falo) and Liberty’s Luke Callahan (Cincin-nati).

Davidson’s Alex Backenstoe madeSuper 25 honorable mention a year agoand figures to see time on the line andat tight end. Westerville South junior RobDowdy already is getting looks fromDivision I schools as well.

Marion-Franklin’s Martesse Pattersonhas several Division I scholarship offers,

including from Illinois and Indiana.Walnut Ridge’s Robert Bowers (Michi-

gan State) and Hartley’s Kalil Morris(Kent State) are defensive linemen whowill play collegiately. Bowers (6-5, 210)is expected to miss at least the first halfof the season with an injury.

•LINEBACKER — Upper Arling-ton’s best player this season might besenior Chris Frey, a running back andlinebacker who has committed to Michi-gan State.

“He’s got a great work ethic, and that’scombined with the fact that he’s verystrong and very aggressive,” GoldenBears coach Mike Golden said.

Pickerington North senior DylanWeigel already is his school’s all-timeleading tackler.

Hamilton Township’s Micky Crum(Louisville) and DeSales’ Griff Saun-ders (Bowling Green) are others whohave verbally committed.

•SECONDARY — In addition to Mot-ley and Saxton, St. Charles safety BenHale (Bowling Green) is a senior in thesecondary who has made his collegechoice.

Gahanna’s Emile Camm had seveninterceptions a year ago. Others back areCanal Winchester’s Khari Golden,DeSales’Sayyid Kanu and Ready’s KellyCulbertson.

Westerville Central’s Eldin Anu alsoshould make an impact.

•SPECIAL TEAMS — Marysville’sNick Mazza and Dublin Scioto’s SamCrosa should be among the top area kick-ers after each made special mention all-district a year ago.

Also back at kicker are PickeringtonNorth’s Karch Holland, DeSales’AdamAcquista and Watkins Memorial’s Jer-rod Lyon.

Among the top punters should be Wor-thington Kilbourne’s Taylor Wilson,Hilliard Darby’s Nate Green, EastmoorAcademy’s Quincy Colvin and Crouch.

[email protected]

AREAFROM >> 4

OCC-OHIO DIVISION

back sets,” Schoonover said.“Our objective is to control thefootball. That’s imperative forus to succeed. We must controlthe ball and play great defense.”

Senior Austin Newmanshould start at quarterback inthe Cruisers’ triple-optionoffense with junior DerrelGibbs as his backup.

Senior Mecca Swain, whoplayed quarterback and run-ning back last season, isexpected to start at runningback, with classmates TristenGabriel and Dayrel Billingsleyalso seeing action. Swain washonorable mention all-leaguea year ago.

“Swain is shifty and has goodspeed,” Schoonover said. “Hecuts well and we’re going to tryto get him the ball in space inthis new system. He’s a toughkid, too. So we’ll see how wellhe does between the tackles.He loves to play the game andhe’s got potential to be explo-sive.”

Fullbacks will be juniors Jor-dan Garrettson and DalonteSmith, and seniorTerric Bryantand junior Markel Davis arereceivers.

“Davis is a long, lanky kidat 6-foot-4 and we’re going tomove him around some and seeif we can create some mis-matches or stretch the field,”Schoonover said.

The offensive line isanchored by senior guardsCameron Oshodi (6-1, 255pounds) and Kevin Schrader(6-1, 240). Junior MalcolmSolack (5-11, 220) will be atcenter, with senior Matt Per-due (5-11, 215) and sophomoreMarshall Buck (5-10, 195) lin-ing up at tackle.

Missing is 2013 graduateDurrel Wood, a 6-3, 315-poundlineman who was second-teamall-district in Division I and sec-ond-team all-league. Wood isplaying at Ohio University.

“Oshodi is our leadervocally,” Schoonover said. “He’sa tough kid who moves prettywell for his size. Schrader andSolack have had great campsand our defensive front haslooked good, too.”

Groveport hopes to be a two-platoon squad, but Schoonoversaid that youth in certain areasmay mean some players even-tually play both ways.

Expected to start at tacklesin the 4-3 base defense are sen-ior Alex Hoyt (5-8, 230) andOshodi. Junior Jacob Dalton(6-4, 220) will be at one end,with juniors Philip Austin (6-3, 200) and Wes Fearing (6-2,215) competing for the otherspot.

Groveport lost graduateDawuane Smoot, a 6-3 235-pound defensive lineman whois playing at Illinois after earn-ing second-team all-district andfirst-team all-league honors

The linebackers will beBryant (6-2, 195), seniorDeshawn Sowell (6-2, 185) andsophomore Daquan Mayle (6-0, 195).

Seniors Raymel Medley andKeilyn Williamson will be thecornerbacks and classmateTyren Jackson will be one ofthe safeties. Senior Nick Strongand junior Mike Large are com-peting for the other starting spotat safety.

Jackson was special mentionall-league last year and wasselected as a captain along withOshodi, Hoyt and Swain.

[email protected]

CRUISERSFROM >> 10

The Newark High Schoolfootball team won two gamesa year ago after finishing 0-10in 2011, and fourth-year coachGregg Forsythe said he expectsthat upward trend to continue.

“Two wins is not nearly whatour goal is,” said Forsythe,whose team opens Friday,Aug.30, at Zanesville.

“They’ve worked really, reallyhard in the offseason, and theyexpect more than two wins ayear.”

The offense will again be ledby senior Grant Russell (6-foot-4, 212 pounds), who is enter-ing his fourth season as the start-ing quarterback. A year ago,Russell completed 137 of 263passes for 1,553 yards and 10touchdowns.

“I feel like it starts with me,”

Russell said. “I’ve got to be aleader on and off the field. I’vegot to make sure guys are wherethey are supposed to be andknow what they’re supposed todo. It starts with me andspreads.”

Russell’s top targets are jun-ior Darius Shackleford and sen-ior Shawn Dillon, with juniorsAlex Costa and Khayle Woodsalso expected to contribute atreceiver.

Dillion rushed for 384 yardsand touchdowns and had 21receptions for 195 yards andtwo scores.

Joining Russell in the back-field will be juniorsTravon Ellerand Dasanto Daniels.

On both the offensive anddefensive lines, seniors BrentBenner and Jordan Comer willbe joined by a group thatincludes juniors Bobby Spring,Dylan Maring, Wesley Jackson

and Garrett Tingler and soph-omore Vinnie Pancini.

At linebacker, seniors Bren-ton Williams and Alex Lust,juniorsAlexTrujillo andAustynMays as well Dillon and Danielsare expected to see playing time.

In the defensive backfield,senior Diantre Pressley, juniorKameran Hicks andWoods willbe among those seeing actionas cornerback.

Russell will be at safety, andothers competing for playingtime in the secondary includeShackleford, Eller and Daniels.

A year ago, Shackleford had63 tackles.

Kicker Jed Quackenbush isthe only freshman on the ros-ter, and Russell will handle thepunting.

Forsythe said that the key tofinishing with a better recordthan a year ago is gettingimproved play from the Wild-cats’ defensive unit.

Newark allowed 43.1 pointsper game last season and heldopponents under 32 points onlyonce – in a 16-14 victory overGroveport.

“Our biggest thing is we’vegot to be able to play betterdefense,” said Forsythe, whoseteam will open the OCC-OhioDivision schedule at home onSept. 20 against defending co-champion Pickerington North.“We’ve got to be able to stop

Like last fall, the Reynolds-burg High School football teamenters the season with a sen-ior-laden roster and hopes toend a long playoff drought.

This year’s group doesn’thave proven athletes to leanon like 2012 ThisWeek Super25 selection Emmanuel Beal(DL), University of Cincin-nati-recruit Mykel Traylor-Bennett (WR/DB) or veteranrunning back Kumar Collins,but that isn’t something theRaiders are viewing as a neg-ative.

Instead, Reynoldsburg hopesa 32-member senior class witha commitment to fundamen-tally sound football will helpit contend for its first playoffberth since 2001.

The Raiders, who are 13-7in two seasons under coachBuddy White, open Friday,Aug. 30, at New Albany.

“Everybody thinks we’regoing to be down, but we’vegot 32 seniors,” said White,

whose team finished 7-3 a yearago and was 10th in Division

I, Region 3. “This year’s teamis very disciplined and very

committed. These kids haveworked really hard. The onlything I’m worried about is thatfew of these kids have beenunder the lights. We’re feelinggood because they’re reallygood football players.”

The most experiencedreturnees after the Raiders lost29 players to graduation areseniors Jordan Aekins (5-foot-10, 173 pounds), Tyrek Pugh

(5-9, 203), Solomon Grace (6-0, 225), Jake Grant (6-4, 290)and Anthony Hines (6-0, 250).

Aekins will be in his thirdseason at quarterback aftercompleting 47 of 103 passesfor 768 yards with eight touch-downs and four interceptions.He also rushed for 368 yardsand four scores on 39 attempts.

Pugh returns at strong safetyand also should see action

again at fullback.Grant enters his third sea-

son as a starter at offensivetackle, and Hines is a return-ing starter at center.

Also back are seniorDemetris Givens (5-11, 155)at wide receiver, senior Mon-trael Green (5-11, 236) at line-backer and senior two-way


OCC-OHIO DIVISION

Tyrek Pugh (right) is back at strong safety and also will see time at fullback for the Raiders, whowere 7-3 last season and have not made the playoffs since 2001. PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

Reynoldsburg

Raiders out to endplayoff droughtBy JARROD ULREYTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..................at ZanesvilleSept. 6........vs. Westerville NorthSept. 13 .......................at Logan*Sept. 20..vs. Pickerington North*Sept. 27..................at Gahanna*Oct. 4 ..................vs. Grove City*Oct. 11.................vs. Groveport*Oct. 18 ..at Pickerington Central*Oct. 25 ...........vs. Reynoldsburg*Nov. 1 ...................at Lancaster2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 1-6 OCC-Ohio)Zanesville.......................L, 49-0Madison Comp. ............L, 69-27Logan..........................W, 35-32*Pickerington North.........L, 56-0*Gahanna .......................L, 45-6*Grove City ...................L, 34-14*Groveport ...................W, 16-14*Pickerington Central ......L, 35-6*Reynoldsburg................L, 47-0*Lancaster....................L, 50-21*League contestINSIDE THE WILDCATS•Coach: Gregg Forsythe, fourthseason•Top players: Wes Jackson (OL),Dylan Maring (OL), Grant Russell(QB), Darius Shackleford (WR),Bobby Spring (OL)•Key losses: Jacob Jones (OL/LB),Austin Williams (TE/LB)

RAIDERS >> 16

Newark

Seniors determined to set strong exampleBy KYLE NEWPORTTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Grant Russell is entering his fourth season at quarterback forthe Wildcats. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...................at New AlbanySept. 6...............at Hilliard BradleySept. 13.........vs. Westerville North*Sept. 20..................vs. Grove City*Sept. 27....at Pickerington Central*Oct. 4 ........................at Gahanna*Oct. 11.......vs. Pickerington North*Oct. 18....................vs. Lancaster*Oct. 25 ........................at Newark*Nov. 1......................vs. Groveport2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 5-2 OCC-Ohio)New Albany ......................W, 10-9Findlay ............................L, 61-14Westerville North...............W, 55-0*Grove City .....................W, 26-16*Pickerington Central .......L, 21-20*Gahanna .........................W, 21-7*Pickerington North..........L, 49-27

*Lancaster ......................W, 27-20*Newark ...........................W, 47-0*Groveport ........................W, 28-0*League contestINSIDE THE RAIDERS•Coach: Buddy White, third season•Top players: JordanAekins (QB/DB),Corey Beal (TE/DL), Ashton Dulin(WR/DB), Demetris Givens (WR),Solomon Grace (TE/LB), Jake Grant(OL/DL),Montrael Green (LB),AnthonyHines (OL/DL) and Tyrek Pugh(RB/DB/P)•Key losses: Emmanuel Beal (DL),Dionta Brown (RB), Kumar Collins(RB), Josh Edwards (DL), Jeff Jones(OL), A.J. Mitchell (RB), Tyree Tate(WR) and Mykel Traylor-Bennett(WR/DB)

WILDCATS >> 16

Throughout most of the pastdecade, Pickerington HighSchool Central could beexpected to have one of thebiggest celebrations amongcentral Ohio football programson national signing day.

Whether it involved OhioState recruits like 2009 grad-uate Zach Boren, players likeNotre Dame signee and 2012graduate Eilar Hardy or agroup like the one from a yearago that included Taco Charl-ton (Michigan) and Nick Wal-ter (Miami University), theTigers have reaped the bene-fits of their success on the fieldwith numerous Division Ischolarships.

That might not be the caseagain next February, but Cen-tral doesn’t believe it shouldbe mistaken for a program onthe way down just because its2014 class lacks the same kindof high-profile recruits.

A year after the Tigersreturned just five starters butstill went 7-3 overall andearned a share of their seventhconsecutive league champi-onship, Central has eightreturning starters on both sidesof the ball.

The Tigers open Friday,Aug. 30, at Centerville in theSkyline Chili CrosstownShowdown and play host toMiddletown on Sept. 13 intheir other non-league gameafter a week-two bye.

“Things have definitelycome quicker this year,” saidsenior Colby Simkins, whowill start at quarterback for asecond season. “It seems likewe have a lot of veterans anda bigger senior class. About90 percent of our offense isreturning. All of the playerswant to (win) and we’ve gota bunch of guys who want togo to Division I schools.”

Although the Tigers nolonger have Charlton or 2013graduate Greg Basalyga (LB)to lead the defense after bothmade first-team all-district inDivision I, the entire second-ary and the rest of the line-backing corps returns.

Senior strong safety JordanPieczynski (5-foot-8, 185pounds) and senior inside line-backer Isaiah Richmond (6-0,220) are the top returnees ondefense.

Others with experience asstarters on defense includesenior tackle Keith Roberts(5-10, 200), senior linebackerJaisun Alexander (6-0, 205),junior linebackers Clay Burk(5-11, 195) and ClaytonGlasco (6-2, 215), senior freesafety Vinnie Allen (5-9, 170),senior cornerback Rudy Ste-fanitis (6-1, 190) and juniorcornerback Eric Marshall (5-10, 170).

Others looking to contributeon defense are seniors JoshClouse (5-11, 220), BrennanDudziak (6-6, 260), Vince

Lewis (6-0, 255) and KeithRoberts (5-9, 190) and junior

DaVon Hamilton (6-4, 265)on the line, sophomore Seth

Currens (6-3, 180) and juniorBrad Morris (6-2, 180) at line-

backer or in the secondary andsenior Tawain Gordon (6-0,190) in the backfield.

“Going into camp this yearwe had a lot of guys who knewthe drill, so we’ve just beendoing a lot of fine-tuning asopposed to installing theoffense and defense,” saidcoach Jay Sharrett, who is 101-21 in 10 seasons. “There’s nodoubt that our strength is ourexperience. The thing we’vegot to make sure of is that weget a snapper and a punter.”

Dudziak, who according toSharrett has been recruited byOhio University as an offen-sive lineman, is back at lefttackle.

Other returning starters upfront are Clouse at center andsenior Tyler Boyd (5-11, 240)at right guard. Lewis andHamilton also should see timeon the offensive line.

Simkins completed 48 of130 passes for 916 yards with12 touchdowns and eight inter-ceptions and will be sur-rounded by nearly the samegroup of skill-position play-ers who helped the Tigers aver-age 23 points during the reg-ular season.

Central was shut out in bothmatchups against Pickering-ton North, losing 37-0 duringthe regular season and 24-0 in


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Expectations remain high for TigersBy JARROD ULREYTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Tawain Gordon rushed for 442 yards and three touchdowns but should see an increase in production following the graduation ofBrent Walton. The senior also will play in the secondary. EAMON QUEENY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Colby Simkins returns at quarterback after throwing for 916 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.EAMON QUEENY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30..................at CentervilleSept. 13..............vs. Middletown*Sept. 20 ................at Lancaster*Sept. 27 .........vs. Reynoldsburg*Oct. 4.......at Pickerington North*Oct. 11 .................at Grove City*Oct. 18....................vs. Newark*Oct. 25 ..................at Groveport*Nov. 1....................vs. Gahanna

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 6-1 OCC-Ohio)Cincinnati Colerain........L, 28-15Marion-Franklin ...........W, 45-24*Lancaster...................W, 14-10*Reynoldsburg .............W, 21-20*Pickerington North.........L, 37-0*Grove City ....................W, 28-7*Newark ........................W, 35-6*Groveport .....................W, 44-7*Gahanna ....................W, 28-23PLAYOFFSPickerington North ..........L, 24-0*League contest

INSIDE THE TIGERS•Coach: Jay Sharrett, 11th sea-son•Top players: Tyler Boyd (OL),Brennan Dudziak (OL),Tawain Gor-don (RB/DB),Eric Marshall (WR/DB),Andrew Meyer (WR), JordanPieczynski (RB/DB),Cris Reyes (TE),Isaiah Richmond (RB/LB) and ColbySimkins (QB)•Key losses: Greg Basalyga(RB/LB), Taco Charlton (TE/DL),Brenden Doyle (WR), Zach Gorman(OL/P), Nygel Hairston (RB), JamesPearson (LB), Nick Walter (OL/DL)and Brent Walton (RB/LB)

TIGERS >> 15

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In addition to the excite-ment it created and the accom-plishments it celebrated afterreaching a Division I statesemifinal a year ago, the Pick-erington High School Northfootball team has benefited ina way it couldn’t have antici-pated.

Over the past few months,the extra exposure from thatpostseason run has helped theprogram turn into a go-to spotfor players seeking a fresh start.

A year after a senior classfeaturing Division I recruitsJake Butt (Michigan) andGodwin Igwebuike (North-western) led the way, Northhas added seven transfers,including five who could bekey players.

The Panthers’numbers alsohave improved, including afreshman class that includesabout 40 players, according tocoach Tom Phillips.

North, which opens Friday,Aug. 30, at home against St.Charles, went 12-2 overall andearned a share of its secondleague championship by tyingPickerington Central at 6-1 inthe OCC-Ohio Division.

“Those extra four weekshelped us,” said Phillips, whois 43-22 in six seasons atNorth. “(The new players)watched us and liked what theysaw. We did play a lot of kidslast year. A lot of our kids arereturning. That’s the challengeand the excitement.”

There are a slew of playerslooking to fill the shoes at run-ning back for Igwebuike, whohad 229 carries for 1,981 yardsand 25 touchdowns and wasthe district’s Offensive Playerof the Year.

One candidate is senior RonBrown, a move-in from Pitts-burgh who will be attendinghis third school in as manyseasons. The 5-foot-8, 189-pounder has Division I schol-arship offers from Temple andseveral FCS programs andrushed for more than 1,000yards a year ago for ImaniChristian Academy.

Senior Jabree Lather (5-7,175) and junior Brett Howell(5-10, 175) are two other new-comers at running back.Lather was Fremont Ross’No.1 running back the last twoseasons. During North’s 41-

13 win over the Little Giantsa year ago, he rushed for 182yards and one touchdown on26 carries. Howell was a keyrunning back for PittsburghNorthgate.

In addition, senior John Har-ris (5-9, 160), who is a two-time state qualifier in the highjump, should see action in thebackfield.

Taking over at quarterbackis senior Zeph Miller (6-0,180), who completed 25 of 41passes for 476 yards with fivetouchdowns and rushed 44times for 271 yards.

Butt was North’s leadingreceiver a year ago, finishingwith 68 catches for 941 yardsand 12 touchdowns as theteam’s H-Back and tight end.This season’s top receiversshould include seniors JordanChambers (5-11, 170), JustinChilders (6-2, 195), TannerGillum (6-1, 185), ChrisMcDowell (6-3, 170) and TonyWelch (6-2, 180). JuniorQuincy Storey (6-2, 170), whosat out last season after trans-ferring from Marion-Franklin,is another in the mix.

Senior Cameron Wolfe (6-2, 280) is a returning starteron the offensive line. SeniorRyan Rowland (6-1, 240), jun-ior Kyle Beemiller (6-1, 280)and sophomore Adam Notes-tine (6-3, 303) also should seeaction up front.

Miller split time at quarter-back during the first half oflast season with 2013 gradu-ate Mason Olszewski, whofinished 126-for-204 passingfor 1,860 yards with 20 touch-downs and seven interceptions.

Olszewski also rushed for 567yards and three scores, aver-aged 39 yards per punt tomake second-team all-districtand was a key player in thedefensive backfield.

“Most of our receivers arecoming back, and we’ve gotsome new people,” Miller said.“I think I can take on a leadrole this year and hopefullylead the team back to state.”

Leading the returnees ondefense is senior linebackerDylan Weigel (6-0, 205), whois the school’s all-time lead-ing tackler.

Also back are senior tack-les Geno Rollo (6-2, 270) andAlex Reigle (6-2, 220), jun-ior nose tackle Nick Huhn (6-2, 265) and senior end FrankieWeirick (5-11, 185).

Senior Noah Ichite (5-10,200) and sophomore HunterBelleau (6-0, 190) at line-backer.

In the defensive backfield,Childers and Welch will be atsafety and Chambers and jun-ior Romaeo Whitlow (5-10,167) will be at cornerback.Whitlow was a part-timestarter at Pickerington Cen-tral last season. Also expectedto see action in the secondaryare Howell and sophomoreTrezden Johnson (5-11, 175),

Senior Karch Hollandreturns at kicker after makingnine field goals. Gillum orChilders are expected to punt,with Brown, Jabree and jun-ior Jaye Williams (5-10, 150)serving as returners.

North plays the same 10opponents it did a year ago


Dave [email protected]

GOOD LUCKGOOD LUCKPICKERINGTON NORTHPICKERINGTON NORTH

OCC-OHIO DIVISION

Pickerington North

Panthers hope to build on playoff runBy JARROD ULREYTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Panthers linebacker Dylan Weigel (right) enters his senior season as the program leader in career tackles.EAMON QUEENY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Defensive end Frankie Weirick is one of the top returnees forthe Panthers. PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ................vs. St. CharlesSept. 6 ....at Cincinnati PrincetonSept. 13............at Fremont Ross*Sept. 20 ...................at Newark*Sept. 27 ...............vs. Lancaster*Oct. 4 ...vs. Pickerington Central*Oct. 11 ............at Reynoldsburg*Oct. 18.................vs. Groveport*Oct. 25 ...................at Gahanna*Nov. 1..................vs. Grove City

2012 RESULTS(12-2 overall, 6-1 OCC-Ohio)St. Charles...................W, 50-22Cincinnati Princeton .....W, 41-20Fremont Ross ..............W, 41-13*Newark ........................W, 56-0*Lancaster...................W, 45-14*Pickerington Central .....W, 37-0*Reynoldsburg .............W, 49-27*Groveport .....................W, 35-7*Gahanna ......................W, 42-0*Grove City ...................L, 13-10PLAYOFFSPickerington Central.......W, 24-0Hilliard Darby...............W, 24-14Hilliard Davidson............W, 21-0Cincinnati Moeller .........L, 26-21*League contest

INSIDE THE PANTHERS•Coach: Tom Phillips, seventh sea-son•Top players: Ron Brown (RB/DB),Justin Childers (WR/DB), TannerGillum (WR/DB), Chris Huhn (DL),Jabree Lather (RB), Zeph Miller(QB), Geno Rollo (DL), Dylan Weigel(RB/LB) and Frankie Weirick (DL)•Key losses: Jake Butt (TE/LB),Grant Glackin (OL), Jamie Hence(WR/DB), Chris Huhn (OL), GodwinIgwebuike (RB/DB), Kody Kasey(WR/DB), Roland Ladipo (WR/DB)and Mason Olszewski (QB/DB)

PANTHERS >> 15

“Those extra fourweeks helped us. ...We did play a lot ofkids last year. A lot

of our kids arereturning. That’s the

challenge and theexcitement.”

COACH TOM PHILLIPSon last season’s playoff run


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OCC-OHIO DIVISION

the first round of the Region3 playoffs, but the Tigers andPanthers shared the OCC-OhioDivision title at 6-1 after Northwas upset 13-10 by Grove Cityin the final week of the regu-lar season.

With Brent Walton (631yards rushing and 11 touch-downs) lost to graduation,Gordon (442 yards rushing,three touchdowns), Pieczyn-ski and Richmond should getthe bulk of the carries at run-ning back.

Senior Cris Reyes (5-11,195) is back at tight end afterfinishing with eight receptionsfor 166 yards and one touch-down a year ago. Marshall,who had eight catches for 237yards and two scores, and sen-ior Andrew Meyer (6-1, 190),

who added six receptions for191 yards and one touchdown,should be among the team’stop wide receivers.

Sophomore Devon McMil-lon is back at kicker after mak-ing all 31 of his extra pointattempts. Stefanitis was thepunter during the preseason.

Central, which has madethe playoffs in all but one sea-son under Sharrett, is nowcompeting in Division I,Region 2 after the OHSAA’sexpansion to seven divisions.

“Senior leadership led us toa 7-3 season last year,” Shar-rett said.

“That being said, we had acouple dogfights. This year,having the kind of experienceand camaraderie that we haveis going to help.”

[email protected]

TIGERSFROM >> A13

when it f inished fourth inRegion 3 in computer pointsbut beat Pickerington Central(24-0), Hilliard Darby (24-14)and Hilliard Davidson (21-0)to win the regional title. Northalso shut out Central 37-0 dur-ing the regular season.

North went on to lose toCincinnati Moeller 26-21 ina state semifinal when Igwe-buike was stopped just shortof the goal line and fumbledwith 32 seconds remaining.

The Panthers now are com-

peting in Region 2 of DivisionI after the OHSAA’s expan-sion to seven divisions, andwithout Butt, Igwebuike andOlszewski, Phillips believeshis team might be under theradar.

“We’re trying to play asmany kids on Fridays as wecan,” Phillips said.

“We only had 15 seniors lastyear but we had two high-pro-file kids. Everyone thinks wehave nothing back, and I likethat.”

[email protected]

PANTHERSFROM >> 14

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lineman Raphael Turner (5-8, 250).“Last year we had more talented play-

ers, but this year we’ve got more footballplayers,” Grace said. “This year we’remore of a team even though we don’t havean actual star. Last year we took it up anotch but didn’t get to the playoffs. Thisyear we worked really hard in the offsea-son.”

Seniors David Moore (5-8, 204) andZack Mehan (6-1, 195) are expected tobe at running back replacing Collins, whorushed for 777 yards and nine touchdownswhile making honorable mention all-dis-trict.

Givens, senior Andrew Norman (6-0,190) and juniors Andrew Callender (6-0, 165), Ashton Dulin (6-0, 170), DerienJennings (5-11, 170) and Conner McCloud(6-0, 197) are at wide receiver. They arelooking to replace Traylor-Bennett, whohad 20 catches for 355 yards and fourtouchdowns while making second-teamall-district.

Seniors Elijah Camara (6-4, 240) andChristian Hill (6-0, 230) are at tight end.

Joining Hines, Grant and Turner on theoffensive line should be juniors MikeHarville (6-1, 230) and Christian Eubanks(6-3, 255).

Reynoldsburg also lost two-way line-man Jeff Jones, defensive lineman JoshEdwards, linebacker Daquian Williamsand defensive back Tre’ Rowe to gradu-ation in addition to Beal, who had 23tackles for losses and 14 sacks in justeight games.

Jones was special mention all-districtand is playing for Morehead State,Edwards was honorable mention all-dis-trict, and Williams (Notre Dame College)and Rowe (California University, Pa.) areothers playing collegiately.

Trying to replace Beal at defensive endis his younger brother, senior Corey Beal(6-2, 200). Camara and sophomores Dar-ius Dunning (5-11, 250) and MarkGooden (6-1, 203) are others on the defen-sive line.

Joining Grace and Green at linebackerare senior Milik Mills (6-2, 230), juniorGary Boggs (5-8, 180) and sophomoreJaquan White (5-8, 205). The secondarywill include Dulin, McCloud, Normanand Pugh.

Senior Jordan Watkins is back at kicker,Pugh or Watkins are competing to han-dle the punting duties and Dulin and soph-omore Cameron Young (5-11, 180) areexpected to return kicks.

Reynoldsburg moves from Division I,Region 3 to Region 2 because of theexpansion of the OHSAA to seven divi-sions last spring.

The Raiders won two of their threenon-league games a year ago, with theloss a 61-14 setback to Findlay. Replac-ing Findlay on the schedule is HilliardBradley (Sept. 6).

Reynoldsburg finished third in theOCC-Ohio at 5-2 behind co-championsPickerington Central and PickeringtonNorth (6-1), with league losses coming21-20 to Central and 49-27 to North.

White hopes his team can come out onthe other end of games such as that onethis fall.

“I tell them to spend most of their timeworking on fundamentals,” White said.“This year’s team will be so much moredisciplined than last year’s. Out of mythree years, this has been the easiest coach-ing job.”

[email protected]

RAIDERSOCC-OHIO DIVISION

FROM >> 12

the run. If we’re stopping therun defensively, we’ll win morefootball games.”

After the OHSAA added aseventh division to the playoffslast spring, Division I now con-sists of schools with 608 or more

boys and is divided into North-ern and Southern regions with16 teams making the playoffsin each region.

The traditional postseasonformat in which the top eightteams in each region qualify forthe playoffs will remain in Divi-sions II through VII.

Newark along with Wester-ville Central, Delaware andOlentangy Liberty fromDelaware County andMarysville from Union Countywere placed in Region 1 withCleveland schools such as 11-time state-champion St. Ignatius.

Russell said he and the other

seniors are focused on finish-ing their prep careers on a pos-itive note.

“We have a lot of leaders thisyear,” Russell said.

“(We’ll) do whatever it takesto win.”

[email protected]

WILDCATSFROM >> 12

Jordan Aekins enters his third season as the starting quarterback. A year ago, hethrew for 768 yards and rushed for 368. MIKE MUNDEN/THISWEEKSPORTS


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Tyler Cowles will see time at defensive back for the Dawgs, who are looking to improve on lastyear’s 5-5 record. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

OCC-OHIO DIVISION

William Zentz (6-3, 220), juniors Cooper Green(6-0, 245) and Ryan Walsh (6-0, 235) and soph-omore Matt Bowers (6-1, 220).

Juniors Jake Crosby (6-2, 185) and ZachSarver (6-0, 185) will be at linebacker withBurgett and Norbut.

Junior cornerback Peyton Bowyer (6-0, 180)had 43 tackles and a team-high three intercep-tions last season.

He was honorable mention all-league.Other defensive backs are Cowles and sen-

iors Ben Myers (5-10, 165) and ChandlerThompson (5-10, 180).

“We have a lot of experience on the defen-sive side and we have a lot of guys returningon offense, so that will play a big role,” saidMyers, who had 41.5 tackles last season. “We’llhave a lot more confidence than last year. Abig win week 10 (against North) showed whatwe can do.”

Following the addition of a seventh playoffdivision, Grove City has moved from DivisionI, Region 3 to Division I, Region 2. Division Inow consists of schools with 608 or more boys.

Jordan believes Central is the team to beatin the OCC-Ohio, with North, Reynoldsburgand Gahanna also in contention.

“Every week we know we have to be on our‘A’ game,” Jordan said. “As a coaching staff,you have to definitely be prepared and do every-thing you can, which you would anyhow for

who you play, but you really have to be on yourtoes in this league.”

[email protected]

DAWGSFROM >> 8

Corey Williams returns at running back afterrushing for 479 yards and two touchdowns.CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

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Geoffrey Helms (345 yardsrushing, six touchdowns).

Junior Vasean Davis (5-6,165) was the Lions’ third-lead-ing rusher last season with 163yards and two touchdowns andshould be among the top run-ning backs.

Also in the backfield are jun-ior Jamil Jones (5-5, 165) andsenior Bryce Green (5-9, 170).

Returning on the offensiveline are seniors Ben Foley (6-4, 240), Frog Fenton (6-3, 270)and Lane Lightle (6-1, 250).Senior Noah Adkinson (6-2,210), juniors David Cooper (6-5, 267) and Carter Hall (5-11,215) and sophomore NickVer-non (6-4, 285) are others at theposition.

Gahanna averaged 24.7points while going 7-3 overalland 4-3 in the OCC-Ohiobehind co-champions Picker-ington North and PickeringtonCentral (6-1) and Reynolds-burg (5-2). The Lions droppedthree of their last five games,including losses to Pickering-ton North (42-0) and Picker-ington Central (28-23) to closethe season.

Gahanna finished 11th inDivision I, Region 3 and nowwill compete in Division I,Region 2 after the OHSAA’sexpansion to seven divisions.

“We’re definitely a youngteam, but we’re working hard

and things are coming togetherquite well,” Lowe said. “Win-ning the OCC is always one ofour goals. We’d like to go 7-3or 8-2 and make it into the play-offs.”

Senior Emile Camm is theonly returning starter on defense.The 5-9, 165-pounder blos-somed into one of the area’s topcornerbacks last season when

he finished with seven intercep-tions. Camm also averaged 13.1yards on punt returns and madespecial mention all-district.

Gahanna’s defense gave upan average of 15.8 points whilebeing led by 2013 graduatesGranyl Smith (DL) andMitchell Rowell (LB). Smithis grayshirting this fall atAkronand Rowell is playing for West

Virginia State.ClassmatesA.J. Butler (Mar-

ian University), ParkerCavendish (John Carroll),Helms (Heidelberg), MalonSmith (Bluffton), Mike Tag-gart (Tiffin) and Jeremy Walls(Hiram) also are playing col-legiately.

Foley, Lightle, seniorsDakota Coates (5-11, 230) andAdam Davis (6-4, 190), junior

Marq Williams (6-0, 235) andsophomore Jonathon Cooper(6-4, 190) all could see timeon the defensive line in a 4-3alignment.

Senior Victor Spencer (5-10, 195), juniors Blake Baker(5-11, 178), Grant Benninger(5-10, 178), Blake Broderick(6-0, 190) and Alex Myer (5-10, 180) and sophomore DerekMarcum (5-10, 205) are at line-

backer.Senior Tyshon Holden (5-

10, 155) also is at cornerback,with senior Rodrik Callihan(5-10, 159) and sophomoreJake Chobany (5-9, 169) atsafety. Seniors Tyler Goodwin(5-9, 170) and Amos Van Pelt(5-8, 155) and junior CollinWrona (5-11, 165) are othersin the secondary.

Senior Ethan Fernandes andsophomoreTanner Harding areat kicker and Ryan, Callahanand Harding all could punt.Randolph, Tank Davis andCamm are expected to returnkicks and punts, with Bakerand Lowe serving as long snap-pers.

“(Randolph andTank Davis)are playmakers and we wantthem to be complete players,”Snoad said. “If we can have ateam of complete players, we’regoing to go places.”

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LIONSFROM >> 7

Emile Camm had seven interceptions last season and averaged 13.1 yards on punt returns.EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.....at Huber Heights WayneSept. 6.........................vs. FairfieldSept. 13.............at Upper Arlington*Sept. 20....................at Groveport*Sept. 27 .....................vs. Newark*Oct. 4 ................vs. Reynoldsburg*Oct. 11 .....................at Lancaster*Oct. 18....................vs. Grove City*Oct. 25.......vs. Pickerington North*Nov. 1 .......at Pickerington Central

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 4-3 OCC-Ohio)DeSales ................W, 13-10 (3 OT)Strongsville.......................W, 21-7Upper Arlington .................W, 45-7*Groveport ......................W, 38-14*Newark ...........................W, 45-6*Reynoldsburg ...................L, 21-7

*Lancaster ........................W, 24-3*Grove City......................W, 31-20*Pickerington North............L, 42-0*Pickerington Central .......L, 28-23*League contest

INSIDE THE LIONS•Coach: John Snoad, sixth season•Top players: Emile Camm (WR/DB),Tank Davis (WR/DB), Vasean Davis(RB), Frog Fenton (OL), Ben Foley(OL/DL), Boomer Lowe (TE), KevinRandolph (WR/DB) and Ronald Robin-son (QB)•Key losses: A.J. Butler (OL/DL),Parker Cavendish (WR/DB), GeoffreyHelms II (RB/LB), Mitchell Rowell (LB),Granyl Smith (DL), Malon Smith (DB),Mike Taggart (DL/LB),Alec Tuohy (QB)and Jeremy Walls (WR/DB)

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Phillipie Motley, who has committed to Pittsburgh, returns at cornerback and also will see time atslotback after being named second-team all-OCC. THOMAS LEVINSON/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Hilliard Davidson

’Cats expect payofffrom offseason work

Coach Brian White and theHilliard Davidson High Schoolfootball program quickly turnedtheir focus to the 2013 seasonafter losing to PickeringtonNorth 21-0 in a Division Iregional final last season.

White and his players andcoaches realize it takes a year-round commitment to maintainthe high expectations the Wild-cats have established.

“It started last December,”said White, who led Davidsonto Division I state titles in 2006and 2009. “The commitmentthat our kids made to be in theweight room starting last Dec.20 and over Christmas break.And then it continues when weget back from Christmas, thecommitment that our kids maketo be there at 5:45 in the morn-ing. I thought we had a reallygood offseason.

“Most of our kids were com-mitted and hopefully becauseof their commitment and thecharacter that they showed,they’ll reap the rewards fromit.”

White will gauge his team’sprogress when it opens at homeon Friday, Aug. 30, againstGrove City, which lost 26-14 tothe Wildcats a year ago.

Davidson will again rely ona run-oriented option attack,which should be directed bysenior quarterback Nick Iske(6-foot-0, 195 pounds). Iskemissed the final nine games lastseason after tearing tendons inhis left ankle in week fiveagainst Central Crossing.

“We’re really tight,” Iske said.“We have a lot of experiencecoming back. We have to make

sure we’re doing everything rightand making everything perfect.”

Senior fullback D.D. Clark(5-11, 186) returns after rush-ing for 853 yards and five touch-downs on 149 carries. He wassecond-team all-OCC-CentralDivision.

“D.D. had a great year for uslast year and he looks even bet-ter so far this year,” White said.“I’m really impressed with thestrides and improvement he hasmade in the offseason.”

Junior Markus Bailey (6-2,212) also should also see timein the backfield, and seniorPhillipie Motley (5-11, 173) –who has verbally committed to

the University of Pittsburgh –will play slotback after earningsecond-team all-league honors.

Seniors Brett Annis (5-11,202) and Alex Backenstoe (6-1, 235) and junior Nick Potts(6-5, 204) will play tight end, akey blocking position in theteam’s option attack.

Wide receivers are seniorsJoe Bernard (6-3, 185) and ErichKuntzman (6-0, 176).

Senior Jared Johns (6-0, 218)returns at center, where he wasfirst-team all-district and all-league.

Other returnees up front are

By FRANK DiRENNATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ....................vs. Grove CitySept. 6 .................at Hilliard DarbySept. 13.................at Beavercreek*Sept. 20..........vs. Dublin Coffman*Sept. 27 .........at Central Crossing*Oct. 4 ........................at Westland*Oct. 11............vs. Upper Arlington*Oct. 18 ........vs. Olentangy Liberty*Oct. 25 .....at Thomas Worthington*Nov. 1.....................vs. Marysville

2012 RESULTS(10-3 overall, 6-1 OCC-Central)Grove City.......................W, 26-14Hilliard Darby.....................L, 17-3Beavercreek ...................W, 14-13*Dublin Coffman ..............L, 33-10*Central Crossing ..............W, 42-6*Westland.......................W, 35-14*Upper Arlington..............W, 42-14

*Olentangy Liberty ............W, 28-7*Thomas Worthington......W, 42-14*Marysville .......................W, 14-7PLAYOFFSDublin Coffman...............W, 17-14Olentangy .......................W, 29-14Pickerington North .............L, 21-0*League contest

INSIDE THE WILDCATS•Coach: Brian White, 15th season•Top players: Markus Bailey (RB/LB),Alex Backenstoe (TE/LB),Travis Brown(RB/LB), D.D. Clark (RB/DB), Nick Iske(QB/DB), Jared Johns (OL/DL)),Phillipie Motley (RB/DB), Max Paazig(OL/DL) and Nick Stull (WR/DB)•Key losses: Morrice Brewer (DL),Travis Doty (LB), E.J. Jennings (RB),Nick Waters (QB/DB/K/P) and NickWright (OL/DL)

Nick Stull, a senior safety, is one of four returning starters inthe secondary for the Wildcats, who finished 10-3 last season.THOMAS LEVINSON/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCHWILDCATS >> 29

OCC-CENTRAL DIVISION

The Central Crossing HighSchool football team expectsto see continued improvementboth on and off the field.

That optimism begins onoffense, where the Comets willuse the spread for the secondconsecutive season after switch-ing from a power-I formation.

The new scheme resulted ina program record for scoringaverage at 21.4 points per gamelast season. The previous highwas 14.1 in 2010.

“We’re really trying to dic-tate the tempo of the game andwe’re pretty good at that as faras our speed and tempo,” saidcoach Chris Harr, whose teamwas 2-8 overall last season.

Harr, who is in his fourthseason, also has seen a posi-tive change off the field.

“I’ve never been moreexcited since I’ve been herethan this year,” he said. “What’seven better is just the charac-ter of our kids. Their class andtheir character are just tremen-dous. It makes going home alot easier. You’re not beatingyourself up dealing with offthe field issues. The together-ness, the leadership is better.All those little things that gointo being a good football team,we are way better than we’veever been, so that is where alot of the optimism lies.”

The Comets open Friday,Aug. 30, at home againstWhitehall.

Back is senior quarterbackLuke Duncan (6-foot-2, 190pounds), who was second-teamall-OCC-Central Division andhonorable mention all-districtin Division I last season. Hecompleted 117 of 230 passesfor 1,782 yards with 12 touch-downs and 19 interceptions andrushed for 515 yards and seven

touchdowns on 175 carries.“Luke has to be one of the

favorites in the area as a quar-terback,” Harr said. “He wouldhave to be in the top 10 and hecan run. That’s a big strengthof his.”

“Last year will definitelygive me a lot of experience andhelp me out throughout the sea-son,” Duncan said. “We’veworked a lot harder this yearand we have better leadership.”

Senior wide receiverMichael Traversa (6-3, 175)had 35 catches for 271 yardslast season. Other receivers aresophomores Christian Miranda(6-2, 170), Mason Shimmel (5-10, 165) and Noah Stephens(6-4, 205).

Junior Ethan Swank (6-0,190), a transfer from GroveCity Christian, and sophomoreColter Bass (5-9, 155) will seetime at running back and

receiver.Senior Dwight Diggs (6-2,

235), who was special mentionall-league and honorable men-tion all-district last season,returns at right guard.

Senior Conner Coup (6-1,260) is the center and seniorDustin Vanscoy (6-4, 260) willplay right tackle.

Other linemen are juniorsJosh Harkness (6-2, 245), CoryMiller (6-1, 235) and KurtRodgers (6-1, 170) and soph-omore Kole Brock (5-10, 215).

Junior Zachary Ross (5-9,160) and Miranda are kickersand Shimmel is the punter.

The line on the base 4-3defense should feature seniorJake Whitlock (6-0, 205) andjunior Shane Maxey (6-3, 245)at end. Maxey had 83.5 tack-les last season.

Other linemen are seniorCody Schrecengost (6-2, 245)

and sophomores Ryan Peoples(6-2, 275) and KameronTeacher (6-1, 265).

Sophomore Rob Fusner (6-0, 225), who was a starter as afreshman, will play outsidelinebacker.

Junior Mason Peck (6-0,215) is a middle linebacker andjunior Jared Wilson (6-0, 215)is another outside linebacker.Wilson is a transfer fromReady.

Senior Matt Miller (6-1, 180)has moved from safety to line-backer.

Senior Gino Siravo, who wassecond-team all-league andhonorable mention all-districtlast season, returns at safety.

Senior Isaac Gutierrez (5-8,150), who started as a juniorand sophomore, returns at cor-nerback. Other defensive backsare seniors Jeff Penn (5-8, 150)and Tre Whitehead (5-7, 155)at cornerback and sophomoresCaleb Alexander (5-11, 175)and Antonio Quintana (5-11,155) at safety.

Diggs, Duncan, Traversa,Siravo and Whitlock are cap-tains.

“This is the best offseasonthat we’ve had and it’s all goingto pay off with all the hard workthat we’ve done,” Duncan said.

The biggest loss to gradua-tion was Tory Clark, who ledthe team in rushing a year agowith 837 yards and 10 touch-downs on 116 carries. He alsocaught 35 passes for 639 yardsand six touchdowns.

Clark, who had 2,169 all-purpose yards, was first-teamall-league and second-team all-district as a defensive back lastfall. He is playing at the Uni-versity of Findlay.

Last season, the Comets fin-ished seventh in the OCC-Cen-tral at 1-6, behind co-champi-ons Dublin Coffman andHilliard Davidson (6-1).

Following the addition of aseventh playoff division, Cen-tral Crossing will compete thisseason in Division I, Region2.

“I like what they’re doing,”Harr said of the postseasonexpansion. “I like coaching (inDivision I), I like our league.I’m very proud to have theopportunity to coach in ourleague. Our league is one ofthe best leagues in the stateevery year.”

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Luke Duncan was second-team all-OCC after completing 117 of230 passes for 1,782 yards. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30......................vs. WhitehallSept. 6 ...............vs. IndependenceSept. 13..................at Brookhaven*Sept. 20........at Olentangy Liberty*Sept. 27........vs. Hilliard Davidson*Oct. 4...............at Upper Arlington*Oct. 11 ...........vs. Dublin Coffman*Oct. 18....vs. Thomas Worthington*Oct. 25.....................at Marysville*Nov. 1 ......................vs. Westland

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 1-6 OCC-Central)Whitehall ...........................L, 40-7Independence....................L, 40-0Franklin Heights ..............W, 35-12*Olentangy Liberty ...........L, 56-34

*Hilliard Davidson ..............L, 42-6*Upper Arlington ..............L, 63-27*Dublin Coffman ................L, 53-6*Thomas Worthington.......L, 28-27*Marysville ......................L, 65-38*Westland.......................W, 34-14*League contest

INSIDE THE COMETS•Coach: Chris Harr, fourth season•Top players: Dwight Diggs (OL),Luke Duncan (QB), Isaac Gutierrez(DB), Shane Maxey (DL), Gino Siravo(DB), Michael Traversa (WR) and JakeWhitlock (DL)•Key losses: Trevor Brown (LB),ToryClark (RB/DB), Isaac Eggleton (OL)and Jakob Welch (WR)

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Reloading will be the primary goalfor the Dublin Coffman High Schoolfootball team.

The Shamrocks have only onereturning starter on offense and fouron defense as they work to reach theDivision I playoffs for the fifth sea-son in a row and for the 11th time in13 seasons.

Last season, Coffman finished 9-2 overall after losing to Hilliard David-son 17-14 in the first round in Region3. The Shamrocks tied the Wildcatsfor the OCC-Central Division title at6-1, a game ahead of Olentangy Lib-erty and Upper Arlington, both ofwhich went 5-2.

“We have had some big seniorclasses before but so many con-tributed,” coach Mark Crabtree saidof the 33 players in the 2013 gradu-ating class. “We lost a lot of startersand a lot of our depth.”

James Walsh left to play at BostonCollege after starting at quarterbackthe past two seasons. Last year, hewas 128-for-213 passing for 2,038yards with 16 touchdowns and eightinterceptions and rushed for 558 yardsand eight touchdowns on 109 carries.

His protection on the line, includ-ing current Ohio University playerZack Murdock, is gone except forguard Jared Nunn. The 6-foot-1, 327-

Dublin Coffman

’Rocks look to overcome inexperience

Jared Nunn (right), a guard, is the only returning starter on offense for Coffman. Sam McCollum (left) will take over at a tackle spot. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

By SCOTT HENNENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

SHAMROCKS >> 24

pound senior is the only return-ing offensive starter.

Junior Ben Beckett (6-0,177) has an edge in experienceover sophomore Gunnar Hoak(6-3, 178) in the competitionto start at quarterback in theShamrocks’ spread, shotgunoffense.

“Beckett has the inside trackbecause of his experience, butGunnar is pushing him,” saidCrabtree, who is in his 13thseason. “I’m pretty happy withboth of them.

“Both have pretty good armsand decent speed. They aren’tin the same category as Jamesas far as speed, but they canrun. They both have an idea ofwhat’s going on and how wewant to execute the offense.”

Joining Nunn up front willbe senior tackleAndrew Friend(6-1, 218), junior tackle SamMcCollum (6-3, 270), juniorcenter Evan Crabtree (5-10,220) and junior Corey Williams(6-0, 264).

“We had a great senior classlast year and they taught us thatwe can never give up (and) thatwe have to keep fighting,”McCollum said. “They werereally good at working with theunderclassmen and I know thatwill make us better players thisyear.”

Running backs are seniorAaron Pape and junior DreKendrick. Pape (5-11, 177) ran

for 156 yards and one touch-down on 24 carries last season,and Kendrick (5-7, 163) added104 yards and one touchdownon 25 carries.

Wideouts include seniorsTerry Glenn and Koi Turnerand juniors Chase Granlund,Kyle Marcinick, Shaun Rankin

and C.J. Saunders. Glenn (6-1, 158), the son of the formerBrookhaven, Ohio State andNFL wide receiver of the samename, is the top returnee withfour catches for 68 yards andone touchdown.

Seniors Adam Striker andDave Watson are tight ends,with juniors Alex Berling andGage Hisey also lining up atthe position.

“We might not have the var-sity experience, but we havebeen playing together sincemiddle school, or even in DFL(youth football),” Evan Crab-tree said. “As a starter you havea bigger role, which is prettygreat. It’s exciting to see whatwe will be able to do.”

The four returning defen-sive starters are all seniors inlinebackers Jackson Hayes,Dalton Maynard and Erik Stein

and lineman KwabenaAmpon-sah. Stein had 46 tackles, fivetackles for loss and three sacksa year ago.

Joining Amponsah on thedefensive front will be seniorsGeorge Boatang, Jake Franklinand Jordan O’Dell and juniorsKyle Hogan, Tyler Pajk and

Terrance Rudolph.Other linebackers include

senior Dalton Maynard andjuniors Josh Febus and JoshGreenwalt.

In the defensive backfieldwill be seniors Tyler Jester,Christian Mayola, Rankin andClay Raterman and junior

Gavin Mulqueen.“(Last year’s seniors) taught

us how to have fun in footballand how to be good leaders,”Boatang said. “You don’talways have to be vocal (as aleader), but you can just gowork hard and lead by exam-ple.

“I have been waiting foryears for my chance to play andit’s exciting. I want to make themost of it.”

Senior John McGue looksto handle kicking and puntingduties following the gradua-tion of first-team all-state per-former Grant Coffman.

“These kids had a good off-season in several areas,” saidcoach Crabtree, whose teamopens Friday,Aug. 30, at homeagainst Dublin Jerome. “It’snot always about how muchstronger you get – which isimportant – but it’s also aboutthe level of commitment to playin a program with high expec-tations.”

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Kwabena Amponsah, a lineman, is one of four returning starters on defense for the Shamrocks.CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .............vs. Dublin JeromeSept. 6 ................vs. Dublin SciotoSept. 13 ..........at Canton McKinley*Sept. 20 .........at Hilliard Davidson*Sept. 27..................vs. Marysville*Oct. 4 .......at Thomas Worthington*Oct. 11..........vs. Central Crossing*Oct. 18 ......................at Westland*Oct. 25 ........vs. Olentangy Liberty*Nov. 1 ..............at Upper Arlington

2012 RESULTS(9-2 overall, 6-1 OCC-Central)Dublin Jerome ..................W, 48-6Dublin Scioto ..................W, 34-14Massillon Perry .................W, 40-7*Hilliard Davidson............W, 33-10*Marysville......................W, 49-10*Thomas Worthington......W, 56-14*Central Crossing ..............W, 53-6*Westland.......................W, 69-13*Olentangy Liberty ..........W, 36-28

*Upper Arlington ..............L, 23-14PLAYOFFSHilliard Davidson..............L, 17-14*League contest

INSIDE THE SHAMROCKS•Coach: Mark Crabtree, 13th sea-son•Top players: Kwabena Amponsah(DL), Ben Beckett (QB), GeorgeBoatang (DL), Evan Crabtree (OL),Terry Glenn (WR), Jackson Hayes(LB), Dre Kendrick (RB), Dalton May-nard (LB), Sam McCollum (OL), JohnMcGue (K/P), Jared Nunn (OL),AaronPape (RB) and Erik Stein (LB)•Top players: Daniel Chang (RB),Grant Coffman (K/P), Ian Flinders (LB),Vinny Jones (DL), Miles McCollum(DL), Zack Murdock (OL), SpencerRhoades (DL), Erik Schnese (DB),James Walsh (QB) and BilalWilliamson (RB)

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Upper Arlington

Veteran Bears ‘on same page’Tired vocal cords and sore

throats weren’t part of the pre-season routine for UpperArling-ton High School football coachMike Golden.

Fifteen returning starters fromlast year’s 6-4 team paved theway for what the Golden Bears’ninth-year coach called perhapsthe most “efficient” offseasonand two-a-days in his tenure.

“They were efficient in theoffseason and in practice, it’sbeen the same story,” saidGolden, whose team opens athome Friday, Aug. 30, againstMarion-Franklin. “All the guysare on the same page. Theyknow the level where they haveto be this time of year, and thelevel they’ll have to play at oncethe season starts. We don’t haveto get after them all the time.I’ve definitely been saving myvoice.”

Division I prospects ChaseGreenlee and Noah Spielman,and a linebacking corps led byMichigan State commit ChrisFrey, highlight a team seekingto remain in the upper echelonof the OCC-Central Divisionand return to the playoffs aftera one-year absence.

Frey, a 6-foot-3, 220-poundoutside linebacker and halfback,led UA in tackles (136) and solotackles (31) and made 3.5 sacks.He will be flanked outside bysenior Graham Devine (6-1,185), and inside by seniorsGreenlee (6-3, 236) and Harri-son Heath (6-2, 190) and jun-ior Bo Brunton (6-3, 230).

The defensive line will be ledby senior nose guard Spielman(6-0, 255), junior end JacksonPfister (6-2, 220) and seniorend ElliottTimmons (6-0, 210).

Spielman, the son of formerOhio State and NFL linebackerChris Spielman, returns at cen-ter on an offensive line that also

includes senior tackle HaakonBorstad (6-2, 225), Brunton atguard, junior tackle QuentinWolfe (6-2, 245) and senior tightend Nate Jones (6-1, 215),among others.

“They moved me inside (ondefense) and they’ll move me

around a lot,” said Spielman,who started the previous twoseasons at defensive end and isa two-year starter at center. “I’lldo it to the best of my ability.As of now, it’s going great.”

The defensive backfield willinclude senior safeties Lewis

Hughes (5-10, 175), senior cor-nerback Nick Blazek (6-1, 185)and junior cornerback Jack Pardi(6-1, 160).

Junior Kyle Kaparos – whostarted at quarterback the final

By DAVE PURPURATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM


Chase Greenlee will play linebacker and fullback for the Golden Bears, who will open Friday, Aug.30, at home against Marion-Franklin. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

BEARS >> 30


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The Thomas WorthingtonHigh School football team hasa little pep in its step as it pre-pares for the season.

The Cardinals have goodteam speed and are an experi-enced bunch, with eight starterson offense and six on defenseamong 25 returning letterwin-ners.

Sixth-year coach Scott Gor-don hopes those positive fac-tors help his team improve onlast season’s records of 2-8overall and 2-5 in the OCC-Central Division as the Cardi-nals seek their first winningseason since going 7-3 in 1999.

“The keys to our success aregetting out to a fast start ingames and staying healthy,”said Gordon, whose team opensFriday, Aug. 30, at homeagainst Jonathan Alder. “Weneed to continue to developdepth as the season goes on,especially on the offensive anddefensive lines.

“We’re experienced, with 33seniors. We have outstandingteam speed and explosive play-makers with a strong kickinggame.”

The offense will feature oneof the area’s top running backsin senior Tony Harvard, whorushed for 1,172 yards and ninetouchdowns on 216 carries andcaught 27 passes for 247 yardsand two touchdowns. He wassecond-team all-league andspecial mention all-district inDivision I.

“Tony Harvard is a strong,explosive runner with greatchange of direction,” Gordonsaid. “I’d say he’s probably thebest high school running backin all of central Ohio.”

Senior quarterback DannyGordon, coach Gordon’s son,was 112-for-205 passing for1,278 yards with eight touch-

downs and nine interceptions.He was honorable mention all-district.

Senior receivers BrandonMiller and Ricky Washingtonreturn as top targets in thespread offense. Miller had 20catches for 214 yards and onescore, while Washington had11 receptions for 140 yards.

Also back is senior JalenWells, who caught 14 passesfor 349 yards and three touch-downs and intercepted threepasses at cornerback in threestarts on defense. He was sec-ond-team all-league.

“Danny Gordon is a smart,accurate quarterback who isable to distribute the ball to ourplaymakers,” coach Gordonsaid. “Jalen Wells is fast andathletic and he’ll make a lot ofplays on both sides of the ballfor us.”

Senior returnees on theoffensive line are center JamesPeters (6-foot-1, 245 pounds)and guard Esai Slaughter (6-1, 295). Senior Forrest Eisen-schmidt (6-3, 285) is at theother guard. Playing tackleswill be senior Wesley Smith(6-1, 230) and freshmanTravis

Sanders (6-2, 250).Senior Juwan Brown (6-1,

205) will be the tight end, withclassmates Kenny Freeman andChris Wood sharing time at H-back. Junior P.J. Shotwell willsee action at receiver.

Senior Ben Frazier will bethe punter and place-kicker. Hewas first-team all-league andhonorable mention all-districtas a punter.

Linebackers in the 4-3defense are seniors AnthonyHopkins and Nick Petrucelliand junior Kyle Hillyard. Petru-celli was honorable mention

all-league, and Hillyard also isa returning starter. Otherreturnees include seniorRichard Spernoga (6-4, 230)and Smith at ends, as well assenior Noah Messerall andWells in the secondary.

Sophomore Preston Byers(5-11, 290) and Slaughter arecompeting at noseguard, withsenior John Petrucelli (5-9,170) and junior Nate Price (6-0, 250) at tackles.

“Richard Spernoga is astrong defensive end and offen-sive tackle who has 20 startsunder his belt and we’re expect-

ing big things from him,” coachGordon said.

Junior John Lee will start atstrong safety, with Shotwellseeing time at free safety.

[email protected]

ThomasWorthington

Experience, speed key for Cards’ quest

Brandon Miller, who had 20 receptions for 214 yards and a touchdown last year, is one of two returnees at wide receiver.PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

By BRAD EMERINETHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .........vs. Jonathan AlderSept. 6 ....................at KilbourneSept. 13 ..vs. Eastmoor Academy*Sept. 20 ......vs. Upper Arlington*Sept. 27 .................at Westland*Oct. 4 ..........vs. Dublin Coffman*Oct. 11 ................vs. Marysville*Oct. 18........at Central Crossing*Oct. 25 ......vs. Hilliard Davidson*Nov. 1........at Olentangy Liberty

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 2-5 OCC-Central)Jonathan Alder ...............L, 28-6Worthington Kilbourne ....L, 37-3Westerville Central..........L, 41-0*Upper Arlington .............L, 42-7*Westland....................W, 50-19*Dublin Coffman...........L, 56-14*Marysville ...................L, 39-21*Central Crossing.........W, 28-27*Hilliard Davidson ........L, 42-14*Olentangy Liberty........L, 35-17*League contest

INSIDE THE CARDINALS•Coach: Scott Gordon, sixth sea-son•Top players: Danny Gordon (QB),Tony Harvard (RB), Anthony Hop-kins (LB), Brandon Miller (WR), NickPetrucelli (LB), Richard Spernoga(DE), Ricky Washington (WR) andJalen Wells (WR/CB)•Key losses: Justin Cunningham(LB/RB), Brooks Gilmore (OL), JonHighley (OL/DL) and Jay Small-wood (WR)

Opponents of the OlentangyLiberty High School footballteam have grown accustomedto facing a spread offense thattypically features a quarterbackwho can rack up passingyardage and pick up first downsin a hurry.

The starter the last two years,Joey Longhino, was the mostprolific passer in program his-tory. He completed 156 of 226passes last season for a program-record 2,214 yards with 16touchdowns and seven intercep-tions, and finished his careerwith a program-record 4,095yards passing.

The offense still has thepotential to be potent with sen-ior quarterback Matt Kesslercomplemented by an experi-enced line and veterans at theskill positions. The Patriotsreturn senior starters Dan Rhine-hart and Carter Rudek at widereceiver and Daryian Davies atrunning back.

“Teams look at us and thinkwe pass a lot, but if you look atour stats last year, we were closeto 50-50 running and passingthe ball,” said Rhinehart, whowas honorable mention all-dis-trict in Division I with 34 recep-tions for 519 yards and threetouchdowns. “That was strictlybecause of Daryian. I think that’swhat our offense needs.”

Davies, who was honorablemention all-district and first-team all-OCC-Central Division,finished with 1,057 all-purposeyards and 14 touchdowns. Herushed for 893 yards and 11touchdowns on 168 carries andcaught 20 passes for 164 yardsand three scores.

“This is a little bit differentfor us and we’ve gone to a lit-

tle bit of a different offense,”said coach Steve Hale, whoseteam opens Friday, Aug. 30,against visiting OlentangyOrange. “We’ll see how it allplays out. We’re going to havea lot of things in our playbook,but we’re still trying to figureit all out.”

Liberty will be looking toend its playoff drought aftermissing the last three postsea-sons. Before that, the Patriotsmade six consecutive playoffappearances from 2004-09.

With a seventh playoff divi-sion added this fall, Liberty willcompete in Division I, Region1.

Last year’s finish at 7-3 over-all put Liberty 13th in DivisionI, Region 3.The top eight qual-ified for the playoffs.

In its first season in the OCC-Central, Liberty went 5-2 to tieUpperArlington for third behindco-champions Dublin Coffman


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Olentangy Liberty

Offense has questionmarks heading into year

Marysville

Coach eager to seeresults of hard work

Morgan Cotter is lookingforward to his second seasonas football coach at MarysvilleHigh School, and believes histeam is ready to reap the ben-efits of its hard work duringthe offseason.

“I can’t wait to get going,”said Cotter, whose team fin-ished 3-7 overall a year agoafter an 0-3 start. “I’m realexcited about the prospect.Thefirst year is a transition. Youwant to be nails, you want tobe right where you want to be.It just didn’t happen last year.We have done a lot of goodthings. Our kids have workedtheir tails off since January toput us in a good position rightnow.”

Marysville will open athome against Hilliard Bradleyon Friday, Aug. 30, and seniorMatt Mulholland (5-foot-11,185 pounds) is expected toreplace 2013 graduate KyleHites at quarterback in theMonarchs’ spread offense.

Hites was first-team all-OCC-Central Division aftercompleting 111 of 190 passesfor 1,289 yards with nine touch-downs and six interceptionsand rushing for 965 yards andnine touchdowns on 188 car-ries.

Also back is senior fullbackAustin Pfarr (6-0, 220), whorushed for 305 yards and threetouchdowns on 55 carries andhad seven catches for 122yards.

“I would like to win theOCC and get into the playoffs,”said Pfarr, who was honorablemention all-league. “I don’tlike to lose obviously, so winevery single game. That’s def-initely the main goal.”

Senior Billy Kidd (5-9, 165)and junior Aron Mowery (5-9,175) will see time at tailback.

“It will be really nice insteadof trying to get one kid 25touches, we have three kidswho are going to get 10 to 12,”Cotter said.

The wide receivers shouldbe led by senior JimmyApple-gate (6-1, 180), who had 26catches for 263 yards and onetouchdown. He will be joinedby seniors Alec Draughon (6-2, 175), Logan Roston (6-1,175) and Nick Mazza (5-11,180).

Also back is senior tight endNoahArbogast (6-1, 235), whohad 13 catches for 211 yards.

Mazza will kick and punt,and Mulholland also could seesome punting duties.

Three senior starters return

on the offensive line in centerRyan Evans (6-2, 220), guardStephen Pittroff (6-2, 275) andtackle Jason Jones (6-1, 215).

Other key linemen shouldbe senior Blaze Young (6-2,295), junior Dalton Stallings(6-2, 220) and sophomoresLucas Gallegos (6-0, 205) andHunter Harding (6-2, 235).

Cotter said that the basedefense will adjust slightly, asthe Monarchs move from a 4-3 to 4-2-5.

Cotter expects senior Dar-ius Walker (6-4, 275) at tackleand Pfarr at linebacker to leadthe defense.

“A lot of people have comeback and are ready to play,”Walker said. “We kind ofstepped it up this year. We tried


By SCOTT GERFENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.............vs. Hilliard BradleySept. 6 ...............at Jonathan AlderSept. 13...............vs. Dublin Scioto*Sept. 20 ...................vs. Westland*Sept. 27...........at Dublin Coffman*Oct. 4 ..........vs. Olentangy Liberty*Oct. 11 .....at Thomas Worthington*Oct. 18.............at Upper Arlington*Oct. 25..........vs. Central Crossing*Nov. 1 ............at Hilliard Davidson

2012 RESULTS(3-7 overall, 3-4 OCC-Central)Hilliard Bradley ................L, 17-10Jonathan Alder.................L, 30-10Dublin Scioto ...................L, 51-27*Westland.......................W, 51-14

*Dublin Coffman ..............L, 49-10*Olentangy Liberty ...........L, 21-14*Thomas Worthington......W, 39-21*Upper Arlington ..............L, 28-20*Central Crossing ............W, 65-38*Hilliard Davidson ..............L, 14-7*League contest

INSIDE THE MONARCHS•Coach: Morgan Cotter, second sea-son•Top players: JimmyApplegate (WR),Alec Draughon (WR/DB), Billy Kidd(RB/DB), Aron Mowery (RB), MattMulholland (QB),Austin Pfarr (RB/LB)and Darius Walker (DL).•Key losses: Logan Burns (DL), KodyDavisson (RB) and Kyle Hites (QB).

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ........vs. Olentangy OrangeSept. 6 ......................at OlentangySept. 13 ..........vs. Uniontown Lake*Sept. 20 ........vs. Central Crossing*Sept. 27 ...........at Upper Arlington*Oct. 4.......................at Marysville*Oct. 11.....................vs. Westland*Oct. 18...........at Hilliard Davidson*Oct. 25.............at Dublin Coffman*Nov. 1 .....vs. Thomas Worthington

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 5-2 OCC-Central)Olentangy Orange ...........W, 43-21Olentangy........................L, 28-16Uniontown Lake ..............W, 35-28*Central Crossing ............W, 56-34*Upper Arlington..............W, 37-21*Marysville......................W, 21-14*Westland.........................W, 63-7

*Hilliard Davidson ..............L, 28-7*Dublin Coffman ..............L, 36-28*Thomas Worthington......W, 35-17*League contest

INSIDE THE PATRIOTS•Coach: Steve Hale, 11th season•Top players: Luke Callahan (OL/DL),Daryian Davies (RB), Marshall Davis(DL), Hunter Littlejohn (OL/DL), EricLorenzen (OL), Dan Rhinehart (WR),Carter Rudek (WR/CB), David Trzcin-ski (OL), Kyle Wagner (LB) and JacobWorrell (DB/LB)•Key losses: Grant Cartwright (LB),Joey Longhino (QB), Brandon Miller(LB), Austin Mullins (DB), MattMuntean (WR/DB), Zack Shank(OL/DL), (DB), Robert Suarez (LB),Sam Vucelich (K), Tyler Welch (DB)and Bryson Wray (TE/P)

MONARCHS >> 30

Daryian Davies rushed for 893 yards and 11 touchdowns andalso caught 20 passes for 164 yards and three scores.CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

PATRIOTS >> 28


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Some added depth has leftWestland High School footballcoach Steve White feeling opti-mistic heading into the Cougars’opener Friday,Aug. 30, at East-moor Academy.

White said his team finishedlast season with a roster in thehigh 40s, but he has 55 playersto begin this season.

“I’m excited that our num-bers are going up,” White said.“We don’t have as many kidsas we would like in our seniorclass, but our sophomores andjuniors, we have 20 to 25 kidsin each one of those grades.”

Last season, Westland fin-ished 1-9 overall and 0-7 in theOCC-Central Division, eighthbehind co-champions HilliardDavidson and Dublin Coffman(6-1).

White has been impressedwith the development of soph-omore D’Kahri Scott (6-foot-1, 186 pounds), who willreplace 2013 graduate JalenBrown at quarterback.

“D’Kahri is a positive-atti-tude kid, hard worker, goodleader and he’s 6-1, 186,” Whitesaid. “He’s a big kid. He has agood arm and if he has to putdown his shoulder to run theball, he can do that.”

Brown rushed for 1,372yards and eight touchdowns on227 carries and completed 65of 164 passes for 848 yards withseven touchdowns and twointerceptions last season. Hewas named first-team all-league.

Senior Nick Green (5-10,210) is expected to be featuredat fullback after rushing for 266yards and three touchdowns on50 carries last season.

“I’m looking forward to thisseason,” Green said. “I likebeing put in a leadership role.I think we’re a lot better thanlast year. There is potential.We’re a little young, but we canwin a few games.”

Senior Alex Pridemore (5-10, 208) also will see time atfullback and junior MichaelLlausas (5-6, 175) will playhalfback.

Junior Brian Foster (5-8, 135)

will play halfback and be partof a four-receiver set in theteam’s spread offense thatincludes Juniors Reggie Gilliam(6-1, 200) and DominickThomas (5-7, 160) and sopho-more Koran Montague (6-2,175).

Junior Tavon Drake (6-3,

265) returns at right tackle. Hewill be joined on the line byjuniors Adam Rose (6-0, 185)at center and Jonathan Justice(6-1, 240) at left tackle, andsophomores Justin Hurley (5-8, 227) and Manny Lagunas (5-6, 215) at guard.

Sophomore Isaiah Henn (5-

10, 160) is the kicker and Mon-tague will punt.

Senior Dorrion Newton (6-1, 350), Lagunas and Roseshould lead the line in the team’sbase 50 defense.

Green and Pridemore willplay linebacker along with sen-iors Joey Gutzman (6-1, 190)

and Devyn Van Handel (5-10,160) and sophomores AbuSheikh (5-9, 175) and Clay Car-rel (5-11, 170).

“Last year a lot of the sen-iors didn’t have the right atti-tude,” Pridemore said.

“It was a bunch of individ-uals out here. This year we’redefinitely working as a team,a lot harder. We have a lot ofyoung ones, so I’m really hop-ing that they’re going to havea good year.”

The secondary will includeFoster at cornerback and jun-ior Jayson Evans (5-9, 155) andLlausas at safety.

Westland will play withouta key contributor from last sea-son, as senior Myles Fowlertransferred to Ready.

Fowler entered last presea-son as the starting quarterback,but he broke the ring finger onhis non-throwing hand duringa scrimmage and missed thefirst four games. He saw play-ing time at quarterback, run-ning back and wide receiverover the final six games andmade honorable mention all-league, rushing for 281 yardsand three touchdowns on 61carries and completing 16 of36 passes for 144 yards.

White realizes his team faceslong odds in the OCC-Centralagainst perennial powers likeCoffman, Davidson and UpperArlington.

“Until somebody beatsDavidson (or) Coffman, they’rethe top dogs,” he said.

Westland’s only win last sea-son came against the Colum-bus Crusaders, 32-27 in itsopener. The Cougars lost theirfinal nine games.

“We’re going to be betterthan that,” White said. “Theattitude of the kids is reallygood.They’re accepting coach-ing and working hard, and ifyou can do those two thingsyou have a chance.”

The Cougars have lost 34consecutive league games, withtheir last win coming againstHilliard Darby 46-29 in OCC-Ohio play on Oct. 20, 2006.That season, the Cougars qual-ified for the Division I, Region3 playoffs, losing to UA 28-21in the first round to finish 7-4.

With the addition of a sev-enth playoff division, Westlandhas moved to Division I, Region2.

[email protected]

Westland

Underclassmen are bright spot for CougarsBy FRANK DiRENNATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Nick Green is expected to increase his workload at fullback after rushing for 266 yards and threetouchdowns on 50 carries last season. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30........at Eastmoor AcademySept. 6 ............................at MifflinSept. 13............vs. Columbus East*Sept. 20...................at Marysville*Sept. 27 ..vs. Thomas Worthington*Oct. 4 ...........vs. Hilliard Davidson*Oct. 11..........at Olentangy Liberty*Oct. 18 ...........vs. Dublin Coffman*Oct. 25............vs. Upper Arlington*Nov. 1.............at Central Crossing

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 0-7 OCC-Central)Columbus Crusaders.......W, 32-27Mifflin..............................L, 53-38Hilliard Bradley ..................L, 42-0*Marysville ......................L, 51-14

*Thomas Worthington.......L, 50-19*Hilliard Davidson ............L, 35-14*Olentangy Liberty .............L, 63-7*Dublin Coffman ..............L, 69-13*Upper Arlington .................L 54-7*Central Crossing.............L. 34-14*League contest

INSIDE THE COUGARS•Coach: Steve White, third season•Top players: Tavon Drake (OL),Michael Llausas (RB/DB), DorrionNewton (DL),Alex Pridemore (RB/DL)and D’Kahri Scott (QB)•Key losses: Cory Beasy (OL/DL),Jalen Brown (QB), Korey Browning(TE/LB/K/P),Myles Fowler (QB/RB/WR)and Brian Jackson (RB/LB)

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and Hilliard Davidson (6-1).“One of our top priorities is getting back

to the playoffs,” said senior lineman LukeCallahan (6-foot-4, 280 pounds), who hascommitted to play at the University ofCincinnati. “We want to show everybodythis year that we can reverse the curse.”

Callahan will be part of a front line that’sthe biggest and most experienced in Lib-erty’s 11 seasons.

Also back is junior Hunter Littlejohn(6-4, 270), who has offers from Illinois,Boston College and Akron, and seniorsEric Lorenzen (6-3, 260) and DavidTrzcin-ski (6-3, 260).The line lost Zach Shank, a2013 graduate now playing at Dartmouth.

That experience up front should helpthe Patriots’first-year starting quarterbackin Kessler manage the offense.

“Matt’s been coming up through our sys-tem so he knows it very well,” Hale said.“He’s a good athlete, a lacrosse player, andthrows a good ball. He’s a smart kid whocan understand defenses and knows whatwe’re trying to achieve.”

Others expected to contribute at the skillpositions include junior Jacob Wiseman,who will play slot receiver and runningback, and Skylar Taphorn, a senior move-in from Florida who Hale said possessesspeed and will play split end.

Liberty must replace two of its topreceivers in tight end Bryson Wray (31catches, 458 yards), who was second-teamall-district and first-team all-league, andMatt Muntean (24 catches, 427 yards),who was first-team all-league.

On defense, the Patriots will look dif-ferent after graduating a number of starters,including linebackers Grant Cartwright,

Brandon Miller and Robert Suarez, defen-sive backsAustin Mullins andTyler Welchand Shank on the line.

Senior linebackers Kyle Wagner andJacob Worrell had solidified starting spotsin preseason camp along with Rudek andTaphorn at cornerback. Hale also has beenimpressed with junior linebackers JacksonDruckenbroad and Shelton Eggleston.

The Patriots have a new defensive coor-dinator in Jeremy Arend, who takes overfor longtime assistant Rob Griffiths.

Griffiths stepped away for personal rea-sons, Hale said.

“We’re running a similar scheme (3-5-3), but the kids have had to learn some newwords and new terminology,” Hale said.“We’re still trying to find the right combi-nations on that side of the ball.”

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PATRIOTSFROM >> 27


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seniors Max Paazig (6-1, 222),at tackle and John Rezabek (5-11, 202) at guard. Paazig wasspecial mention all-league.

Other key linemen should beseniors Cameron Elliott (5-10,221) and Alexis Pagan-Mon-tero (5-9, 240) and sophomoreKyle Bessen (6-0, 267).

Seniors Jack Johns (5-8, 145)and Matt Martin (6-1, 170), andsophomore Robert Lefevre (5-10, 164) are contending for kick-ing and punting duties.

Davidson will feature thesame 50 base defense as yearspast, with Backenstoe in thecrucial Leo linebacker position.He’ll line up across from thetight end and will be countedon to rush the quarterback andstop the run.”

“This team will go as far asthe seniors will carry it,” saidBackenstoe, who was first-teamall-league and second-team all-district. “If we keep workinghard, it will all pay off.”

Senior lineman Clay Barnett(5-11, 209) also returns, andjunior Caleb Boyd (5-11, 187)will be at end and sophomoreKyle Siders (5-10, 292) will playnose guard. Freshman CameronRussell (6-2, 211) is anotherlineman.

Senior Travis Brown (6-2,206) and Bailey are back at line-backer, where junior BenBrooks (5-9, 185) also will seeaction. Brown was second-team

all-league.Returning players in the sec-

ondary include seniors ParkerFoard (5-10, 176) and Nick Stull(6-2, 176) at safety, and Bernardand Motley at cornerback.

Last season, Stull was sec-ond-team all-league and Foardwas special mention all-league.

“I don’t know how manygames we’ll win this year, butthe group of kids we have thisyear is a really fun group ofkids,” White said. “You can’tsay that every year. Some yearsthere can be some frustratingkids. There’s just a lot of funkids in our program right now.”

The Wildcats lost 14 playersto graduation, including run-ning back E.J. Jennings, whowas first-team all-district andshared OCC-Central Player ofthe Year honors with Coffmandefensive lineman MilesMcCollum. Jennings ran for1,597 and 24 touchdowns.

Davidson begins pursuit ofa fourth consecutive and 14thoverall league title when it opensOCC-Central Division play athome against Dublin Coffmanon Sept. 20. Last season, David-son and Coffman tied for firstin the league at 6-1.

Davidson split two gameswith Coffman, losing to theShamrocks 33-10 in the regu-lar season before avenging theloss with a 17-14 win in the firstround of the playoffs.

White believes his team cancontend again for a league title,

with Coffman and UpperArlington also in the mix.

Following divisional realign-ment last spring by the OHSAA,Davidson will play in DivisionI, Region 2, which will includeCoffman, Hilliard Darby, Pick-

erington North, UA and West-erville South. Division I nowconsists of schools with 608 ormore boys.

The traditional postseasonformat in which the top eightteams in each region qualify for

the playoffs will remain in Divi-sions II through VII. DivisionI will be divided into Northernand Southern regions, however,with 16 teams making the play-offs in each region.

Davidson will be seeking its

sixth consecutive playoff berthand 10th in the last 11 seasons.

“Our goal every year is justto have our kids grow and reachtheir potential,” White said.

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WILDCATS

D.D. Clark (left) and Alex Backenstoe are two returning starters. Clark, a fullback, rushed for 853 yards and five touchdowns, andBackenstoe is a tight end and linebacker who was first-team all-OCC and second-team all district. DAN TRITTSHUH/THISWEEKSPORTS

FROM >> 21

seven games of 2012 after 2013graduateAlex Husted was side-lined with a concussion andHeath sustained a torn anteriorcruciate ligament – returns tolead an offense which Goldensaid likely will depend on thepassing game. Kaparos was 43of 102 passing for 701 yards,six touchdowns and six inter-ceptions last year.

“He’s passing the ball well,faking, running the ball andmaking great decisions down-field,” Greenlee said. “He’sblown my mind. He’s improveda lot.”

Receivers will include two-year starter Sam Wheeler (5-10, 185) and Jackson Finfrock(6-3, 180), both seniors, as wellas Blazek and Hughes.

Golden’s primary concern isat running back, where the Bearsmust replace 2013 graduate GusAckley’s 1,337 yards and 16touchdowns on 166 carries.

Ackley, who is playing foot-ball and lacrosse atTrinity Col-lege in Hartford, Conn., alsocaught 14 passes for 257 yardsand three touchdowns to earnfirst-team all-league and sec-ond-team all-district honors.

Frey will play halfback andGreenlee will be at fullback, butGolden doesn’t want to rely toomuch on either. Frye rushed for645 yards and 10 touchdownson 67 carries and caught sixpasses for 89 yards and twotouchdowns.

“We have to develop morebacks,” Golden said. “Consid-ering how vital (Frey and Green-lee) are to the defense, I don’twant either of them to have abunch of carries. Chase will bea good back for short-yardagesituations, but I can’t see us con-sidering him a workhorse.”

UA closed last season witha flourish, winning three con-secutive games to finish 5-2 inthe OCC-Central Division.Thatstretch included a 23-14 upsetof previously undefeated Dublin

Coffman in the final week ofthe regular season and cost theShamrocks an undisputed OCC-Central title.

“Just pulling that game outand the way we played gave usmomentum through the winterand summer, (from) the winterlifting into right now,” Frey said.“It changed our team, with allthe momentum it brought.A lotof guys we weren’t sure aboutlast year stepped up big-time.It gave us an edge for this year.”

The Bears’ league opener isSept. 20 at Thomas Worthing-ton. UA has had only one los-ing season (2004) since 1963,

“I think we’ll be an all-aroundbetter team. Hopefully we’ll go10-0, but you never know whatcan happen,” Spielman said.

“We have to keep workinghard and keep focused on thatfirst game against Marion-Franklin.”

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FROM >> 25

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........vs. Marion-FranklinSept. 6 ..............at Cincinnati ElderSept. 13 .....................vs. Gahanna*Sept. 20 ...at Thomas Worthington*Sept. 27.......vs. Olentangy Liberty*Oct. 4............vs. Central Crossing*Oct. 11...........at Hilliard Davidson*Oct. 18 ...................vs. Marysville*Oct. 25 ......................at Westland*Nov. 1.............vs. Dublin Coffman

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 5-2 OCC-Central)Walnut Ridge ..................W, 43-20Cincinnati Elder..................L, 45-7Gahanna............................L, 45-7*Thomas Worthington........W, 42-7

*Olentangy Liberty ...........L, 37-21*Central Crossing ............W, 63-27*Hilliard Davidson ............L, 42-14*Marysville......................W, 28-20*Westland.........................W, 54-7*Dublin Coffman..............W, 23-14*League contest

INSIDE THE BEARS•Coach: Mike Golden, ninth season•Top players: Chris Frey (RB/LB),Chase Greenlee (RB/LB),Kyle Kaparos(QB) and Noah Spielman (OL/DL)•Key losses: Gus Ackley (RB/DB),Ryne Frankenbery (DL),Alex Husted(QB/DB), Nick Milo (OL/DL) and JackMueller (TE/LB)

Quarterback Kyle Kaparos started the last seven games a year ago, completing 43 of 102 passesfor 701 yards and six touchdowns. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

to get some guys from the bas-ketball team or maybe guyswho haven’t played in a fewyears.”

The line will also includesenior Logan Keeran (6-0, 235),and juniors Kyler Cline (6-2,190) and Keano Smith (6-4,205).

Other linebackers are sen-ior SamTse (5-7, 150) and jun-iors Gage Auxter (5-10, 160),Austin Costlow (5-10, 180),Seth Kidd (5-9, 190) and JesseRamirez (5-9, 170).

The secondary should fea-ture Billy Kidd and seniorKenny Kinder (5-10, 180) atcornerback, and Draughon,Mazza, juniorAlex Sepeda (5-10, 160) and sophomoresPierce Scott (6-1, 180) andTyler Stiers (5-9, 180) at safety

Another key loss to gradu-ation was running back KodyDavisson, who rushed for 541yards and six touchdowns on107 carries and had a team-high 34 catches for 441 yardswith five touchdowns. He wasspecial mention all-league.

“We had some good seniorslast year, but we have someyoung kids who are steppingup and doing a great job,” Cot-ter said. “Our seniors havereally taken control and areleading them in the directionthat we want to go. It’s beengood.”

Following realignment bythe OHSAA in June that addeda seventh division to the foot-ball postseason, Marysville willbe in Division I, Region 1,which also includes ClevelandSt. Ignatius, Lakewood St.Edward, Mentor, OlentangyLiberty, Toledo Whitmer and

Westerville Central. Whitmerlost to Cincinnati Moeller 20-12 in the Division I state titlegame a year ago.

“We want to be that type ofprogram, so there’s no reasonto back off anybody,” Cottersaid. “Are we at that type ofprogram yet? No, but we def-initely want to get to that pointwhere instead of, ‘We have togo play St. Ignatius,’it’s ‘I reallydon’t want to drive toMarysville.’”

Division I now consists ofschools with 608 or more boys,and it will be divided intoNorthern and Southern regions.From each of these two regions,16 teams will qualify for thepostseason.

The traditional format – inwhich the top eight teams ineach region advance to the play-offs – will remain in place inDivisions II through VII.

Cotter expects a tight racein the OCC-Central, withHilliard Davidson and DublinCoffman among the favoritesagain. Davidson and Coffmanshared the league title at 6-1when Upper Arlington upsetthe previously unbeaten Sham-rocks 23-14 in the final weekof the regular season.

“It’s going to be the samesuspects again this year,” Cot-ter said. “Davidson is going tobe there right there at the top.Upper Arlington brought abunch of kids back. They’ll besolid. Coffman always comesaround, and the one that is thesleeper this year is CentralCrossing. (Coach Chris Harr)has nice athletes. There isn’tanybody you can fall asleep onin our league.”

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MONARCHSFROM >> 27

Austin Pfarr, who rushed for 305 yards and three touchdownslast season, said the goal is to “win the OCC and get into theplayoffs.” JOHN HULKENBERG/THISWEEKSPORTS

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In his first season at quarterbackfor the Hilliard Bradley High Schoolfootball team, Tommy Horn foundthat playing varsity was filled withbumps and bruises.

After learning the ropes last fall,the 6-foot, 180-pound senior is look-ing to help the Jaguars rebound fromgoing 4-6 overall and 1-6 in the OCC-Cardinal Division to finish seventhbehind champion Hilliard Darby (7-0).

“Last year was my first experienceat the varsity level and I found outhow difficult it can be,” said Horn,who was honorable mention all-dis-trict in Division I and second-teamall-league. “You can’t be a one-manshow out there. You have to rely onthe guys next to you to make every-thing work.”

Horn was 65-for-115 passing for894 yards with seven touchdowns andfour interceptions, and he led the teamin rushing with 677 yards and fivetouchdowns on 136 carries.

“Tommy has come back and has-n’t missed a beat,” said coach MikeLoParo, who is in his third season.“He understands what we are tryingto do offensively and he’s been a greatleader for us. He has the desire to putthe team on his shoulders and carryit.”

Horn will be taking snaps from sen-ior center Skylar Hartley (6-2, 305),who has verbally committed to the

University at Buffalo.“We don’t have many crazy stand-

out players, so we have to play as ateam,” Hartley said. “We’re good whenwe play as a unit. Our potential isthrough the roof. If we put thingstogether, we could be unstoppable.”

That is LoParo’s hope for his mul-tiple-set offense, which returns 10starters.Aside from Hartley and Horn,the Jaguars return senior Zac Davis(6-3, 230) at left tackle, and seniorsJosias Cruceta (6-3, 270) and AustinMiller (6-3, 255) both started at righttackle. Senior Ryan Beveridge (6-1,270) is back at right guard.

SeniorT.J. Martin (6-0, 215) is backat running back after rushing for 505yards and nine touchdowns on 99 car-ries. Also returning are senior tightend Jake Stratton (6-3, 220) and sen-ior wide receivers Zack Popovec (6-3, 200; 27 catches, 299 yards, 3 touch-downs) and Ryan Reffitt (6-5, 210;20 catches, 266 yards, 1 touchdown).

Senior Matt Johnson (6-0, 185) isnew to the offense at running backand wide receiver, and senior NathanChapman (6-2, 245) also will see timeat right guard after missing last sea-son with an injured knee.

“We have to work hard and keepdriving through the whistle,” LoParosaid. “We have to play every play withpride and drive through people insteadof to people. We can’t accept anythingless.

“If one kid makes a mistake, the

Hilliard Bradley

Horn adjusting in second season as QB

T.J. Martin is one of 10 returning starters for the Jaguars’ offense. He rushed for 505 yards and nine touchdowns on 99carries a year ago. DAN TRITTSHUH/THISWEEKSPORTS


JAGUARS >> 39

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The Hilliard Darby HighSchool football team is comingoff one of the best seasons inprogram history.

Now in their 17th season, thePanthers captured their first out-right league championship,made their third playoff appear-ance, went undefeated in theregular season for the first timeand tied their record for winsin a season last fall, as they fin-ished 11-1 overall and 7-0 inthe OCC-Cardinal Division.

“The leadership that lastyear’s senior class provided uswith is a blueprint for this groupof kids to follow because wecouldn’t have done so well with-out everyone buying into theteam concept the way they did,”said coach John Santagata,whose team opens Friday,Aug.30 at home against Boardman.“Our senior class is a close-knitgroup of good friends who areworking hard and committingto our team’s success. But thekey to us having a good seasonis our leadership has to contin-ually improve so that everyonecontinues to do their best forour team.”

Darby lost seven starters onits spread-option offense to grad-uation, including three who areplaying at the college level in

quarterback Chase Longwell(Capital), wide receiver CalebDay (Illinois) and lineman ZackWilliams (Ohio Dominican).

Last season, Day had 32receptions for 490 yards and sixtouchdowns and rushed for 463yards and nine scores on 60 car-

ries and was OCC-Cardinal co-Player of theYear.

Longwell was 53-for-88 pass-ing for 888 yards with eighttouchdowns and rushed for 964yards and 15 touchdowns on154 carries and was specialmention all-district and first-

team all-league, and Williamswas second-team all-district andfirst-team all-league.

Darby returns five playerswho started multiple games onoffense a year ago in senior line-men David Still, Josh HumbertandTony Hajjar and senior slot-backs Devon Rogers and JacobStacy.

Humbert, who has receiveda scholarship offer from the Uni-versity of Akron, was second-team all-league a year ago andHajjar and Still both were spe-cial mention all-league.

Stacy rushed for 164 yardsand two touchdowns and hadfour receptions for 86 yards lastyear and was honorable men-tion all-league.

Senior Nate Green hasreplaced Longwell at quarter-back and senior HunterMcSweeney is expected to playa big role at slotback.

“Having three experiencedplayers on our line return defi-nitely will help us, but we’vehad a lot of our new guys stepup in the offseason and they’relooking good right now, too,”Humbert said.

Darby’s 4-3 defense lost eightstarters to graduation, includ-ing linebacker Cameron Kohl,who had 148 tackles, five sacks

Hilliard Darby

Team-first attitude is focus for Panthers

Trevor Parker, a senior linebacker, is one of three returningstarters on defense. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

ByAARON BLANKENSHIPTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30....................vs. BoardmanSept. 6 ...........vs. Hilliard DavidsonSept. 13 ..........at Toledo St. John’s*Sept. 20 .......vs. Westerville North*Sept. 27 ............at Dublin Jerome*Oct. 4............at Canal Winchester*Oct. 11.........vs. Westerville South*Oct. 18 ................at Dublin Scioto*Oct. 25 ........at Westerville Central*Nov. 1..............vs. Hilliard Bradley

2012 RESULTS(11-1 overall, 7-0 OCC-Cardinal)Whetstone ......................W, 71-28Hilliard Davidson ...............W, 17-3Toledo St. John’s.............W, 56-22*Westerville North .............W, 45-7*Dublin Jerome.................W, 20-7*Worthington Kilbourne ...W, 34-27

*Westerville South...........W, 28-14*Dublin Scioto .................W, 28-24*Westerville Central...........W, 29-7*Hilliard Bradley ................W, 42-0PLAYOFFSWesterville South ............W, 31-10Pickerington North ...........L, 24-14*League contest

INSIDE THE PANTHERS•Coach: John Santagata, sixth sea-son•Top players: Brian Casey (DL), NateGreen (QB),Anthony Hajjar (OL), JoshHumbert (OL/DL),Trevor Parker (LB),Devon Rogers (RB), Jacob Stacy (RB)and David Still (OL)•Key losses: Caleb Day (WR/DB),KyleKaplan (K), Cameron Kohl (LB), ChaseLongwell (QB) and ZackWilliams (OL)

PANTHERS >> 40

Neither MoisesVasquez norErik Hagedorn of the Wester-ville North High School foot-ball team heard the other laudtheir teammates’commitmentto the program after practiceAug. 13.

In separate interviews,Vasquez, a senior tight end anddefensive lineman, and Hage-dorn, a running back and defen-sive back, said players’ dedi-cation to offseason trainingreached levels they hadn’t seenin three years.

Everyone, they agreed, ischamping at the bit to end a45-game losing streak that datesto September 2008.

“We have better leadership.We have more commitmentamong all our players,” saidVasquez, a three-year starter.“We’re trying to eliminate theattitude of not wanting to behere. We want guys to just calmdown and not take things forgranted, just come out and havefun.”

Hagedorn recounted howattendance for morningweightlifting slowly increasedfrom a handful in Decemberto double-digits by the spring.

“When we started in Decem-ber, we only had four or fiveguys,” he said. “By Februaryand March, we had 10 or moreguys each and every day.

“As the season got closer,more guys kept coming. It wasbetter than last year, when wedidn’t have offseason liftinguntil about May. It wasn’t reallythere until we had more com-mitment.”

Second-year coach RodgerElander was present to hearboth talk, and although he hadtexts to return, students to directfrom place to place and per-formances to review, there wasan inner smile.

Entering the season openerFriday,Aug. 30, at home againstFranklin Heights, Elander isanxious to see how his teamturns out after an organized off-season. Elander wasn’t hireduntil February 2012, and did-n’t finish building his coachingstaff until late that spring.

“People have asked mewhat’s the difference betweenthis year and last year, and Ijust tell them it’s the offseasonprogram,” Elander said. “Lastyear, there was no real guid-

ance for the guys. One of thethings we talked about was wehad to get moving in the weightroom. We knew what we hadto do.

“The kids who were in there,you can tell the difference.They’re physically bigger andstronger. They look different.They fill out their uniforms dif-ferently and they carry them-selves with confidence. …They didn’t have that look (lastyear).”

North is trying to end thelongest active losing streak inthe state.The Warriors’last winwas on Sept. 9, 2008, whenthey defeated Westerville Cen-tral 21-17.

Elander called Hagedorn andVasquez “key” to an offensethat also will be paced by sen-ior running back/linebackerAndy Struttman (6-2, 231), afour-year starter who ran for401 yards on 130 carries lastyear with a team-high fivetouchdowns.

Senior running back/line-backer Jonathan Taylor (5-11,186) added 445 yards and threetouchdown on 125 carries.

Taylor and Struttman willsplit the workload with seniorJake Hinz (5-9, 175).

Receivers for expected start-ing quarterback Jake Downs,a 6-2, 180-pound junior,include juniors DaeQuanHughes (6-2, 183) and WesNally (6-0, 188).

The offensive line featuresjunior GageArcher (6-1, 243),senior tackle Jared Sroufe (6-0, 222) andVasquez (6-0, 235).The other starting linemen hadnot been determined at the startof preseason camp.

Hinz, juniors Damani John-son (6-0, 181) and AndrewMalick (5-11, 203), Struttmanand senior John Taylor (5-11,186) lead a deep linebackercorps. Defensive backs includejuniors Mason Gresh (5-10,152) and Emmitt Reed (5-7,168).

North visits Newark on Sept.6 and Reynoldsburg on Sept.13 before beginning OCC-Car-dinal Division play Sept. 20 atHilliard Darby.

“Any winning streak startsat one,” Elander said. “Let’sget it started early.”

Hagedorn thinks an effec-tive running game will be cru-cial to the Warriors’ success.Offensive linemen hope so, too– Struttman promised to buyeach of them a steak dinner ifNorth ever rushes for 250 yardsin a game.

“That’s definitely one of ourgoals,” Hagedorn said, citinggoal sheets each player wroteduring the offseason. “A lot ofthe guys said we should at leastwin three games.Another papersaid to not to be afraid to play.That’s truthful. I know the sit-uation of playing someone big-ger than you, but you have to

fight through it. Other guyswant to get five interceptionsor more than 10 for the wholeteam. Those are the things thatstood out to me. I believe inthat.”

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Warriors determined to end losing streakBy DAVE PURPURATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

Jonathan Taylor (left)and Jake Hinz (right)are among thereturnees for theWarriors. Taylorrushed for 445 yardsand three touch-downs a year ago.Hinz also will playrunning back.

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........vs. Franklin HeightsSept. 6..........................at NewarkSept. 13 ...............at Reynoldsburg*Sept. 20 ..............at Hilliard Darby*Sept. 27 .............vs. Dublin Scioto*Oct. 4 ................at Dublin Jerome*Oct. 11 ........at Westerville Central*Oct. 18 ............vs. Hilliard Bradley*Oct. 25..........at Canal Winchester*Nov. 1 ..........vs. Westerville South

2012 RESULTS(0-10 overall, 0-7 OCC-Cardinal)Franklin Heights...............L, 21-14Grove City..........................L, 41-7Reynoldsburg ....................L, 55-0*Hilliard Darby ...................L, 45-7

*Dublin Scioto..................L, 45-14*Dublin Jerome................L, 62-14*Westerville Central..........L, 35-14*Hilliard Bradley ...............L, 41-14*Worthington Kilbourne ......L, 26-6*Westerville South............L, 52-15*League contest

INSIDE THE WARRIORS•Coach: Rodger Elander, secondseason•Top players: Jake Downs(QB/DB/P), Erik Hagedorn (RB/DB),Jake Hinz (RB/LB), Andy Struttman(RB/LB) and Moises Vasquez (TE/DL)•Key losses: Shane Coulter (OL),Chris Meyers (WR/DB), Peter Sand-vik (OL/DL) and Austin Smales (QB)

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The Dublin Jerome HighSchool football team is look-ing to re-establish a winningtradition in its 10th season.

The Celtics are coming offconsecutive losing seasons for

the first time in program his-tory, finishing 4-6 the past twoyears.

Last season, Jerome went 3-4 in the OCC-Cardinal Divi-sion, fifth behind HilliardDarby (7-0), Dublin Scioto (6-1), Westerville South (5-2) andWesterville Central (4-3).

With the OHSAA adding aseventh playoff division,Jerome has moved from Divi-sion I, Region 3 to Division II,Region 5.

“When I looked at the teamsthat are in our region, if we cando well in our league, we’llhave a shot of getting (into the

playoffs) and once we get in,we have a shot of playing well,”coach Mark Hundley said.

The traditional postseasonformat in which the top eightteams in each region qualifyfor the playoffs remains in placein Divisions II through VII.Division I now is divided intotwo regions, with 16 teamsfrom each making the playoffs.

Jerome opens Friday, Aug.30, at Dublin Coffman. Lastseason, the Celtics lost to theShamrocks 48-6 in the teams’first meeting.

Returning senior Jake King(6-foot, 175 pounds) has beencompeting for the starting quar-terback job with junior AlexCline (6-2, 165) and sopho-more Zack Hazlett (5-11, 170).

Last season, King completed72 of 146 passes for 793 yards

with three touchdowns and sixinterceptions.

Senior running backs IanBeith (6-2, 205), Justin Stroup(6-0, 180) and Steve Kidwell(6-0, 190) are looking to helpfill the void left by the gradu-ation of Donovan Wilson, afreshman running back at Geor-gia Tech.

Last season, Wilson rushedfor a program-record 2,068yards on 383 carries and scored25 touchdowns. He ran for aprogram-record 425 yards ina 21-20, overtime loss to West-erville South.

Wilson also shared OCC-Cardinal Player of theYear hon-ors with Darby’s Caleb Dayand Scioto’s Tim Shadoan andwas named first-team all-dis-trict.A four-year starter, he fin-ished his career with 4,796

yards rushing and 58 touch-downs, both program records.

“There’s life after Donovan,”Hundley said. “The thing thatwe’ve seen throughout this off-season is it’s now no longer arethey looking for somebody tostep up, they’re looking for eachother to step up and becomemore of a team.”

Seniors Connor Kerns (6-1,185) and Tommy Mazurek (6-3, 225) and junior Nate Szekely(6-3, 200) are ends in the dou-ble-wing offense.

Senior Kyle Eudell (5-8,255) and junior Emilo Paesano(6-0, 280) are competing forthe starting center position.Senior Bryan Slius (6-0, 250)and junior Court Zeppernick(6-1, 240) will play tackle, andsenior Dillon Scott (5-10, 165)and junior Toran George (6-2,275) will be at guard.

Senior Julian Manos (6-2,180) is the kicker and seniorTommy Keller (6-1, 185) willpunt.

Senior Nate Fairand (5-8,255), who was second-teamall-league and special mentionall-district last season, will playtackle in the team’s 4-4 basedefense.

“Our offense looks great,our defense looks great,”Fairand said. “We only have acouple things to work on, but


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Dublin Jerome

Return to playoffs ismotivating Celtics

Jake King is back at quarterback after completing 72 of 146 passes for 793 yards and threetouchdowns. ANDREA KJERRUMGARD/THISWEEKSPORTS


Steve Kidwell (left) will be one of the players looking to fill the void of Donovan Wilson, who rushedfor a program season record 2,068 yards. DAN TRITTSHUH/THISWEEKSPORTS

CELTICS >> 78

The coaching staff for theCanal Winchester High Schoolfootball team has spent con-siderable time during the pre-season figuring out which play-ers would replace the 15 startersfrom a year ago who gradu-ated.

Third-year coach ShawnHinkle was in a similar predica-ment in 2011 when he inher-ited a team that needed toreplace 13 starters. The Indi-ans went on to finish 7-3 thatseason, and Hinkle is optimisticthat his team will find a wayto win this season.

Last season, Canal Winches-ter finished 9-3 and made itsfifth playoff appearance in sixyears, losing to Marion-Franklin 44-14 in a DivisionII, Region 7 semifinal.

“This team resembles theteam we had two seasons agobecause we’ve got so many newguys battling for starting posi-tions, and I hope we can mimicthat team by having a winningseason,” said Hinkle, whoseteam opens Friday, Aug. 30, athome against Olentangy. “Ourseniors were sophomores whenthe 2011 season took place andthey witnessed how we wereable to start from scratch andbe successful, so they know itcan be done.”

The Indians return threestarters from their spreadoffense in seniors Zach Bon-tempo (QB), Jalen Smith (WR)and junior Skyler Scott (WR).Bontempo had seven catchesfor 78 yards last year as a widereceiver but has moved undercenter to replace 2013 gradu-ate Isaac Pifer.

Last season, Scott had 31catches for 666 yards and sixtouchdowns and was honor-able mention all-district andsecond-team all-MSL-Buck-eye Division and Smith had 14receptions for 132 yards.

Combining to replace theduo of John Franklin andJaquan Ransome at the run-ning back position are

Seniors Khari Golden andEdosa Omoruyi, junior Lam-ont Martin and freshmanAlonzo Booth are vying fortime at running back as theIndians’ top two rushers froma year ago – Jaquan Ransomeand John Franklin – gradu-ated.

Ransome rushed for 1,076yards and 17 touchdowns on

156 carries and was second-team all-district and first-teamall-league last year and Franklinrushed for 890 yards and 10touchdowns on 178 carries andwas honorable mention all-dis-trict and second-team all-league.

Among those expected tostart on the offensive line areseniors Tommy Haughn andKevin Wade and junior RyanKaser.

“Our offense is looking a lotbetter than we were expectingit to look this early because wehad a lot to replace on the offen-sive line,” Bontempo said. “Ourrunning backs and receiversare fast and our linemen aredoing a good job. I feel goodabout where we’re at heading

into the regular season.”Canal Winchester returns

four starters on its 3-5 stackdefense in Golden (DB), Mar-tin (LB), Scott (LB) and sen-ior William Totten (DB).

Last season, Golden, whoplays free safety, had 100 tack-les, eight interceptions and twoforced fumbles and was sec-ond-team all-district and all-league.

Junior Elante Moore also isexpected to start at linebackerand will handle the puntingduties again.

Also expected to be keyplayers on defense are seniorEarnest Banks at nose guardand senior Jermil Powell at cor-nerback.

Among the key losses ondefense was 2013 graduateDeOntaye Cosby, a linemanwho had 132 tackles, 13 sacks,five forced fumbles and twofumble recoveries last seasonand was named Division II dis-trict Defensive Player of theYear and MSL-Buckeye Line-man of the Year.

“We have a lot of good ath-

letes who we believe are goingto make plays for us ondefense,” Hinkle said. “We justneed to use our scrimmages tofind out who fits best in thedifferent positions that are avail-able.”

Canal Winchester is in Divi-sion II, Region 5 this seasonand, after winning the MSL-Buckeye title a year ago, hasmoved to the OCC-Cardinalwith Dublin Jerome, DublinScioto, Hilliard Bradley,Hilliard Darby, WestervilleCentral, Westerville North andWesterville South.

“The other schools in theOCC(-Cardinal) are bigger thanus, but we’re not afraid ofthem,” Bontempo said. “Wejust played NewAlbany (Aug.16 in a scrimmage) and we tiedthem at four touchdowns each,and they were one of the bet-ter (OCC-Capital) teams lastyear. At the end of the day, it’sstill football and it comes downto who works harder and playsbetter.”

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Khari Golden will see playing time in the offensive and defensive backfields for the Indians. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

ByAARON BLANKENSHIPTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .................vs. OlentangySept. 6...................vs. DelawareSept. 13 ................vs. Lancaster*Sept. 20....vs. Westerville South*Sept. 27 ...at Westerville Central*Oct. 4 .............vs. Hilliard Darby*Oct. 11 ..........at Hilliard Bradley*Oct. 18...........at Dublin Jerome*Oct. 25 ......vs. Westerville North*Nov. 1 ..............at Dublin Scioto

2012 RESULTS(9-3 overall, 7-0 MSL-Buckeye)Dublin Scioto ...............L, 48-21Delaware.....................W, 42-23Marion-Franklin ..............L, 28-3*Fairfield Union .............W, 35-6*Amanda-Clear. ..W, 24-21 (4OT)*Bloom-Carroll .............W, 44-25*Hamilton Township ......W, 28-7*Logan Elm.................W, 45-10*Teays Valley ................W, 24-0*Circleville .....................W, 21-6PLAYOFFSZanesville ....................W, 21-16Marion-Franklin ........... L, 44-14*League contest

INSIDE THE INDIANS•Coach: Shawn Hinkle, third sea-son•Top players: Zach Bontempo(QB), Khari Golden (RB/DB), Lam-ont Martin (RB/LB), Skyler Scott(WR), Jalen Smith (WR) and WilliamTotten (DB)•Key losses: DeOntaye Cosby (DL),John Franklin (RB), Ian Jones (LB),Isaac Pifer (QB), Jaquan Ransome(RB) and Nick Toledo (LB)

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Dublin Scioto

Irish have plenty of questions to answerLast season, more than two

dozen seniors helped lead theDublin Scioto High School foot-ball team to the playoffs for thefirst time since 2005.

It was a refreshing develop-ment for a program that hadbeen to the postseason each yearfrom 2001-05 and won the Divi-sion II state championship in1995, the year the schoolopened.

But with an offense that fea-tures a new quarterback and ayoung group up front, the Irishhave more question marks thanthis time a year ago.

“I know everybody talksabout what we’ve lost from lastyear, but I think our defense isgoing to be good and we’re ateam that has something toprove,” senior center JacobSchafer said. “We’ve got youngguys up front, but they’re verymature. We open the seasonagainst Worthington Kilbourneand then we have Dublin Coff-man, so we’ve got to cometogether.”

For the first time in the 19-year “Battle of Hard Road”series between Kilbourne andScioto, the teams will play inweek one, Friday, Aug. 30, atScioto.

Coffman, which has won thelast three meetings againstScioto, will play host to the Irisha week later.

“I think we have guys backwho understand what we wantto do and they’re going to haveto be able to carry the load,”14th-year coach Karl Johnsonsaid. “We have to mature quicklyand learn how to win.The kidswho were on the team last yearexperienced that and now theyhave to go out and do it.”

Last year’s class of 25 sen-iors led Scioto to the sixth seedin the Division I, Region 3 play-

offs.The Irish finished 8-3 over-

all, losing 21-17 to third-seededOlentangy in a first-round play-off contest in which they liter-ally came up a yard short.

Wide receiver Mason Math-eny caught a pass from quar-terback Evan DeMars on fourth-and-goal from the 18-yard lineand was tackled inside the 1with 12 seconds remaining.

Those two are among the skillplayers Scioto must replace.

DeMars finished his careerwith program records for yardspassing (5,658) and touchdownpasses (43). Also gone isreceiver Tim Shadoan, whoshared OCC-Cardinal DivisionPlayer of the Year honors withHilliard Darby’s Caleb Day andDublin Jerome’s Donovan Wil-son.

Shadoan, a first-team all-dis-trict selection, caught a pro-gram-record 81 passes for 1,007yards and nine touchdowns last

season.Fullback William Houston

provided Scioto with a bruis-ing ground game, rushing for1,151 yards and 12 touchdownson 245 carries.

In the OCC-Cardinal, Sciotowent 6-1 to finish second behindDarby (7-0).This season, CanalWinchester has joined the OCC-Cardinal and Kilbourne hasmoved to the OCC-Capital.

With a seventh playoff divi-sion added, Scioto will compete

in Division II, Region 5.In working with his young

offense, Johnson has put par-ticular focus on those who willplay on the line, where Schaferis the only returning starter.

“I feel like we’re comingtogether more than I expected,”Schafer said. “We’re a groupthat supports each other. It’sgoing to be different for theseguys with the speed of the gameand the spotlight, but I knowthey can handle it.”

Those competing for start-ing spots include seniors BryanChu and Trevor Jones, juniorsCody Rice, Sedaya Keita andAlan Goodhue and freshmanBrian Zimmerman. Rice sat outlast season with an injury.

Taking over at quarterbackis 6-foot, 200-pound juniorNathan Densel.

“For him, the good part isthat he ran the same offense as


IRISH >> 76

Senior running back Darius McDonald will be the focus of the no-huddle offense for the Irish. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

With 25 seniors on the ros-ter, including several keyreturnees, Westerville CentralHigh School football coachJohn Magistro expects his teamto make another run at a post-season berth.

After qualifying for the play-offs two years ago, theWarhawks fell just short lastseason with a 7-3 overall record,finishing ninth in the DivisionI, Region 3 rankings. The topeight teams qualified for thepostseason.

“We have 25 seniors and wehave senior leadership, and thatmakes a big difference with yourfootball team,” said Magistro,whose squad will open at homeagainst Division III DeSales onFriday, Aug. 30. “The seniorshave been looking forward tothis day ever since they steppedinto this high school.”

Following divisional realign-ment last spring by theOHSAA, Central will competein Division I, Region 1. Divi-sion I now includes schoolswith 608 or more boys.

The traditional postseasonformat in which the top eightteams in each region qualifyfor the playoffs will remain inplace in Divisions II throughVII. Division I will be dividedinto Northern and Southernregion, however, with 16 teamsmaking the playoffs in eachregion.

Central’s optimism is spear-headed by the return of seniorquarterback Jared Drake (6-foot-2, 210 pounds) in theWarhawks’ spread offense.

After transferring fromUpper Arlington following hissophomore season, Drake com-pleted 95 of 198 passes for1,308 yards with 16 touch-downs and five interceptions,and he also rushed for 951yards and 12 touchdowns on144 carries. He was first-teamall-league and special mentionall-district.

“Everyone wants to talkabout him on the field, but it’sjust the way he conducts him-self,” Magistro said. “Herequires nothing but the bestout of himself.”

Also back is senior tailbackAlex Fisher (5-8, 205), whorushed for 734 yards and fourtouchdowns and was second-team all-league.

“We have a lot of seniorscoming back, so we feel wehave a lot of time to do somegood things this year,” Fishersaid. “We have to come backstronger than ever and work onthe things that we couldn’t fixfrom last season. We feel likewe made a lot of mistakes inbig games. We just have to bestronger this year and pushthrough it.”

Other key running backsshould be seniors Jordan Brat-ton (6-2, 240), Justin Head (6-0, 260) and Adam Lowe (5-6,190) and juniorAndy Oppliger(6-2, 210). Head is a transferfrom McConnelsville Morgan.

Wide receivers will includeseniors Eldin Anu (5-10, 160),Zach Crumpler (6-0, 170),David Hatchett (5-9, 175),Micah Lowe (5-10, 178),Tommy Mansfield (5-10, 170)and JalonTalley (6-3, 170) andjunior Ty Holmes (5-8, 160).

Senior Jeremiah Shaw (6-3,215) and junior Nate Jackowski(6-2, 210) should be the toptight ends.

Senior Nick Richardson (6-5, 290) returns to lead the offen-

sive line at left tackle. Richard-son, who has verbally commit-ted to the University of Ken-tucky, was second-team all-league and honorable mention

all-district.Senior Jason Gruber (6-1,

210) returns at center, and otherkey linemen are seniors JarrettJarvis (6-0, 190), Isayah Walker(6-0, 270) and Trey Woods (6-0, 180), juniors Jeffrey Mix (6-2, 240) and Nate Traini (5-10,250) and sophomore JalenCarter (6-2, 265).

Traini is a transfer fromDeSales.

Senior Hunter Robertson (6-0, 180), who is a midfielder onthe boys soccer team, will bethe kicker and punter, and

Drake can also punt.The Warhawks’base defense

will be a 4-2-5 formation,according to Magistro.

Magistro called Drake andRichardson two of the team’stop defensive players, but hewill attempt to limit their playsbecause of their heavy work-load on offense. Drake had twointerceptions at cornerback ayear ago, and Richardson playstackle on defense.

Gruber and senior TroyBuchholz (5-10, 190) are endsand junior Ben Cooper (6-3,

286), Head, Traini and Walkerare tackles.

Linebackers include Brat-ton,Adam Lowe and Oppliger,and the the secondary will fea-tureAnu, Crumpler and Hatch-ett at cornerback, and seniorKyle Ulliman (6-2, 180), jun-ior Justice Jenkins (5-8, 182),Jackowski, Shaw and Talley atsafety.

“I love this (job),” said Mag-istro, who earned his 200thcareer coaching victory last



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Warhawks set sightson return to playoffs

Alex Fisher, who was second-team all-OCC, rushed for 734 yards and four touchdowns last year.PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .......................vs. DeSalesSept. 6...................vs. New AlbanySept. 13 ..............at Independence*Sept. 20 ..............at Dublin Scioto*Sept. 27.......vs. Canal Winchester*Oct. 4 ...............at Hilliard Bradley*Oct. 11 .........vs. Westerville North*Oct. 18 ..........at Westerville South*Oct. 25 ..............vs. Hilliard Darby*Nov. 1 ...............at Dublin Jerome

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 4-3 OCC-Cardinal)Big Walnut ........................W, 27-0New Albany .............W, 23-20 (OT)Thomas Worthington .........W, 41-0*Dublin Scioto..................L, 34-14*Worthington Kilbourne ...W, 29-17

*Hilliard Bradley ..............W, 33-10*Westerville North ...........W, 35-14*Westerville South............L, 50-28*Hilliard Darby ...................L, 29-7*Dublin Jerome.....W, 24-21 (3 OT)*League contest

INSIDE THE WARHAWKS•Coach: John Magistro, fifth season•Top players: Jordan Bratton(RB/LB), Jared Drake (QB/DB), AlexFisher (RB), Jason Gruber (C/DL),Adam Lowe (RB/LB) and NickRichardson (OL/DL)•Key losses: Charlie Moushey(WR/DB), Taribo Osubeni (OL/LB),Mohammed Sankoh (FB/LB) and JohnWhitman (OL/DL)

WARHAWKS >> 74

Junior linebacker ShuronHoward believes team chem-istry – or lack thereof – mayhave prevented the WestervilleSouth High School footballteam from realizing its fullpotential last season.

However, he expects theWildcats, who went 8-3 over-all and qualified for the Divi-sion I playoffs for the third timein four seasons a year ago, tobe a tighter-knit group on andoff the field this year.

South opens Friday,Aug. 30,at home against Groveport.

“Our team was a lot moreseparated with different guys indifferent groups last year, buteverybody’s more together this

year,” Howard said. “We’veadopted the motto ‘Faith, Fam-ily, Football’because we’ve allcome together as one big fam-ily to play football this year, andI think that’s going to make apositive difference for us.”

South’s spread offense willhave a different look this sea-son after losing several key play-ers to graduation, includingquarterback Nick Renzetti, widereceivers Marcus Ball and JalenBell and tailback Noah Pren-tiss.

Renzetti completed 206 of364 passes for 3,241 yards and34 touchdowns a year ago. Bellhad 76 receptions for 1,209yards and 16 touchdowns, Ballhad 53 catches for 779 yardsand seven touchdowns and Pren-tiss rushed for 1,064 yards andseven touchdowns on 176 car-ries.

SeniorTimmy Bates will startat quarterback and will havetwo returning starters to throwto in seniors Torrodd Carter(WR) and Darryl Long (TE),who is a University of Kentuckyrecruit.

Carter had 33 catches for 580yards and five touchdowns lastyear and was honorable men-tion all-OCC-Cardinal Division,and Long had 28 catches for434 yards and four scores andwas special mention all-district

and second-team all-league.Senior Darien Miller, who

rushed for 428 yards and sixtouchdowns on 56 carries lastyear, and junior Devan Wadeare expected to be South’s toprunning backs.

The offensive line should bea strength, as the Wildcats havefive seniors on the line who havestarted multiple games in pre-vious seasons in left tackle RobDowdy, left guard AdamThesing, center Nick Wood-bury, right guard Kris Holmanand right tackle D-Andre Curen-ton.

Thesing was second-team all-league last year, and Dowdy hasreceived several Division Ischolarship offers.

“We have more of an expe-rienced offensive line this year,so our focus is more on our run-ning game,” Curenton said. “Ourrunning backs are going to sur-prise some people with how fastand agile they are.”

South’s 4-3 defense also lostseveral key players to gradua-tion, including GabeWhittmannon the line and Ball and MylesCollier in the secondary. Ballhad four interceptions a yearago.

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Westerville South

Chemistry on upswing for WildcatsByAARON BLANKENSHIPTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

WILDCATS >> 40Torrodd Carter had 33 receptions for 580 yards in being namedhonorable mention all-OCC. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

whole play blows up. That’swhy it’s important that we worktogether and that we areaccountable to each other. It’s11 guys working together as afamily ... as a team.”

The Jaguars have sevenstarters back on defense, includ-ing Reffitt at free safety, sen-ior Daniel Tepe at cornerbackand senior Walker Hamilton at

strong safety. Senior CameronHart, Popovec and senior JacobPugh return at linebacker, andHartley started on the defen-sive line.

Also playing up front ondefense are Beveridge, Miller,Stratton and junior Kyler Mot-tola. Junior Dalton Hatfieldand senior Tyler Harris (6-2,225), a move-in from Delaware,will play linebacker.

“I like the fact that we havea lot of experience back, butwe have to be able to do some-thing with it,” LoParo said.

“The kids know what Fridaynights look like, and that’s great.You can’t simulate that expe-rience in practice or in a scrim-mage.”

The Jaguars open Friday,Aug. 30, at Marysville and thenplay a Thursday night game athome against Reynoldsburg onSept. 5.

Their OCC-Cardinal sched-ule includes an Oct. 11 homegame against league newcomerCanal Winchester, as Worthing-ton Kilbourne has moved tothe OCC-Capital.

Also, Bradley has movedfrom Division I, Region 3 toDivision II, Region 5 in thenew seven-division playoff for-mat implemented by theOHSAA.

“We have been taking a lotof pride in what we have beendoing in the preseason becausethis is our last year of highschool football,” Hartley said.“That means a lot and we wantto get as much out of this aswe can.”

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FROM >> 31

At glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..................at MarysvilleSept. 5.............vs. ReynoldsburgSept. 13 .....at Olentangy Orange*Sept. 20........vs. Dublin Jerome*Sept. 27 .....at Westerville South*Oct. 4......vs. Westerville Central*Oct. 11 .....vs. Canal Winchester*Oct. 18 .......at Westerville North*Oct. 25............vs. Dublin Scioto*Nov. 1 ..............at Hilliard Darby

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall, 1-6 OCC-Capital)Marysville....................W, 17-10Teays Valley ...................W, 31-6Westland .......................W, 42-0*Dublin Jerome.............L, 28-26*Westerville South ........L, 28-16*Westerville Central ......L, 33-10*Worth. Kilbourne..........L, 34-14*Westerville North ........W, 41-14*Dublin Scioto...............L, 28-27*Hilliard Darby ................L, 42-0*League contest

INSIDE THE JAGUARS•Coach: Mike LoParo, third sea-son•Top players: Ryan Beveridge(OL/DL), Josias Cruceta (OL/DL),Walker Hamilton (RB/DB), CameronHart (RB/LB),Skylar Hartley (OL/DL),Tommy Horn (QB/DB), T.J. Martin(RB/DL), Zack Popovec (WR/LB),Jacob Pugh (RB/DB), Ryan Reffitt(WR/DB) and Daniel Tepe (RB/DB)•Key losses: Tevin Anderson(OL/DL), Eric Bridgett (RB/LB),Matthew Bryant (RB/DB), ReillyButz (RB/DB), Jared Roudabush(OL/DL), Fraser Smith (OL/DL),Bradley Spelman (TE/LB), C.J.Wall(OL/LB) and Tanner Young (OL/DL)

Ryan Beveridge will start on the offensive and defensive lines for Bradley, which was 4-6 last season. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS


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Jacob Stacy was honorable mention all-OCC after rushing for 164 yards and two touchdowns a yearago. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS


and was first-team all-districtand all-league a year ago and isplaying at Ohio Dominican.

The three returning starterson defense are senior linemanBrian Casey and senior line-backers Nate Green andTrevorParker. Parker had 76 tacklesand two sacks last year and wassecond-team all-league.

Humbert is expected to seesignificant time on the defen-sive line and McSweeney andjunior Trevor Cox are startingat cornerback.

Green is expected to handlethe punting duties again afteraveraging 36.7 yards per puntlast year and being named spe-cial mention all-district and sec-ond-team all-league. Vying toreplace 2013 graduate KyleKaplan as placekicker are Stacyand junior Ryan Kasprzak.

“We’re looking for replace-ments for a lot of starters onboth sides of the ball and we’ve

got a lot of close competitionsgoing on for those positions,”Santagata said.

Darby is looking to defendits OCC-Cardinal championshipand return to the playoffs.

The Panthers were the topseed in Region 3 last season anddefeated eighth-seeded West-erville South 31-10 in the firstround before losing to fourth-

seeded Pickerington North 24-14 in a regional semifinal.

“We had a real good seasonlast year, so there’s more pres-sure on us to have another goodyear,” Humbert said. “Our goalis to improve on what we didlast year, and we’re workinghard to try to get there.”

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PANTHERSFROM >> 32

ceptions and was first-team all-district, but he isn’t expected toplay much defense this seasonnow that he’s the starting quar-terback.

The Wildcats’ defense haslost two other experienced play-ers in senior lineman DarrellStokes and junior linebackerJohn Edwards. Both areexpected to miss the entire sea-son with injuries.

As a result, South has onlythree returning starters ondefense in senior linebackerKamaree Walden, senior line-man Curtis Mitchell and seniorfree safety Trey Harden.

Mitchell and Walden weresecond-team all-league last sea-son and, according to coachRocky Pentello, both are bothbeing recruited by several col-leges. Others expected to startinclude Long on the defensiveline, Wade and junior CharlesThigpen at cornerback andHoward and senior Ethan Frankat the other two linebacker posi-tions.

“I think we have a lot of tal-ent, but we also have a lot ofholes to fill, especially ondefense,” Pentello said. “We’reyoung up front on our defen-sive line and they’re going tobe tested early. We just need tofind a way to stop people. Thekids are working hard, though.They’re tough and coachablekids.”

South finished third (5-2) inthe OCC-Cardinal last yearbehind Hilliard Darby (7-0) andDublin Scioto (6-1) and lost totop-seeded Darby 31-10 in thefirst round of the playoffs.

According to Howard, theWildcats have much higherexpectations this season.

“We have just as much tal-ent as we had last year and wehave a better work ethic thisyear, so our goals are to go unde-feated, win OCC and win state,”he said.

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WILDCATS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.....................vs. GroveportSept. 6 .........at Clayton NorthmontSept. 13 ....................at Grove City*Sept. 20 ........at Canal Winchester*Sept. 27 ..........vs. Hilliard Bradley*Oct. 4.................vs. Dublin Scioto*Oct. 11................at Hilliard Darby*Oct. 17.......vs. Westerville Central*Oct. 25.............vs. Dublin Jerome*Nov. 1 ............at Westerville North

2012 RESULTS(8-3 overall, 5-2 OCC-Cardinal)Groveport........................W, 55-14Clayton Northmont ..........W, 48-21Grove City.......................W, 42-20*Worthington Kilbourne .....W, 28-7*Hilliard Bradley ..............W, 28-16*Dublin Scioto..................L, 42-35

*Hilliard Darby .................L, 28-14*Westerville Central.........W, 50-28*Dublin Jerome..........W, 21-20 OT*Westerville North ...........W, 52-15PLAYOFFSHilliard Darby...................L, 31-10

INSIDE THE WILDCATS•Coach: Rocky Pentello, 23rd sea-son•Top players: Timmy Bates (QB),Torrodd Carter (WR), Rob Dowdy (OL),Trey Harden (DB),Darryl Long (TE/DL),Darien Miller (RB), Curtis Mitchell(DL),Adam Thesing (OL) and Kama-ree Walden (LB)•Key losses: Marcus Ball (WR/DB),Jalen Bell (WR), Myles Collier (DB),Noah Prentiss (RB) and Nick Renzetti(QB)

FROM >> 38

Devon Rogers, a senior slotback, is one of five starters back onoffense. BROOKE LAVALLEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Darryl Long, who has committed to Kentucky, was second-teamall-OCC. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS


Mitch Kittinger will play tailback and free safety for the Falcons, who were 2-8 last season.JOHN HULKENBERG/THISWEEKSPORTS

Franklin Heights

Falcons work to takenext step in process

Before the Franklin Heightsfootball team can worry aboutthe opener Friday, Aug. 30, atWesterville North, coach MikeOwens insisted that the play-ers on his squad must worryabout themselves first.

“It’s a matter of practicingwith a purpose,” said Owens,who is entering his second sea-son. “We have to look to getbetter, no matter what, andnever feel satisfied. We wantto win every game.”

After opening with a pair ofvictories a year ago againstWesterville North (21-14) andBriggs (26-7), the Falcons losttheir final eight games whilebeing outscored 347-92.

Their closest loss during thatstretch was 35-21 to MountVernon in the OCC-CapitalDivision opener.

The schedule will be chal-lenging again, as six of this sea-son’s opponents won at leastfive games a year ago.

According to Owens, whopreviously coached at Wester-ville North, this year’s missionis simple: become a better teamthan last season.

“Our kids need to understandthe game and how their hustlewill translate onto the field,”Owens said, “This sportrequires a six day-a-week com-mitment.”

With only 26 players on thevarsity roster, including nineseniors, the biggest challengesfacing the Falcons will be alack of depth and the need toavoid injuries, according toOwens.

A number of players will seeaction on both sides of the ball

including junior Ray Spangler,who is competing with seniorAustin Earle for the startingjob at quarterback and also willplay inside linebacker and han-dle the punting duties. SeniorMatt German will be at tail-back and outside linebackerand strong safety.

Junior Mitch Kittinger willshare time at tailback with Ger-man and play free safety, whilejunior Alonzo Longshoure isexpected to play offensiveguard and inside linebacker.

Senior Baylee Kibbey willbe at center and defensive end,Sophomore Seth Dawkins willplay wide receiver and corner-back and junior Justin Harriswill play fullback and defen-sive end.

The Falcons have a newoffensive scheme, switchingfrom a more traditional “undercenter” attack to a spreadoffense. Owens said the changewas made to accommodate theabilities of his players, and hehas been pleased with theprogress the offense has shownin learning the new system.

“We have a lot of kids whocan play very well in space,”Owens said. “(The coaches)are trying to teach them asmuch football as possible whilestressing the fundamentals ofthe game.”

Joining Kibbey and Long-shoure on the offensive linewill be CLASS Austin Comp-

By BRAD FRIEDMANTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........at Westerville NorthSept. 6......................at CentennialSept. 13 ...........vs. Columbus West*Sept. 20 .............at Mount Vernon*Sept. 27..............vs. New Albany**Oct. 4 .....................at Olentangy**Oct. 11..vs. Worthington Kilbourne*Oct. 18.........at Olentangy Orange*Oct. 25 ..........vs. Delaware Hayes*Nov. 1 .....................at Big Walnut

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 0-7 OCC-Capital)Westerville North.............W, 21-14Briggs...............................W, 26-7Central Crossing ..............L, 35-12*Mount Vernon.................L, 35-21

*New Albany....................L, 66-14*Olentangy ........................L, 55-7*Watkins Memorial...........L, 51-12*Olentangy Orange...........L, 49-13*Delaware Hayes ...............L, 25-0*Big Walnut......................L, 31-13*League contest

INSIDE THE FALCONS•Coach: Mike Owens, second sea-son•Top players: Seth Dawkins (WR/CB),Austin Earle (QB), Matt German(TB/LB/SS), Justin Harris (FB/DE),Baylee Kibbey (OL/DE), Mitch Kit-tinger (TB/FS), Alonzo Longshoure(OL/LB) and Ray Spangler (QB/LB).

FALCONS >> 42

OCC-CAPITAL DIVISION



Running back/linebacker Alec Eisnnicher, shown making a tackle against Watkins Memorial lastseason, is one of 18 seniors for the Golden Eagles. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

BigWalnut

Golden Eagles keepingtheir focus on present

Big Walnut High Schoolfootball coach Joe Weaverdoesn’t think this year’s teamneeds to look to the past to findmotivation for the present.

Last season, the GoldenEagles went 6-4 and missedthe playoffs for the first timesince 2009, finishing 16th inDivision II, Region 7 as the topeight teams qualified for thepostseason.

“Obviously, your past expe-riences are going to buildtoward your future effort,” saidWeaver, whose team opens Fri-day, Aug. 30, at MansfieldSenior. “But what’s unique withthis group is they don’t let whathappened describe their direc-tion. They don’t spend a wholelot of time talking about thepast. What matters is what’s onthe field now.”

Weaver has been impressedby the effort put forth by hisplayers this preseason.

“Their work ethic is incred-ible,” he said. “The guys showup every day and bust their tails.They’re excited about the sea-son and they know if they wantto do something special thatthey have to work.”

Weaver expects his team toreceive major contributions fromthe 18 seniors on the roster,including Grant Burks (RB/LB),Austin Carr (RB/LB), AustinCrow (TE/LB), Logan Crum(RB/LB), Braden Dronsfield

(K),Alec Eisnnicher (RB/LB),Austin Hale (OL/DL), DavidHernandez (OL/DL),Trey Huf-fer (OL/DL), Chase LaVeer(WR/DB), Logan Perry(WR/DB), Austin Thomas(DB), ChrisThomas (WR/LB),Sean Williams (OL/DL) andJoel Windle (RB/DB).

“The team runs through (theseniors),” Weaver said. “As theygo, we go. I expect them tomodel the way. How they dotheir business is the same way

the sophomores and juniors dotheir business.They understandthat pressure is on them.”

“I’ve grown up with theseguys,” Hale said of his class-mates. “It’s the last year we’regoing to be together. It’s goingto be a lot of fun to go out thereand see what we can dotogether.”

Among the 10 starters froma year ago who were lost to

Mount Vernon

Taking smart chancesis priority for Jackets

The Mount Vernon HighSchool football team is certainit’s in good hands relying onjunior running back J.D. Orr,whose 1,244 yards and 11touchdowns last year led theYellow Jackets to a 5-5 record.

Orr fumbled only once, butit was the turnovers from otherpositions, including 11 inter-ceptions in a four-game span,that doomed Mount Vernonafter a 5-1 start.

“You can’t go through lastyear without thinking aboutturnovers,” said third-yearcoach Anthony Naples, whoseteam finished fifth (3-4) in theOCC-Capital Division behindchampion New Albany (7-0).“A lot of times, we tried to dotoo much and it cost us the BigWalnut game (a 27-14 loss). Itcost us the Delaware game (a21-14 loss the next week) andwhen those games happened,it pretty much ruined the restof the year.”

But in preparing for the sea-son that begins Friday, Aug.30, at home against MarionHarding, Naples and his coach-ing staff didn’t overcompen-sate by emphasizing turnovers.

“If we did that, we figuredour quarterbacks wouldn’t takechances. We want them to takesome chances,” Naples said.“We haven’t talked about thema ton yet, but we’ve talked aboutmaking good decisions andbeing smart in pressure situa-tions.”

Both quarterbacks are jun-iors – Greg Dennis (6-foot, 150pounds) and Ryan Fitzgerald(5-11, 184) – and will workbehind an offensive line thatreturns junior center KyleStump (5-10, 160), classmatesJeep Cochran (6-4, 230), AlecCurts (6-4, 236) and Chase Gal-lagher (6-0, 330), senior JamesWright (5-10, 220) and soph-omore tackle Jacob Tilton (6-0, 300).

Receivers include seniorsLogan Rhea (6-0, 210) and

Rain Wiggand (5-11, 180) andjunior Luke Staten (5-7, 185).

“We run probably 60 per-cent of the time, but we alsowant to throw with our new QBcoming in,” Orr said of Fitzger-ald, who formerly backed upIllinois recruit Chayce Crouchat Newark Catholic.

“(Fitzgerald) has a lot ofspeed and he also readsdefenses very well. That’s verynice to have.”

The Jackets are replacingmuch of their front seven ondefense, a problem exacerbated

by senior linebacker MattLybarger missing the seasonbecause of elbow surgery. Heinjured his arm during awrestling tournament in theoffseason.

Senior linebacker JoshEdwards (5-11, 190) is a return-ing starter who will be joinedby senior George Walker (5-8,170) and junior Hunter Quellen(6-2, 190). Linemen includejunior Cameron Bales (5-9,270) at end and tackles Curtsand Stump.

“They’re young, but they’restrong and they’re fast,” Rheasaid.

Dennis, Rhea, Staten andWiggand return at defensiveback, as does senior JerrodHeagren (5-6, 150).

Mount Vernon visits SpartaHighland on Sept. 6 and Mans-field Madison on Sept. 13before beginning OCC-Capi-tal play Sept. 20 at homeagainst Franklin Heights.

Much like last year, the Jack-ets’ schedule is back loaded.Their first two league games,against Franklin Heights andWorthington Kilbourne, areagainst teams that went 2-8 and3-7, respectively, a year ago.

Mount Vernon’s final twogames are at Olentangy, whichwas 10-2 and made the Divi-sion I, Region 3 playoffs a yearago, and at home against NewAlbany, which was 11-3 andlost to Trotwood-Madison 33-32 in a Division II state semi-final.

NewAlbany entered the sea-son with 93 players on its ros-ter. Olentangy has 82 comparedto Mount Vernon’s 40.

“When something went badlast year, we didn’t respondwell,” Rhea said. “The biggestthing about being a great teamis battling through adversityand overcoming obstacles.That’s what it was for us. If wehad a turnover, we didn’t moveon to the next play and we weredone. Hopefully we’ve learnedfrom that.”

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By JOHN REIDENBAUGHTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........at Mansfield SeniorSept. 6.....................vs. ChillicotheSept. 13 ...................at St. Charles*Sept. 20 ...................at Olentangy*Sept. 27...................vs. Delaware*Oct. 4 ...vs. Worthington Kilbourne*Oct. 11 ...............at Mount Vernon*Oct. 18.................vs. New Albany*Oct. 25.........at Olentangy Orange*Nov. 1............vs. Franklin Heights

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 4-3 OCC-Capital)Westerville Central .............L, 27-0Chillicothe.......................W, 22-19Cleveland Collinwood ........W, 50-6*Olentangy ......................L, 40-24*Delaware ......................W, 35-13

*Watkins Memorial..........W, 27-14*Mount Vernon ................W, 27-14*New Albany......................L, 17-6*Olentangy Orange.............L, 10-0*Franklin Heights.............W, 31-13*League contest

INSIDE THE GOLDEN EAGLES•Coach: Joe Weaver, fifth season•Top players: Grant Burks (RB/LB),Austin Crow (TE/LB),Alec Eisnnicher(RB/LB), Austin Hale (OL/DL), TreyHuffer (OL/DL), Christian Johnson(RB) and Chase LaVeer (WR/DB)•Key losses: Carson Chatterton (QB),Alex Clark (RB/LB), Gabe Kitchen(WR/DB), Seth Myers (WR/DB),AdamShaheen (WR/DB), Julian Simon(OL/DL) and Brant Weiss (TE/DL)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .........vs. Marion HardingSept. 6...........at Sparta HighlandSept. 13 ....at Mansfield Madison*Sept. 20......vs. Franklin Heights*Sept. 27.......at Worth. Kilbourne*Oct. 4 ........at Olentangy Orange*Oct. 11................vs. Big Walnut*Oct. 18..................vs. Delaware*Oct. 25..................at Olentangy*Nov. 1............... vs. New Albany

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 3-4 OCC-Capital)Marion Harding ..............W, 27-0Cambridge...................W, 27-24Mansfield Madison..........L, 21-0*Franklin Heights..........W, 35-21*Watkins Memorial.......W, 34-21*Olentangy OrangeW, 21-14 (OT)*Big Walnut...................L, 27-14*Delawar ......................L, 21-14*Olentangy......................L, 23-7*New Albany .................L, 38-14*League contest

INSIDE THE JACKETS•Coach: Anthony Naples, thirdseason•Top players: Josh Edwards(LB/TE), Ryan Fitzgerald (QB), J.D.Orr (RB), Logan Rhea (WR/DB) andKyle Stump (OL/DL)•Key losses: Greg Briggs (QB),Jake Gastin (OL/DL), Brian John-son (OL/DL), Matt Lybarger (LB/FB)and Austin Pagani (OL/DL)

ton at guard and junior DavidHaynes and senior T.J Jenkinsat tackle.

The other wide receiveralong with Hawkins should bejunior Day Summerall, and sen-ior Josh Puccetti – a memberof the soccer team – will be theplace-kicker.

On defense, Owens is imple-

menting a shade 50 formation,which is a variation of a 4-4scheme.

He said the Falcons hope toforce the ball to go sideline tosideline, preventing big playsup the middle.

A key factor will be the playat defensive end fromy Harris,who is one of the Falcons’lead-ers on defense, according toOwens.

“When he gets fired up, thewhole team gets fired up,”Owens said.

Joining Harris and Kibbeyon the defensive line will besophomore Davon Moore andsophomore Joey Slark at tackle,with junior Merlin Abreurounding out the secondary atcornerback.

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EAGLES >> 73

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New Albany

New coach isfamiliar facefor Eagles

First-year NewAlbany HighSchool football coach PatSamanich is a firm believer inOhio State coach’s UrbanMeyer’s mantra of “four to sixseconds of relentless effort”leading to good things happen-ing on any given play.

But Samanich doesn’t juststress going fast. He mixes aninfectious, high-octane attitudeinto everything he does –including celebrating with hisplayers.

During the Eagles’Aug. 12afternoon practice, Samanichcouldn’t sprint into a pile ofplayers fast enough when jun-ior receiver Titus Williamsmade a one-handed touchdowncatch by extending his rightarm about three feet above hisfalling body.

“Every single play, if youcan go four to six seconds ofrelentless effort, good thingscan happen – even if you gothe wrong way,” said Samanich,previously the team’s offensivecoordinator who succeededMark Mueller last March. “Ifyou don’t know where you’regoing, if you just come off theball and get into somebody,coaches will fix that. But noth-ing good happens if you goslow.”

“Fast” was a recurring wordamong players as they preparedfor their Friday,Aug. 30, openerat home against Reynoldsburg.

New Albany returns fivestarters on offense and six ondefense from last year, whenit went 11-3 overall and 7-0 inthe OCC-Capital Division towin its fourth consecutiveleague championship. TheEagles’ season ended with a33-32 setback to Trotwood-Madison in a Division II statesemifinal.

“This year, we’re going a lotfaster. We seem to be gettingoff the ball better,” said seniorTanner Cline, who will takeover at quarterback for 2013graduate Darron Lee. “We’rea lot faster and quicker. That’sbeen a big emphasis.”

Samanich, who has been

friends with Mueller since thetwo played football together atAshland University in the early1990s, became New Albany’soffensive coordinator whenMueller was promoted to headcoach in 2005. With the excep-tion of retired assistant BobCavin, the entire coaching staffremained to work underSamanich.

“We’ve had a great connec-tion with (Samanich) sincemost of us ran track for him inmiddle school,” said seniorTyrell Howard, who will playcornerback and receiver andalso return kicks. “He bringsa lot of energy and speed andgets us going. He likes to fin-ish.That’s our main word, ‘fin-ish.’Finish and get one day bet-ter.”

The 6-foot-3, 185-poundCline’s primary weapons inNew Albany’s wing-T-basedoffense will be 5-9, 190-poundsenior fullback Leslie Anokye(1,147 yards and 12 touch-downs on 149 carries), seniorhalfbacks Wyatt Johnston (5-9, 165) and Trey Quillin (6-2,225) and senior receivers RossHenze (6-2, 180), Trey Miller(5-10, 175), Joe Siegenthaler(5-11, 195) and Williams (5-10, 155).

Also expected to contributeare junior fullback ChristoSemertsidis (6-1, 200) and jun-ior halfback Jack Burgdoerfer(5-11, 180).

Siegenthaler, also a return-ing starter at free safety, had19 catches for 484 yards andthree touchdowns last year.

Returning senior offensiveguards Jack Archer (6-0, 230)and Ryan Wilson (6-0, 230)anchor the line around seniorcenter Mitchell Bruce (6-0,235) and senior tackles LucasDove (6-1, 240) and WillMooney (6-2, 220).

Quillin, who also was theEagles’kicker most of last year,is one of two returning startersat defensive end with juniorJack Schroer (6-4, 250).

Other linemen include sen-ior ends George Kalec (6-1,200) and Trent Dressel (6-2,


Joe Siegenthaler will play wide receiver and in the secondaryfor the Eagles. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...............vs. ReynoldsburgSept. 6..........at Westerville CentralSept. 13 ......................vs. DeSales*Sept. 20......vs. Olentangy Orange*Sept. 27..........at Franklin Heights*Oct. 4 ......................vs. Delaware*Oct. 11.....................at Olentangy*Oct. 18....................at Big Walnut*Oct. 25 ..........vs. Worth. Kilbourne*Nov. 1.................at Mount Vernon*League contest

2012 RESULTS(11-3 overall, 7-0 OCC-Capital)Reynoldsburg ....................L, 10-9West. Central ............L, 23-20 (OT)DeSales..........................W, 56-22Olentangy Orange ...........W, 53-33Franklin Heights ..............W, 66-14

Delaware........................W, 26-13Olentangy .......................W, 33-14Big Walnut ........................W, 17-6Watkins Memorial .............W, 34-7Mount Vernon .................W, 38-14PLAYOFFSBeechcroft ........................W, 25-6Dresden Tri-Valley ...........W, 42-35Marion-Franklin ..............W, 32-30Trotwood-Madison ...........L, 33-32

INSIDE THE EAGLES•Coach: Pat Samanich, first season•Top players: LeslieAnokye (RB/DB),Victor Chamberlain (WR/LB/DB), O.B.Oppong (WR/DB),Trey Quillin (RB/DE)and Joe Siegenthaler (WR/DB)•Key losses: Darron Lee (QB/DB),Matt Smith (TE/DE), David Stam-baugh (OL/DL) and Alan Watson (RB)

EAGLES >> 46


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Olentangy

New coach steps up paceNoah Durst had a feeling last

year that he would take over asthe Olentangy High Schoolfootball team’s starting quar-terback this season.

But Durst couldn’t haveknown the difference betweenwhat he envisioned as a juniorand the offense he will run asa senior.

Long known for a methodi-cal offense that attempted togrind opponents into submis-sion, the Braves are going to ano-huddle offense under first-year coach Mark Solis and hopeto run as many as 20 more playsper game than their opponents.

“We’re just going fast andgetting lots of plays off,” saidthe 6-foot-4, 210-pound Durst,who was Air Force recruitAndrew Horstman’s backup.“Lots of quick pass plays, lotsof reads. We have confidencethat we can go deep. We havea lot of athletes and a solidoffensive line.”

Four senior starting offen-sive linemen return – centerAndy Simms (6-3, 275), leftguard Curtis Conrad (5-11,225), left tackle Case Troyer(6-3, 270) and right guard Quin-ton Gallion (6-1, 240) – to helpimplement Solis’system as theBraves aim to reach the play-offs in consecutive seasons forthe first time since 2005 and2006.

“A lot of what we’ll do withthis offense involves making(opponents) make some deci-sions and putting them inbinds,” said Solis, who replaced24-year coach Ed Terwilligeron June 6. “We spent a lot oftime studying programs thatrun versions of the pistol. Wetook everything we learnedfrom those clinics and put itinto this offense. I’m excitedwith what we’re doing.”

Solis was 7-13 the past twoseasons at Lorain but is 101-50 overall through stints atAsh-land Crestview (1999-2003),Elyria (2004-06) and Twins-burg (2007-10). He has coachedhis teams to the playoffs sixtimes.

Olentangy, which went 10-2 last year and 6-1 in the OCC-Capital Division and lost toHilliard Davidson 29-14 in aDivision I, Region 3 semifinal,opens Friday,Aug. 30, at CanalWinchester. Non-league gamesfollow against Olentangy Lib-erty on Sept. 6 and at Lexing-ton on Sept. 13 before theBraves’league opener Sept. 20at home against Big Walnut.

The Braves started 6-0 a yearago before losing at NewAlbany 33-14 in what amountedto the OCC-Capital champi-onship game. Olentangy earnedthe third seed in Region 3 andedged visiting Dublin Scioto21-17 in a first-round gamebefore losing to Davidson atUpper Arlington.

The Braves have dropped toDivision II, Region 5 as part ofthe new seven-division, play-

off alignment that begins thisyear.

Solis said he watched videofrom last season, but didn’tspend much time on analysis.

“I just watched the person-nel,” he said. “I didn’t pay atten-tion to scheme because it’sabout a system. Football is foot-ball. The big thing is the kidsgrasping the verbiage. It’salmost like another language,taking kids who know Englishand trying to teach them Span-ish.”

Highlighting the offense willbe senior running back Hay-den Hunter (5-8, 175; 451yards, 4 touchdowns in 2012),senior receiversAnthonyAlloco(6-12, 165), Victor Elmurr (6-0, 185) and J.T. Grega (6-2,185) and junior receiver DrewBatt (5-11, 175).

Simms reportedly has beenoffered by Akron, Buffalo,Pennsylvania,Toledo andYale.Rounding out the offensive lineis senior right tackle ChaseCarter (6-3, 255), a first-yearstarter. Sophomore Luke Camp-bell (6-3, 230) might see con-siderable playing time after Gal-

lion sustained a foot injury inearly August.

Returnees on defense includesenior linebacker Tim Feasel(5-10, 175), senior defensive


BRAVES >> 47

Tim Feasel, a senior linebacker, is one of the top returnees forthe Braves. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 at .......Canal WinchesterSept. 6.......vs. Olentangy LibertySept. 13..................at Lexington*Sept. 20..............vs. Big Walnut*Sept. 27 ....at Olentangy Orange*Oct. 4 .........vs. Franklin Heights*Oct. 11..............vs. New Albany*Oct. 18 ........at Worth. Kilbourne*Oct. 25...........vs. Mount Vernon*Nov. 1 ....................at Delaware

2012 RESULTS(10-2 overall, 6-1 OCC-Capital)Worth. Kilbourne ..........W, 17-14Olentangy Liberty.........W, 28-16Lexington ....................W, 35-21*Big Walnut..................W, 40-24*Olentangy Orange.........W, 28-3*Franklin Heights ...........W, 55-7*New Albany.................L, 33-14*Watkins Memorial.........W, 42-0*Mount Vernon...............W, 23-7*Delaware ...................W, 42-10PLAYOFFSDublin Scioto ...............W, 21-17Hilliard Davidson...........L, 29-14*League contest

INSIDE THE BRAVES•Coach: Mark Solis, first season•Top players: Curtis Conrad (OL),Noah Durst (QB), Tim Feasel (LB),Kevin Sherry (LB) and Andy Simms(OL)•Key losses: Christian Brett(WR/DB), Andrew Horstman(QB/DB/P), Buchi Okafor (WR/DB),Brian Raiff (OL/DL) and AustinSchmidt (OL/DL)

Not since its inaugural 2008season has the OlentangyOrange High School footballteam had so many holes to fill.

The Pioneers return onlyone starter on offense and fiveon defense from a team thatwon its final four games tofinish 6-4 overall and tie BigWalnut for third (4-3) in theOCC-Capital Division behindNew Albany (7-0) and Olen-tangy (6-1).

Senior Jake Lewis, a tightend, is the lone returnee onoffense, but his biggest impactwas as a linebacker where hewill be a third-year starter.

“We don’t have a lot ofstarters returning, but I thinkwe’re coming along pretty welland we’re coming together,”said Lewis, who was second-team all-league at linebacker.“We’re a pretty tight group. Ithink for us, because of ourexperience, we have to comeout hard and keep fighting.”

Coach Brian Cross said thelack of experience in the offen-sive front could be an issue.

“My biggest concern is thatwe lost all of our interior(offensive) line,” said Cross,who opens his sixth seasonFriday, Aug. 30, at OlentangyLiberty. “We have (senior)nose guard Cole Cunningham,who played some on the(offensive) line last year, butnot much. None of these guyshave game experience, andthat’s a big question mark.”

Cunningham (5-foot-11,220 pounds) is the lone sen-ior likely to start up front atleft guard. Juniors Nick Lee(center) Kenny MacMillian(left tackle; 6-2, 242), KylePellington (right tackle; 5-10,262) also expect to start, withjunior Sam Damko and soph-omore Tyler Houston compet-ing at right guard.

A completely new backfieldwill include junior quarter-back C.J. Stablein, who startedas a defensive back last sea-son. The tailbacks look to bea rotation of seniors JeddyAwuah and Alex Menzo andsophomore Tyler Lichter.Senior Jake Bobrowski andsophomore Blake Skuratow-icz will rotate at fullback.

“Stablein is very athleticwith good speed and he throwsthe ball fairly well,” Cross said.“It’s a matter of him makingthe right reads. He has a prettystrong arm and throws a decentdeep ball. He can run the foot-ball if everyone is covered. Hecan be a solid quarterback withgame experience.

“I feel good aboutBobrowski and Skuratowiczat fullback and I feel like wehave three good guys at tail-back. They have a chance tobe pretty decent.”

Receivers include seniorsCorbin Lehman and ChristianKing, who is a move-in fromHilliard Darby. Flankers will

be seniors Emmanuel Djanand Alec McCurry, with soph-omores Matthew Collins andHunter Shepherd also in thereceiving corps.

“We’re fairly athletic com-pared to what we were lastcouple of years. We have morekids who can run and catchthan in the past four years,”said Cross, who plans to make

the most of that athleticism onthe stadium’s newly installedartificial turf. “We have eightto 10 kids capable of beingpretty athletic when they’reon the field. But even thoughthese kids are athletic, theydon’t have a lot of experience.

“We’re still going to try torun the ball, but we’re alsogoing to try to spread the field.

We don’t have as much in thewings (in the usual wing-Tattack), but we have a lot ofreceivers and want to maketeams defend the whole field.”

Players returning in the mul-tiple 4-4 defense are Cunning-ham, senior linebacker JustinGels (honorable mention all-league), Harris, senior defen-sive end Lenn’s Kamba andStabelin.

Joining Gels and Harris ina rotation at linebacker aresenior Drake Straty, Damko,junior Logan Seum and Sku-ratowicz.

“Our most experience is ondefense, and I think we havesix players who can play forus at linebacker,” Cross said.“I think they can all be prettygood.”

Being the Pioneers’quarter-back likely will limit Stablein’stime at safety. Expected to seeaction in the defensive back-field are Awuah, McCurry,Menzo, junior Matt Booth, jun-ior Nick Buening, Collins andLichter.

Cunningham and Kambawill be joined up front byBobrowski, Lee, MacMillianand Pellington.

According to Cross, the bat-tle for the punting spot is wideopen, with seniors – SkylerSiles and Jordan Vinicky –

competing for place-kickingduties.

“The kids have a good atti-tude and they work extremelyhard,” Cross said. “This is theleast amount of experiencewe’ve had coming back for us.

We have 18 seniors and threeof them only kick for us, sothat leaves 15 senior positionplayers.

“The inexperience of play-


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Olentangy Orange

Pioneers counting on newcomers to step upBy SCOTT HENNENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..........at Olentangy LibertySept. 6............at New PhiladelphiaSept. 13............vs. Hilliard Bradley*Sept. 20 ................at New Albany*Sept. 27..................vs. Olentangy*Oct. 4................vs. Mount Vernon*Oct. 11......................at Delaware*Oct. 18 ..........vs. Franklin Heights*Oct. 25...................vs. Big Walnut*Nov. 1 ....at Worthington Kilbourne

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 4-3 OCC-Capital)Olentangy Liberty.............L, 43-21Groveport........................W, 35-10Worthington Kilbourne.....W, 21-19*New Albany....................L, 53-33*Olentangy ........................L, 28-3*Mount Vernon..........L, 21-14 (OT)*Delaware ......................W, 24-10*Franklin Heights.............W, 49-13

*Big Walnut.......................W, 10-0*Watkins Memorial..........W, 13-10*League contest

INSIDE THE PIONEERS•Coach: Brian Cross, sixth season•Top players: Jeddy Awuah (RB/DB),Jake Bobrowski (RB/LB), Cole Cun-ningham (OL/DL), Justin Gels (TE/LB),Lenn’s Kamba (RB/DL), Jake Lewis(TE/LB), Tyler Lichter (RB/DB), AlecMcCurry (WR/DB), Alex Menzo(RB/DB) and C.J. Stablein (QB/DB)•Key losses: Mike Forbes (RB/LB),Jarrod Gilliam (TE/DL), Ben Heilman(OL/DL), Kofi Hill (QB/DB) Mitch Hop-kins (K), Tyler Peery (OL/DL), TristonRichardson (WR/DB), Larry Rode(RB/DB), Nick Skidmore (OL/DL), ColeSnowden (OL/DL), Jake Steir (QB/DB)and Spencer Wilson (OL/DL)

Jeddy Awuah will be among the rotation of tailbacks for thePioneers. JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

PIONEERS >> 46

The Worthington KilbourneHigh School football team hasintroduced some new looks toits triple-option offense as itbegins play in a new leaguewith a fresh outlook.

“We’ve added some newwrinkles with lots of shotgunand pistol formation,” said sev-enth-year coach Vince Trom-betti, whose team opens Friday,Aug. 30, at Dublin Scioto. “Wewant to get back to the Kil-bourne ways, winning. In orderto do that, we have to throw theball more effectively and weneed the players new to Fridaynights to understand their rolein becoming playmakers.”

The Wolves finished 3-7overall and 2-5 in the OCC-Cardinal Division a year ago,but will be competing in theOCC-Capital this season.

Kilbourne returns 23 letter-winners, including six starterson each side of the ball.

“We have six players whowill be starting for the thirdyear,” Trombetti said. “Wehave a little more speed thanwhat we’ve had in the past,but depth may still be anissue.”

Senior Keaton Reinhart isone of the returnees, but hehas been moved from quarter-back to receiver, as junior Grif-fin Dahn will line up behindcenter.

Reinhart completed 42 of103 pass attempts for 670

yards and three touchdownswith three interceptions.

Senior Jayce Miller, juniorRafael Herrera and sophomoreIsaiahYoung also will see timeat receiver. Senior slotbacksSeth Hill and Chandler Bridgesand senior running back JustinStoner are also targets, alongwith junior slotbacks Joe Davisand Dom Brown.

Stoner led the team inreceptions (10) and yards (122)last season, followed byBridges (seven receptions, 102yards) and Hill (five catches,135 yards).

“Seth Hill is energetic andhe’s our biggest weapon,”Trombetti said. “He’s a three-year starter and can affect thegame on offense, defense andspecial teams.”

“I’m just looking to makeplays and that’s the positionthe coaches are trying to putme into,” Hill said. “We’recoming off a rough season, soI need to stay healthy and helpus in any way I can.

“We’re looking forward toa new start, in a differentleague. We have 22 seniorsand I think we’re going to pro-vide great leadership.”

Stoner takes over at runningback replacing graduate IsaacLumpkin, who had 888 yardsrushing on 173 carries.

He will be running behindan experienced offensive linethat returns five starters in sen-iors Joe Schick (C, 6-foot-3,265 pounds), Matt Lacey (G,6-0, 215) and Alex Meehan(T, 6-1, 230) and juniors J.C.Bartok (T, 6-5, 235) and Ahjal-lah Williams (G, 5-8, 183).

“We typically try to two-platoon as much as possible,but it is apparent that we’llhave to play some of these menon both sides of the ball quitea bit,” Trombetti said.

Seniors Josh Happ and Tay-

lor Wilson are expected to leadthe Wolves’4-3 defense at line-backer, with juniors GraysonBiglin and Luke Hackathornealso vying for a spot.

Seniors D.J. Freer (6-4,210), Mason Rigio (6-4, 215),Meehan and Bartok will seetime at end, with senior GavinElifritz (6-0, 235), ConnorSilva (6-0, 240) and DannyDarby (5-10, 165) at tackle.

Expected to see action inthe defensive backfield are

Hill, Bridges, Brown, Davis,Miller, senior Daniel Strickerand junior Johnny Mack.

Elifritz (63 tackles, 7.5sacks) was first-team all-dis-trict in Division II along withWilson (87 tackles, 3 sacks).Wilson also averaged 39.3yards on 29 punts and pinnedopponents inside their 20-yardline eight times.

Joining Hill as third-yearstarters are Elifritz, Freer, Mee-han, Schick and Silva.

“I think this is the groupthat helps turn us around andget us back to winning foot-ball,” Trombetti said. “We’rereal excited about this season.”

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Worthington Kilbourne

Wolves see opportunity in new divisionBy BRAD EMERINETHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30..............at Dublin SciotoSept. 6 ..vs. Thomas WorthingtonSept. 13...vs. Hamilton Township*Sept. 20.................at Delaware*Sept. 27 .........vs. Mount Vernon*Oct. 4...................at Big Walnut*Oct. 11.........at Franklin Heights*Oct. 18 ................vs. Olentangy*Oct. 25 ...............at New Albany*Nov. 1 ......vs. Olentangy Orange

2012 RESULTS(3-7 overall, 2-5 OCC-Cardinal)Olentangy.....................L, 17-14Thomas Worthington ......W, 37-3Olentangy Orange.........L, 21-19*Westerville South ..........L, 28-7*Westerville Central ......L, 29-17*Hilliard Darby ..............L, 34-27*Hilliard Bradley ...........W, 34-14*Dublin Jerome...L, 20-17 (2 OT)*Westerville North ..........W, 26-6*Dublin Scioto.................L, 24-7*League contest

INSIDE THE WOLVES•Coach: Vince Trombetti, seventhseason•Top players: Chandler Bridges(SB/DB), Griffin Dahn (QB), GavinElifritz (DT), D.J. Freer (DE), JoshHapp (LB), Seth Hill (SB/DB), JoeSchick (OL), Justin Stoner (RB),Taylor Wilson (LB)•Key losses: Isaac Lumpkin (RB),Alex Rayis (WR), Brian Sommers(LB), Eric Wahoff (FS), Jon Watson(K) and Matt Wylly (SS)

Seth Hill, a three-year starter, is “our biggest weapon,” coachVince Trombetti said. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

220), and junior tackles Xza-vier Brandon (5-11, 250) andTyler Pearson (6-1, 230).

Returning starters at line-backer are seniors VictorChamberlain (5-10, 205), NickClemons (6-1, 210) and Wil-son. Candidates to join theminclude seniors Gabe Fruth (5-11, 235), Hayden Hatten (6-0,195),Anthony Lugay (5-7, 180)and Cameron Rodney (5-8,175) as well as Semertsidis.

Chamberlain had 64 tack-les, four sacks and an intercep-

tion a year ago.Howard (5-9, 170) and

Siegenthaler will be joined inthe defensive backfield byBurgdoerfer, Miller, senior O.B.Oppong (5-11, 180), juniorJalen Ward (5-9, 160) andWilliams.

Kicking candidates includesophomore Joey Rolwing (6-2, 170) and seniorAlex Saviki-nas (5-8, 200).

The nonleague schedule mir-rors last year, which helps keepthe memories of an 0-2 startfresh. New Albany lost toReynoldsburg 10-9 and West-

erville Central 23-20 in over-time before a 56-22 rout ofDeSales began an 11-gamewinning streak.

League play begins Sept. 20at home against OlentangyOrange.

“If we’d have lost one moregame, we probably wouldn’thave had a shot at the playoffs,”Cline said. “We have to remem-ber that for this year.These firstthree games will be tough thisyear, for sure. Our goal rightnow is to go 1-0 every week.”

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EAGLESFROM >> 43

ing on Friday nights is an issue, but despitehaving only 61 or 62 players, we have decentdepth.

“Like everyone else, it’s just a matter ofstaying healthy.”

The Pioneers moved from Division I, Region

3 to Division II, Region 5 in the new OHSAA’sseven-division format that was approved lastspring. Watkins Memorial has left the OCC-Captial to join the Licking County League,and the Warriors have been replaced by Wor-thington Kilbourne.

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PIONEERSFROM >> 45


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Delaware Hayes

Pacers hopefocus helpsproduce wins

The Delaware Hayes HighSchool football team has theingredients for a successful sea-son.

The things the Pacers don’tpossess – a winning traditionand the confidence to executein close games – are qualitiesthat third-year coach ZebbSchroeder is trying to build.

“We have a track record ofnot being disciplined enoughto close the deal against goodteams,” Schroeder said. “Thatis a weakness from the past thatwe hope to overcome after agreat offseason and preseasoncamp that focused on attentionto details.”

Delaware returns 25 letter-winners, including nine starterson offense and 10 on defense,as it looks to improve aftergoing 3-7 for the third consec-utive year.

“We’re excited about the sea-son,” said Schroeder, who has24 seniors on the roster. “Wehave experience, strength, sizeand speed. We have competi-tion at most positions, as wellas a hunger to be great.We haveleadership by example from thesenior class.”

Senior Jante’Wright had 50catches and scored nine touch-downs last season to earn Divi-sion I second-team all-districtand second-team all-OCC-Cap-ital Division honors. He is mov-ing to quarterback to replacegraduateAlex Rafeld, who was127-for-236 passing for 1,758yards with 13 touchdowns and13 interceptions. Rafeld washonorable mention all-districtand first-team all-league.

Wright also will play corner-back and had five interceptionsa year ago.

Seniors Caleb Howell(WR/FS), Nick Shaver (WR/S)and Shawn Johnson (C/MLB)are expected to be among sev-

eral two-way starters. Howellhad 42 receptions last seasonand was honorable mention all-district and second-team all-league, while Johnson was hon-orable mention all-league.

“Caleb Howell is an explo-sive player with outstandingspeed. His (40-yard time) is 4.5(seconds). Defensively, I’mexcited to see him roam centerfield with his athleticism andspeed.”

Also expected to see time atreceiver in an offense that fea-tures multiple sets are seniorsZach Glascox and Jamie Lah-man and junior Jake Brown.Seniors Michael Sweeney andJames Wegmiller will sharetime at tight end.

Seniors Theoun Sorn andAnthony Hinton are the top run-ning backs, with juniors CodyWooten and Ernest Bonsu andsophomore Ethan Tucky (6-foot-2, 215) at fullback.

“Anthony Hinton is enter-ing his first full season of var-sity,” Schroeder said. “He is190 pounds of speed andpower.Theon Sorn brings rush-ing and receiving experienceback. Cody Wooten is a natu-ral running back and big at 6-2, 205.”

Expected to join Johnson (5-10, 200) on an all-senior offen-sive line areAndrew Sierawski(6-1, 220) and Gaige Linville(6-2, 225) at tackle and CollinWittig (6-4, 280) and ReeceKotaka (5-11, 235) or JacksonBoger (6-1, 205) at guard.Junior Austen Kimbro (6-1,260) could spell Johnson at cen-ter. Wittig was honorable men-tion all-district and second-teamall-league.

“Collin Wittig has severalDivision II offers and couldpossibly end up as an offensivelineman in the MAC,”Schroeder said. “He is a very,very good lineman and hasworked extremely hard in theoffseason to improve his craft.”

Improvement on defense willbe a key as the Pacers seek toimprove on last season’s 2-5record in the OCC-Capital.

Sorn and Sierawski could betwo-way players, as Sorn iscompeting with senior ConnorUlmer at one cornerback, withWright expected to start aheadof junior Brandon McConahaat the other corner. Howell andShaver complete the second-ary at safety.

Sierawski or senior Juan Her-nandez (5-10, 165) should startat one defensive end, with Weg-miller on the other side. JuniorsLamar Rhymes (6-3, 265) andShane Sand (6-3, 230) areexpected to start at tackles inthe 4-4 defense, with Linvilleand Wittig also in the mix.

Tucky will be an outside line-backer. Bonsu and Hinton arevying at weak-side linebacker,with junior Josh Daughenbaugh(6-2, 180) on the strong side.Johnson will be the middle line-backer .

“Tucky had nearly 60 tack-les in five games as a fresh-man,” Schroeder said. “He wonthe 100 meters in the DelawareCounty track meet last spring.He could be one of the topsophomores in central Ohio.Rhymes has a rare combina-tion of size, speed and strengththat makes him a force on theline. He could be a major Divi-

sion I college recruit next year.“Wegmiller brings great

length to the defensive line andis a good pass rusher. Johnsonis a hard-nosed kid and anexcellent player, and Daughen-baugh is a great competitor andextremely smart. He will be akey to our defense at Sam line-backer.”

Three of the Pacers’first fourgames are at home, includingthe opener Friday, Aug. 30,against BuckeyeValley and theleague opener Sept. 20 againstWorthington Kilbourne, whichhas replaced Watkins Memor-ial in the OCC-Capital.

“The keys will be stayinghealthy, protecting the ball,playing outstanding defenseand establishing what it takesto win a league championship– good practice habits, razor-sharp concentration on Fridaynights and fulfilling off-field(classroom) commitments,”Schroeder said.

“Our goals are to be in posi-tion to play for a league title atthe end of October and to flat-out be better, smarter players,technically sound and extremelydisciplined. We’ve had successin creating a culture of positiveleadership and we’ve workedhard at gaining speed andstrength.”

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Jante’ Wright had 50 receptions a year ago as the Pacers went 3-7, but the senior will move to quarterback to replace Alex Rafeld.JAMES D. DECAMP/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.............vs. Buckeye ValleySept. 6 ...........at Canal WinchesterSept. 13 ............vs. Dublin Jerome*Sept. 20 ........vs. Worth. Kilbourne*Sept. 27 ..................at Big Walnut*Oct. 4 ....................at New Albany*Oct. 11........vs. Olentangy Orange*Oct. 18 ...............at Mount Vernon*Oct. 25............at Franklin Heights*Nov. 1 .....................vs. Olentangy

2012 RESULTS(3-7 overall, 2-5 OCC-Capital)Buckeye Valley................W, 35-23Canal Winchester .............L, 42-23Dublin Jerome .................L, 49-14*Watkins Memorial...........L, 56-28*Big Walnut......................L, 35-13*New Albany....................L, 26-13

*Olentangy Orange...........L, 24-10*Mount Vernon ................W, 21-14*Franklin Heights ..............W, 25-0*Olentangy ......................L, 42-10*League contest

INSIDE THE PACERS•Coach: Zebb Schroeder, third sea-son•Top players: Anthony Hinton(RB/LB), Caleb Howell (WR/FS),Shawn Johnson (C/MLB), TheounSorn (RB/CB), Ethan Tucky (FB/OLB),Collin Wittig (G/T), Cody Wooten(FB/LB) and Jante’ Wright (QB/CB)•Key losses: Taylor Adair (RB),AustinArthur (OLB), Stone Banks-Herrell(DE),Alex Hohe (WR) and Alex Rafeld(QB)

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back Jonah Gutentag (6-4, 170)and sophomore defensive line-man Chris Crumb (6-1, 255).

Crumb will be flanked byjunior defensive ends Nate Hall(6-1, 200) and AustinKochheiser (6-4, 225) and sen-ior lineman Andrew Wise (5-10, 235).

Other defensive starters wereunclear in the preseason, butplayers on that side of the ballalso were excited about Solis’new system. Olentangy plansto run a 4-4, a shift from the 3-5 Terwilliger employed.

“I really like the intensity,”

said senior linebacker KevinSherry (6-0, 235). “There’s alot of flying around. We havea whistle after every play andwe have three seconds to fly tothe ball.There are people every-where. We have six or sevenhats on the ball every time. It’snothing we’re used to. Usually,it’s one or two people makinga tackle.

“We have some really fastand strong defensive linemenand that should help our line-backers. It’s different becausewe have to play our responsi-bilities better.”

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BRAVESFROM >> 44


Marion-Franklin

Players change but goals same for Red DevilsAfter losing an all-state quarterback, a

University of Michigan recruit and a two-time all-state lineman to graduation, theMarion-Franklin High School footballteam might have the appearance of a pro-gram in rebuilding mode.

All the Red Devils intend to do is keepa pair of streaks alive: Nine consecutiveCity League-South Division champi-onships and an equal number of playoffappearances.

“Every year we’ve lost some guyswho’ve gone to big-time (college) pro-grams across the country, but we’ve alsohad a pretty good run at replacing that tal-ent that we lost,” said coach Brian Haf-fele, who begins his 10th season Friday,Aug. 30, at Upper Arlington. “I tell ourkids we have a program and it’s all aboutlongevity. Somebody else has got to stepup and make the plays.”

In fact, Marion-Franklin has lost justtwo league games under Haffele.

Last year’s team reached a Division IIregional final, where it lost to NewAlbany32-30 to finish 11-2 overall. In 2011 and2009, the Red Devils reached a state semi-final. This year, with a seventh playoffdivision added, they will compete in Divi-sion III.

In the City-South last year, the Red

Devils went 7-0 to finish a game aheadof Walnut Ridge (6-1), which they beat7-6.

With no returning starters on defensea year ago, Haffele relied on an experi-enced offense.

It’s just the opposite this year, as eightstarters return on defense compared tofour on offense.

Lost to graduation was three-year start-ing quarterback and 2011 first-team all-state selection Corry Benson, who com-pleted 109 of 188 passes for 1,618 yardsand 16 touchdowns last season. He alsorushed for 812 yards and 14 touchdowns.His top receiver, Jaron Dukes (36 catches,519 yards, 9 TDs), now is at Michigan.

Receiver JoeAlverson (33 catches, 449yards, 3 TDs) and linemen Damon Dil-lard and Shevone Hairston also must bereplaced. Dillard was first-team all-statethe past two seasons.

Three of the four returning offensivestarters play up front in seniors MartessePatterson (6-foot-5, 295 pounds), DevanteCollins (6-1, 330) and Ricky Jackson (6-3, 320). Senior LandonYeartie is back atslot receiver.

Patterson has more than two dozen Divi-sion I offers and Collins can bench press440 pounds, Haffele said.

At quarterback, junior Justin Tylerappears to have won the job, althoughcoaches also have been looking at senior

Cameron Thompson in preseason camp.Haffele has a stable of running backs

in seniors Julius Monroe, Willie Barnesand Omar Alfred, junior A.J. Tarvin andsophomore Darien Leeper.

“We want to keep fresh legs in the back-field,” Haffele said. “Corry was our toprusher last season, but Justin and Cameronaren’t as thick as Corry so we’re not goingto run the ball with these guys. We’re a60-40 run-to-pass team. We’re not goingto change that, but our running backs aregoing to carry the load.”

Seniors Shannon Royster and CedricWilliams and junior Michael Winfrey willsee time at receiver.

On defense, the Red Devils have expe-rience throughout with junior ShemarMoss, senior Austin Dent and Collins upfront.

Tarvin and juniors Thomas James andDavid Wellbourn will anchor the line-backer spots. In the secondary, Monroe,junior Michael Champion and seniorJimmy Lumpkin will play safety. Alfredand senior Cameron McCuen will startat cornerback.

“This is a group that works hard andthey’re all really close friends,” Haffelesaid. “Our first five games are a bear andwe’re going to need our defense to stepup.”

[email protected]

Walnut Ridge

Scots trying to closegap in league race

The Walnut Ridge HighSchool football program hasnot lacked talent in recent years.

Last season’s top receiver,Robert Wheelwright, now isplaying at the University ofWis-consin. Other top recruits whowent to BCS conference schoolsin the past include tight endAustin Traylor (Wisconsin),wide receiver Ernie Wheel-wright (Minnesota) and run-ning back Gary Russell (Min-nesota).

This fall, the Scots’ top col-lege prospect is 6-foot-5, 210-pound defensive end RobertBowers, a senior who has ver-bally committed to MichiganState but will be out until at leastmidseason recovering fromshoulder surgery.

It’s this kind of talent that hashelped keep the Scots amongthe top teams in the CityLeague-South Division.

“I think in the South Divi-sion there is a lot more paritythis year and you always knowyou have to prepare and be readyto play just about every week,”said coach Byron Mattox, whobegins his eighth season Friday,Aug. 30, against visiting Wat-terson. With nine consecutiveleague titles, Marion-Franklinremains the team to beat in theCity-South. But the Scots appearto be closing the gap.

Last year’s 7-3 seasonincluded a 7-6 loss to the Red

Devils in week six.That enabledMarion-Franklin (7-0) to winthe league by a game over Wal-nut Ridge (6-1).

The Scots must replace tal-ent at the skill positions, butMattox has plenty of size andathleticism up front.

Of the four returning starterson offense, three of them playon the line in three-year starterand junior center Dezjuan Starks

(5-10, 300), junior DamonHardgrove and senior OmarNdoye. Junior Brian Edwardsand freshman William Harrisalso are expected to contributeon the line, where 2013 gradu-ateTerry Cole was a leader lastseason.

The group will be blockingfor junior running back JaiseanJohnson, who averaged about10 yards per carry last fall.

“We’re more of a blue-collarteam this year,” Mattox said.“We don’t have the strongreceivers we had last year andwe found ways to get them theball.You’re going to see us runthe ball this year and get behindthat big line.”

Robert Wheelwright had 48receptions for 874 yards andnine touchdowns last season.

At quarterback, sophomoreMalik Harrison (6-4, 185)replaces Marquez Toney, whocompleted 76 of 129 passes for1,292 yards and 14 touchdownsas a senior.

Seniors Brandon Paschal andTajea Smith and juniorAnthonyMckee will be the primary widereceivers. Senior C.J. Lane andjunior Jaylen Spotts will seetime at tight end.

“Malik is making some reallygood decisions,” Mattox said.“He’s very athletic and has somesize to him. He pretty muchplayed wide receiver last yearand kept coming on strong asthe year went on.”

Even without Bowers earlyon, the defense boasts size andspeed.There also are two otherDivision I college prospects inMckee (LB/SS), who has offersfrom Illinois and Toledo, andjunior tackle Joshua Jordan.

Senior Daveon Miskel (DL),Spotts (LB) and Paschal (DB)all return as starters from lastseason’s group that held oppo-nents to 16.4 points per game.

Others expected to contributeinclude juniors Wayne Clay(DL), Wayne Russell (LB),Waunyai Ward (DB), Smith

(DB) and Kenny Barker (DB)and senior Ronricco Bryant(DL).

“We’re really trying to cre-ate that depth as we go becausewe don’t want that big drop offwhen we sub guys in and out,”Mattox said.

The Scots have a new defen-sive coordinator in SteveAyers,who arrived from Brookhaven.

Mattox was the defensivecoordinator at Beechcroft beforemoving to Walnut Ridge. OnSept. 13 at Beechcroft, the teamswill meet for the first time sinceMattox left.

“It’s going to be interestingplaying up there and being onthe other sideline,” he said. “ButI know it will be exciting.”

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Junior Jaisean Johnson will lead the ground game for the Scots, who finished 7-3 last season.THISWEEKSPORTS FILE PHOTO


By SCOTT GERFENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .............at Upper ArlingtonSept. 6 ..................vs. BrookhavenSept. 13 .........................at Hartley*Sept. 20............vs. Independence*Sept. 27 .............vs. Walnut Ridge*Oct. 4.......................at Africentric*Oct. 11.............at Columbus West*Oct. 18......vs. Eastmoor Academy*Oct. 25 ..........................at Briggs*Nov. 1.............at Columbus South

2012 RESULTS(11-2 overall, 7-0 City-South)Brookhaven ....................W, 20-14Pickerington Central.........L, 45-24Canal Winchester ..............W, 28-3*Briggs .............................W, 72-6*Independence................W, 36-30*Walnut Ridge.....................W, 7-6*Africentric .....................W, 73-20*West .............................W, 53-14*Eastmoor ..........................W, 6-0*South ............................W, 43-21

PLAYOFFSLicking Heights ...............W, 46-14Canal Winchester ............W, 44-14New Albany .....................L, 32-30*League contest

INSIDE THE RED DEVILS•Coach: Brian Haffele, 10th season•Top players: Omar Alfred(RB/WR/DB), Michael Champion (DB),Devante Collins (OL/DL),Austin Dent(DL), Ricky Jackson (OL/DL),ThomasJames (LB), Jimmy Lumpkin (DB),Cameron McCuen (DB), Julius Mon-roe (RB/DB), Shemar Moss (DL)Martesse Patterson (OL/DL), Shan-non Royster (WR), A.J. Tarvin(RB/WR/LB), David Wellbourn (LB)and Landon Yeartie (WR)•Key losses: Joe Alverson (WR),Corry Benson (QB), Damon Dillard(OL/DL), Jaron Dukes (WR) andShevone Hairston (OL/DL)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ....................vs. WattersonSept. 6.......................at GroveportSept. 13 ...................at Beechcroft*Sept. 20 .........at Columbus South*Sept. 26 ..........at Marion-Franklin*Oct. 4 .............vs. Columbus West*Oct. 11.......at Eastmoor Academy*Oct. 18 .........................vs. Briggs*Oct. 25 ...................vs. Africentric*Nov. 1 ...............vs. Independence

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 6-1 City-South)Upper Arlington................L, 43-20Urbana ...........................W, 36-28Groveport ........................L, 21-20*Africentric .......................W, 71-0*South ............................W, 40-12*Marion-Franklin..................L, 7-6

*West ...............................W, 27-6*Eastmoor Academy..........W, 21-6*Briggs .............................W, 54-0*Independence................W, 47-41*League contest

INSIDE THE SCOTS•Coach: Byron Mattox, eighth sea-son•Top players: Robert Bowers (DE),Damon Hardgrove (OL),Jaisean John-son (RB), Josh Jordan (DL), AnthonyMckee (WR/LB), Daveon Miskel (DL),Omar Ndoye (OL), Brandon Paschal(WR/DB), Tajea Smith (WR), JaylenSpotts (TE/LB) and Dezjuan Starks (OL)•Key losses: Terry Cole (OL), JasonHawkins (LB), Malik Robinson(WR/DB), Marquez Toney (QB) andRobert Wheelwright (WR)

CITY LEAGUE-SOUTH DIVISION

EastmoorAcademy footballcoach Jim Miranda has beenquite content playing a powergame, but the Warriors willlook much different this sea-son.

“We’re going a little bit outof our comfort zone,” saidMiranda, who begins his 11thseason Friday,Aug. 30, againstvisiting Westland. “We’ve beena two-back, go get ’em teamand now we’re trying some-thing different. Everybody islearning it, including the staff,so it’s challenging for us.”

Eastmoor intends to spreadout its opponents and utilize anumber of running backs inreturning starter and seniorDerrick Wilson Jr., senior Mar-tine Perez, senior Kevin Jack-son and junior Jaylen Woody.

Miranda expects all of themto contribute. Perez missedmuch of last season with aninjury.

While extremely young upfront, Eastmoor does have amobile group that will be ledby junior returning starterJaylen Smith. Juniors LawrenceDailey (6-foot-5, 240 pounds),Issah Ray, Zahir Hicks andLane Applin will move intostarting roles on the line.

Competing at quarterbackare senior Jahmal Hughes andjuniors Tyler Simmons andBrandon Stepter. One of themwill take over for 2013 gradu-ate Davion Barrow, who threwfor more than 1,000 yards lastyear.

Junior George Daniels andsophomore Terry Johnson arenew at wide receiver.

“We really have a three-back,spread offense this year,” saidMiranda, whose team went 6-4 overall a year ago. “We justhave too many skilled kids andwe want them to get a lot oftouches. Hopefully as they getbetter we’ll be able to attackon the perimeter and run upinside as well.”

Eastmoor, which last reachedthe playoffs in 2011 when itlost to Elida 37-10 in a Divi-sion III regional final, has beena consistent contender in theCity League-South Division.

The Warriors were third (5-2) last season behind Marion-Franklin (7-0) and WalnutRidge (6-1).

Eastmoor came up short in

back-to-back losses to WalnutRidge (21-6) and Marion-Franklin (6-0) in weeks eightand nine last season. The War-riors also fell 42-13 to DaytonThurgood Marshall, a team thatreached a Division III statesemifinal.

The Warriors’ defense alsois a work in progress with sen-iors Cameron Jackson (LB)and William McCarey (DL) asthe only returning starters.

The competition has beenstrong at linebacker, wheresophomores David Via andQuincy Colvin, who was athird-team all-state punter lastseason, appear to have securedstarting roles.

In the secondary, Wilson,Perez, senior Cameron Hornerand junior Christopher Allen-Spiller will be the starters.

Miranda will put Dailey, sen-ior Treyvon Kee and sopho-more Chauncey Coleman upfront.

“The good news is we’regoing to have most of theseguys back next year,” Miranda

said. “We have good depth, butwe just lack experience. It’smade for competitive practices.When one guy does well, theother is going to step it up.”

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Independence

Running game again will be keyIn keeping with tradition, the Indepen-

dence High School football team expectsto bring another potent rushing attack tothe City League-South Division this sea-son. But the strategy likely will be some-what different.

Last season, the 76ers relied on theleague’s top rusher in 2013 graduate Vin-cent Rambo, who gained 1,905 yards on203 carries and scored 20 touchdowns.Naijae Manning, who rushed 97 times for705 yards and 18 touchdowns, also is gone.

This season, four sophomores are com-peting for playing time.

“We have to run the ball at Independencebecause that’s what we do,” said coachMaurice Douglas, who begins his fourthseason Friday, Aug. 30, against visitingNorthland. “We’ve got four of them andyou hope somebody rises to the top.”

Ronnie Kuipers provides speed. KevonJones is an elusive runner. Kaavon Parker

and C.J. Harrison run “low to the groundand they’re a little more aggressive,” Dou-glas said.

Those who will open the holes up frontare all seniors in Andru Gerula, PhillipWimbley, Malik Blackwell,Akeem Mitchelland center Carlos Jones.

The offense also will feature senior ImanLowery, who caught 11 passes for 158yards a year ago at tight end. Coaches wantto get him the ball as much as possible.

Seniors Jemiah McNeal and Eriq Shawwill start at wide receiver.

At quarterback, senior Anthony Bangemoves to the position from receiver.

“We’re not as talented as we were lastyear at the skill positions, but I like the factthat last year’s team set the tone for wherewe’re trying to go,” Douglas said. “We’vegot a veteran bunch, but they’re a veteranbunch who didn’t play a lot.”

Independence finished 6-4 overall lastseason and went 4-3 in the City-South tofinish fourth behind Marion-Franklin (7-0),Walnut Ridge (6-1) and EastmoorAcad-

emy (5-2).The 76ers have improved everyseason since Douglas took over in 2010.That year, Independence went 3-7. In 2011,it finished 5-5.

“Last year we lost games to Eastmoor(14-6) and Marion-Franklin (36-30) by atouchdown a piece,” Douglas said. “Thoselosses kept us out of the playoffs in Divi-sion III, which is loaded this year.You’vegot teams like Marion-Franklin who’vemoved (down) into that division. The barhas been raised high for this group.”

The defense must also find leaders withShaw and McNeal new at safety. SeniorsDeAntae’ Townsend and James Dukes-Johnson are returning starters at corner-back.At linebacker, Blackwell will anchorthe middle of the 4-3 scheme with seniorJashon Crimley, Mitchell, Wimbley, Jonesand Gerula rotating along the line.

Bange started at linebacker last year, but“we’re trying to get him off the field” ondefense, Douglas said.

[email protected]

Eastmoor Academy

Warriors willhave differentlook this year

Senior Jahmal Hughes is in a three-way battle to replace Davion Barrow at quarterback for the Warriors.JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS



At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.....................vs. NorthlandSept. 6.............at Central CrossingSept. 13 ......vs. Westerville Central*Sept. 20 ..........at Marion-Franklin*Sept. 27 ........vs. Columbus South*Oct. 4 ............................at Briggs*Oct. 11 ...................vs. Africentric*Oct. 18 ...........vs. Columbus West*Oct. 25.......at Eastmoor Academy*Nov. 1..................at Walnut Ridge

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 4-3 City-South)Mifflin.............................W, 32-19Central Crossing ...............W, 40-0Bellville Clear Fork .............L, 28-0*Eastmoor Academy...........L, 14-6*Marion-Franklin..............L, 36-30*South ............................W, 61-12*Briggs .............................W, 88-6

*Africentric .....................W, 76-22*West ...............................W, 61-0*Walnut Ridge..................L, 47-41*League contest

INSIDE THE SIXERS•Coach: Maurice Douglas, fourthseason•Top players: Anthony Bange (QB),Jashon Crimley (DL), James Dukes-Johnson (DB),Andru Gerula (OL/DL),C.J. Harrison (RB), Ronnie Kuipers(RB), Kevon Jones (RB), Iman Low-ery (WR/LB), Jemiah McNeal (WR/DB),Akeem Mitchell (OL/DL), KaavonParker (RB), Eriq Shaw (WR/DB) andDeAntae’ Townsend (DB)•Key losses: Roy Cook (LB/FB), Nai-jae Manning (RB), Vincent Rambo(RB), Chris Walker (OL/DL) andDominic Ward (DB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..................vs. WestlandSept. 6 ..................at St. CharlesSept. 13..at Thomas Worthington*Sept. 20........at Columbus West*Sept. 27 ....................vs. Briggs*Oct. 4 ..........at Columbus South*Oct. 11............vs. Walnut Ridge*Oct. 18.........at Marion-Franklin*Oct. 25 ..........vs. Independence*Nov. 1..................vs. Africentric

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 5-2 City-South)Northland ......................W, 27-6St. Charles....................L, 27-23Thurgood Marshall........L, 42-13*Independence ..............W, 14-6*West ..........................W, 45-15*Briggs ..........................W, 68-0*South.........................W, 51-12*Walnut Ridge.................L, 21-6*Marion-Franklin...............L, 6-0*Africentric ..................W, 47-20*League contest

INSIDE THE WARRIORS•Coach: Jim Miranda, 11th sea-son•Top players: Christopher Allen-Spiller (DB), Lawrence Dailey (OL),Cameron Jackson (LB), WilliamMcCarey (DL), Martine Perez(RB/DB), Jalen Smith (OL/DL),DavidVia (LB) and Derrick Wilson Jr.(RB/DB)•Key losses: Davion Barrow (QB),Devon Edwards (TE/DL) and BrentGranger (RB/LB)



Briggs

Bruins better prepared after transitional yearWith a year under his belt as a coach

in the City League-South Division, But-ler By’not’e now understands the chal-lenges awaiting his Briggs High Schoolfootball team.

Despite being led by a former OhioState running back (1990-93) and NFLplayer (1994-95 with Denver and Car-olina) in By’not’e, the Bruins struggleda year ago, especially in the City-South,with mostly sophomores and freshmenon the field.

“Coming into it last season, I didn’tknow what to expect,” By’not’e said. “Itwas a totally different beast than what Iwas used to.

“In high school, we had one or two goodteams in the league. This one has four orfive strong teams. Now I know what I’mup against.”

Despite the competition, By’not’eexpects progress from last season’s fin-ish of 1-9 overall and 1-6 in the City-South, seventh behind champion Marion-Franklin (7-0).

Briggs, which opens Friday, Aug. 30,at Watkins Memorial, remains relativelyyoung.

But much of the group has varsity expe-rience after suffering through a 2012 sea-son that included losses by an averagemargin of more than 50 points.

Much of that skill appears on offensewhere six starters return in senior receiversChristian Marshall and Dion Leflore, jun-ior running back and tight end MaleikGore, who played quarterback much oflast season, junior center Bobby Walkerand sophomore linemen Mason Cullenand Mike Robinson.

Sophomore Tyson Miles will start atquarterback.

“He’s going to be a great player,”By’not’e said. “His footwork and tech-nique have really improved and I reallyapplaud him on his mechanics. He canthrow a deep ball. I think he’s a rising starin this league.”

Gore is moving into Todd Jackson’srole in Briggs’multiple-set offense. Jack-son and linemen Christian Action andDeshawn Hamilton are the key losses fromlast year’s team.

Freshman running back A.J. Houchinsalso has the coaches’attention followingsummer workouts.

In building a running game, By’not’ehopes to create more depth up front.

“We have a lot of young guys,” he said.“We need to build a situation at Briggswhere we have a little league program andkeep those guys here. I know (for) someof these guys, it’s like starting over becausethey haven’t played football in a while.”

The experience on defense is at the line-backer position where senior startersTyrellHarris and Jacob Hall return. SophomoreZach Distelhorst returns at cornerback,and Robinson also started at defensivetackle last year.

“Our defensive line is going to lookcompletely different,” By’not’e said. “Butthey looked pretty good in our first scrim-mage. We’ve got a lot of guys who arenew on that side of the ball and they’rehungry.”

By’not’e was hired to replace DerekKatris, who coached the Bruins to a 13-17 record in three seasons.

[email protected]

Columbus South

First winning seasonsince ’06 is motivator

As a first-year high schoolfootball coach last season,Keith Dimmy wanted to makesure he set his program’sexpectations.

Columbus South had wonjust three games in three sea-sons. But last year, the Bull-dogs finished 4-6 overall.

“I was hired six weeksbefore the season started, sothere wasn’t much time to pre-pare,” said Dimmy, an East-moor Academy graduate whoplayed safety at the Universityof Minnesota. “I’ve had a yearnow to establish the discipli-nary things and the way I wantto run my program. I think wecould’ve easily been 6-4, butwe lost two games late onturnovers.”

South finished 2-5 in theCity League-South Division ayear ago, behind Marion-Franklin (7-0), Walnut Ridge(6-1), Eastmoor (5-2), Inde-pendence (4-3) and ColumbusWest (3-4) and ahead of Briggs(1-6) and Africentric (0-7).

The Bulldogs open the sea-son Friday, Aug. 30, at Whet-stone with the intent of pro-ducing their first winning sea-son since 2006, when theywent 6-4.

While South had a one-twooffensive punch in quarterbackLePaso Walker, who threw for1,200 yards and 13 touch-downs and rushed for 500yards and seven scores, andsenior running back DeoneLindsey (1,300 yards), the

offense will center on Lindseythis season with Walker’sdeparture.

The Bulldogs also havesome experience up front injunior Zontonio Edwards andseniors Nigel Brown and JacobDennis, all returning startersalong with senior tight endDarnell Palmer. Senior Mar-quan Conner will take over atcenter for 2013 graduate Mar-cus Solomon, who played onboth sides of the ball.

Junior Terric O’Neal willplay quarterback and throw toa young receiving corps led byreturning starter and senior

Dominique Covington. JuniorRobert Williams, sophomoreThomas Gutierrez and fresh-man Dez Robinson will be inthe mix.

“Terric has been impressiveso far,” Dimmy said. “He’sdone everything we’ve askedhim to do. He’s picked up thesystem and it kind of helps thatLePaso is on my staff. He’sbeen helping to mentor him.He kind of reminds me of (for-mer NFL quarterback) DaunteCulpepper at 6-foot-1, 245pounds. He’s got a rocket foran arm.”

South’s 4-3 defense features

five returning starters inEdwards (DL), Dennis (DL),Palmer (DE), Lindsey (DB)and senior linebacker DonjaeNeal.

Other contributors areexpected to be senior defen-sive end Joseph Ross, junior

defensive back Kareem Har-ris, sophomore linebackerDevonTyus and freshman line-backer DeaquanTaylor. Robin-son also might play in the sec-ondary.

“I think this group is tougherthan the group we had last

year,” Dimmy said. “They’vebeen around us and understandour expectations. I’ve alwaysbeen involved with winningprograms and I want to leadthis team to the postseason.”

[email protected]

Deone Lindsey will be the focus of the Bulldogs’ offense after rushing for 1,300 yards last year.ANDREA KJERRUMGAARD/THISWEEKSPORTS



At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30..........at Watkins MemorialSept. 6..............vs. Columbus EastSept. 13 ..........................at Ready*Sept. 20...................at Africentric*Sept. 27 .....at Eastmoor Academy*Oct. 4 ...............vs. Independence*Oct. 11 ...........at Columbus South*Oct. 18 ................at Walnut Ridge*Oct. 25...........vs. Marion-Franklin*Nov. 1.............vs. Columbus West2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 1-6 City-South)Bellville Clear Fork ...........L, 48-15Franklin Heights.................L, 26-7Ready................................L, 49-6*Marion-Franklin................L, 72-6*Africentric .....................W, 28-22

*Eastmoor .........................L, 68-0*Independence ..................L, 88-6*South.............................L, 58-30*Walnut Ridge....................L, 54-0*West ................................L, 69-0*League contest

INSIDE THE BRUINS•Coach: Butler By’not’e, second sea-son•Top players: Mason Cullen (OL),ZachDistelhorst (DB),Maleik Gore (RB/TE),Jacob Hall (LB),Tyrell Harris (LB),DionLeflore (WR),Christian Marshall (WR),Tyson Miles (QB), Mike Robinson(OL/DL) and Bobby Walker (OL)•Key losses: Todd Jackson (RB),ChristianAction (OL/DL) and DeshawnHamilton (OL/DL)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.....................at WhetstoneSept. 6.......................at ZanesvilleSept. 13 ..........at Linden-McKinley*Sept. 20 .............vs. Walnut Ridge*Sept. 27 .............at Independence*Oct. 4........vs. Eastmoor Academy*Oct. 11 .........................vs. Briggs*Oct. 18.....................at Africentric*Oct. 25.............at Columbus West*Nov. 1 ............vs. Marion-Franklin

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall, 2-5 City-South)Warrensville Heights........W, 36-14Columbus East.....................L, 6-0Centennial ......................W, 34-13*West ..............................L, 39-27*Walnut Ridge..................L, 40-12

*Independence ................L, 61-12*Eastmoor Academy.........L, 51-12*Briggs ...........................W, 58-30*Africentric .....................W, 32-28*Marion-Franklin..............L, 43-21*League contest

INSIDE THE BULLDOGS•Coach: Keith Dimmy, second sea-son•Top players: Nigel Brown (OL),Dominique Covington (WR), JacobDennis (OL/DL), Zontonio Edwards(OL/DL),Deone Lindsey (RB/SS),Don-jae Neal (LB) and Darnell Palmer(TE/DE)•Key losses: Shemar Marsh (RB),Marcus Solomon (OL/DL) and LeP-aso Walker (QB)



Markell Wyche has raised expectations after a strong offseason. Last year, Wyche threw for 704 yards and four touchdowns. “He’sa really good athlete, and I think he’s grown in confidence,” coach Mike Flusche said. ANDREA KJERRUMGAARD/THISWEEKSPORTS

ColumbusWest

Wyche set to step up for CowboysAfter having two of the area’s

best passers in the last fiveyears, Columbus West HighSchool football coach MikeFlusche spent last season prep-ping a new arm for his offensethat loves to spread the ballaround.

It wasn’t easy for MarkellWyche, who passed for 704yards and four touchdowns. Hethrew 11 interceptions.

“We were breaking in abrand new quarterback and itshowed,” said Flusche, whoseteam opens the season Friday,Aug. 30, against visitingBrookhaven.

“Markell didn’t start threeor four games, but he’s had areally good summer, and wedid a bunch of seven-on-sevencamps. He’s a really good ath-lete and I think he’s grown inconfidence.”

Wyche replaced ChrisRhodes, who led the Cowboysin 2011 to their best finishunder Flusche at 7-3. Rhodesthrew for 2,538 yards and 35touchdowns after he passed for2,512 yards and 33 touchdownsas a junior.

Rhodes’ predecessor, EricStewart, passed for Central Dis-trict records of 8,421 yards and85 touchdowns in his career.

Last season, West finished5-5 overall and 3-4 in the CityLeague-South Division, fifthbehind champion Marion-Franklin (7-0).

With eight returning starterson offense, Flusche expectsmore growth from his skillposition players.

“I like our chances as longas we stay healthy,” saidFlusche, who is in his seventhseason. “The nice thing is thatwe open up with Brookhaventhis year, and it’s a good barom-eter for us.They’re a great pro-gram.”

Wyche’s top receiver a yearago is back in senior Charles

Holland, who caught 30 passesfor 406 yards and two touch-downs. Seniors Cody Williamsand Trenton Miller and juniorDontell Butler return as theother targets.

At running back, sophomoreByron White will play a big-ger role with the graduation ofQuran Stokes, who rushed for987 yards and 14 touchdownson 188 carries. Junior KevinRussell is back at fullback.

The offensive line will be

anchored by returning startersChris Horsley, a junior center,and Twain Davis, a junior lefttackle. Senior Gerale Bennettand junior Rodney Johnsonappear to have solidified start-ing roles.

West also was anticipatingthe return of Adrian Hatcher,a 6-foot-4, 285-pound linemanwho also serves as the soccerteam’s goalie.

“He’s got a Division I body,”Flusche said. “He came out lastyear as a junior and practicedtwice a week with us. He alsowas our kicker.”

With a 40-man roster,Flusche expects to have moretwo-way players.

Davis, Johnson and seniorend Kenny Hoover will playup front for a defense that fea-tures five returning starters.

White started at strong safetylast season, and Holland isexpected to start again at freesafety.

Butler and Miller will startat cornerback.

What’s missing is the stronglinebacker group that was ledby 2013 graduates Mike Cov-ington and David Stockton.Covington led the team in tack-les (117) and sacks (8) last sea-son.

“We’ve got to find guys whocan play in the middle,” Fluschesaid. “Those were big roles lastseason. We’re eager to see howeverything went over the sum-mer.”

[email protected]


Africentric Early College

New coachis eager tobuild program

After being an assistant orhead football coach at the col-lege level for more than twodecades, Todd Murgatroydwanted to stay in the game thisoffseason but wasn’t interestedin moving “to North Dakotato coach linebackers for$25,000 a year.”

He found a landing spotcloser to his residence inHilliard that will add a newexperience to his resume whenhe agreed to take over as theAfricentric Early College coachover the summer.

Murgatroyd knows his lat-est task is a difficult one con-sidering the Nubians neverhave had a winning season andwent 5-25 in three seasons –including 0-10 a year ago –under former coach EugeneBarrett.

The Nubians will have about30 players when they play hostto Linden-McKinley in theiropener Friday, Aug. 30.

“I’ve been a college coachfor 26 years, but I wanted tostay here in Columbus,” Mur-gatroyd said. “It’s a challenge,but I’m excited about it.”

Murgatroyd has an experi-enced quarterback to work within junior Trevon Potts (5-foot-10, 175 pounds). Potts, whowas special mention all-dis-trict in Division VI, will runwhat Murgatroyd calls a “no-huddle, run-and-shoot” offense.

After having underclassmenin several key positions a yearago, the Nubians again willhave a young look.

Junior Michael Hartway isback to lead a wide receivercorps that also should includefreshman Landon Martin.Senior Darius Brown-Walkeris at tailback, although thereare times that Africentric willgo with no backs.

Trevonn Saunders was lostto graduation after making first-team all-district at widereceiver.

“I’ve coached every posi-tion, and I know what I wanton offense,” Murgatroyd said.“We want to try to get our ath-letes out in space.”

The Nubians gave up a pro-gram-record number of pointsduring an 84-26 loss to Whet-stone and also allowed at least70 points three other times.

Leading what Africentrichopes is an improved defenseare senior Joe Muhammad(LB) and junior Keaniyel Rice(DB).

Murgatroyd spent the lastthree years as an assistant atWilmington College. He also

previously served as an assis-tant at the University of Ten-nessee, Hawaii, Kent State andOtterbein and under Jim Tres-sel at both Youngstown Stateand Ohio State.

From 2002-06, he coachedUrbana University to a 15-29mark that included the firstwinning season in program his-tory in 2005.

The only non-losing seasonforAfricentric’s program camein 2008, when it won all threeof its non-league games andfinished 5-5. Africentric haswon just 20 games since begin-ning play in 2003.

The Nubians will competein Division VII after theOHSAA’s expansion last springto seven divisions.

“This year we have eachother’s back,” said Potts, whois in his third season as theNubians’quarterback. “(Mur-gatroyd) is building unity insideof us. We’re brothers now andhe’s getting us prepared for thefirst game.”

[email protected]

By JARROD ULREYTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.......vs. Linden-McKinleySept. 6...................at WhetstoneSept. 14 ...............at Paint Valley*Sept. 20 ....................vs. Briggs*Sept. 27........at Columbus West*Oct. 4..........vs. Marion-Franklin*Oct. 11............at Independence*Oct. 18.......vs. Columbus South*Oct. 25 .............at Walnut Ridge*Nov. 1 .....at Eastmoor Academy

2012 RESULTS(0-10 overall, 0-7 City-South)Linden..........................L, 36-14Whetstone....................L, 84-26East .............................L, 41-14*Walnut Ridge.................L, 71-0*Briggs.........................L, 28-22*West ...........................L, 31-20*Marion-Franklin...........L, 73-20*Independence .............L, 76-22*South..........................L, 32-27*Eastmoor ....................L, 47-20*League contest

INSIDE THE NUBIANS•Coach: Todd Murgatroyd, firstseason•Top players: Darius Brown-Walker (RB), Michael Hartway(WR/DB), Landon Martin (WR), JoeMuhammad (LB),Trevon Potts (QB)and Keaniyel Rice (DB)•Key losses: Trevon Saunders(WR/DB), Cyquil Tucker (WR) andMandell Williams (RB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .................vs. BrookhavenSept. 6 ............at Linden-McKinleySept. 13 ...........at Franklin Heights*Sept. 20 ....vs. Eastmoor Academy*Sept. 27...................at Africentric*Oct. 4 ..................at Walnut Ridge*Oct. 11...........vs. Marion-Franklin*Oct. 18...............at Independence*Oct. 25..........vs. Columbus South*Nov. 1............................at Briggs

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 3-4 City-South)Columbus East...................L, 22-7Centennial ......................W, 27-13Linden ..............................W, 42-0*South ............................W, 39-27*Eastmoor Academy.........L, 45-15*Africentric .....................W, 31-20

*Walnut Ridge....................L, 27-6*Marion-Franklin..............L, 53-14*Independence ..................L, 61-0*Briggs .............................W, 69-0*League contest

INSIDE THE COWBOYS•Coach: Mike Flusche, seventh sea-son•Top players: Dontell Butler (WR/DB),Twain Davis (OL/DL), Charles Hol-land (WR/DB), Kenny Hoover (DL),Chris Horsley (OL/DL), Rodney John-son (OL/DL),Trenton Miller (WR/DB),Kevin Russell (FB), Cody Williams(WR), Byron White (RB/DB) andMarkell Wyche (QB)•Key losses: Mike Covington (LB/TE),Josh Griffin (DB), Quran Stokes(RB/DB) and David Stockton (LB)

The Whetstone High Schoolfootball team played a bit short-handed a year ago, as the Bravesgot a late start understandingand practicing the systemsimplemented by coach Don Poffduring his first season.

They won three of their finalfour games, however, to finish4-6 overall and 3-4 in the CityLeague-North Division. Now,with a season of experienceand a full offseason to absorbPoff’s approach, the Braves arehoping to reach higher levels.

“We put the spread offensein and it took a while for thekids to make adjustments,”saidPoff, whose team opens Fri-day, Aug. 30 at home againstColumbus South. “Everythingwas new: the offense, defenseand coaches. The kids knowthe system now and believe inwhat we’re trying to accom-plish.They’ve worked hard andbonded and they share the samegoal – to win.”

Whetstone lost five offen-sive starters to graduation,including four on the line, butthe only skill-position playermissing from last year isreceiver Yusef Conteh. The2013 graduate had 49 recep-tions for 693 yards with ninetouchdowns.

Senior quarterback RamrothFinnegan (6-foot-2, 215pounds) has several capablereceivers in seniors TonyCordetti, Trent Harper andChris North and sophomoreAiden Tuttle.

Finnegan was 187-for-358passing for 2,458 yards and 20touchdowns and ran 92 timesfor 403 yards and three scores.

He was special team all-dis-trict in Division II, as was Con-teh and classmate DezwanPolk, a defensive lineman whois playing at Purdue.

“Finnegan is a Division Icollege prospect who has heardfrom many MAC schoolsalready,” Poff said. “He has allthe tools. He’s got a great arm,runs a 4.6 in the 40-yard dash

and is a strong leader.”In a 71-28 loss to Hilliard

Darby in the opener, Finneganthrew for 517 yards, tying forthe 19th-highest single-gamepassing total ever in Ohio.Finnegan had four games ofmore than 300 yards passing,including an 84-26 victory overAfricentric when he threw sixtouchdown passes.

Harper had 30 receptions for449 yards and three touch-downs. North caught 39 passesfor 333 yards and four scores.Tuttle had 21 catches for 321yards and three touchdowns.

“We’ve got a number ofweapons I can get the ball to,”Finnegan said. “Tuttle, Harper,Cordetti, (senior David) Sim-mons and (junior Justus) Bar-nett are all very good receiversand then we have two guys –(juniorAustin) Davy and (jun-ior Melek) White – who cancatch it and make plays out ofthe backfield.

“I think having a full yearworking together in this offenseis going to make a huge differ-ence. We went on our ownmaybe twice a week to indoorcomplexes to throw for an hourstarting last January. We’re

more comfortable. The routesand cuts are more precise,they’re coming back to the balland the fades are great. Ourtiming is more in sync andwe’re expecting big things.”

Senior guard DemetriusWade (6-1, 275) is the lonereturning starter on the line.He will be joined by seniorShane Johnson (6-0, 245) andjuniors Jeremy Polk (6-4, 325),James Summerall (5-10, 220)and Brendon Fabian (5-11,195).

“Wade is the drill sergeantof the group and Polk is a bigkid and very athletic,” Poff said.“We lost a lot of big linemenlast year and we may be a bitsmaller overall, but these guysare moving their feet and they


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Whetstone

Braves boast talented skill-position players

Quarterback Ramroth Finnegan (left) and running back Melek White both return as the Braves lookto improve on their 4-6 record. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

By BRAD EMERINETHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...........................vs. SouthSept. 6 .....................vs. AfricentricSept. 13......................at Whitehall*Sept. 20.................vs. Beechcroft*Sept. 27 ................at Brookhaven*Oct. 4 ..............................vs. East*Oct. 11 .........vs. Linden-McKinley*Oct. 18 .....................at Northland*Oct. 25...........................at Mifflin*Nov. 1 ....................vs. Centennial

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall, 3-4 City-North)Hilliard Darby...................L, 71-28Africentric.......................W, 84-26Columbus Academy .........L, 55-12*Mifflin ............................L, 60-24*Beechcroft .......................L, 43-6*Brookhaven....................L, 40-14

*East ..............................W, 26-20*Linden-McKinley .............W, 34-0*Northland.......................L, 34-28*Centennial.....................W, 26-20*League contest

INSIDE THE BRAVES•Coach: Don Poff, second season•Top players: Justus Barnett (LB),Darius Bester (DB), Austin Davy(RB/LB),Ramroth Finnegan (QB),TrentHarper (WR/DB), Chris North (SB),Jeremy Polk (OL) and Melek White(RB/DB)•Key losses: Ricky Cantor (OL),YusefConteh (WR), Jean Iresne (OL), JoelPaige (OL), Dezwan Polk (LB), GabeRife (OL), Josh Sanders (DB) andDanny Spencer (LB)

BRAVES >> 57

CITY LEAGUE-NORTH DIVISION



Brookhaven

Staying healthy is essential for BearcatsThe Brookhaven High

School football team has a setof established team rulesregarding attendance, workethic and attitude instilled bythird-year coach Trevor Whiteand a veteran coaching staff.

White jokes that he added anew “rule” this year that is actu-ally a reflection of the Bearcats’roster: Don’t get injured.

With lower overall numbersthan in some past years and lit-tle depth at most positions,Brookhaven’s success coulddepend on how much of animpact a small group of talentedtwo-way players can provide.

Brookhaven – which hasgone 14-7 in two seasons underWhite, including 7-3 a year agowhen it settled for 10th in Divi-sion II, Region 7 – opens Fri-day, Aug. 30, at ColumbusWest.

“Our starters are solid. Wejust can’t get hurt,” White said.“We’ve got good guys at eachposition but we’re just paperthin. We graduated 24 seniorsand we’ve got a good-sized sen-ior class again, but we’re goingto go as a few of those guysgo.”

The Bearcats are relying onseniors like Bruce Foster (6-foot-1, 185 pounds) and PaulHughes (5-11, 205) to take ona leadership role.

Hughes is a returning starterat linebacker and tight end.

Foster has started since hisfreshman season at linebackerand is taking over at quarter-back for 2013 graduate Kevin

Greenhow, who completed 57of 149 passes for 1,056 yardswith 16 touchdowns and fiveinterceptions and rushed 153times for 712 yards and 13scores.

Sophomore Macyah Flem-ing (6-3, 190) is the backupquarterback.

Junior David Peoples wasthrust into a key role at run-ning back last season after 2013graduate Blake McEwen wentdown with an injury that kept

him out for most of the season.Peoples finished with 415

yards on 67 carries and twotouchdowns and again shouldbe at running back, along withseniors Davonte Lewis andDevon Grant and juniorAntonPayne.

Lewis also will see time atH-back and wide receiver.Senior Keandre Powell and jun-ior Asan Crego are others atwide receiver.

Seniors Khaleal Weeks (5-

8, 230), Ne’Tronne Backus (5-10, 230) and John Finch (5-10,250) and juniors Stefen Banks(6-4, 285) and Steve Pelletier(6-0, 235) are expected to beon the offensive line.

Fleming will be the kicker.“We’ve been doing all right,

but we can pick it up a lotmore,” Hughes said. “Barelymissing (the playoffs) is stillmissing it. We’ve got a lot offire still burning in us this year.”

Brookhaven went 6-1 in the

City-North to finish secondbehind Beechcroft (7-0), whichdefeated the Bearcats 20-0 inweek nine a year ago.

Beechcroft was the onlyCity-North opponent to scoremore than two touchdowns ona Brookhaven defense thatagain should be a strength.

Hughes could work at anyof the linebacker spots. JuniorTakeyvion Simmons (5-10,


Paul Hughes drags down DeSales’ Alex Perrine during a game last season. Hughes will start at linebacker and tight end for theBearcats. COURTNEY HERGESHEIMER/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Jakob Green will start his fourth season in the secondary forthe Punchers. He also will play wide receiver.THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH FILE PHOTO

Mifflin

Offensive line to power PunchersThe biggest pieces neces-

sary for creating the kind ofrunning game the Mifflin HighSchool football team hopes todevelop appear to be in plen-tiful supply for coach GreggMiller.

Although nearly all of thePunchers’ key skill positionplayers from last season werelost to graduation, Mifflinmight have a bigger percent-age of offensive linemen on itsroster than any team in centralOhio.

In a program that has justmore than 40 players, fourgained starting experience lastseason on the line and 13 oth-ers could see action at one ofthe five positions.

Mifflin is hoping the build-ing blocks are in place foranother winning season after itwent 7-3 overall and finishedthird in the City League-NorthDivision at 5-2 behindBeechcroft (7-0) and Brook-haven (6-1).

The Punchers open Friday,Aug. 30, at Licking Heights,which was a Division II,

Region 7 playoff qualifier ayear ago.

“Our numbers aren’t verygood, but we’ve got competi-tion everywhere,” said coachGregg Miller, who is 20-10 inthree seasons with the Punch-ers after a 17-year run atBrookhaven that included sevenplayoff appearances and 10 CityLeague titles. “I’ve got a lot oflinemen returning. I’ve got fourout of my five offensive line-men from last year returningand I don’t know if all of themcan make the starting lineup.

“Some of them got in theweight room, and we had a cou-ple move-ins. I’m probablythree-deep on the offensiveline.”

Junior Michael Gause (6-2,228) is back for his third sea-son as a starter up front, andseniors Carlos Luna (5-foot-11, 234 pounds) and Andre’McLemore (6-1, 205) alsogained starting experience lastseason. Junior Kwame Peprah(6-0, 226) is among severalother players looking for play-ing time.

That group will pave the way


PUNCHERS >> 57

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .............at Licking HeightsSept. 6.......................vs. WestlandSept. 13 .......vs. Watkins Memorial*Sept. 20............at Columbus East*Sept. 27 ..................at Centennial*Oct. 4 ....................vs. Beechcroft*Oct. 11 ....................vs. Northland*Oct. 18...........at Linden-McKinley*Oct. 25...................vs. Whetstone*Nov. 1 ..................vs. Brookhaven

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 5-2 City-North)Independence..................L, 32-19Westland ........................W, 53-38Watkins Memorial ...........W, 25-20*Whetstone.....................W, 60-24*East ..............................W, 20-13*Centennial.......................W, 40-6

*Beechcroft .....................L, 34-19*Northland ........................W, 13-6*Linden-McKinley .............W, 42-0*Brookhaven....................L, 20-13*League contest

INSIDE THE PUNCHERS•Coach: Gregg Miller, fourth season•Top players: Maurice Chatman(RB/LB), Markaelon Duffy (TE/LB),Michael Gause (OL/DL), Jakob Green(WR/DB), Stanley Jackson (WR/DB),Carlos Luna (OL/DL), Makiyn Tate(RB/DB) and Aundreaus Winton(WR/DB)•Key losses: Javonte Bing (QB),Kamaron Green (WR/DB),Vinny Mills(WR/LB), Derrick Pope (RB) and JalenRobinson (OL/LB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..........at Columbus WestSept. 6...........at Marion-FranklinSept. 13.......vs. Central Crossing*Sept. 20 ................at Northland*Sept. 27 ..............vs. Whetstone*Oct. 4 .........at Linden-McKinley*Oct. 11............... vs. Centennial*Oct. 18.................at Beechcroft*Oct. 25 .........vs. Columbus East*Nov. 1.........................at Mifflin2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 6-1 City-North)Marion-Franklin ............L, 20-14DeSales........................L, 33-26Fairfield .......................W, 20-17*East .............................W, 47-6*Northland ...................W, 33-13*Whetstone..................W, 40-14*Linden .........................W, 35-8*Centennial....................W, 48-7*Beechcroft ....................L, 20-0*Mifflin ........................W, 20-13*League contestINSIDE THE BEARCATS•Coach: Trevor White, third sea-son•Top players: Ne’Tronne Backus(OL/DL), Stefen Banks (OL/DL)Bruce Foster (QB/LB), Josh Glaze(OL/DL), Paul Hughes (TE/LB),Davonte Lewis (RB/LB), David Peo-ples (RB), Keandre Powell (WR/DB)and Takeyvion Simmons (RB/LB)•Key losses: Lei’Tonn Backus(WR/DB), Ramone Broomfield(WR/DB), Mike Fair (RB/LB), CaseyGayle (WR/DB), Kevin Greenhow(QB/DB), Marquise Greenhow(RB/DB) and Clevis Towns (WR/DB)

BEARCATS >> 57



Columbus East

Tigers determined to continue upward trendSince taking over the pro-

gram in 2011, Lewis Carter hastried to be ready for whateverdaily task might await him asthe Columbus East High Schoolfootball coach.

During the summer, thatincludes picking up players ina van and driving them to prac-tice.This fall, he hopes his shep-herding of a roster of just 35players can produce another stepforward and continue theimprovement the Tigers dis-played a year ago.

East followed a 1-9 finish inCarter’s first season by improv-ing to 5-5 overall, including a2-5 record in the City League-North Division.

TheTigers open Friday,Aug.30, at Hamilton Township,which will mark their first gameagainst a non-City League pro-gram since 2008. During thepast four seasons, the non-con-ference schedule was comprisedsolely of City-South opponents.East also plays Sept. 13 atWest-

land, a member of the OCC-Central.

“I’m becoming more of acoach, mentor, father figure,”Carter said. “I feel like we’regoing in the right direction. Eachyear’s a different year so wedon’t know what to expect, butright now our main goal is toget better, game one. Each yearI feel like I’m growing as a headcoach.”

Several players who helpedEast improve by four victoriesa year ago are back, led by sen-ior quarterback James Curry(5-foot-9, 170 pounds), seniorwide receiver and defensiveback Zay’on Mock (5-10, 165)and senior middle linebackerNate Burkes (6-0, 225).

Curry made first-team all-league and honorable mentionall-district in Division III as hepassed for about 1,000 yardsand rushed for 800, and Burkeswas second-team all-district.

JuniorAaron Donaldson (5-9, 175) is expected to take overas the No. 1 running back for2013 graduate Joseph Good,who was honorable mention all-

district.Sophomore Asa Burke and

freshman Abul Dialo alsoshould see time at running back.

Junior wide receiver AndreWilliams (5-10, 175), Mock andsenior Nick Burke (6-2, 175),who could see time at both widereceiver and tight end, shouldbe other key players in a spreadoffense that will use some pis-tol formations.

Sophomore Orpheus Twy-man (6-3, 220) will be on anoffensive line that might havebeen the biggest question markduring the preseason. ShafiqMcDowell, who was second-team all-district on the offen-sive line, was another key playerwho must be replaced from asmall 2013 graduating class.

“We’ve just got to work a lit-tle harder and we’ll get there,”Curry said. “We went 5-5 lastyear and we actually started buy-ing in as a team and took a stepup. This year we’re trying tomake more progress.”

Williams, junior Marvel Senh(5-11, 180) and sophomoreWillEvans (5-11, 175) are expectedto be on the defensive line.

Despite being just 5-5, 150,senior Natrell Cunningham isexpected to be a key linebacker

along with Burkes and NickBurke.

Mock, Dialo,Asa Burke andsophomore Juwan Smith (5-8,145) are in the defensive back-field. Burkes will be the kickerand Curry is the punter.

TheTigers competed in Divi-sion III, Region 10 each of thelast three seasons but havemoved to Division IV, Region13 after the OHSAA’s expan-sion to seven divisions.

East is the second-smallestCity program behind Africen-tric, which is in Division VII.

The biggest reason for theTigers’ increase in victoriesmight have been an offense thatincreased its scoring from 9.2points per game in 2011 to 21.8a year ago. They scored a sea-son best during a 55-0 win overCentennial.The return of mostof the offense has East hopingthat trend continues.

“Our strongest suit is our ath-leticism in the skill positions,”Carter said. “Our weakest partis our line.”

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Northland

Veterans allow Vikingsto pick up offensive pace

Since KevinTooson took overas coach in 2003, the NorthlandHigh School football team hasused variations of the spreadoffense some years and a powerrunning game in others.

So it seemed like a no-brainerto the coach, who has the longestcontinuous tenure at a CityLeague school, when heinstalled a faster-paced mix ofthe run and pass this preseasonto better utilize the Vikings’speed.

Having a returning quarter-back and several other skill posi-tion players with experience andspeed has helped the latest tran-sition.

Northland, which went 5-5overall and placed fourth at 4-3 in the City League-North Divi-sion behind champion Beech-croft (7-0) a year ago, opensThursday,Aug. 29, at Indepen-dence and has a bye the nextweek.

“I love our athleticism,” saidTooson, who is 48-53 in 10 sea-sons. “Your personnel dictatesyour scheme, and our person-nel dictates that we’ve got fourto five guys on the field thatwhen they touch the ball theycan make some things happen.”

Seniors Jhustus Cornley (6-foot-1, 170 pounds) and Mal-colm Marshall (5-7, 155) andjuniors Abu Turay (5-7, 160),Nateshawn Hargrove (5-10, 185)and Sherman Watson (5-10,165) are among the top athletes.

At running back will be Har-

grove, who rushed for 516 yardsand six touchdowns, andTuray,who had 577 yards rushing andfour scores a year ago.

Cornley and Marshall willsee time in the backfield and atslotback.

Watson finished with 23catches for 269 yards and onetouchdown and should lead agroup of receivers that alsoincludes junior MohamedDiakite (5-11, 170).

Senior Robert Jackson (6-0,183) is at fullback, and sopho-more Jalen Jackson (6-0, 175)will be the H-back and tight end.

Junior Glenn Smith III returnsat quarterback after completing51 of 121 passes for 753 yardswith six touchdowns and sixinterceptions. Smith, who alsowill handle punting duties,added 363 yards rushing on 72carries with seven scores. JuniorNick Fisher (5-10, 200) also isat quarterback.

Leading the offensive line arejuniors Michael Kyle (6-3, 265)and Mike Harris (5-9, 230) andsophomore Cortez Brooks (6-0, 200). Seniors Justin Hill (6-5, 280), Mohamed Mara (6-3,250) and Carlos Brim (5-10,

220) are expected to contributeup front as well.

“This is without question themost athletic front in my 11years,” Tooson said. “We havea good amount of depth upfront.”

Kyle, Mara, senior DaronDickson (5-10, 240) and jun-iors Mohamed Kaba (5-10, 230)and Jeremy Richmond (5-10,240) all are on the defensiveline.

Hargrove, Fisher and seniorAdrion Taylor (5-11, 220) willplay linebacker.

Leading the secondary shouldbe Turay and Marshall at cor-nerback. Senior JamesWilliams(5-9, 170) is at strong safety,with Cornley, Smith and seniorCorbin Bannister (5-6, 150) alsoat safety. Cornley, who is theyounger brother of 2011 North-

land graduate Jakyl Cornley andthe cousin of former Brook-haven boys basketball playerJamelle Cornley and Northlandfootball player Javon Cornley,should be among the top return-ers along with Marshall.

“Things have been goingreally well,” Marshall said.“We’re feeling more confidentthan we have in the past. Thenew up-tempo offense will uti-lize our athletes better. We’vejust got to maximize everythingwe’re trying to do.”

Northland closes the non-league schedule Sept. 14 atCincinnatiTaft, which made theplayoffs in 2010 and 2011 butwent 7-3 a year ago and fin-ished 11th in Division III,Region 12.

The Vikings – who madetheir only previous playoff

appearance in 2010 when theycompeted in Division I – werein Division II, Region 7 last sea-son. They have been moved toDivision II, Region 5 this sea-son with the OHSAA’s expan-sion to seven divisions.

“Last year we started a lot ofsophomores, and this year we’llmaybe only have eight to 10seniors, so we’re heavily jun-ior-driven,”Tooson said. “A lotof the guys got playing time lastyear, but the great thing aboutsophomores is that they becomejuniors. Our seniors are a goodgroup of guys who work hard.

“I think we may have themost experience coming back(in the City-North), but withthat being said, we just want tokeep reaching our potential.”

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Nateshawn Hargrove rushed for 516 yards and six touchdowns last season. He again will bejoined at running back by Abu Turay. JOHN HULKENBERG/THISWEEKSPORTS



At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ........at Hamilton TownshipSept. 6............................at BriggsSept. 13......................at Westland*Sept. 20........................vs. Mifflin*Sept. 27 ..................vs. Northland*Oct. 4 ......................at Whetstone*Oct. 11 ..................vs. Beechcroft*Oct. 18....................at Centennial*Oct. 25 ..................at Brookhaven*Nov. 1...........vs. Linden-McKinley

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 2-5 City-North)Columbus West.................W, 22-7Columbus South .................W, 6-0Africentric.......................W, 41-14*Brookhaven......................L, 47-6*Mifflin ............................L, 20-13

*Northland.......................L, 20-14*Whetstone......................L, 26-20*Beechcroft .....................L, 66-13*Centennial.......................W, 55-0*Linden...........................W, 28-16*League contest

INSIDE THE TIGERS•Coach: Lewis Carter, third season•Top players: Asa Burke (RB/DB),Nick Burke (TE/LB), Nate Burkes (LB),James Curry (QB),Abul Dialo (RB/DB),Aaron Donaldson (RB), Zay’on Mock(WR/DB) and Andre Williams (WR/DB)•Key losses: Marcelius Brown (WR),James Davis (WR), Joseph Good(RB/DB), P.J. Kinlocke (WR), ShafiqMcDowell (OL) and Enous McGee(WR/DB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 29 ...............at IndependenceSept. 14 ..............at Cincinnati Taft*Sept. 20 ...............vs. Brookhaven*Sept. 27 ..........vs. Columbus East*Oct. 4.....................vs. Centennial*Oct. 11...........................at Mifflin*Oct. 18...................vs. Whetstone*Oct. 25...........at Linden-McKinley*Nov. 1 .....................at Beechcroft

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 4-3 City-North)Eastmoor Academy ............L, 27-6Logan......................W, 32-26 (OT)Toledo Rogers....................L, 20-8*Linden.............................W, 27-6*Brookhaven....................L, 33-13

*East ..............................W, 20-14*Centennial.......................W, 38-0*Mifflin ..............................L, 13-6*Whetstone.....................W, 34-28*Beechcroft .......................L, 41-0*League contest

INSIDE THE VIKINGS•Coach: Kevin Tooson, 11th season•Top players: Jhustus Cornley(WR/DB),Nateshawn Hargrove (RB/LB),Mike Harris (OL/DL), Michael Kyle(OL/DL), Malcolm Marshall (WR/DB),Glenn Smith III (QB), AbuTuray (RB/DB)and Sherman Watson (WR)•Key losses: Robbie Darnell (WR/DB),Azariah Turner (OL) and BrandonWilliams (TE/LB)

During some of its greatestseasons under former coachTom Dunlap from 1986-2009,the Beechcroft High Schoolfootball team built its successaround defense and a punish-ing running game.

With that in mind, theCougars appear to be return-ing to their roots.

The loss of quarterbackMaurice Hale to graduationafter he was the district’s Divi-sion II Offensive Player of theYear has led Beechcroft to putmore running plays back intoits repertoire, and the return-ing personnel appears wellsuited to this approach.

The Cougars’ most impor-tant player could be seniorAdonis Davis (6-foot-2, 240pounds), who rushed for morethan 300 yards a year ago andshould lead the running game.He’ll also start at linebackerfor the fourth consecutive sea-son.

After Beechcroft went 8-2,made the playoffs for the sec-ond consecutive season andwon at least a share of the CityLeague-North Division cham-pionship for the third year ina row, coach Bruce Ward spentthe offseason looking for waysto keep the latest run of suc-cess going.

The Cougars open Friday,Aug. 30, at home against Day-ton Dunbar.

“Our defense is a strength,”said Ward, who is 31-10 infour seasons.

“Our offensive productionis where we’re not real sure.We hope to do both (runningand passing), but our greatestskill might be handing it off.We’ll still run multiple sets,but we might go more two-back. We’re definitely goingto try to run the ball this year.How well we can do it, wedon’t know.”

Junior Scott Scase (5-8,165) is the new quarterbackafter seeing limited actionbehind Hale, who is playingfor Lake Erie College. SeniorsMichael French (5-7, 158) andKhalor Franklin (5-11, 200)are others at running back.

Senior Landers Cox (6-2,202) has started since hisfreshman year in the defen-sive backfield and should beone of the top wide receivers.

Others receivers includeseniors Darius Ford (6-0, 177)and Candido Hernandez (6-1,180), junior Rayshawn Norah(5-8, 160) and sophomoreMike Powers (5-10, 160).

Hale completed 115 of 202passes for 2,014 yards with25 touchdowns and six inter-ceptions and also rushed for1,305 yards and 15 touch-downs.

Another key loss on offensewas 2013 graduate KhaleedFranklin, who had 41 catches

last season and is in camp withOhio State.

Also in their graduatingclass were Antonio Davis(OL/DL), who is playing forUrbana, andAntonio McCloud(WR/DB), who is playing forTiffin.

Looking to contribute onthe offensive line are juniorTyree Dukes (6-3, 275),Chaquez Fair (6-1, 280) andZack Stewart (6-0, 260) andsophomore Christian Scase(5-7, 195). Ford will be at tightend in some formations.

“We’ve got a junior at quar-

terback, but Scott is doing agood job,” Ford said. “We’vekind of changed our offensea little to help our situation.We’re going to need moreleadership and for certain play-ers to step up. Our defense isgoing to be even better thanlast year.”

In addition to having Ado-nis Davis back at middle line-backer, the defense should fea-ture Cox as a hybrid outsidelinebacker and safety and Fordat defensive end.

Fair and Stewart will be attackle, senior Jordan Nalls (5-

10, 170) is at end, KhalorFranklin will play inside line-backer and junior Jabauri Web-ster, senior Charles Ellis (5-6, 160), Powers, Norah andHernandez are in the second-ary.

“We had a good offseasonin the weight room,” said Ado-nis Davis, who has started allbut one game on defense overthe past three seasons. “There’snothing more important thanwinning in your senior yearand we’ve got a good group.We’re excited.”

After losing in the firstround of the Division II play-offs the past two seasons,including a year ago when itfell to New Albany 25-6,Beechcroft has moved to Divi-sion III and will compete inRegion 9 after the OHSAA’sexpansion to seven divisions.

Fellow City-North teamsBrookhaven, Mifflin and Cen-tennial also are in Region 9.

After not having an oppo-nent in week one of the regu-lar season last fall, Dunbar andWalnut Ridge have been addedand the Cougars again areplaying Dublin Jerome. Wal-nut Ridge and Jerome bothcompete in Division II andDunbar is in Division IV.

“Obviously, our expecta-tions don’t change,” Ward said.“We always expect to competefor the City-North and to makethe playoffs but we need somekids to step up. We’ve just gotto go out and compete and wecan’t rely on the past.”

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Beechcroft

Cougars plan to rely on familiar formula

Adonis Davis will start at linebacker for the fourth season while also leading the running game. LAURIE STEVENSON/THISWEEKSPORTS


At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.............vs. Dayton DunbarSept. 6................at Dublin JeromeSept. 13...............vs. Walnut Ridge*Sept. 20 ..................at Whetstone*Sept. 27........vs. Linden-McKinley*Oct. 4 ............................at Mifflin*Oct. 11 .............at Columbus East*Oct. 18.................vs. Brookhaven*Oct. 25....................at Centennial*Nov. 1 .....................vs. Northland

2012 RESULTS(8-2 overall, 7-0 City-North)Dublin Jerome ................W, 18-10St. Charles.......................L, 20-18*Centennial.....................W, 55-15*Whetstone.......................W, 43-6*Linden.............................W, 43-6*Mifflin ...........................W, 34-19

*East ..............................W, 66-13*Brookhaven.....................W, 20-0*Northland ........................W, 41-0PLAYOFFSNew Albany .......................L, 25-6*League contest

INSIDE THE COUGARS•Coach: Bruce Ward, fifth season•Top players: Landers Cox (WR/DB),Adonis Davis (RB/LB), Chaquez Fair(OL/DL), Darius Ford (WR/DB), KhalorFranklin (RB/LB), Rayshawn Norah(WR/DB), Mike Powers (WR/DB) andScott Scase (QB)•Key losses: Antonio Davis (OL/DL),Khaleed Franklin (WR/DB), MauriceHale (QB), Rickey Hall (OL), AntonioMcCloud (WR/LB), Redghi Remy(WR/LB) and Dalaun Young (WR/DB)



Linden-McKinley

Panthers pin hopes to switch to spread offenseFollowing a 2011 season in which it

won three games and averaged 15.8 points,the Linden-McKinley High School foot-ball team believed it finally was startingto make some headway offensively.

The Panthers never saw the progressthey were looking for a year ago, how-ever, and instead finished 1-9 overall and0-7 in the City-North.

After being held under 10 points in allbut three games, Linden is bringing backa similar spread offensive scheme but hop-ing for better results because of its ath-leticism.

Junior James Williams (5-foot-7, 160pounds) is a slot receiver who has run the40 in 4.5 seconds, and junior Nick Battle(6-2, 200) is back at running back aftermaking first-team all-league last season.

“We’re going to run the spread,” coachAaron Owens said.

“That’s what I ran at West and we hadsome success there. James Williams isjust a real athlete and Nick Battle madefirst-team all-City last year. We’re tryingto get better.”

Owens has been using some version of

the spread well before he took over at Lin-den in 2009. When Owens was runningthe offense while at Columbus West from2003-05, the Cowboys went 11-19 includ-ing a 6-4 record in 2004 when they aver-aged 25 points.

Karl Sharp, a former running back and1988 Whetstone graduate, is in his sec-ond season as an offensive assistant.

Linden posted its only win last seasonwhen it opened by beatingAfricentric 36-14. It will begin this season Friday, Aug.30, against the Nubians on the road.

Junior Wanya Glenn is at quarterback,with senior Kendal Lockett, a Beechcrofttransfer, as the backup. Lockett also willsee action at wide receiver.

Senior Davounte Cox is back at widereceiver, and juniors Marquise Mann andGeorge Reid also are at the position. JuniorHasan Vance (6-6, 200) is the tight end.

On the offensive line, the Panthers willfeature seniors Josh Spelhaug (6-3, 285)and Damon Green (5-11, 250) and jun-ior Jeff Schwalbauch (6-6, 320).

According to Owens, Williams wasnamed the outstanding player at an off-season camp in Cleveland.

“It’s coming together well,” Williamssaid. “We’re running the spread offense

and it’s going to be more up tempo thanit was last year. We’re picking our speedup. We’ve got a quicker defense and justa quicker team, period.”

Schwalbauch – who has a 4.2 grade-point average, according to Owens – alsoshould join Spelhaug and Green as fix-tures on the defensive line along withVance.

Senior Dymanic Johnson (6-1, 220) isat outside linebacker and on the defen-sive line. He sat out last season after trans-ferring from Columbus East.

Williams, Reid and senior KavonEdwards will play in the secondary.

Since finishing 6-4 in 2001, Linden hasgone 4-6 three times but is just 26-83 over-all.

The Panthers are 8-32 in four seasonsunder Owens.

Another assistant working to turn theprogram around is 1995 Walnut Ridgegraduate Eric Smith, who was a defen-sive tackle for Ohio State in the late 1990sand is helping to call the defense.

Linden was in Division III, Region 10a year ago but has moved down to Divi-sion IV, Region 13 after the OHSAA’s

Centennial

Coaching changes provide new lookThe Centennial High School

football team’s coaching staffwent through some majorchanges during the offseason.

Donte Goosby has replacedMark Shaffer as coach afterserving as defensive coordina-tor the previous three seasons.

Philip Farmer has replacedGoosby as defensive coordina-tor after being the assistantdefensive coordinator last year,andAnthonyThornton has takenover as offensive coordinatorafter he was the coach atBrookhaven from 2008-10 andthe Bearcats’offensive coordi-nator from 2003-07.

Goosby acknowledged hisplayers have had to make a lotof adjustments on the fly, butsaid they have embraced thosechanges after the Stars went 1-9 overall and 1-6 in the CityLeague-North Division last year.

“We’re changing the waywe’re doing things quite a bitthis year, but our guys are adjust-ing to those changes really well,”said Goosby, whose team opensFriday,Aug. 30, at Grandview.“Nobody was happy with usfinishing 1-9 last year and we’reall working hard to change theway we’re doing things, becausewe want to get better.”

Goosby has given bothThornton and Farmer the free-dom to make major changes inthe way the Stars run theiroffense and defense.

Thornton is tweaking Cen-tennial’s offset-I offense.

Thornton, who ledBrookhaven to a 24-10 recordand two playoff berths as coach,was the Bearcats’offensive coor-

dinator in 2004 when they wonthe Division II state champi-onship.

The Stars return seven offen-sive starters in junior quarter-

back Jeremy Johnson, juniorfullback Darsean Watts, seniorrunning back Dazmin Smith,senior tight end Jirequez Fair-Harris, senior guard Kenny

Lambert and senior twins NickMartin (T) and Noah Martin(C). Johnson and Fair-Harriswere honorable mention all-league a year ago.

Junior tackle Hunter Waits,junior wide receivers AnthonySlappy andTyler Hill and soph-

omore wide receivers JoeCooper andTyler Patterson alsoare expected to contribute tothe Stars’ multiple-formationoffense.

“Anthony’s an offensivegenius and he’s been a big helpto me as a first-year head coachbecause he has a lot of knowl-edge to pull from,” Goosby said.“We ran a lot of plays out of theI-formation last year, but we’regoing to run plays out of mul-tiple formations this year. Thehallmark ofAnthony’s offensesis that they are efficient and bal-anced.

“Whether we’re runningplays out of the I or spreadingdefenses out with three or fourwide receivers, Anthony willtake what people give him.”

Under Farmer’s supervision,Centennial has converted froma 50 defense to a 3-4. Threedefensive starters have returnedin Lambert (NG), Watts (LB)and Noah Martin (DE).

Other players who areexpected to be key members ofthe defense are junior free safetyCole Murray, Fair-Harris (LB),Hill (CB), Patterson (CB),Slappy (OLB) and Waits (DE).

Johnson again will handlepunting duties.

“We see a lot of spreadoffenses competing in the CityLeague-North, and using a 3-4 defense allows us to be moreversatile against the spread,”Goosby said. “Our (first-stringplayers) are solid on both sidesof the ball, but we have a lot ofguys going both ways and wedon’t have a lot of depth, so wehave to avoid injuries at allcosts.”

Dazmin Smith, a senior running back, is one of seven returning starters on offense for the Stars.LAURIE STEVENSON/THISWEEKSPORTS

ByAARON BLANKENSHIPTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .....................at AfricentricSept. 6 .............vs. Columbus WestSept. 13..........vs. Columbus South*Sept. 20 ..................at Centennial*Sept. 27..................at Beechcroft*Oct. 4...................vs. Brookhaven*Oct. 11 ....................at Whetstone*Oct. 18 .........................vs. Mifflin*Oct. 25 ....................vs. Northland*Nov. 1...............at Columbus East

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 0-7 City-North)Africentric.......................W, 36-14Hunting Valley University School.......................................L, 40-18West..................................L, 42-0*Northland.........................L, 27-6*Centennial........................L, 15-8

*Beechcroft .......................L, 43-6*Brookhaven......................L, 35-8*Whetstone........................L, 34-0*Mifflin ..............................L, 42-0*East ...............................L, 28-16*League contest

INSIDE THE PANTHERS•Coach: Aaron Owens, fifth season•Top players: Nick Battle (RB/LB),Davounte Cox (WR/DB),Wanya Glenn(QB), Marquise Mann (WR/DB), JeffSchwalbauch (OL/DL), Josh Spel-haug (OL/DL), Hasan Vance (TE/DL)and James Williams (WR/DB)•Key losses: Kijuan Busby (RB/DB),Dimitrius Ridgeway (QB), TremayneTittle (WR/LB), Dashawn Willis (LB)and Rashawn Willis (RB/LB)

PANTHERS >> 57

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .................at GrandviewSept. 6 .........vs. Franklin HeightsSept. 12.......................at Bexley*Sept. 20.....vs. Linden-McKinley*Sept. 27 ....................vs. Mifflin*Oct. 4 ....................at Northland*Oct. 11...............at Brookhaven*Oct. 18 .........vs. Columbus East*Oct. 25 ...............vs. Beechcroft*Nov. 1 ..................at Whetstone

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 1-6 City-North)Grandview....................L, 42-20Columbus West.............L, 27-13Columbus South ...........L, 34-13*Beechcroft ..................L, 55-15*Linden .........................W, 15-8*Mifflin ...........................L, 40-6*Northland......................L, 38-0*Brookhaven...................L, 48-7*East ..............................L, 55-0*Whetstone...................L, 26-20*League contest

INSIDE THE STARS•Coach: Donte Goosby, first sea-son•Top players: Jirequez Fair-Har-ris (TE/LB), Jeremy Johnson (QB/P),Kenny Lambert (OG/ NG), NoahMartin (C/ DE), Dazmin Smith (RB)and Darsean Watts (FB/ LB)•Key losses: Eric Cofer-Wilson(WR), Aaron Giles (DL), RonaldPhillips (OL), Jordan Talley (OL) andP.J. Rogers (RB)

STARS >> 57


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have a grasp on the blocking schemes.”The 4-3 defense will be led by line-

backers Barnett and Davy. Senior DemetriBurrell (5-11, 175) and junior Ryan Bur-nett (5-11, 185) are vying for the otherlinebacker position.The line should includeseniors Nate Huffman (5-11, 220) andLaquan Seally (6-0, 195) and juniors RufusDixon (6-0, 200) and Summerall.

The defensive backfield is deep andtalented, with senior Darius Bester join-ing Harper and White. Also expected tosee action are seniors Quintez Poole,MitchellTijernia and Devon White-Revere.

“Justus Barnett is an exceptional ath-lete and will make an impact whenever

he steps on the field,” Poff said. “Huff-man and Dixon should hold down thedefensive line.

“Harper and Bester will lead a stronggroup in the back. Harper is extremelytalented and can play anywhere on thefield. He has tremendous football IQ.Bester is a delight to watch and runs alegit 4.3 40, so he’ll also be used at run-ning back.”

Harper was honorable mention all-dis-trict, as was 2013 graduate Gabe Rife onthe offensive line.

“I think we have a lot of talent and thekids have worked very hard, so we’reexpecting big things,” Poff said.

[email protected]

BRAVESFROM >> 52

expansion to seven divisions.Last season, 2013 graduate

Kijuan Busby was honorablemention all-district at quarter-back and classmates DashawnWillis (LB) and Rashawn Willis(RB/LB) were special mentionall-district.

“We’ve all been practicingreally well,” said Battle, whowas the boys basketball team’sleading scorer and rebounderand threw the shot put 46 feetin track and field as a sopho-more. “We just want to have abetter season.”

[email protected]

PANTHERSFROM >> 56

The Stars are looking to improve notonly their overall record but their seventh-place finish in the City-North behind cham-pion Beechcroft (7-0).

“I’m not going to throw (out) some arbi-trary number of wins that we’re shootingfor,” Goosby said. “We just want to getbetter and improve on how we finishedlast year.

“I fully expect the City League-Northto be extremely athletic. Beechcroft, Brook-haven and Northland are always tough andthe rest of the teams are improving, so we’llneed to be prepared to do our best everyFriday night.”

[email protected]

STARSFROM >> 56

for a group of running backsthat should feature juniors Mau-rice Chatman (5-7, 151) andMakiyn Tate (5-7, 140) andsophomore Donya Smith (5-9,160). Derrick Pope, a 2013 grad-uate, rushed for 1,456 yards and20 touchdowns while makingfirst-team all-district in Divi-sion II.

Seniors Jakob Green (5-7,160) andAundreausWinton (6-0, 170) and juniors Stanley Jack-son (6-3, 180) and MontreseFrazier (5-11, 175) are at widereceiver. Jackson is a transferfrom Hartley.

Senior Markaelon Duffy isback at tight end. Senior JamieSpeed (6-2, 180) and juniorLamont Bowman (5-11, 185)are others at the position.

The biggest question markduring the preseason might havebeen who would replace 2013graduate Javonte Bing at quar-terback. Bing was honorablemention all-district after pass-ing for more than 1,300 yardsa year ago.

Senior Marsaan Banks (6-0,170) and sophomore Mike Bell,a transfer fromWorthington Kil-bourne, were the top candidates.

“We’ll run a lot of differentformations with some one-backand some two-back,” Millersaid. “I think our run-to-passratio will be pretty even.”

Because of Mifflin’s lownumbers, many of the offensivelinemen also will play key roleson defense.

Luna is a returning starter onthe defensive line, with Gauseand senior Christian Stevens (5-6, 186) also likely to see action.

Duffy could see time on theline or at linebacker. Sopho-more Melik Scott (5-9, 210)earned starting experience lastseason at the position, and sen-ior Taz Littlefield (5-6, 194),Bowman and Chatman are oth-ers at linebacker.

Green is beginning his fourthseason as a starter in the sec-ondary, and Smith also shouldsee time in the backfield.

Another player Mifflin mustreplace on both sides of the ballis 2013 graduate KamaronGreen, who was first-team all-district and third-team all-stateat wide receiver and also startedat cornerback.

Last season, the Puncherswere 5-1 before losing toBeechcroft 34-19.They closedthe regular season with a 20-13loss to Brookhaven and endedup 11th in Region 7.

Mifflin, Centennial,Beechcroft and Brookhavenfrom the City-North all willcompete this fall in Division III,Region 9 after the OHSAA’sexpansion to seven divisions.

“The competition we haveon the offensive and defensivelines is tremendous,” JakobGreen said. “One thing coachMiller has installed is how tobe here as a team. We can’t bein here to make big plays if we’renot all in.”

[email protected]

PUNCHERSFROM >> 53

175), Lewis, Crego, Payne andsenior Terry Barker are othersat the position.

Seniors Justin Baker (5-11,230) and Josh Glaze (6-3, 195)are expected to be on the defen-sive line along with Weeks,Ne’Tronne Backus, Finch,Banks and Pelletier.

Powell will be in the second-ary along with Grant and jun-iors Giovaughnni Bonner andColby Ketchens.

The Bearcats could look dif-ferent scheme-wise on defensethan they have in several yearsafter long-time assistant SteveAyers left to join the coachingstaff at Walnut Ridge.

Wes Edwards, a 2008Brookhaven graduate whoplayed defensive back, is thenew defensive coordinator.

Brookhaven made it to theRegion 7 playoffs duringWhite’s first season beforecoming up short of the post-season for just the fourth timesince 2000 last fall.

The Bearcats – like City-North foes Beechcroft, Cen-tennial and Mifflin – all havemoved into Division III, Region9 after the OHSAA’s expan-sion to seven divisions.

Brookhaven’s opener againstWest will mark the firstmatchup between the programssince 2002 when the Bearcatswon 17-0 in a matchup of City-Red Division opponents.

Also new to the schedule isCentral Crossing, which willtravel to Brookhaven on Sept.13.

The Bearcats play Sept. 6 atMarion-Franklin, a team it haslost to each of the past threeseasons.

“Last year we lost a coupleof heartbreakers,” White said.“These guys don’t want that tohappen again.That’s their moti-vation for this year. Every-body’s got some rebuilding todo this year (in the City-North).I don’t think there are any heavyfavorites.”

[email protected]

BEARCATSFROM >> 53

Several members of a defen-sive front that helped the Wat-terson High School footballteam return to the playoffs aftera one-year absence are backthis season.

According to senior line-backer Eli Kirk, though, that’sonly a part of the battle.

During the offseason, theEagles’ defense put its focuson being fundamentally soundto go along with the aggres-sive attitude that remainedintact following a 7-4 finishthat included a CCL-SilverDivision championship.

They’ll need both to be ontrack to help them navigatethrough a schedule that includesjust three home games. TheEagles open Friday, Aug. 30,at Walnut Ridge.

“We have a lot of mean ath-letes and we’ve beaten up a lotof teams with a lot bigger tal-ent pools because we pride our-selves in that,” Kirk said. “Itcomes down to the fact thatwe’ve got to be really disci-plined. In the preseason, whatwe kept doing was working onour tackling form and dedica-tion to our responsibilities. Ifeel like our defense is reallyfar along as far as knowing ourresponsibilities and our cover-age.”

Coming off a 2011 seasonin which it went 3-7, Watter-son bounced back with a three-game winning streak to beginthe season and a four-gamewinning streak to close the reg-ular season that included a 24-21 triple-overtime victory overDeSales.

The Eagles, who then lostto Bryan 41-24 in the firstround of the Division III,Region 10 playoffs, have a slewof other key returnees on

defense.In addition to Kirk (6-foot-

1, 218 pounds), also back areseniors John Bogue (6-1, 277),Nathan DiPalma (6-1, 221) andKyle Fada (6-2, 253). Boguehad 50 tackles and was second-team all-district.

Senior Ryan Urquhart (5-11, 172) had three intercep-tions at defensive back, and

senior Cody Calhoun (5-11,201) also is back in the sec-ondary after making 51 tack-les and earning honorable men-tion all-district.

Seniors Joe Brogan (6-0,254), Noah Dall (6-2, 226) andJacob Graham (5-9, 206) areothers on the defensive line,while linebackers include sen-iors Patrick Roark (6-2, 181)and Evan Woosley (5-9, 180)and juniors Matt Froehle (6-1,202) and Jack Haley (5-9, 215).

Others at cornerback alongwith Urquhart are seniors Wal-ter Green (5-8, 160) and BradyMcCurdy (5-9, 176), with sen-ior Patrick Pirrmann (6-2, 183)and juniors Ben Kaminski (5-11, 190) and Sam Maglicic (6-0, 185) joining Calhoun atsafety.

Andrew Lorenz, a 2013graduate who was the district’sDefensive Player of the Year,is playing for Ohio Domini-can. Joe Winters (Ohio North-ern) and Josh Hoyng (Witten-berg) are other linemen and2013 graduates who are play-ing collegiately.

“We’ve just got some prettysolid, steady kids,” said coachDan Bjelac, who is 83-38 in10 seasons. “Cody does a lotby example and Kyle hasplayed a lot.”

Fada, DiPalma and Bogueare expected to be starters onthe offensive line as well.

The biggest hole on offensewas created with the loss tograduation of quarterbackAndy

Elberson, who is now playingfor Butler.

Elberson finished 65 of 128passing for 810 yards and threetouchdowns and rushed for 709yards and 12 scores while mak-ing special mention all-district.

Competing during the pre-season to replace Elberson wereMcCurdy, Maglicic and Pir-rmann.

“They all bring something

to the table,” Bjelac said. “Ourdepth concern is probably onthe offensive line. We’ve gotmore back at the skill posi-tions.”

Expected to lead the runninggame is Green, who rushed fora team-best 753 yards witheight touchdowns and was hon-orable mention all-district. Cal-houn ran for 355 yards, butDeAndre Golden – who rushed

for 398 yards a year ago – trans-ferred to Ready for his seniorseason.

Kaminski is another tailback,with Haley, Woosley and Gra-ham at fullback in an offensethat could show some optionand pistol formation looks.

Urquhart returns at widereceiver after finishing withseven receptions for 103 yards,with Roark, senior Wesley Gra-ham (5-6, 146) and juniorsAlexLoscko (6-1, 175) and TeddyWalter (5-11, 165) also expectedto see action at receiver.

Senior Alec Greene (6-4,223) had six catches for 131yards and returns at tight end.

Others on the offensive lineinclude seniors Sean Zielke (5-11, 243), Joe Hamlett (5-11,202), Chas Parise (5-11, 194)and Jonny Heath (5-10, 237)and junior John Pirrmann (6-4, 230).

After competing in eitherDivision II or III in past post-seasons, Watterson has moveddown to Division IV with theOHSAA’s expansion to sevendivisions.

“I think we have the abilityto mix it up offensively basedon who we play and play fun-damental defense in not giv-ing up big plays,” Bjelac said.“The bottom line is that youhave to get better at a fewthings. Last year we made mis-takes that weren’t necessarilyturnovers.”

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Watterson

Emphasis on fundamentals key for Eagles

Walter Green led the Eagles in rushing a year ago, gaining 753 yards and scoring eight touchdowns. He also is expected to see playing time at cornerback.LAURIE STEVENSON/THISWEEKSPORTS


At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.................at Walnut RidgeSept. 6 ...........................at MasonSept. 13.................at Walsh JesuitSept. 20.......vs. Cin. Winton WoodsSept. 27.........at Cincinnati LaSalleOct. 4 ...........................vs. Hartley*Oct. 18........................at DeSales*Oct. 25 ..................vs. St. CharlesNov. 1 ................at Jonathan Alder

2012 RESULTS(7-4 overall, 2-0 CCL-Silver)White. Anthony Wayne.....W, 28-14Hamilton...........................W, 21-3Walsh Jesuit .....................W, 13-7Winton Woods..................L, 21-14LaSalle ............................L, 35-16Hartley ............................L, 28-14Ironton..............................W, 42-8*DeSales...............W, 24-21 (3 OT)

*St. Charles.....................W, 21-17Jonathan Alder................W, 27-19PLAYOFFSBryan ..............................L, 41-24*League contest

INSIDE THE EAGLES•Coach: Dan Bjelac, 11th season•Top players: John Bogue (OL/DL),Cody Calhoun (RB/DB), NathanDiPalma (OL/DL), Kyle Fada (OL/DL),Walter Green (RB/DB), Alec Greene(TE/DL) Eli Kirk (RB/LB), Patrick Roark(WR/LB/P) and Ryan Urquhart(WR/DB)•Key losses: George Cleary (TE/DL),Andy Elberson (QB), DeAndre Golden(RB), Andrew Lorenz (OL/DL), JohnNutter (WR/DB), Matt Stafford (LB)and Michael Vlahakis (WR/DB/P)

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DeSales

Stallions eyeplayoffs withnew offense

Since well before Ryan Wig-gins took over as coach in 2007,running a form of the triple-option offense has seemed tobe as much a part of theDeSales High School footballtradition as has been its propen-sity to make the playoffs

The Stallions missed thepostseason for the first timesince 1993 a year ago but isn’tplanning to let that happenagain.

The offense that has been apart of DeSales’ identity ischanging, too.

Now calling the plays andserving as the quarterbackscoach is Tom Kaczkowski,who helped develop the pistoloffense while he was the headcoach at Ohio Northern Uni-versity in 1999.

Under Kaczkowski, whocoached at the northwest Ohiocollege from 1986-2002 andnow lives in central Ohio, theStallions are expected to showa mix of the option and the pis-tol.

Junior Brandon Krietemeyer(5-foot-8, 155 pounds), whosat out last season after trans-ferring from Thomas Wor-thington, is expected to be thequarterback.

The offense will be on dis-play in the regular season forthe first time Friday, Aug. 30,when the Stallions open atWesterville Central.

“We’re doing some differ-ent things scheme-wise,” saidWiggins, who is 53-21 in sixseasons at DeSales. “We’rerunning out of the pistol andtrying to use our skill players.The option is sort of a roboticoffense and you can’t alwaysdictate who is going to get theball. It’s been fun.”

Surrounding Krietemeyerin the hybrid offense is a trioof players who gained signif-icant experience last season inseniors Griff Saunders (6-2,215),TuckerYinger (5-10, 170)and Sayyid Kanu (5-11, 180).

Saunders verbally commit-ted to Bowling Green in mid-June and will serve as the H-back and tight end. Kanurushed for 141 yards andYinger ran for 120 yards ascomplementary running backs

a year ago to 2013 graduateJ.T. Blubaugh, who rushed for895 yards and 10 touchdownsand is now playing lacrosse atOhio State.

Also lost to graduation wasquarterback Alex Perrine, whowas 48-for-81 passing for 739yards with eight touchdownsand rushed for 560 yards.

Senior Emmanuel Mawu-tor (5-11, 210) and juniorsPatrick Hoffman (5-9, 170)and Josh DeLozier (5-9, 170)are others at running back.Seniors Matt Negron (5-11,170) and Andrew Sparks (5-10, 165) and juniors Luke Mel-sop (6-3, 200) and MichaelWade (6-1, 160) are lookingto contribute as receivers.

Junior Nick O’Brien (6-1,275) returns at center. SeniorsBryan Stopar (6-1, 215), MyronGoldsmith (6-2, 220) andDomenic Skunda (5-10, 220)and junior Brian Dytko (5-10,230) are others on the line.

“I’m really excited about(the offense),” Yinger said.“I’ve been kind of like a speedfullback in it. It’s quite a bitdifferent than the triple option.This offense is about waitingfor things to open up and justreading the defense.”

DeSales gave up an averageof 22.6 points a year ago whilegoing 5-5 overall and 1-1 inthe CCL-Silver Division. TheStallions lost a pair of triple-overtime games – to Gahanna13-10 and to Watterson 24-21– and ended up ninth in Divi-sion III, Region 10.

DeSales is now in DivisionIII, Region 9 after theOHSAA’s expansion to sevendivisions.

Looking to help the Stal-lions improve defensively arereturnees Kanu (DB), Mawu-tor (LB), Saunders (LB),Skunda (DL/LB), Stopar (DL)and Yinger (DB).

Melsop (LB), DeLozier(DB), Wade (DB) and juniorDrew Selegue (DL) also arelooking to contribute defen-sively.

DeSales lost first-team all-district linebacker Oliver Gri-mard, special mention all-dis-trict defensive lineman ChrisRitter and honorable mentionall-district defensive linemanMichael Hippler to graduation.

Junior Adam Acquista is

back at kicker after makingfive of six field goals andgoing 14 of 15 in extra points.Junior punter Charlie Stackaveraged 35.1 yards and alsoreturns.

Junior Justin Borghese (6-1, 160) should lead the returnteam, and Saunders is the longsnapper.

DeSales has a bye inbetween CCL-Silver gamesOct. 4 at St. Charles and Oct.18 against visiting Watterson.

Westerville Central is oneof five teams on the schedulethat the Stallions didn’t play

last season. Another of thenewcomers is defending Divi-sion IV state championClarksville Clinton-Massie(Sept. 27 at home).

Clinton-Massie defeated St.Clairsville 46-36 in the cham-pionship game to finish 15-0.

“Not making the playoffslast year just shows that noth-ing is guaranteed just becausewe’ve got a DeSales jersey,”Kanu said. “We’ve got to workhard each week. We know ourpotential.”

[email protected]


Sayyid Kanu should see an increased role in the Stallions’ running attack after the graduation of leading-rusher J.T. Blubaugh.MIKE MUNDEN/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.........at Westerville CentralSept. 6 ......at East Cleveland ShawSept. 13..................at New AlbanySept. 20 .............vs. Toledo RogersSept. 27............vs. Clinton-Massie*Oct. 4......................at St. Charles*Oct. 18....................vs. WattersonOct. 25...........at Cincinnati LaSalleNov. 2..................at Akron Buchtel

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 1-1 CCL-Silver)Gahanna................L, 13-10 (3 OT)Brookhaven ....................W, 32-26New Albany .....................L, 56-22Union (Ky.) Ryle................L, 21-10Chillicothe.........................W, 34-0*St. Charles.....................W, 28-16Cincinnati Aiken ................W, 44-0

*Watterson ............L, 24-21 (3 OT)LaSalle ...........................W, 48-21Charles. (W.Va.) George Washington.......................................L, 49-20*League contest

INSIDE THE STALLIONS•Coach: Ryan Wiggins, seventh sea-son•Top players: Sayyid Kanu (RB/DB),Brandon Krietemeyer (QB),EmmanuelMawutor (RB/LB),Nick O’Brien (OL/DL),Griff Saunders (TE/LB), DomenicSkunda (OL/LB),Bryan Stopar (OL/DL)and Tucker Yinger (RB/DB)•Key losses: Chucks Ariguzo(WR/DB), J.T.Blubaugh (RB/DB),OliverGrimard (WR/LB), Michael Hippler(OL/DL),Alex Perrine (QB) and ChrisRitter (DL)

Stallions install pistol butwon’t discard option game

Don’t miss award-winning coverage of high school sports in each edition ofThisWeek Community News or online at ThisWeekSPORTS.com!



Hartley

Hawks expect to contend for state titleThe way Hartley High

School football coach BradBurchfield sees it, it shouldn’tbe surprising if one of his play-ers emerges as one of the state’sbest over the next few months.

To not expect it would bebucking a recent trend.

During the Hawks’ 2010Division IV state championshipseason, senior running backNoah Key shared state Offen-sive Player of the Year honorswith Kenton’s Maty Mauk.

Then in 2011, Ja’WuanWoodley emerged as a two-way standout at running backand linebacker and went on tobecome a two-time state Playerof the Year.

A senior such as AlonzoSaxton or Kalil Morris couldstep forward as a player-of-the-year-candidate this season.

The Hawks went 13-1 a yearago, posting their second con-secutive perfect regular seasonbefore losing 45-21 to even-tual champion Clarksville Clin-ton-Massie in a state semifi-nal.

Hartley takes a 22-game reg-ular-season winning streak intoits opener Friday, Aug. 30, atAmanda-Clearcreek.

“We’ve been fortunate tohave gotten some good play-ers,” Burchfield said. “I thinkthe best teams in Ohio all havegood kids. Nobody knew aboutJa’Wuan two years ago.”

Saxton had just nine rush-ing attempts last season, butthe 6-foot, 185-pounder who

verbally committed to Dukeearlier this year likely will findhimself in a key role on offense.He scored three touchdownslast season at wide receiver.

The leading returning rusheris senior Sam Mackowiak (6-0, 215), who totaled 771 yardsand 10 touchdowns on 88 car-ries.

Junior Mateo Saxton (5-10,175), who is Alonzo Saxton’sbrother, and classmates CavellBennett (5-11, 185) and JackZang (5-10, 175) are others atrunning back.

Senior Jacob Mercier (5-10,160) is at wide receiver and

Morris will be the tight end.Senior Jared Brandewie (6-

4, 210), who completed 53 of94 passes for 1,071 yards with15 touchdowns and just twointerceptions, is back for histhird season at quarterback.

Brandewie also will puntagain after averaging 37 yardson 10 attempts. Senior CollinBarringer returns at kicker aftermaking 71 of 77 extra points.

The offensive line returnssenior tackle Nick Boeriu (6-3, 225), senior center MaxSteele (5-11, 250), senior guardAustin Kirkbride (5-11, 200)and junior guard Ben Reis (5-

10, 200).Senior Salvatore Reedus (5-

9, 300) and sophomores JaredCroswell (5-11, 240), TylerSweeney (6-0, 250) and RossWirthman (6-2, 210) are oth-ers on the line.

In addition to Woodley, Hart-ley lost its second-leadingrusher, Marcellus Calhoun(1,685 yards rushing, 26 touch-downs), leading receiverDominique Scott (19 catchesfor 439 yards, seven touch-downs), first-team all-state tightend Jacob Matuska (16 catchesfor 348 yards, four touch-downs) and first-team all-dis-

trict offensive lineman TylerSchaffer to graduation.

Woodley was the ThisWeekSuper 25 captain and is play-ing for Toledo, while Matuskaalso made the Super 25 and isat Notre Dame.

“Any time you lose peoplelike Jacob Matuska, Marcel-lus Calhoun, Ja’Wuan, it’stough, but we’ve still got somestuff to work with,” Brandewiesaid. “It’s a new season and weplay a bunch of teams we

haven’t played before. Most ofthe starters will be seniors andwe know what we need to do.”

Morris, who verbally com-mitted to Kent State in July,will lead the defense at an endposition.

He should be joined on theline by Boeriu, Sweeney, Reis,Wirthman, juniorTayron Wash-ington (6-2, 240) and seniorsLes Moxley (6-0, 200) and


Sam Mackowiak is the leading returning rusher for the Hawks. A year ago, the senior gained 771yards and scored 10 touchdowns. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Matt Yoho returns at quarterback after completing 69 of 133passes for 1,085 yards. PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

Ready

Veteran lineup raises expectationsMaking it back to the post-

season a year ago after it hadgone 4-6 in each of the previ-ous two seasons whetted theappetite of the Ready HighSchool football team.

With all but four key playersreturning and headed by a coachwho has experience at the state’shighest level, the Silver Knightsare hungry for more than just acomeback story this fall.

Coach Joel Cutler, who wasan assistant at UpperArlingtonwhen the Golden Bears won theDivision I state championshipin 2000, has a group of playerswith eyes on titles of their own.

“It’s great that we’ve got a lotof experience, but with successcomes greater challenges,” sen-ior running back Akili Taylorsaid. “We have to get betterevery day.”

Ready opens Friday,Aug. 30,against Newark Catholic atHilliard Bradley in a matchupof potential Division VI pow-ers after the OHSAA’s expan-sion to seven divisions.

The Knights went 7-3, includ-ing losing 42-21 to GenoaArea

in the first round of the Divi-sion IV, Region 14 playoffs a

year ago, while the GreenWavefell 28-21 to Marion Stein Mar-ion Local in the Division VIstate championship game to fin-ish 12-3.

Taylor and senior left tackleand defensive end Brady Tay-lor (no relation) are two of thebiggest reasons for Ready’s highexpectations.

Akili Taylor (5-foot-9, 195pounds) rushed for 1,125 yardsand 10 touchdowns and madespecial mention all-district inDivision IV a year ago whilesplitting the carries with 2013graduate Doug Strickler (1,034yards and 13 touchdowns).

BradyTaylor (6-5, 275) ver-bally committed toVirginiaTechon July 29.

Also back on offense are sen-ior quarterback Matt Yoho (6-5, 210), senior wide receiverKelly Culbertson (5-10, 175)and junior tight endAlex Eblin(6-2, 225).

Others expected to see timein the backfield are seniorsBran-den Bailey (5-9, 195) andNickolas Chapman (6-3, 215).


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..........vs. Newark Catholic(at Hilliard Bradley)Sept. 6.......vs. Columbus Academy(at Upper Arlington)Sept. 13......vs. Briggs (at DeSales)Sept. 19......................at WhitehallSept. 27 .............at Fisher CatholicOct. 4 .vs. Washington Court House(at DeSales)Oct. 11 ...................at Miami TraceOct. 18 ...........................at BexleyOct. 25....at Muskegon Hts. (Mich.)*Nov. 1........vs. Hartley (at Bradley)

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 0-1 CCL-Gold)Newark Catholic..............W, 34-20Fredericktown.................W, 49-14Briggs...............................W, 49-6Grove City Christian...........W, 48-3

Dawson-Bryant...............W, 72-20Wheeling (W.Va.) Linsly......W, 32-0Lima Central Catholic .......L, 31-13Montpelier ........................W, 45-0*Hartley ............................ L, 42-8PLAYOFFSGenoa Area......................L, 42-21*League contest

INSIDE THE SILVER KNIGHTS•Coach: Joel Cutler, second season•Top players: Bran-den Bailey(RB/LB), Nickolas Chapman (RB/DL),Kelly Culbertson (WR/DB),Alex Eblin(TE/LB), Connor Lancia (WR/DB/P),Akili Taylor (RB), Brady Taylor (OL/DL)and Matt Yoho (QB)•Key losses: Hunter Clanin (WR),Luke Hackney (OL/DL), Michael Pozz(OL/DL) and Doug Strickler (RB/DB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.......at Amanda-ClearcreekSept. 6 .....................vs. ColdwaterSept. 13...........vs. Marion-FranklinSept. 20 ..................vs. St. CharlesSept. 27 ..........vs. Pittsburgh PerryOct. 4 at ........................WattersonOct. 11...at Fort Wayne (Ind.) LuersOct. 18..........................vs. IrontonOct. 25 .........at Cincinnati Withrow*Nov. 1.........vs. Ready (at Bradley)

2012 RESULTS(13-1 overall, 1-0 CCL-Gold)Amanda-Clearcreek ..........W, 42-0Columbus Academy ..........W, 42-7East Knox .........................W, 50-7Akron Hoban...................W, 42-10Proctorville Fairland ..........W, 56-6Watterson.......................W, 28-14Fort Wayne (Ind.) Luers......W, 40-7Ironton..............................W, 62-6Coshocton ........................W, 41-6

*Ready .............................W, 42-8PLAYOFFSUpper Sandusky..............W, 63-19North Union ......................W, 43-0Ottawa-Glandorf .............W, 41-31Clinton-Massie.................L, 45-21*League contest

INSIDE THE HAWKS•Coach: Brad Burchfield, sixth sea-son•Top players: Nick Boeriu (OL/DL),Jared Brandewie (QB), Austin Kirk-bride (OL/LB), Sam Mackowiak(RB/LB), Kalil Morris (TE/DL),AlonzoSaxton (WR/DB), Max Steele (OL/DL)and Jack Zang (RB/LB)•Key losses: Anthony Allwein (LB),Marcellus Calhoun (RB), Nick King(LB), Jacob Matuska (TE/LB), TylerSchaffer (OL), Dominique Scott(RB/DB) and Ja’Wuan Woodley(RB/LB)

KNIGHTS >> 61

HAWKS >> 61

Andy Deak, shown making a tackle against Watterson last season, is one of four returning starters on the Cardinals’ defense.JOSHUA A. BICKEL/THISWEEKSPORTS

St.Charles

Senior class to carry weight for CardinalsCoach Jeff Pharion doesn’t mince

words when he talks about the sen-ior class of his St. Charles Prepara-tory School football team.

“We have a ‘big’ senior class, andwe have a lot of them as well,” saidPharion, whose team has 24 seniors.“We’ve had big senior classes before,but usually they are smaller guys, likerunning backs and wide receivers, butthis group has size. We have 10 line-men in this class, and that’s a lot incomparison to what we normally have.”

Leading the way up front are sen-ior tackles David Heil (6-foot-6, 295pounds) and Nathan Puthoff (6-5,285). Two of five returning starterson offense, Puthoff has verbally com-mitted to Kent State and Heil hasreceived interest from several Divi-sion I colleges.

“As a senior you have more respon-

sibility,” said Heil, whose team fin-ished 6-4 overall last season and 0-2in the CCL-Silver Division behindWatterson (2-0) and DeSales (1-1).“I learned a lot from last year’s sen-iors about what we have to do to helpthe younger guys. Now we’re the onesshowing (the underclassmen) how todo things.”

Senior quarterback Ryan Bailey(6-1, 190) returns after completing52 of 94 passes for 685 yards withfour touchdowns and five intercep-tions. He also rushed for 164 yardsand five touchdowns on 38 carries.

“I’m definitely more confidentcoming in. I’m on the same page withthe coaches when it comes to theoffense,” Bailey said of running theCardinals’ spread attack.

“Ryan has great confidence andwe’ve only added a couple new thingsfor him,” Pharion said. “He’s been acommanding presence for us and hewas elected captain by his teammates,

so he’s a good leader.”Seniors Joe Montgomery (3

catches, 45 yards) and Graham Plage-man (5 catches, 31 yards) return asstarting wide receivers and seniorSean Hennessey (5 catches, 80 yards,1 touchdown) is back at tight end.

One wild card for the Cardinals isjunior NiQuille Bell, who lined up atrunning back, wide receiver and quar-terback last fall.The 5-9, 185-pounderrushed for 194 yards and two touch-downs on 23 carries.

“We’re going to have NiQuille allover the field,” said Pharion, who isin his fifth season. “He’s a specialkid. We might have him line up outwide, at tailback or even as quarter-back in some ‘wildcat’sets. We don’twant to confine him. We want to getthe ball to him in space.”

Pharion said the Cardinals will usea tailback-by-committee approachwith seniors Michael Hamrock (5-11, 225), John Quinn (5-10, 190) and

George Sims (6-0, 210) and sopho-more Jacob Nowell (5-7, 185). Theyreplace 2013 graduates Sean Fitz-martin (1,376 rushing yards, 11 touch-downs) and Jonathan Radney (738rushing yards, 6 touchdowns).

“Sean Fitzmartin was built power-fully, but these guys are bigger,” Phar-ion said. “We have four powerfulbacks. We’re going to pound the ball,but we also have some goodreceivers.”

Returning starters on defense aresenior Andy Deak at linebacker, sen-ior Ben Hale at free safety, seniorGabe Klingler at defensive end andQuinn at linebacker.

Hale, who has verbally committedto Bowling Green, had two intercep-tions, 66 tackles and 10 pass-breakupslast season. Quinn led the team with121 tackles, eight for losses, and Klin-gler had 39 tackles and a team-high3.5 sacks. Deak had 60 tackles with2.5 sacks.

“We have Klingler back at end andtwo of our top linebackers are back,”Pharion said. “Plus, we have Ben Haleat free safety with the way he playsthe ball.”

Sophomore Will Groeber will han-dle kicking and punting duties. Theleft-footed kicker replaces 2013 grad-uate John Colosimo, who averaged36.5 yards per punt and made 11 of16 field goals and 27 of 29 extrapoints.

“We want to make sure that ourspecial teams start off strong,” saidPharion, whose team opens Friday,Aug. 30, at Pickerington North. “Willis a talented young kicker and it’s justa matter of him getting his feet wetat the varsity level.”

St. Charles has dropped from Divi-sion I, Region 3 to Division II, Region5 in the new seven-division playoffformat implemented by the OHSAA.

[email protected]



At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.........at Pickerington NorthSept. 6 .......vs. Eastmoor AcademySept. 13 ..................vs. Big WalnutSept. 20 .........................at HartleySept. 27 ...vs. Columbus Crusaders.................at Thomas Worthington*Oct. 4 ........................vs. DeSalesOct. 11..........................vs. IrontonOct. 18............at Kings Mills Kings*Oct. 25.....................at WattersonNov. 1 ..............vs. Marion Harding

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 0-2 CCL-Silver)Pickerington North ...........L, 55-20Eastmoor Academy .........W, 27-23Beechcroft ......................W, 20-18Toledo Rogers ...................W, 41-0Columbus Crusaders.......W, 37-13*DeSales .........................L, 28-16Canal Fulton Northwest ...W, 37-21

Kings Mills Kings..............L, 21-17*Watterson ......................L, 21-17Marion Harding .................W, 35-7*League contest

INSIDE THE CARDINALS•Coach: Jeff Pharion, fifth season•Top players: Ryan Bailey (QB/DB),NiQuille Bell (WR/DB), Andy Deak(RB/LB), Ben Hale (WR/DB), MichaelHamrock (RB/LB), David Heil (OL/DL),Sean Hennessey (TE/DE), Gabe Klin-gler (FB/DL), John Quinn (LB), Gra-ham Plageman (WR) and NathanPuthoff (OL/DL)•Key losses: Russell Bateman (LB),Evan Brown (WR), Brandon Burdine(OL), John Colosimo (K/P), Sean Fitz-martin (RB), Joe Flynn (WR/DB), JackFrance (OL),Andrew Kyser (OL), PhilipLaFleur (LB), Jonathan Radney (RB)and David Shuster (WR)


Senior Deandre Golden (6-0, 195) rushed for 398 yardslast season for Watterson butwill sit out the first five gamesafter transferring.

Also at wide receiver alongwith Culbertson (14 catches for215 yards and three touch-downs) should be juniorsAnthony Havens (5-11, 165)and Connor Lancia (6-2, 195)and seniorAustin Carnes (5-9,170). Senior Myles Fowler (6-2, 185) is a transfer from West-land who will sit out the firstfive games.

Eblin had 13 catches for 251yards and four touchdowns.

Joining Brady Taylor on theoffensive line are seniorsAndrew Hurd (5-11, 235) atcenter and Jacob Koch (6-3,215) at left guard.

Seniors Nick Skordilis (5-11, 230) andAndy Rinehart (6-

2, 235) competed during thepreseason at right guard. SeniorZach Jarrett (6-3, 260) takesover at right tackle for 2013graduate Luke Hackney, whois playing for Ashland.

Yoho was special mentionall-district and finished 69 of133 passing for 1,085 yards with13 touchdowns and eight inter-ceptions.

“The big difference is thatwe’ve got 17 seniors and this isthe second year in our system,”Cutler said. “They understandthe language and the learningcurve is not what it was. (Yoho)has matured greatly. He wentfrom a teenage football playerto a young man.”

Culbertson is back to leadthe defense at cornerback afterbeing one of the area leaders ininterceptions with nine.

Lancia returns at safety andBailey and Chapman are backat linebacker. Skordilis, junior

Tre Windham (6-2, 235) andsophomore Kyle Usner (6-3,200) also should contribute onthe defensive line along withBradyTaylor. JuniorAlvin Knox(5-11, 210) is back at middlelinebacker after totaling a team-best 74 tackles and Carnesreturns at cornerback after inter-cepting five passes.

Golden and Fowler are oth-ers who should contribute in thesecondary when they becomeeligible. JuniorAiden Dulin washonorable mention all-districtafter making one field goal and40 extra points and again willbe the kicker. Lancia, who alsomade honorable mention all-district, averaged 36.5 yards perpunt. Culbertson, Havens andFowler all should return kicksand punts, with Koch and Carnesserving as long snappers.

Ready – which had bouncedbetween Divisions IV andV inrecent years before the expan-

sion to seven divisions – beatNewark Catholic 34-20 in itsopener last season en route toa 6-0 start.

The Knights lost to Hartley42-8 in their regular-seasonfinale, marking the third con-secutive year the regular sea-son ended with a setback to theHawks.

“They’re all tough kids,” Cut-ler said. “Every day they get alittle more disciplined andfocused on preparation. I wasan assistant when we won thewhole thing in 2000 at (UpperArlington) and this group pre-pares like that group. They eatright and they live right. Theylift like crazy and go throughpractices with high intensity. …We have high expectations. Ourgoal is to win all of our gamesand get into the playoffs. Thatis the standard we live by.”

[email protected]

KNIGHTSFROM >> 60

Logan Rahe (5-11, 190).Hartley runs an odd stack as

its base defense, with Zang, jun-ior Patrick Heinmiller (6-0, 185),Bennett and sophomore QuriHickman (5-11, 205) at line-backer. Hickman is a transferfrom Madison Christian.

The Saxton brothers shouldbe joined in the secondary byMercier, sophomores RianAnderson (6-2, 175) andRichard Jones III (5-9, 155)and freshman Jake Ruby (5-10, 180).

Hartley has five opponentsit did not face a year ago,including defending DivisionV state champion Coldwateron Sept. 6 at home. Coldwaterdefeated Kirtland 10-9 in thechampionship game after fin-ishing as state runner-up theprevious three seasons.

While Coldwater is compet-

ing in Region 16, the Hawkshave dropped to Division Vand were placed in Region 17after the OHSAA’s expansionto seven divisions.

Also on the schedule areCity League-power Marion-Franklin (Sept. 13 at home)and a pair of CCL-Silver oppo-nents in St. Charles (Sept. 20at home) and Watterson (Oct.4 away).

Hartley travels Nov. 1 tomeet Ready, which it beat 42-8 a year ago for the CCL-Goldtitle.

“I think we have a deepteam,” said Burchfield, whoseteam will face the SilverKnights at Hilliard Bradley.“We think a lot of the teamswe’re playing and we like ourteam. Obviously we’ll be oneof the contenders to win thestate title in Division V.”

[email protected]

HAWKSFROM >> 60



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Watkins Memorial

Warrriors aim to build early confidenceGetting off to a fast start will

be key for the Watkins Memo-rial High School football team.

“I think it’s imperative for us,being as young as we are, to winsome early games to gain con-fidence as we roll into the Lick-ing County League,” said sixth-year coach Jeff Severino, whoseteam opens Friday, Aug. 30 athome against Briggs. “We’recoming off a 2-8 season andwe’re excited to be back in theLCL and playing area schools.But in order to keep that enthu-siasm, we need to go out andget a few early wins.As a mat-ter of fact, our goal is to be 3-0 before league play.”

Watkins Memorial, whichwent 2-5 in its final season inthe OCC-Capital Division,returns 20 letterwinners –including seven who started ondefense. That experienceshould help, as the Warriorssurrendered 33 points per gamebetween an opening 13-12 lossto Licking Heights and a 13-10 setback to OlentangyOrange in the finale.

Seniors Hunter Holton andTravis Hall and junior MikeFord started in the secondary,along with seniors Kyle Hickin,Josh Lyday and Preston Jenk-ins on the defensive line andsenior Corbin Lindabury atlinebacker. Holton and Fordboth had three interceptions.

“I think our defense will besolid, a whole lot better thanlast year,” Holton said. “Rightnow, it looks like we’re start-ing 11 seniors on defense. Wehave a lot of experience andwe’re concentrating on beingbetter on pass defense becausewe’ll see a lot more spreadoffenses than we saw in theOCC.”

Ford will not start in the sec-

ondary, as he will be the mainreplacement for 2013 gradu-ate Brenden Kemp at runningback. Lyday is recovering fromACL surgery last January andgot a late start in camp.

Holton (CB) and Hall (SS)will be joined in the second-ary by junior Taven Jenkins(CB) and seniors ZachLescalleet (FS) and Isaac Mor-rison (OLB).

Preston Jenkins and seniorClay Sammons will be at ends,with Hickin at tackle and jun-ior Nathan Miller at noseguard.Lindabury and senior IsaacO’Brien will be the lineback-ers and they will share teamcaptain duties with Lyday,Holton and senior quarterback

Ben Shroyer.“We have to be able to han-

dle the spread offenses that wewill face,” Severino said.“That’s one of our keys to suc-cess. We’ve got some defen-sive playmakers with TavenJenkins, Corbin Lindabury andHunter Holton. Hickin is 6-foot-6 and 285 (pounds), andhe can run. He’s a possibleDivision I (college) prospect.”

Shroyer returns to lead thedouble-slot veer offense andHolton is back at receiver.Shroyer was 77-for-143 pass-ing for 969 yards with eighttouchdowns and nine intercep-tions. Holton set school sea-son records for receptions (45)and yards (740) and was spe-

cial mention all-district in Divi-sion II. He also was second-team all-league.

Hickin returns at tackle, andhe will be joined by PrestonJenkins at tackle, sophomoreZach Jenkins at center andSammons and senior PatrickThompson at guard. Lyday (6-2, 190) started at the center ayear ago and should see actionat both center and guard.

Ford will likely get most ofthe carries, but other runningbacks include O’Brien and sen-ior Cameron Gilbert. SeniorShawn Johnson will line up attight end, with classmate JustinFown at flanker.

Replacing Kemp will be dif-ficult, as he set single-season

school records for rushes (244)and yards (1,605) and alsoholds the program record forcareer touchdowns (49) afterscoring 16 times a year ago.

Kemp – who finished with3,327 career yards rushing –was first-team all-district andall-league.

“Mike Ford will step rightin there and he’ll be a goodone,” Severino said. “HunterHolton and Ben Shroyer makea good quarterback-receivercombo. We’ve got to makeplays and work as a team, butthese guys have a good attitudeand we’ve got good numbers.”

Graduates BobonStephanovich (OL) and JakeSanders (LB) were second-

team all-district. Graduate Jer-rod Lyon (K) was special men-tion all-district and classmateKevin Crawford (DE) was hon-orable mention all-district.

[email protected]


Senior Kyle Hickin is one of seven returning starters on a Watkins Memorial defense that is expected to be much improved.LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.......................vs. BriggsSept. 6 ........................at AthensSept. 13 .......................at Mifflin*Sept. 20 ......................vs. Utica*Sept. 27 ......at Newark Catholic*Oct. 4......................at Granville*Oct. 11 ...........vs. Licking Valley*Oct. 18.......................vs. Heath*Oct. 25..........at Licking Heights*Nov. 1..................vs. Lakewood

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 2-5 OCC-Capital)Licking Heights.............L, 13-12Athens..........................L, 62-54Mifflin...........................L, 25-20*Delaware ...................W, 56-28*Mount Vernon..............L, 34-21*Big Walnut ..................L, 27-14*Franklin Heights .........W, 51-12*Olentangy .....................L, 42-0*New Albany...................L, 34-7*Olentangy Orange........L, 13-10*League contest

INSIDE THE WARRIORS•Coach: Jeff Severino, sixth sea-son•Top players: Mike Ford (SB/DB),Hunter Holton (WR/DB), Kyle Hickin(OL/DL),Taven Jenkins (DB), CorbinLindabury (LB) an d Ben Shroyer(QB)•Key losses: Kevin Crawford (DE),Jerrod Lyon (K), Brenden Kemp(SB), Jake Sanders (RB/LB), Con-nor Severino (SB/DB) and BobanStephanovich (OL/DL)

LICKING COUNTY LEAGUE

The Licking Heights HighSchool football team is com-ing off one of its best seasons.

Last year, the Hornets went10-1 overall, won their firstleague championship in 20years by going 7-0 in theMSL-Cardinal Division andmade their third postseasonappearance, losing to hostMarion-Franklin 46-14 in thefirst round of the Division II,Region 7 playoffs.

Coach Darren Waters, how-ever, knows what the Hornetsaccomplished a year ago does-n’t impress their new foes inthe Licking County League.

“We’re going to a new levelof competition and we’re fly-ing below the radar becauseeveryone has doubted theschedule we played in theMSL-Cardinal,” said Waters,the Division II district Coachof theYear last fall. “We don’tmind entering as the under-dog.”

The 10-team LCL has beenrevived 22 years after beingdisbanded. Licking Heights isin the league’s Big SchoolDivision with Granville, Lake-wood, Licking Valley andWatkins Memorial. The SmallSchool Division consists ofHeath, Johnstown, NewarkCatholic, Northridge andUtica.

The Hornets, who open Fri-day, Aug. 30, at home againstMifflin, return seven starterson both offense and defense,which should help them make

the transition to the newleague.

“We’ve got 24 seniors anda ton of experienced startersand great role players back,”Waters said. “The keys for uswill be limiting penalties, con-trolling the football and play-ing sound, fundamentaldefense.”

Senior Adrian Myrthil (5-foot-11, 165 pounds) takesover at quarterback for 2013graduate Taylor Curtiss to runthe I-formation offense.

The backfield also includesjunior Kendall Bradley (5-6,165) at tailback, senior JohnNeary (5-10, 175) at fullbackand senior Aaron Tiller (6-0,235) as the H-back. Neary isa returning starter and Bradleywas a part-time starter a yearago.

“Bradley did a great job attailback as a sophomore andhe did very well at the (Uni-versity of) Alabama camp thissummer,” Waters said. “Nearydid an exceptional job in theweightroom, is a strong leaderand a fantastic two-way playerfor us.”

Seniors David Lancaster (5-8, 180) and Doug Benniefield(6-2, 175) is expected to thetop wide receivers, with class-mates Luke Langkamp (6-1,250) and Blake Beaver (6-2,175) seeing time at tight end.

The offensive line returnsthree starters in seniorsCameron Claborn (6-2, 265)and Ross Friel (6-2, 250) atguards and Jacob Hopkins (6-0, 240) at tackle. They arejoined on the line by senior

Mike Hopewell (6-2, 210) attackle and senior Craig Righter(5-9, 200) at center.

“Claborn is a great two-waylineman who is going to havea special senior season,”Waters said. “I think he couldget some major college looks.”

The returning starters onthe Hornets’ 4-4 base defenseinclude Claborn and Hopewellat tackle, Tiller at end, Nearyat inside linebacker, Ben-niefield at outside linebackerand Myrthil at cornerback.

Tiller and Benniefield werehonorable mention all-districtlast year.

“Tiller had an unbelievablesummer,” Waters said. “Heattended several camps andfive-star combines and wasthe defensive line MVP at the(National UnderclassmenCombine Ultimate 100 TopProspect Elite Camp in Julyin Norman, Okla.). He’s agood student and leader and


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Licking Heights

Hornets readyfor new levelof competitionBy BRAD EMERINETHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Kendall Bradley, a junior, returns at tailback after a summer in which he attended camp at the University of Alabama.LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30..........................vs. MifflinSept. 6 .........at Hamilton TownshipSept. 13.....................at Groveport*Sept. 20 ........................vs. Heath*Sept. 27 ..................at Northridge*Oct. 4 ......................at Lakewood*Oct. 11......................vs. Granville*Oct. 18................at Licking Valley*Oct. 25........vs. Watkins Memorial*Nov. 1....................vs. Johnstown

2012 RESULTS(10-1 overall, 7-0 MSL-Cardinal)Watkins Memorial ...........W, 13-12Gallipolis Gallia Academy...W, 21-7Teays Valley ....................W, 42-21*Harvest Prep .................W, 35-13*Liberty Union ...................W, 28-0*Grandview.......................W, 34-7*Millersport.......................W, 61-0*West Jefferson ..............W, 36-16

*Berne Union ....................W, 45-8*Fisher Catholic.................W, 53-0PLAYOFFSMarion-Franklin ...............L, 46-14*League contest

INSIDE THE HORNETS•Coach: Darren Waters, eighth sea-son•Top players: Doug Benniefield(WR/LB), Kendall Bradley (RB/DB),Cameron Claborn (OL/DL), Ross Friel(OL/DL), Mike Hopewell (OL/DL),Adrian Myrthil (QB/DB), John Neary(RB/LB) and Aaron Tiller (RB/DL)•Key losses: Josh Ausberry (RB),Willie Carter (OL), Steven Clum(OL/DL),Taylor Curtiss (QB/LB), JakeFoley (WR/DB), Matt Mayville (LB),Brenden Tiller (OL) and Michael Zaky(OL)

HORNETS >> 64

Coach Mike Carter will needto insert inexperienced playersinto key roles on the John-stown-Monroe High Schoolfootball team.

The Johnnies, who havemoved from the MBC to theLicking County League, haveto replace all but three starterson offense from last year’s teamthat finished 10-3 overall afterlosing to St. Clairsville 37-29in the Division IV, Region 15final.

Senior center Aaron Davis(5-foot-9, 220 pounds) is theonly returning starter on theoffensive line, but he playedguard last season. Junior tightend Marcus Nogaj (6-1, 180)also returns, as does junior run-ning back Cody Farley. The 5-11, 190-pound Farley was spe-cial mention all-state and first-team all-district last year afterrushing for 1,792 yards and 16touchdowns on 285 carries.

“We have to get game expe-rience up front as quickly aspossible, which is a point ofemphasis for us,” said Carter,who is in his 12th season. “ButI like how hard this group ofkids has been working. Theyare good, young kids with goodvalues.”

Senior Josh Kirkpatrick stepsin at quarterback for TylerThompson. The 2013 gradu-ate was special mention all-state and first-team all-districtafter rushing for 1,184 yardsand 20 touchdowns on 171 car-ries and completing 34 of 90passes for 655 yards with sixtouchdowns and nine intercep-tions.

“After going deep into thepostseason, it really motivatesyou to want to get back there,”Kirkpatrick said. “Now I haveto take charge as captain of the

offense and make sure we staytogether. We have to be a fam-ily out there on the field.”

Rounding out the offensiveline will be junior tacklesJonathan Cox (6-2, 225) andJake Taylor (6-0, 185), juniorguard Joey Norris (5-9, 200)and freshman guard Jeff Nogaj(6-4, 280). Senior HarrisonJohnson and junior Eli Dow-ell will rotate at fullback, withsenior Nathanael Ashbrook atwingback. Seniors SamBranstool and Zach LaRue arewide receivers.

“The guys have been work-ing to become a cohesive unit,”Carter said. “They understand

that they need to be responsi-ble on the field and play forone another.”

The Johnnies return sixstarters in their 4-4 defensiveset in senior defensive endsClayton Bullard (6-5, 210) andTaylor, senior outside line-backer Brendan Barasch, sen-ior defensive back Alex Work-man, junior defensive backZack Fleming and sophomoretackle Alex Catalogna.

“As a senior, you have tomake sure to do everythingright the first time because theyounger kids look up to you,”Bullard said. “If they see youslacking off then they will thinkthat’s OK, which is somethingyou can’t let happen.You haveto set the example.”

Bullard was special mentionall-state and first-team all-dis-trict after compiling 20 sacks,117 tackles and two fumble

recoveries.“We have a taste for (going

deep into the postseason) andit makes you want it more,”Bullard said.

“You know how hard youhave to work to get there. Italso kind of puts a chip on yourshoulder because a lot of peo-ple think we lost too many peo-ple (to graduation) to get back(to a regional final). We wantto prove them wrong.”

Rounding out the defensivefront is senior tackle LoganWritesel, with Johnson and sen-ior Loren Queen filling out thelinebacking corps. Alsoexpected to see action is jun-ior linebacker Ethan Clift, amove-in from Coshocton.

Senior Dalton Herren com-pletes the defensive backfield.

The Johnnies return seniorCharles Benton as a place-kicker and punter. Benton was

special mention all-state andfirst-team all-district last yearafter averaging 35 yards perpunt. He also made 35 extrapoints and three field goals.

A year ago, the Johnnieswent 6-1 in the MBC to finishsecond behind Danville (7-0).This year, they will competein the LCL’s Small School Divi-sion with Heath, NewarkCatholic and former MBC foesNorthridge and Utica.

The LCL’s Big School Divi-sion features Granville, Lake-wood, Licking Heights, Lick-ingValley and Watkins Memo-rial.

“These are backyard rival-ries,” said Carter, whose teamopens Friday,Aug. 30, at homeagainst Chillicothe.

“The kids know each other.The parents know each other.The communities are familiarwith each other. It’s going to

be exciting.”

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Johnstown-Monroe

Young offensive line key for JohnniesBy SCOTT HENNENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Alex Workman, a senior defensive back, is among six returning starters on defense for the Johnnies, who finished 10-3 last year.LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.................vs. ChillicotheSept. 6............vs. Fairfield UnionSept. 13................vs. Lakewood*Sept. 20 ..................at Granville*Sept. 27...........at Licking Valley*Oct. 4...................at Northridge*Oct. 11.......vs. Newark Catholic*Oct. 18 .........................at Utica*Oct. 25.......................vs. Heath*Nov. 1 ...........at Licking Heights

2012 RESULTS(10-3 overall, 6-1 MBC)Granville.......................L, 39-20Heath ..........................W, 18-14Lakewood......................W, 62-7*Centerburg.................W, 42-21*Loudonville.................W, 23-15*Fredericktown ..............W, 14-0*Utica ............................W, 49-8*Danville.......................L, 42-35*East Knox...................W, 31-21*Northridge....................W, 55-6PLAYOFFSIndian Valley ................W, 24-21Ironton...........................W, 42-7St. Clairsville.................L, 37-29*League contest

INSIDE THE JOHNNIES•Coach: Mike Carter, 12th season•Top players: Brendan Barasch(WR/LB), Clayton Bullard (TE/DL),Alex Catalogna (OL/DL),Aaron Davis(OL/DL), Cody Farley (RB/LB), ZachFleming (RB/DB), Harrison John-son (RB/LB), Josh Kirkpatrick(QB/LB), Marcus Nogaj (TE/DB),Loren Queen (WR/LB), Jake Tay-lor (OL/DL),Alex Workman (RB/DB)and Logan Writesel (OL/DL)•Key losses: Daniel MarkAlmendinger (WR/LB),Adam Carter(RB/LB), Dakota Crawford (OL/DL),Brandon Dingess (OL/DL), BaileyDuncan (WR/LB),Corbin Grassman(TE/LB), Preston Hiles (K/WR), Gar-rett Holter (OL/LB), Justin Mooney(OL/DL), Nick Sadinsky (WR/DB),Scott Sammons (WR/DB),Tim Sayer(OL/DL) andTylerThompson (QB/DB)

is personable and coachable.“I also think Benniefield

has a shot to gain attentionfrom college scouts ondefense.”

The Hornets’ seventhreturning starter on defense,senior Ron Carruthers-Kim-ball (RB/DB), is expected tocontribute on both sides of theball this season after beingfirst-team all-district ondefense a year ago.

The other starters ondefense are Friel at end, Beaverat outside linebacker, Lan-caster at cornerback, seniorDarrell Kelso (5-8, 180) atinside linebacker and juniorMershawn McMahan (5-9,

165) at safety.Waters also expects seniors

Chuckie Aitken (H-back/LB/DB) and TannerBauer (TE/LB), junior RobbieMoore (RB) and sophomoreLondon Pearson (RB/DB) toplay key roles. Pearson is theson of former Ohio State run-ning back Pepe Pearson.

Junior Luke Kramer willhandle the punting duties andFriel will do the place-kick-ing.

“We feel good about our-selves, but we know the LCLwill be a step up in competi-tion,” Waters said. “It’ll beinteresting to see if we meetthe challenge.”

[email protected]

HORNETSFROM >> 63


ThisWeekSPORTS.com

Jacob Burke is back after rushing for 755 yards and seven touchdowns despite a broken bone in his right foot that requiredsurgery in January. LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

Northridge

Vikings hope to enjoy ‘last chance’

Zach Hossler is ready to gethis senior season underway withthe Northridge High Schoolfootball team.

The two-way linemanbelieves the hard work by theVikings in the offseason willhelp them rebound from a 2-8overall record and a seventh-place finish (1-6) in the MBCbehind champion Danville (7-0).

“This is our last chance (asseniors), and everything is onthe line every time you step onthe field,” said Hossler, who isone of four captains along withseniors Jacob Burke (RB/LB),Tim Gearry (WR/DB) andA.J.Mooney (OL/DL). “We workedhard in the offseason and nowwe have to perform at a top levelall of the time. We’re ready togo.”

Burke returns at running backafter leading the Vikings with755 yards rushing and seventouchdowns despite playingmuch of last season with a bro-ken bone in his right foot. Hehad surgery in January.

“My foot feels great,” he said.“I really worked hard in the off-

season to get ready. My speedis the same, but now I feel big-ger and stronger. I’ve gained 15pounds to get ready for the sea-son.”

Burke and Hossler are twoof seven returning starters intheVikings’offense, which fea-tures I-formation looks as wellas some spread formations.Seniors Jon Barber and Mooneyreturn on the line, with seniorEric Dills back at fullback, jun-ior Bryant Garee at quarterbackand junior Chase Hess at widereceiver.

“Last year, we stayed simpleand worked on fundamentals,”second-year coach Darby Rileysaid. “This year, we’re going todo a little more, but we still haveto do the fundamentals. Thoseare basic to everything.”

TheVikings also return sevenstarters in their 4-4 defense.Hossler and Mooney are backon the line with Burke, Dills,senior Tanner Williamson andjunior Brennan Angus at line-backer. Hess returns in the sec-ondary.

“We scrimmaged Danville(on Aug. 13), and it was reallyphysical,” Riley said. “That’swhat we wanted out of it. Wewanted to challenge our kids,

and the whole idea of a scrim-mage is to have competition andgauge how good we can be. Wegot our feet wet and reallylearned a lot from that.”

TheVikings have 39 players,including nine seniors who Rileybelieves will be key to any suc-cess the team might have.

“I really like the leadershipfrom our nine seniors,” he said.“Their leadership has been greatduring strength and condition-ing workouts in the offseason.We’re trying to build pride inthe program.”

TheVikings still lack depth,which becomes magnified when


Utica

New coachset to rebuildRedskins

Charlie Smith is looking tochange the fortunes of the UticaHigh School football team.

The first-year coach hasbrought in the schemes andphilosophies of his alma mater,Big Walnut, a perennial play-off program. He replaced RandyFelumlee, who was 125-117 in26 seasons.

Smith knows he has to startfrom the ground level with aroster of 39 players. The Red-skins open Friday, Aug. 30, atCenterburg.

“We want to adapt andchange the attitude,” said Smith,who was a first-team DivisionIII all-state running back in2001. “We know that the kidshave to be a success in the class-room before they can be a suc-cess on the field. If you’re lazyin class, you’ll be lazy on thefield. We want to build the kidfirst, then the football player.”

The Redskins were 1-9 over-all last season, defeating Ray-land Buckeye Local 45-20 inthe opener before losing theirfinal nine.They were 0-7 in theMBC, last behind championDanville (7-0).

“We want to run a power I(-formation) like they do at BigWalnut, but also be ready tospread out the field to takeadvantage of what the defensegives us,” said Smith, who hadbeen an assistant at Big Walnutthe past three seasons.“(Because of the roster size) wehave a lot of kids playing bothways and we have to rotate a lotbecause of that.”

The starting backfield returnsin senior tailback Travis Bald-win (5-foot-11, 185 pounds)and fullback Zack Edmister (5-5, 150), who suffered a kneeinjury in the opener last season.

“Travis has been a quietleader for us and the kids reallyhave looked up to him,” Smithsaid. “I think we have a prettygood backfield withTravis andZack.”

Senior quarterback ShaneSparks (5-8, 165) broke his rightarm playing basketball and willstart the season at wide receiverwith his arm in a cast. Steppingin at quarterback will be soph-omore Mitchell Marston (6-5,190).

The offensive line will havesenior Kevin Bigler (6-2, 250),juniorTate Evans (6-2, 220) andjunior Will Sherer (6-0, 210) attackle, with senior DanielComer (5-8, 205), senior WillSturm (5-6, 175) and sopho-more Garett Robberts at guard.Rotating at center will be Comerand junior Austin Hays (5-11,190), with senior Joe Millat (5-

11, 185) and sophomore BrockMoran (6-1, 170) at tight end.

Senior Hunter Selmon (5-8,135), junior Jacob McKee (6-0, 155) and junior Jake Smith(5-9, 150) will be receivers.

The Redskins will play afour-man defensive front withBigler, Evans, Hays, Sturm andRobberts rotating on the line.Baldwin and McKee will beoutside linebackers, with soph-omores Pierce Piazza, Christ-ian Roberts and Braedon Tay-lor inside.

“We play what’s called a 60-gap defense, which has multi-ple sets,” defensive coordina-tor Pete Lyons said. “We can go4-5, we can go 6-2, some 4-4and even a 6-1 look if that’s whatwe want.

“We want to have a low-riskdefense that keeps the offensein front of us. We don’t want togive up the big plays.”




At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.................at CenterburgSept. 6 ..................vs. East KnoxSept. 13..........vs. Fredericktown*Sept. 20 ....at Watkins Memorial*Sept. 27.................vs. Granville*Oct. 4 ..............at Licking Valley*Oct. 11........................at Heath*Oct. 18 ...............vs. Johnstown*Oct. 25.................at Northridge*Nov. 1 ........vs. Newark Catholic

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 0-7 MBC)Buckeye Local .............W, 45-20Granville.........................L, 41-0Heath .............................L, 34-6*East Knox....................L, 40-20*Northridge...................L, 33-26*Loudonville .................L, 17-14*Johnstown....................L, 49-8*Fredericktown .............L, 37-27*Danville.........................L, 42-6*Centerburg..................L, 49-14*League contest

INSIDE THE REDSKINS•Coach: Charlie Smith, first sea-son•Top players: Travis Baldwin(RB/LB),Kevin Bigler (OL/DL),DanielComer (OL/DL), Zack Edmister(RB/DB), Tate Evans (OL/DL),Mitchell Marston (QB/P), GarettRobberts (OL/DL), Hunter Selmon(WR/DB), Shane Sparks (QB/WR/DB) and Will Sturm (OL/DL)•Key losses: Courtland Backes(TE/DL), Nick Feyh (QB), BrandonFletcher (WR), Travis Londot(OL/DL), Dusty Rose (OL/DL) andJosh Whisner (DB)

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ................vs. MillersportSept. 6 .......vs. Fairfield Christianat New LexingtonSept. 13 .............at Harvest Prep*Sept. 20...........at Licking Valley*Sept. 27.......vs. Licking Heights*Oct. 4 .................vs. Johnstown*Oct. 11 .................at Lakewood*Oct. 18 ........at Newark Catholic*Oct. 25........................vs. Utica*Nov. 1 .........................at Heath

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 1-6 MBC)Dayton Jefferson...L, 1-0 (forfeit)Lakewood ......................L, 25-6Millersport .....................W, 34-0*Fredericktown .............L, 33-14*Utica ..........................W, 33-26*East Knox......................L, 20-0*Danville.........................L, 40-0*Centerburg....................L, 29-0*Loudonville ...................L, 34-0*Johnstown....................L, 55-6*League contest

INSIDE THE VIKINGS•Coach: Darby Riley, second sea-son•Top players: Brennan Angus(OL/LB), Jon Barber (OL/DL), JacobBurke (RB/LB), Eric Dills (RB/LB),Bryant Garee (QB/DB),Tim Gearry(QB/DB),Chase Hess (WR/DB),ZachHossler (OL/DL), A.J. Mooney(OL/DL), Chad Williamson (OL/LB)and Tanner Williamson (RB/LB)•Key losses: Levi Hatfield (OL/LB),Gavin Kyle (TE/DB), Kyle Lambright(WR/DB), Drew Mullen (TE/DL),Zach Rudy (OL/DL), C.J. Sullivan(OL/DL), Kyle Wilbur (WR/DB) andThomas Williams (RB/LB)

VIKINGS >> 74

REDSKINS >> 74

Heath

Bulldogs set to unveilno-huddle offense

The Heath High School foot-ball team doesn’t plan to wastemuch time when it has the ballthis season.

In an attempt to control thetempo of the game, 13th-yearcoach Mark Collier has installeda no-huddle offense this sea-son.

The Bulldogs, who open Fri-

day, Aug. 30, at home againstBloom-Carroll, don’t seem con-cerned about divulging plansfor their new offensive gameplan given that they haveT-shirtsthat read “Fast Break Football.”

“We’re going to do the samestuff we’ve always done in thepast. We’re just not going tohuddle up,” said Collier, whohas a 69-55 record with the Bull-dogs. “We are going to go at afaster pace when we want to,hopefully, is the plan.

“We just want to be able tocontrol the tempo. When wewant to go fast, we can go fast.When we don’t want to, we canslow it down.”

Heath, which finished 4-6overall last season, still willoperate out of its base offense,a pro-I set that utilizes multiplelooks and formations. However,Collier is hoping that employ-ing a no-huddle offense willhelp protect his young teamfrom being exploited by oppos-ing defenses.The Bulldogs haveonly six seniors on their roster.

“The fact that we are a littlebit younger, if you get on theball and make the defense haveto line up and go, it is more dif-ficult to have multiple fronts,have multiple blitz packagesand all that kind of stuff,” Col-lier said. “If you’re playingagainst a little bit more of a basedefense, it might give our kidsa little bit better opportunity tomaybe be successful against it.”

Camron Romine (5-foot-10,160 pounds) is expected to bea key player on both sides ofthe ball this season.The junior,who started at free safety a yearago and was named specialmention all-district in DivisionIV, will be the Bulldogs’ fea-tured running back this season.

“Last year, I feel we werevery slow off the line and thingslike that,” Romine said. “Thisyear, we’re going no-huddle.We have play wrists that haveall our plays on it and (thecoaches will) signal (the play)from the sideline.

“I personally like it a lot bet-

ter.You get play after play, justreal quick, and you don’t givethe defense time to sub.”

JuniorAidan Dyer (6-2, 175)is expected to be the startingquarterback, replacing 2013graduate Chase Geller. Dyerplayed tight end last year andsuffered a broken leg in the sea-son finale, a 48-34 loss to Lick-ing Valley.

Dyer’s primary target isexpected to be junior widereceiver Bobby Kazar (6-6,185). Other key players in thereceiving corps are senior widereceiver Jaivon Gresham andjunior tight end Jackson Kaiser.Gresham is a first-year player.

The offensive line is expectedto include sophomores SamLunsford (6-4, 360) and Pay-ton Booth (6-1, 200) and jun-ior Donny Beistel.

On defense, Heath willemploy a 3-3 stack.Among thekey players are Beistel and jun-ior Tyler Felumlee on the line,Booth, Kazar and sophomoresMike Postelwaite and ElijahSenior at linebacker andRomine, Gresham, seniors MattKasar and Erik Williams andjunior Billy Beistel in the sec-

ondary.Heath, which won only two

of its first seven games last sea-son before winning two of its

final three, was a playoff qual-ifier in 2009 and 2010 but has

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...............vs. Bloom-CarrollSept. 6 ........................at GranvilleSept. 13 ..............vs. Licking Valley*Sept. 20 ...........at Licking Heights*Sept. 27 .................vs. Lakewood*Oct. 5 .............at Newark Catholic*Oct. 11 ...........................vs. Utica*Oct. 18 .........at Watkins Memorial*Oct. 25 ...................at Johnstown*Nov. 1 ....................vs. Northridge

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall, 3-4 MSL-Ohio)Martins Ferry ...................L, 46-21Johnstown.......................L, 18-14Utica.................................W, 34-7*Newark Catholic .............L, 26-13*Whitehall .......................W, 36-19

*Columbus Academy........L, 42-21*Granville.........................L, 42-14*Bexley...........................W, 42-24*Lakewood .......................W, 47-0*Licking Valley .................L, 48-34*League contest

INSIDE THE BULLDOGS•Coach: Mark Collier, 13th season•Top players: Donny Beistel (OL/DL),Payton Booth (OL/LB), Aidan Dyer(QB), Jaivon Gresham (WR/DB), Jack-son Kaiser (TE),Bobby Kazar (WR/LB),Sam Lunsford (OL), Camron Romine(RB/DB) and Erik Williams (DB)•Key losses: Kameron Herring(RB/LB),Adam Hunt (OL), Marc Man-ning-Wallace (WR), Donyelle Simp-son (RB) and Connor Thrush (OL)



687 Hopewell Dr.



HEATH

David Bartnick, M.D.(740) 348-7915

Granville

Blue Aces expect air attack to remain potentIsaac Maurer has just one season to

leave his mark on the Granville HighSchool football program.

The senior quarterback, who waited asgraduate David Fraley guided the BlueAces’ explosive passing game the pastthree seasons, is prepared to launch fromthe multiple spread offense.

“It’s a great feeling to finally get myturn to take the reins of the team,” saidMaurer, whose team opens Friday, Aug.30, at Caledonia River Valley. “I’ve hadthree years to sit behind Fraley and Ilearned so much from him. I think I’mready and prepared for the job.”

Mauerer has a trio of talented seniorreceivers to throw to as Ajay Alderman(first team), Hunter Orth (second team)and Brock Hill (honorable mention) returnafter earning Division III all-district hon-ors. Fraley was the district Offensive Playerof the Year.

“I’m very blessed to be in this situa-tion, having three great and experiencedreceivers,” Maurer said. “I think we havea fourth receiver, (senior) Connor Koesterwho also will make plays. Plus our backscan catch it, too.

“It’s difficult for defenses to stop thatmany threats. They can take one or twoaway, but it’ll be tough to shut us downcompletely.”

Despite a long list of record-settingGranville quarterbacks, Maurer hopes tobe the first to guide his squad to a postsea-son victory. Granville finished 9-2 overalllast season after losing to Dover 27-24 inovertime in the first round of the Region11 playoffs. The Blue Aces are 0-5 in thepostseason, with other appearances com-ing in 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The roster includes 20 letterwinnersfrom last season’s team, which also went6-1 in the MSL-Ohio Division to sharethe title with Licking Valley and NewarkCatholic. The Blue Aces will compete inthe Licking County League this season.

“Our goals are to compete for a fourthleague championship in the last five sea-sons and to compete in the playoffs forthe fifth time in the last seven years,” saidcoach J.R. Wait who enters his fifth sea-son with a career 34-8 record.

Adding depth to the receiving corpsare senior Blake Compton and juniorsAshton Plute and Adam Miller. The BlueAces plan to rotate Compton and juniorsChristian McDermott and Jett Nye at run-ning back.

“Our skilled players offensively areexperienced and talented and we havehigh expectations for them,” said Wait,who was the district Coach of the Year.“We do lack depth on both our offensiveand defensive lines, so we’re still lookingat a number of people at several positionsand we’re trying to iron out how we bestmove our linemen around to cover bothsides of the ball.”

Returning on the offensive line are sen-iors Ian Huprich and Andrew Cecil andjunior Brandon Priest.

“Ian Huprich, like (senior) RemingtonLarsen on the defensive line, is a founda-tion player,” Wait said. “You won’t readtheir names very much during the season,but they will be the glue that holds ustogether. They’re clearly ready to performand lead.”

Vying to start on the line with the threereturnees are seniors Dane Hueghebartand Eland Leigh, and senior Chris Dun-can and sophomores Caleb Browne andBraeden Leigh also should be in the mixup front.

Senior Bradley Burkholder will be thepunter and the place-kicker. He was hon-orable mention all-district last season.

Bobby Kazar is expected to be the top target for quarterback Aidan Dyer. LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS


By CLIFF OLSENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30....at Caledonia River ValleySept. 6 ...........................vs. HeathSept. 13 ...................at Cambridge*Sept. 20 ................vs. Johnstown*Sept. 27...........................at Utica*Oct. 4..........vs. Watkins Memorial*Oct. 11.............at Licking Heights*Oct. 18 ...................vs. Lakewood*Oct. 24 ..........vs. Newark Catholic*Nov. 1 .................at Licking Valley

2012 RESULTS(9-2 overall, 6-1 MSL-Ohio)Johnstown......................W, 39-20Utica.................................W, 41-0Jackson..........................W, 28-14*Bexley.............................W, 41-0*Licking Valley .................L, 19-14*Whitehall.........................W, 49-7

*Heath............................W, 42-14*Lakewood .......................W, 48-2*Newark Catholic ..............W, 14-7*Columbus Academy.......W, 34-20PLAYOFFSDover .......................L, 27-24 (OT)*League contest

INSIDE THE BLUE ACES•Coach: J.R. Wait, fifth season•Top players: Ajay Alderman (WR),Kyle Bundy (LB), Bradley Burkholder(P/K), Brock Hill (WR), Ian Huprich(OL), Remington Larsen (DL), IsaacMaurer (QB), Christian McDermott(RB/DB), Hunter Orth (WR)•Key losses: Steven Carpenter (LB),David Fraley (QB), Josh Link (RB/DB),Tucker McKenzie (WR), Gabe Parini(DB) and Clayton Plute (DB)

ACES >> 68

BULLDOGS >> 74

The Licking Valley HighSchool football team isn’tlooking past any of its oppo-nents, but it does have an eyeon week 15 of the season.

The Division IV state finalwill be played that week atFawcett Stadium in Canton orPaul Brown Tiger Stadium inMassillon. As a reminder ofthe Panthers’ ultimate goal,each player has been wearinga No. 15 jersey every day inpractice.

“It is going to be a verytough thing to get to,” quar-terback Grant Garber said.“We have only two teams inthe history of the school tomake the state championshipgame. It’s always the goal, butthis year it is emphasized

more.“We want to take it one

game at a time, but we wantto always have that 15th gamein mind.”

Licking Valley was staterunner-up in 2001 in DivisionIV and 2007 in Division III.

The Panthers have missedthe playoffs each of the pasttwo seasons – marking the firsttime they have failed to makethe postseason in back-to-backseasons under longtime coachRandy Baughman since miss-ing the postseason three con-secutive years from 1997-99– after qualifying for the post-season in five of the previoussix years.

Last season, Licking Val-ley went 7-3 overall and fin-ished 10th in the Division III,Region 11 computer rankings,two spots from the final play-off berth.

“We always start out withhigh expectations. That is partof the tradition and we arealways upset when we don’tmake the playoffs,” saidBaughman, whose team has a26-13 postseason record in 13playoff appearances, all since1988.

“We shared the (MSL-OhioDivision) title last year, butwe like to be selfish and winit outright.”

Garber, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior who completed

66 of 136 passes for 1,008yards and eight touchdownslast fall, will lead an offenseexpected to utilize multipleformations, including a two-back set and, at times, a spreadformation.

Baughman said his team’sdepth at wide receiver isamong its strengths. Thereceiving corps includes sen-

iors Ty Griff ith (6-2, 175),Mason Baker (6-2, 180), ScottMorris and Tanner Nethersand juniors Damon Hupp (6-0, 160), Tyler Nethers.

Griffith was the Panthers’leading receiver last year, mak-ing second-team all-district.

Expected to lead the run-ning game is 6-1, 215-poundsenior Hunter Hartshorn, whomoves from fullback to tail-back to replace 2013 gradu-ate Drew McArtor, a second-team all-state and first-teamall-district selection a year ago.

Senior tackle Seth Walpole(6-2, 265) and his brother, jun-ior guard Hayden Walpole (6-0, 210), will anchor the offen-sive line.

On the other side of the ball,senior defensive end BlakeOwens (6-2, 210) is in his thirdseason as a starter. Other keyplayers in the Panthers’ 4-3


2181 W. High St., NE


LICKING VALLEYMEDICAL CENTER

Andrew Seipel, M.D.(740) 348-1720


Lakewood

Offseasonwork bringsoptimism

Despite posting a 3-37record over the last four sea-sons and totaling just nine vic-tories the past 10 years, Lake-wood High School footballcoach Rex Sponhaltz isexcited about his current groupof players.

The Lancers lost only threeplayers from a year ago tograduation and return themajority of their starters onboth sides of the ball, but it’sthe attitude and work ethic dis-played by the players that hascaught Sponhaltz’s attention.

“These seniors have watchedthe football operations for thelast three years and they are atight-knit group,” said Spon-haltz, whose team opens Fri-day, Aug. 30, at home againstThornville Sheridan. “Theyhave gotten together andmolded themselves into agroup that is tired of losing andthey are the only ones who canstart the ball rolling again.

“The kids have made uptheir minds that they are tiredof this.”

Sponhaltz, who is in his16th year as a head coach,including his fifth season ofhis second stint at Lakewoodand seventh overall with theLancers, was encouraged bywhat he had seen from hisplayers this past offseason.

“I think the biggest gaugea coach has is the kids’ workhabits in the offseason and ithas been a struggle for kidsto buy into our weight roomand conditioning,” he said.“These kids have workedharder than any group I haveever worked with.

“The kids have done whatwe have asked them to do.”

The key for the Lancers tosee better results on the fieldwill be to maintain their pos-itive attitude and improvedwork ethic throughout the sea-son. Last fall, Lakewood fin-ished 1-9, was shut out in fivegames and was outscored 428-42.

“I’m not sure about winsand losses, but every Fridaynight our kids are going to becompeting and our goal is tohave a chance to win in thefourth quarter,” Sponhaltz said.“They didn’t like what theysaw (last season) and the onlypeople that can change thisthing are the coaches and thekids.”

Leading the way for Lake-wood is its most versatileplayer, 6-foot-2, 210-poundsenior Alex Napier. A Divi-sion III honorable mention all-district selection last season,he has seen time at quarter-back, running back and wide

receiver in the Lancers’ veeroffense. He also is a free safetyin the 50 shade defensivealignment.

This fall, Napier is expectedto see time at fullback alongwith senior Brandon Ward,who was the team’s leadingrusher a year ago.Another sen-ior, Jack Rusher, returns to theH-back/tailback position,while junior wide receiver ZacHolbrook leads a receivingcorps that includes classmatesEddy Boerstler and KalebGloyd.

Senior quarterback AustinWhite is slated to take themajority of snaps under cen-ter behind an offensive linethat features three returningstarters in seniors CameronHubble and Trevin Johnsonand junior Zach Cozad. JuniorNoah Hupp, a transfer fromHeath, and sophomore RyanCaw also are expected to starton the offensive line.

Junior Dalyn Loomis, a spe-cial mention all-district selec-tion a year ago, moves from

By CLIFF OLSENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...vs. Thornville SheridanSept. 6...............at Liberty UnionSept. 13 ................at Johnstown*Sept. 20 .....vs. Newark Catholic*Sept. 27 ......................at Heath*Oct. 4 ..........vs. Licking Heights*Oct. 11................vs. Northridge*Oct. 18....................at Granville*Oct. 25 ...........vs. Licking Valley*Nov. 1 .......at Watkins Memorial

2012 RESULTS(1-9 overall, 0-7 MSL-Ohio)Thornville Sheridan .........L, 53-0Northridge .....................W, 25-6Johnstown .....................L, 62-7*Columbus Academy.......L, 42-2*Bexley...........................L, 38-0*Licking Valley ................L, 54-0*Whitehall.......................L, 24-6*Granville .......................L, 48-2*Heath............................L, 47-0*Newark Catholic............L, 54-0*League contest

INSIDE THE LANCERS•Coach: Rex Sponhaltz, fifth sea-son•Top players: Zac Holbrook (WR),Cameron Hubble (OL/DL), DalynLoomis (TE/DL), Alex Napier(RB/DB), Jack Rusher (RB), Bran-don Ward (FB) and Austin White(QB)•Key losses: Floyd Murr (OL/DL),Luke Preston (WR/DB) and AustinRose (WR/DB)

LANCERS >> 74

Grant Garber completed 66 of 136 passes for 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns last season as the Panthers finished 7-3 andnarrowly missed the Division III playoffs. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Licking Valley

Game 15 is Panthers’ priorityBy CLIFF OLSENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

PANTHERS >> 74

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .........at Dresden Tri-ValleySept. 6 ..........at Duncan Falls PhiloSept. 13...........................at Heath*Sept. 20 .................vs. Northridge*Sept. 27 ................vs. Johnstown*Oct. 4 .............................vs. Utica*Oct. 11 .........at Watkins Memorial*Oct. 18............vs. Licking Heights*Oct. 25 ....................at Lakewood*Nov. 1 .......................vs. Granville

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 6-1 MSL-Ohio)Dresden Tri-Valley ............L, 29-14Zanesville ..........................L, 28-7Harvest Prep...................W, 34-14*Whitehall.........................W, 34-7*Granville........................W, 19-14*Lakewood .......................W, 54-0

*Newark Catholic ...............L, 25-9*Columbus Academy.......W, 21-17*Bexley...........................W, 28-17*Heath............................W, 48-34*League contest

INSIDE THE PANTHERS•Coach: Randy Baughman, 32ndseason•Top players: Mason Baker (WR),Grant Garber (QB),Ty Griffith (WR/DB),Hunter Hartshorn (RB), Damon Hupp(WR/DB), Blake Owens (DL), CraigPrince (LB), Hayden Walpole (OL) andSeth Walpole (OL)•Key losses: Devin Carr (DB), JacobCotrell (OL), Drew McArtor (RB),Nathan McCown (DL) and CalebNethers (OL)

The Newark Catholic HighSchool football team is com-ing off a season in which itmade “special memories” byreaching the Division VI statefinal.

But the result of that game,a 28-21 loss to Maria SteinMarion Local, is motivatingthis year’s Green Wave to cap-ture the program’s ninth statechampionship.

Coach Bill Franks, whoguided Newark Catholic to itslast state title in 2007, wouldlike to have another shot at achampionship this season. Lastyear was the Green Wave’s firststate title game appearancesince that last championship,and it ended up being the pro-gram’s sixth state runner-upfinish.

“You can’t describe (a play-off run to reach the state final)until the community has expe-rienced it. So when your par-ents and your athletes get to gothrough that, there are just spe-cial memories and it helps asa motivator to make it a goalto get back,” Franks said. “Noquestion our goals are win eachweek and grow each week andwe always want to be playingweek 15, no question.”

Quarterback Chayce Crouch,an Illinois recruit, said the teamis trying to take it a game at a

time.The Green Wave opens Fri-

day, Aug. 30, at Ready.“Obviously this team has

high expectations because ofthe run we made last year, butright now we are taking it dayby day,” Crouch said. “Iabsolutely believe that anythingis possible with this ballclub.

“The other goals I believewill fall into place if we pusheach other every day and keepgrowing together as a team anddeveloping that chemistry ittakes to get to that level.”

Newark Catholic has lost 10players from a year ago to grad-uation, including KevinBourne, a safety and runningback who was the state defen-sive Player of theYear in Divi-sion VI last season and now isplaying at Kent State.

The clear leader on offenseis the 6-foot-4, 221-poundCrouch, who passed for 2,077yards and 18 touchdowns andran for 11 scores a year ago.He also was first-team all-stateas a punter.

Crouch directs an offensethat features the I-formationand the spread. Anthony Wingwill be at running back, whileAaron Jurden, Hunter Nanceand Luke Ceneviva lead theway at receiver.

Senior Brenden Jurden (6-2, 260), a third-team all-stateand first-team all-district selec-tion, returns to anchor the offen-

sive line, which also includesEvan Hartman, Joe Davis,Cameron DeBevoise andTrentPaul.

Senior safety Mike Lohr (5-8, 157), a third-team all-stateand first-team all-district selec-tion, returns to lead the 4-2-5defense. Wing, Nance andAaron Jurden return to the sec-ondary.

Eric Lensink, a special men-tion all-district selection, returnsat outside linebacker, withDavis also seeing time at line-backer. Brenden Jurden,DeBevoise and Hartmananchor the defensive front.

A year ago, the Green Wavedropped its opener to Ready34-20 and responded by win-ning its next seven games.Newark Catholic finished theregular season 8-2, whichincluded a 6-1 mark in MSL-Ohio Division and a share ofthe league title with LickingValley and Granville.

This fall, Newark Catholichas moved to the re-formedLicking County League, whichFranks said “is going to be ahandful.”

The Green Wave is in theSmall School Division withHeath, Johnstown, Northridgeand Utica. The Big SchoolDivision features Granville,Lakewood, Licking Heights,Licking Valley and WatkinsMemorial.

Newark Catholic still leadsall schools with 67 playoffswins.

“They like to play football.When the pads come on theylike to play and that is most ofit,” Franks said. “If you have agroup that has some toughnessand has some togetherness andthey like to play, that’s ingre-dients for success.

“We have a big mountain toclimb, but we’re excited for thisgroup to go give it a shot.”

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Kevin Graham, M.D.(740) 348-1950

In the diamond-7 defensivescheme, Wait expects key play-ers to include Nye, Larsen andsophomore Thomas McGrathalong the line, senior HaydenBrown and juniors Kyle Bundyand Patrick Oehlman at line-backer and McDermott in thedefensive backfield.

Also expected to contributeon the line are senior AustinVega, juniorAustin Finley andsophomore Zach Vanderink,

as well as Cecil, Priest, Huprichand Eland Leigh.

Senior Caleb McVey willsee action at linebacker.

Others in the secondary aresenior Alec Acquino, Comp-ton, Orth, Miller and Alder-man, and Wait expects all ofthem to play.

“The keys for us will bebuilding depth and stayinghealthy to be able to handle avery good schedule,” he said.

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ACESFROM >> 66

Newark Catholic

State finalloss drivesGreen WaveBy CLIFF OLSENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

Aaron Jurden is among the key returnees for the Green Wave, which finshed 12-3 overall last season and was Division VI staterunners-up. LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ...........................at ReadySept. 7 ............vs. Nelsonville-YorkSept. 13 ............vs. Fisher Catholic*Sept. 20...................at Lakewood*Sept. 27 ......vs. Watkins Memorial*Oct. 5............................vs. Heath*Oct. 11 ...................at Johnstown*Oct. 18...................vs. Northridge*Oct. 24.......................at Granville*Nov. 1..............................at Utica

2012 RESULTS(12-3 overall, 6-1 MSL-Ohio)Ready..............................L, 34-20Nelsonville York.................W, 32-6Fisher Catholic ................W, 63-20*Heath............................W, 26-13*Columbus Academy.........W, 14-9*Bexley.............................W, 20-0*Licking Valley ..................W, 25-9*Whitehall.........................W, 41-6

*Granville...........................L, 14-7*Lakewood .......................W, 54-0PLAYOFFSFairfield Christian ............W, 41-14Glouster Trimble..............W, 20-13Danville ..........................W, 48-46Mogadore .......................W, 38-21Maria Stein Marion Local..L, 28-21*League contest

INSIDE THE GREEN WAVE•Coach: Bill Franks, 12th season•Top players: Chayce Crouch (QB/P),Joe Davis (LB/TE), CameronDeBevoise (DE/OL), Evan Hartman(OL/DL), Aaron Jurden (WR), Bren-den Jurden (OL/DL), Eric Lensink(OLB), Mike Lohr (S) and AnthonyWing (RB/DB).•Key losses: Kevin Bourne (RB/S),Mitch Cox (WR/DB) and SpencerMagers (LB)

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Andrew McCampbellexpects a smooth transition ascoach of the Grove City Chris-tian School football team.

McCampbell, 29, replacesKerry Owens, who resignedfollowing last season becauseof family and work commit-ments.

McCampbell is a health andphysical education teacher atthe middle and high schools,and he was an offensive linecoach in the program the pastfour seasons.

“Going in we know what thekids are going to be able to doand where to build the offenseand defense around,” he said.“We like to make it so the kidsknow what to do and don’t tryto force them to do somethingthey can’t do.”

The Eagles, who finished 5-5 last season, will be affiliatedwith a league for the first time.They will compete in the MSL-Cardinal Division with BerneUnion, Fairfield Christian,Fisher Catholic, Harvest Prepand Millersport.

“I’m looking forward to theleague,” McCampbell said. “It’sgoing to be a good opportunityfor our guys to step up. It willbe the first time we’re going tobe in a football league, so we’renot independent anymore,which is good and we will getbetter quality opponents andgain more consistent oppo-nents, too.”

Depth remains an issue forthe Eagles, as they had 24 play-ers on the roster during the pre-season.

“Our No. 1 concern is depth,and also size,” said McCamp-bell, whose team opens Friday,Aug. 30, at Columbus Acad-emy. “Those are our two con-cerns right now, (and) seeingwhat our offensive and defen-sive lines can do.”

Senior quarterback NateHigh (5-foot-10, 199 pounds)will direct the team’s spreadoffense, which also will includepistol schemes. Last season,he completed 36 of 78 passesfor 592 yards and six touch-downs and rushed for 498 yardsand 10 touchdowns on 97 car-ries.

“We’re hoping for seven(wins), and make the playoffsand then go from there,” Highsaid. “We have to stay healthy.We have to have a lot of focusand come with our ‘A’ gameevery game.”

Junior running back JordanHaywood (5-8, 171) led theteam in rushing last season with1,164 yards and 14 touchdownson 170 carries. He is theyounger brother of ChristianHaywood, who played runningback for Hilliard Davidsonbefore graduating in 2006.

Senior Casey Stauffer (5-7,185) and sophomore CalebNewkirk (5-11, 190) will playfullback.

“It’s my senior year, it shouldbe fun,” Stauffer said. We’re

going to give it a good run.”Key wide receivers are jun-

iorsTre Roberts (5-9, 175) andTristan Taylor (5-9, 145).

Juniors Kylar Hunt (5-7,180) and Logan Kohl (5-7, 180)are returning starters on theoffensive line.

High, Stauffer, Taylor andHunt are captains.

Other linemen are seniorsAaron Schuler (5-8, 250), Lan-don Aurentz (6-2, 200) and

John Hennis (5-10, 215), soph-omores Bill Carson (5-7, 210),Pierce Thissen (5-7, 185) andJared Sharp (5-9, 255) andfreshmen Adam Blake (5-9,230), Clayton Lepley (5-5, 150)and Joe Pashovich (5-10, 205).

Stauffer will punt and Tay-lor is the kicker.

The Eagles will feature a 3-5 base defense, with Huntexpected to anchor the line.

Junior Will Whinham (6-0,

160), Newkirk and Stauffer arekey linebackers.

Junior Alec Poling (5-10,165), sophomore Brady Holt(5-6, 125) and Roberts returnin the secondary.

Other players are juniorAaron Whitaker (WR/DB; 5-11, 130), sophomore TavianSims (RB/DB; 5-4, 150) andfreshmen Matt Bailey (QB/DB;5-7, 140) and Stevie Whinham(RB/DB; 5-9, 130).

Owens was coach the pastthree seasons, leading theEagles to a 13-17 record.Before that, he had been anassistant coach in the programsince its inception in 2006.

Owens guided Grove CityChristian to its only playoffappearance in 2009.

That season, the Eaglesreached a Division VI statesemifinal before losing to even-tual champion Norwalk St. Paul

52-7.With a seventh playoff divi-

sion added this year, Grove CityChristian has moved from Divi-sion VI, Region 23 to DivisionVII, Region 25.

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Grove City Christian

New coach focusing on trip to postseasonBy FRANK DiRENNATHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30....at Columbus AcademySept. 6 .....................vs. RittmanSept. 14 .....at Ports. Notre DameSept. 20 ............at Troy ChristianSept. 27 .....vs. Fayetteville-Perry*Oct. 4 .......vs. Fairfield Christian*Oct. 11 .............at Harvest Prep*Oct. 18 .........vs. Fisher Catholic*Oct. 25.................at Millersport*Nov. 1...............vs. Berne Union*League contest

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall)Berne Union.................W, 61-24South Point ....................W, 27-0Danville ..........................L, 32-6Ready ............................L, 48-3Lima Perry....................L, 47-27Ashland (Ky.) Fairview ...L, 53-24St. Bernard-Elmwood Place.............................................W 49-6Portsmouth Sciotoville..W, 51-26Fayetteville-Perry ...........W, 46-7Fairfield Christian..........L, 54-47

INSIDE THE EAGLES•Coach: Andrew McCampbell, firstseason•Top players: Jordan Haywood(RB/LB), Nate High (QB/DB), TreRoberts (WR/DB), Casey Stauffer(RB/LB/P) and Tristan Taylor(WR/DB/K)•Key losses: Mack Brunney(WR/DB), Jordan Edwards (OL/DL)and Blair Thompson (OL/DL)

Junior Jordan Haywood rushed for a team-high 1,164 yards and 14 touchdowns a year ago as the Eagles finished 5-5.PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

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The Bexley High Schoolfootball team struggled at timesa year ago, but the Lions hopethe experience its returningplayers gained will pay divi-dends this season.

Bexley, which finished 2-8overall and 1-7 in the MSL-Ohio, returns its top three rush-ers and two of its top threereceivers along with juniorAndre Stewart, who saw con-siderable time at quarterback.

“Through last season, a lotof kids gained a lot of playingtime that they probably nor-mally wouldn’t have gotten,”said seventh-year coach JohnSmith, whose team opens Fri-day, Aug. 30, at home againstHarvest Prep. “(That was) dueto injuries and due to gradua-tion the year before. We had anumber of kids who started atleast a game or two through-out the year.”

The offense features sixreturning starters includingStewart, who split time at quar-terback with 2013 graduatePatrick McClendon. McClen-don threw for 257 yards andtwo touchdowns and ran for213 yards on 57 carries.

Joining Stewart in the back-field are seniors Rasheed Mor-gan at running back (473 yardson 75 carries with two touch-downs) and Jacob Old at full-back (466 yards on 101 carrieswith two touchdowns.

Senior Greg Miller returnsat wing after catching eightpasses for 150 yards and a pairof touchdowns, and seniorChad Meyer is back at receiver.

Only senior Jack Needles atleft tackle returns on the offen-

sive line, and there is plenty ofcompetition for the other spotsup front.

“Going into camp, develop-ing our offensive line has beena priority,” Smith said.

Seniors Dan Lee and EricMaxwell and junior John Yeeare competing at guard,Maxwell and senior CraigMusic at right tackle and sen-ior Jake Dorochenko and soph-omore Jackson Lee at center.

“All the guys (on the line)are really hard-working,” Nee-dles said. “I know that not onlythe coaches but the rest of theteam can trust them to do theirbest and work their hardest todo what we need to do to win.If we do things the right way,there’s no doubt we’ll be suc-

cessful.”Also expected to play key

roles on offense are juniorJavelle Gray and senior ZachWard at running back, seniorOchmen Murray and sopho-more CorbinThompson at half-back and senior Teddy Brun-ing and juniors Nassir Cauthonand Jeff Nicosia at receiver.

Old also will see time at tightend along with sophomoreYoussef Abou Hashish.

“I think we’re going to bemore pass oriented this year,”Needles said. “We won’t bepassing the majority of the time,but more than we have in thepast. We have the skill players,the quarterback who can throw,good receivers and great run-ning backs who can makeplays. I think that’ll be the maindifference.”

Miller, Morgan and Old weretwo-way starters last season,with Miller and Morgan alsostarting at defensive back andOld at linebacker and defen-sive end. Other returningstarters on defense include DanLee (DL), Nicosia (DB) andWard (LB).

They will be joined by sen-ior Ellis Khaloufi, Music andNeedles at defensive tackle,Bruning and Yee at defensiveend and Abou Hashish andsophomore Izzy Keller at line-backer.

Stewart and Thompson willstart at safety, whilc corner-backs include Meyer, Murrayand sophomores JacobMittmen and Rico Truss.

Bexley will compete in arevamped MSL-Ohio Divisionthat also includes ColumbusAcademy, Grandview, London,Madison Plains, West Jeffer-son and Whitehall. FormerMSL-Ohio members Granville,Heath, Lakewood, LickingVal-


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Bexley’s Jacob Old (36) and Zach Ward (9) tackle Hamilton Township’s Aaron Williams last season.All three players are among the returnees for their teams. MIKE MUNDEN/THISWEEKSPORTS

Bexley

Veteran lineup looksto produce more winsBy SETH SHANERTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .....vs. Harvest PreparatorySept. 6 ...................at Berne UnionSept. 12 ..................vs. Centennial*Sept. 20 ..................at Grandview*Sept. 27 ....................at Whitehall*Oct. 4 ..............vs. West Jefferson*Oct. 11 .............at Madison PlainsOct. 18...........................vs. Ready*Oct. 25.........................at London*Nov. 1 ......vs. Columbus Academy

2012 RESULTS(2-8 overall, 1-6 MSL-Ohio)Harvest Preparatory ...........L, 34-6Berne Union......................W, 30-0Hamilton Township...........L, 45-21*Granville...........................L, 41-0

*Lakewood .......................W, 38-0*Newark Catholic ...............L, 20-0*Columbus Academy..........L, 30-7*Heath.............................L, 42-24*Licking Valley .................L, 28-17*Whitehall........................L, 28-10*League contest

INSIDE THE LIONS•Coach: John Smith,seventh season•Top players: Chad Meyer (WR/DB),Rasheed Morgan (RB/DB), Jack Nee-dles (OL/DL), Jacob Old (RB/LB) andAndre Stewart (QB/DB)•Key losses: Will Gingery (K/P), LukeGroom (TE/LB), Jimmy Kahan(HB/DB), Patrick McLendon (QB/DB)and Will Murray (HB/DB)

LIONS >> 74

Hamilton Township

Strong senior classprompts playoff hopes

The HamiltonTownship HighSchool football team hopes tobuild on the momentum fromlast year’s 7-3 team to make arun at the MSL-Buckeye Divi-sion title and reach the playoffsfor the first time since 2002.

Fourth-year coach Nate Hil-lerich has high expectations forhis experienced squad, whichwas motivated during the off-season by a 30-25 home loss toBloom-Carroll in last season’sfinal game.

“This senior class is verystrong,” said Hillerich, whoseteam will open against Colum-bus East on Friday, Aug. 30, athome. “(Losing the finale) reallymade them see the importanceof every game, the details andthe discipline.”

The Rangers return nearly allof their skill players on offensebut must replace 2013 gradu-ate ZachThompson at quarter-back. Thompson completed 90of 147 passes for 1,529 yards,17 touchdowns and 10 inter-ceptions. He also rushed for 566yards and 12 scores on 140 car-ries.

Seniors Logan Jones (guard),Ben Swauger (tackle), MichaelWellman (guard) and KetdrickWest (center) will lead the offen-sive line, with senior AlonzoJewell and junior Josh Sweetcompeting for the other start-ing spot at tackle.

“The big thing for us is ourline is senior-led,” Hillerich said.“Replacing (Thompson) isgoing to be tough.We had a sen-ior quarterback. He accounted

for a lot of the touchdowns, run-ning and passing, so replacinghim is going to be key.”

Junior Dante White is theleading candidate to take overat quarterback, and he will havekey playmakers returning atreceiver in senior KhenanAlexander and juniors DericPhoutavong and AaronWilliams.

In limited time last season,White competed 11 of 21 passesfor 219 yards with two touch-downs and an interception.

Williams rushed for a team-high 656 yards and nine touch-downs on 59 carries. He alsoled the team with 37 receptions

for 693 yards and six touch-downs.

“Work together as a team,and if we do that, we’ll be prettysuccessful,” Williams said.

Senior tight end Micky Crum,who has committed to the Uni-versity of Louisville, givesWhiteanother weapon after catching18 passes for 164 yards and twotouchdowns. Crum also willplay outside linebacker and han-dle the punting.

Crum expects the Rangers’big offensive line to play a keyrole in the team’s success.

“Our offense, we’re big up

By KYLE NEWPORTTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM

RANGERS >> 74

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30.............................vs. EastSept. 6 .............vs. Licking HeightsSept. 13 ..at Worthington Kilbourne*Sept. 20...................vs. Circleville*Sept. 27 ....at Amanda-Clearcreek*Oct. 4 ..................at Liberty Union*Oct. 11.................vs. Teays Valley*Oct. 18 .............vs. Fairfield Union*Oct. 25 ...............at Bloom-Carroll*Oct. 31 ....................at Logan Elm

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 4-3 MSL-Buckeye)Chillicothe.......................W, 52-33London .............................W, 56-7Bexley ............................W, 45-21*Logan Elm.......................W, 42-7

*Circleville .......................L, 36-15*Amanda-Clearcreek.......W, 51-14*Canal Winchester .............L, 28-7*Teays Valley...................W, 49-35*Fairfield Union .................W, 48-8*Bloom-Carroll .................L, 30-25*League contest

INSIDE THE RANGERS•Coach: Nathan Hillerich, fourth sea-son•Top players: Lorenzio Bridges (RB),Micky Crum (TE/OLB), Logan Jones(OT),Ben Swauger (OT),MichaelWell-man (OG/DE), Ketdrick West (C/DE),Aaron Williams (WR/CB)•Key losses: Zach Thompson (QB),Sean Marcum (WR/DB)

Not since the current cropof seniors on the JonathanAlder High School footballteam was in the first grade havethe Pioneers been affiliatedwith a league.

That changes this seasonwith Jonathan Alder joiningthe Mid-Ohio Athletic Con-ference to play in the Red Divi-sion against Buckeye Valley,Caledonia River Valley, Fair-banks, Marion Elgin, MarionPleasant and North Union.

“It’s exactly the right fit forus,” said coach Steve Coate,whose team last competed ina league, the Buckeye AthleticConference-Ohio Division, inthe 2002 season. “We’re in aleague with similar communi-ties and there’s a lot of excite-ment about it. There’s goingto be a lot of full stadiums thisfall in this league.”

Athletics directorTomVargosaid joining the MOAC willhelp with scheduling.

The Pioneers finished 4-5last season and weren’t able toschedule a 10th regular-sea-son game.

“We looked all over theplace to try to fill the sched-ule,”Vargo said. “We contactedteams from Cincinnati, Toledo,Cleveland, Akron (and)Youngstown. ... We even spenta day in Pennsylvania lookingfor a team to play, but could-n’t fill it.

“It’s been a long time sincethese kids have played in aleague ... since everyone wenttheir own way in the BAC.(Jonathan) Alder may be a lit-tle larger in enrollment, butdemographically the schoolsare similar.”

Last season, Jonathan Aldersnapped a streak of 11 consec-utive postseason appearances.The Pioneers qualified for theDivision IV playoffs from2001-10, and they reached theDivision III postseason in2011.

This season, they return toDivision IV in the new seven-division playoff format imple-mented by the OHSAA.

JonathanAlder returns threestarters on offense and eighton defense.

Senior John Jewett (6-foot-3, 190 pounds) moves fromsplit end to run the offense atquarterback. The other tworeturning starters are seniortackle Chandler Ferko (6-4,225) and junior center Tanner

Gaerke (6-2, 240).Joining Jewett in the back-

field are junior running backsJesse Beachy (5-10, 175) andDerek Parker (6-0, 220).

“We run a multiple offensewith some I-formation sets andsome spread,” said Coate, whois in his seventh season. “Wetry to take whatever the defensewill give us.”

On defense, Ferko, seniorTrent Kaltenbach, juniorAustinThomas and junior Troy Cald-well return on the line, withsenior Dylan Alexander andParker back at linebacker andsenior Andrew Mullet andBeachy in the secondary.

“We have some very, verygood kids returning,” Coatesaid. “They improved a lotfrom our first scrimmage toour second, which is what youwant to see.”

Senior Bravin Herring willhandle place-kicking duties.Coate said no one had cometo the forefront as a punter.

The Pioneers open Friday,Aug. 30, at Thomas Worthing-ton, a team it defeated 28-6last season.

“These kids have been verycoachable and have respondedto everything we have put infront of them,” Coate said.

“They have continued toimprove (throughout the pre-season) and that’s a positivesign.”

Jonathan Alder has 89 play-ers, but it also has had its shareof players visiting the trainingroom in the preseason.

“We need to get healthier,”Coate said. “We have somebumps and bruises that havekept us from practicing as effi-ciently as we would like.”

The Pioneers return toleague play at home Sept. 20against Fairbanks in theirMOAC-Red opener.

In 2002, JonathanAlder wonthe BAC-Ohio at 6-0 and fin-ished 10-2 overall after losingto Kettering Alter 35-7 in aDivision IV regional semifi-nal.

“Hopefully it will be awhilebefore we have to go search-ing for teams to play,” Vargosaid. “We don’t to have to dealwith that.

“It’s a great opportunity forthe kids and a great opportu-nity from the community. Weshould get decent crowdsbecause our biggest draws overthe past few seasons have beenagainst MOAC schools.”

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Have a great seasonPioneers!


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Jonathan Alder

Joining MOAC adds toPioneers’ excitmentBy SCOTT HENNENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30......at Thomas WorthingtonSept. 6 .....................vs. MarysvilleSept. 13 .............at Clinton-Massie*Sept. 20 ..................vs. Fairbanks*Sept. 27............at Buckeye Valley*Oct. 4 ............vs. Marion Pleasant*Oct. 11 .................at Marion Elgin*Oct. 18..vs. Caledonia River Valley*Oct. 25 ..................at North UnionNov. 1 ......................vs. Watterson*League contest

2012 RESULTS(4-5 overall)Thomas Worthington .........W, 28-6Marysville .......................W, 30-10Clinton-Massie...................L, 49-7Logan...............................W, 35-0Zanesville ..........................L, 42-0

Cin. Winton Woods ...........L, 35-14Day. Thurgood Marshall....L, 52-14Marion Harding ...............W, 44-12Watterson........................L, 27-19

INSIDE THE PIONEERS•Coach: Steve Coate, seventh sea-son•Top players: Dylan Alexander(WR/LB), Jesse Beachy (RB/DB),TroyCaldwell (OL/DL), Tanner Gaerke(OL/DL), John Jewett (QB/DB),TrentKaltenbach (QB/DB), Andrew Mullet(RB/DB), Derek Parker (RB/LB) andAustin Thomas (OL/DL)•Key losses: A.J. Detwiler (WR/LB),Andy Fooce (QB/LB), Dustin Kuhlwein(OL/DL), Brad Miller (WR/DB), DerrittPotts (RB/DB), Nick Smith (K/P) andMason Will (LB)

Gideon Woodson-Levey will play key roles for the Warriors at both linebacker and running back.LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS

Harvest Prep

Warriors get boost fromend of postseason ban

Coach Jack Johnson said theHarvest Prep football team hassome extra motivation now thattheWarriors have finished serv-ing a two-year ban on postsea-son play for violating OHSAAregulations and bylaws.

“(The playoffs) really hypeup the team and all of the cap-tains,” said Johnson, whosesquad will open Friday, Aug.30, at Bexley. “We’ll go hardernow. We have the ability to goto the playoffs, so we’re reallydetermined.”

To reach that goal of makingthe playoffs, the Warriors mustreplace a trio of key players –Ethan Brown (Central Mis-souri), Josiah Stacy (Air ForceAcademy) and Zach Yousey(Toledo) – who are all compet-ing at the collegiate level.

“We’ve got some of thoseholes filled,” Johnson said.“Right now we’re looking prettystrong.”

Senior R.J. Johnson will startat quarterback for the Warriors,but he will also see time atreceiver and free safety.Akronis among the Mid-AmericanConference schools recruitingJohnson as a receiver.

Establishing a ground gameand utilizing their team speedwill be keys for the Warriors,who finished 6-4 a year ago.

Seniors Tyler Pannell (run-ning back/defensive back) andGideon Woodson-Levey (run-ning back/middle linebacker)will be the main players in thebackfield. Pannell rushed for579 yards and five touchdownson 60 carries last season.Wood-son-Levey, who gained 281yards and scored sevent touch-downs on 46 carries, is beinglooked at by several Division Ischools, including Bowling

Green and Air Force.JuniorTerrence Walton (run-

ning back/outside linebacker)also will be in the backfield attimes.

The receiving corps willinclude a pair of newcomers inseniors Michael Lang and Sheri-dyn Wilkins, who are basket-ball players out for football forthe first time. Lang also willline up at defensive end andWilkins will compete with jun-ior Will Hopkins for playingtime at outside linebacker.

Sophomore Curtis Jonesshould contribute at widereceiver and defensive back,and sophomore MelvinThomaswill replace Brown at tight end.

Other key players includeseniors Robert King and jun-iors Hunter Pharis and JamesJohnson. King will play offen-

sive tackle and handle the kick-ing and punting, Pharis will playoffensive guard and linebackerand Johnson will play centerand defensive line. Pharis isbeing looked at by severalschools, including teams fromthe Ivy League.

“We just want to be able toplay at our peak and who weare,” Johnson said. “We don’twant to play outside of our-selves. Our biggest strength isour speed.”

Harvest Prep will competein a revamped MSL-CardinalDivision that lost LickingHeights, Liberty Union, WestJefferson and Grandview whileadding Grove City Christianand Fairfield Christian.

A year ago, Harvest Prep fin-

By KYLE NEWPORTTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM At a glance

2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30...........................at BexleySept. 7....................at Notre DameSept. 13 ..................vs. NorthridgeSept. 20..............vs. Vinton CountySept. 27 .............at West Jefferson*Oct. 4................at Fisher Catholic*Oct. 11 .....vs. Grove City Christian*Oct. 18..................at Berne Union*Oct. 25.........vs. Fairfield Christian*Nov. 1 .....................at Millersport

2012 RESULTS(6-4 overall, 4-3 MSL-Cardinal)Bexley ..............................W, 34-6Notre Dame ......................W, 34-7Licking Valley...................L, 34-13*Licking Heights...............L, 35-13*Berne Union ..................W, 62-27

*Fisher Catholic...............W, 55-13*West Jefferson ...............L, 53-21*Liberty Union..................L, 41-38*Grandview.....................W, 37-16*Millersport.....................W, 63-18*League contest

INSIDE THE WARRIORS•Coach: Jack Johnson, eighth sea-son•Top players: RJ Johnson (QB/WR/FS), Robert King (FB/G/MLB/K/P),Asante Palmer (G/OT), Hunter Pharis(FB/G/MLB) and Gideon Woodson-Levey (RB/LB)•Key losses: Ethan Brown (TE),Josiah Stacy (QB/WR/DB) and ZachYousey (WR)

WARRIORS >> 73

ALL HIGH SCHOOLSPORTS, ALL THE TIME.

ThisWeekSPORTS.com

As Jake Kuhner begins hissecond season as football coachat Whitehall-Yearling HighSchool, he hopes a return tomore familiar surroundingswill help his team improve onlast year’s 3-7 record.

Because of an extensive ren-ovation project at the school,the Rams played all their gameson the road and practiced atcity-operated John A. BishopMemorial Park, which is a lit-

tle more than a mile from theschool. Now the renovationproject is nearly complete andthe Rams are looking forwardto returning home.

“It’s nice to be back. It’s niceto have our equipment here,”said Kuhner, whose team willopen at Division I CentralCrossing on Friday, Aug. 30.“It’s nice to walk out to thegame field. Walk out to thepractice field. The stadiumlooks awesome and it’s nicehaving the kids look at it. Thekids are really excited to beback at home.”

The stadium project includedupgrades to the bleachers andpress box, a new track surfaceand extensive work on the field.

The Rams will unveil theirnew-look stadium when theyplay host to Bloom-Carroll onSept. 6.

The offense will again fea-ture a shotgun scheme withsome pistol formations added,Kuhner said.

Senior Cody Koons (6-foot-1, 185 pounds) and juniorTris-ten Ritchie (6-4, 185) split timeat quarterback last season andboth are again contending forplaying time.

Senior B.J. Upchurch (5-7,170) is expected to contributeat running back and widereceiver, with senior ShaquilleAlexander (6-1, 205) at tail-back.

“We have better facilitiesthis year. We’re back at home,”said Alexander, who was hon-orable mention all-league.“We’re going to try and makethings happen this year.”

Other wide receivers are jun-ior Davonte Wilkins (5-10, 180)

and sophomore DerrionSanders (6-1, 170). Sanderswas honorable mention all-league last season.

Seniors D.A. Sanders (6-0,215) and Nick Wright (5-11,245) will play tight end.

Wright, who also could seetime at fullback, was second-team all-league.

“This is real nice,” Wrightsaid about the return to the highschool. “Everything is brandnew. We’ve been able to comeout as a team. It’s going to bea great year.”

D.A. and Derrion Sandersare brothers.

Junior J.D. Hornberger (5-9, 225) will play center andwill be joined on the offensiveline by senior Dillon Rice (5-10, 260) and junior JaquanBeverly (5-11, 254) at tackleand senior A.J. Drake (5-11,190) and juniors CameronBarker (5-11, 230) and Bran-don Buchert (5-11, 230) atguard. Barker was second-teamand Buchert was honorablemention all-league.

Barker will punt and Ritchieis the kicker.

The 3-4 defensive base willfeature Upchurch at safety,where he earned first-team all-district in Division III and first-team all-league honors.

Beverly, Buchert and Drakeare expected to lead the defen-sive line, with senior KhililTol-bert (6-0, 215) and Alexanderat outside linebacker. Other keylinebackers should be Barkerand D.A. Sanders. Barker had45 solo tackles and assisted on15 a year ago.

Senior Demetrius Ridgeway(6-2, 200) will play cornerback

and junior Dassan Jefferson (5-10, 180) will be at strong safety.

Whitehall lost 10 players tograduation, including runningback IsaiahTurner, who led theteam in rushing with 932 yards.Turner was first-team all-leagueand second-team all-district.

“I feel like we’re way aheadwhere we were last year at thispoint of the year,” Kuhner said.

Whitehall, Bexley andColumbus Academy haveremained in the realignedMSL-Ohio Division and willbe joined by Grandview, Lon-don, Madison Plains and WestJefferson.

Granville, Licking Valleyand Newark Catholic — whichshared the MSL-Ohio title lastseason at 6-1 — have joinedthe Licking County Leaguealong with Heath and Lake-wood. The Rams finished fin-ished 2-5 in the MSL-Ohio.

Whitehall-Yearling

Rams expect boost frombeing back on home field


OTHER AREA TEAMS

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Buckeye Valley

Barons confident despite graduation lossesHaving graduated 14 players, including

a handful of all-district performers, fromlast year’s 7-3 BuckeyeValley High Schoolfootball team, senior center/defensive endWyatt Pfeifer believes he knows what othersquads are saying about this year’s Barons.

He thinks opponents will overlook them.“I’m sure there are teams out there say-

ing, ‘Oh, they lost this guy, they lost thisguy, there is no way they are going to beable to fill those spots and be as good,’”said Pfeifer, one of just four returningstarters. “But it is not necessarily just aboutthe person, it is all about the team and howthe team operates. I believe in my team andI know we’re going to do well.”

The 6-foot-3, 245-pound Pfeifer, whohas verbally committed to play at WesternMichigan, is confident in his team despiteits youth and inexperience.

“We’re going to go into each game witha chip on our shoulder, knowing that thereare going to be teams that are going to thinkwe’re not strong enough,” Pfeifer said.“Going in, we know that we have a job todo and we know that we have to get it done

and we can’t take any other team lightlylike they might take us.”

With many new faces being elevatedinto starting roles, this season could belooked at as a rebuilding one for BuckeyeValley. However, coach Mike Marshalldoesn’t see it that way.

“We graduated some really high-qual-ity kids. We (had) six kids going to playcollege ball,” Marshall said. “You don’treplace that, but we have the comfort ofknowing that the kids who we are replac-ing them with, they know what they aredoing.

“I’d rather look at it as reloading thanrebuilding. As a staff we have been prettysuccessful since we have been here, so thatis the way I look at it.”

On offense, the Barons will be in a mul-tiple I-formation. Senior Kyle Doubikin isexpected to take over at quarterback for2013 graduate Caleb Green, a second-teamall-district selection a year ago in DivisionIII. In the backfield, sophomore Ben Kid-well, juniorsAustin Harsh and GavinTerryand senior Tucker Smith will see time attailback and fullback.

The Barons’running game and second-ary suffered a loss after junior Chris Burns

sustained what Marshall called a “prettysevere concussion” during anAug. 13 scrim-mage at Thomas Worthington.Accordingto Marshall, it was Burns’ fourth concus-sion and doctors have said he can’t playfootball anymore. The 5-8, 160-pounderwould have started at tailback and defen-sive back for the Barons.

BuckeyeValley’s wide receivers includeseniors Garrett Purcell and Jake Spauld-ing, juniorAustin Kelleher and sophomoreGabe Miller, with Gardon Wycoff as theprimary tight end. Pfeifer and fellow sen-ior Jack Baesman will anchor the offen-sive line.

On defense, the Barons will line up ina 4-3 set. Pfeifer and Baesman, along withsenior Logan Dziak and junior David Praul,will see time on the defensive front. Thelinebacking corps will feature Kidwell,Harsh and Smith, with freshman BlaydeMcCully also seeing action.

Sophomore free safety Tim Schillingwill lead the secondary, which also willinclude Terry, Miller and Purcell.

Last fall, the Barons started 1-2 beforewinning their next four and six of their

Shaquille Alexander, who was honorable mention all-league last season as a junior, returns attailback for the Rams. PAUL VERNON/THISWEEKSPORTS

By CLIFF OLSENTHISWEEKSPORTS.COM


At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30............at Central CrossingSept. 6................vs. Bloom-CarrollSept. 13...................vs. WhetstoneSept. 19 .........................vs. Ready*Sept. 27 .......................vs. Bexley*Oct. 4.......vs. Columbus Academy*Oct. 11....................at Grandview*Oct. 18 .......................vs. London*Oct. 25..............at West Jefferson*Nov. 1 .............vs. Madison Plains

2012 RESULTS(3-7 overall, 2-5 MSL-Ohio)Central Crossing ...............W, 40-7Bloom-Carroll ....................L, 21-3Grandview .......................L, 33-23*Licking Valley ...................L, 34-7

*Heath.............................L, 36-19*Granville...........................L, 49-7*Lakewood .......................W, 24-6*Newark Catholic ...............L, 41-6*Columbus Academy........L, 38-20*Bexley...........................W, 28-10*League contest

INSIDE THE RAMS•Coach: Jake Kuhner, second sea-son•Top players: Shaquille Alexander(RB/LB), Cameron Barker (OL/LB/P),Cody Koons (QB/DB),Tristen Ritchie(QB), B.J. Upchurch (RB/WR/DB) andNick Wright (TE/FB/DL)•Key losses: Alex Farrow (OL/DL)and Isaiah Turner (RB/LB)

RAMS >> 74

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ......................at DelawareSept. 6 ..............vs. Fisher Catholic*Sept. 13.................vs. Cardington*Sept. 20 ..........at Sparta Highland*Sept. 27 ..........vs. Jonathan Alder*Oct. 4..................vs. Marion Elgin*Oct. 11 .....................at Fairbanks*Oct. 18.................vs. North Union*Oct. 25............at Marion Pleasant*Nov. 1.....at Caledonia River Valley

2012 RESULTS(7-3 overall, 7-2 MOAC-Red)Delaware.........................L, 35-23*Morral Ridgedale .............W, 42-0*Caledonia River Valley.....L, 34-17*Cardington ......................W, 29-0

*Galion Northmor ............W, 28-12*Sparta Highland...............W, 27-7*Mount Gilead...................W, 28-6*North Union......................L, 35-0*Marion Elgin ....................W, 23-6*Marion Pleasant......W, 34-28 (OT)*League contest

INSIDE THE BARONS•Coach: Mike Marshall, 11th season•Top players: Jack Baesman (G/DE),Logan Dziak (DT),Wyatt Pfeifer (C/DE)and David Praul (DT)•Key losses: Luke Edmonds (DL),Caleb Green (QB), Joel Greenwood(OL), Jay Grote (OL/ILB), Jack Kelly(DB), Brad Kruger (FB) and LaneKleilein (WR/K)

BARONS >> 73


OTHER AREA TEAMS

Columbus Crusaders

Squad looks to send winning messageWith little experience and a

new coach, the Columbus Cru-saders club football team did-n’t get rolling until late lastseason.

The Crusaders made whatthey hope is a pre-emptivestrike against a potential lackof camaraderie when theyspent part of two-a-daystogether in the residence hallsat Otterbein University thissummer.

Considering the Crusadersare a program that draws fromnumerous high schools andcommunities and has 10 home-school students on its roster,coach Ben Barlow has placeddeveloping team unity at thetop of his list of priorities.

The Crusaders, who lost sixof their first seven but finished4-6 a year ago, open Saturday,Aug. 31, against the Indianapo-lis Lions club team at TroyChristian.

“We started off the firstweek of two-a-days at Otter-bein in the dorms, which reallybrought us together,” said sen-ior Elijah Bowie, a Worthing-ton resident who is a home-school student. “We’ve defi-nitely got that camaraderie.

This year we’ve only got about42 guys on the team so we’resmaller, but the group is acloser-knit group and I thinkwe’re all on the same page.”

Barlow, who is in his sec-ond year as coach after previ-ously playing for the Crusadersand later becoming an assis-tant, has 14 returning starters.

Bowie (5-foot-8, 155pounds) is back in the defen-sive backfield, where he’lllikely be joined by WestervilleCentral sophomore RyanBecker (5-8, 168), Delawaresophomore Max Roberts (6-1, 200) and Walnut Ridge jun-ior Donald Stinson (5-7, 175).

The Crusaders practice atWorthington Christian and havesix players from that school onthe team. Worthington Chris-tian will play varsity footballfor the first time in 2014, andthe Crusaders are planning topractice at The Church atPolaris beginning next year.

Worthington Christian jun-ior Brian Lambright (6-2, 284),Licking County Christian jun-ior Anthony Andrews (5-11,215), Westerville North sen-ior Cory Richards (5-10, 205),home-school senior JakeArmentrout (6-1, 198) andColumbus Alternative juniorGlenn Ransom (6-1, 258) are

on the defensive line. Wor-thington Christian senior Josh

Hayes (6-0, 160), Johnstownjunior Noah Armentrout (5-8,

174), Buckeye Online Schoolfor Success senior AugustinePedrozo (5-9, 174) and home-school freshman Alex Melfe(6-2, 205) are at linebacker.

“This year is my second yearand I definitely just have a bet-ter handle on all of the issuesthat can come my way,” Bar-low said. “I’ve always been afiery guy, and having a year inis a big benefit. We were inex-perienced in terms of gameexperience last year and it tookawhile to gain some chemistry.This group has worked reallyhard and we expect it to trans-late into the season.”

Worthington Christian sen-ior Kyle Nowak (6-0, 220) isback at quarterback after beinga part-time starter last season.The Crusaders are planning torun a spread attack with somezone reads.

Worthington Christian sen-iors Jordan Brown (5-11, 162)and Spencer Smith (5-10, 156)and Tree of Life junior CarlJones (5-9, 140) are returneesat wide receiver. SophomoreDakota Holtzclaw (6-7, 201),who is a move-in from Texasand a home-school student, aswell as Roberts and Pickering-ton North sophomore BryceWard (6-1, 202) are otherslooking for playing time at the

position.Stinson and home-school

senior Aidan Conway (6-0,187) are at running back.

Holtzclaw and Ward alsocould see time at tight end, withNoah Armentrout, JakeArmentrout, Lambright,Andrews and Richards on theoffensive line.

The Crusaders are playingfour OHSAA teams, includ-ing St. Charles on Sept. 27 atThomas Worthington.

Doing well against teamslike the Cardinals and othersin the OHSAA is among thegoals for the Crusaders, wholost to St. Charles 37-13 lastseason but beat OHSAA-foesDayton Meadowdale (39-20)and Dayton Ponitz Tech (33-8).

“We do have a decent num-ber of guys back, although wewere at about 60 kids last yearand we’re only at about 40 thisyear,” Barlow said. “This yearour No. 1 goal is that we havea couple teams on (our sched-ule) that I’d call ‘landmarkgames.’We want to make surewe send a message againstthose teams. We’re a club teamand we’ll emphasize thosegames more than others.”

[email protected]


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 31 ........vs. Indianapolis Lionsat Troy ChristianSept. 6....vs. Cin. Landmark Christ.at Thomas WorthingtonSept. 14 ....vs. Saltsburg (Pa.) KiskiPrep at ThomasSept. 20....vs. Dayton Meadowdaleat Westerville SouthSept. 27 ..................vs. St. Charlesat ThomasOct. 5.....at Wheeling (W.Va.) LinslyOct. 12................at Howell (Mich.)Livingston County KnightsOct. 19........vs. Dayton Ponitz Techat ThomasOct. 25................vs. Troy Christianat Otterbein UniversityNov. 1......vs. Middletown Christianat Taylor University

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall)Westland .........................L, 32-27Landmark Christian..........L, 18-17Kiski Prep ..........................L, 13-9

Meadowdale...................W, 39-20St. Charles.......................L, 37-13Marion Harding................L, 48-42Chatham-Kent (Ontario) UrsulineCollege The Pines ..............L, 29-7Ponitz Tech .......................W, 33-8Hudson Western Reserve Academy........................................W, 34-0Linsly..............................W, 20-19

INSIDE THE CRUSADERS•Coach: Ben Barlow, second sea-son•Top players: Jake Armentrout(OL/DL), Noah Armentrout (OL/LB),Elijah Bowie (WR/DB), Josh Hayes(WR/LB), Carl Jones (WR/DB), BrianLambright (OL/DL), Kyle Nowak(QB/DL), Cory Richards (OL/DL) andSpencer Smith (WR/DB)•Key losses: Kris Bailey (LB), Jay-lan Davis (RB/DB), Owen Heckman(QB/DB), Jonathan Karst (LB), Gar-rett Monast (OL/DL),Tyler Sharp (WR)and Tyler Wilson (OL/DL)

final seven.They finished thirdin the MOAC-Red Division at7-2, and this season Fairbanksand JonathanAlder have joinedthe league.

The Barons open Friday,Aug.30, at Delaware, a team they lostto 35-23 in the opener a yearago but defeated 38-32 in twoovertimes to open the 2011 sea-son. Marshall coached the Pac-ers for 11 years and retired as ateacher at Delaware in thespring. He is beginning his 28thyear as a head coach, his 11that Buckeye Valley.

“I like this team a lot,” Mar-shall said. “BuckeyeValley is atypical rural community in Ohio.It is made up of good familiesthat produce solid, hard-work-ing, dedicated kids. That is thebest to work with.”

Pfeifer said it would be a mis-take for opponents to look pastthe Barons.

“We’ve always been a toughteam,” he said. “We’ve alwaysbeen a team to be under the radarbut to come out on top. We’redefinitely not a team to countout.”

[email protected]

BARONSFROM >> 72

Coach Mike Marshall is entering his 11th season with the Barons.CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

ished fourth at 4-3 behind Lick-ing Licking Heights (7-0) Lib-erty Union (6-1) and West Jef-ferson (5-2), and ahead ofGrandview (3-4) Fisher Catholic(2-5) Berne Union (1-6) and

Millersport (0-10, 0-7). TheWarriors were 3-0 against theteams that remained in the divi-sion — Berne Union, FisherCatholic and Millersport.

In its bid to reach the post-season, Harvest Prep will be inDivision VII Region 25 after

the OHSAA expanded the play-offs to seven divisions lastspring. “We just want to win,”Johnson said. “If it’s by one pointor 20 points, I don’t care. Wejust need to win.”

[email protected]

WARRIORSFROM >> 71

graduation was quarterbackCarson Chatterton, who was78-for-146 passing for 971yards, eight touchdowns andnine interceptions and carried93 times for 322 yards and fourtouchdowns and was namedsecond team all-OCC-Capital.

Junior Jordan Wall servedas Chatterton’s backup a yearago and is competing withsophomores Michael Sensi andHayden Bowmar for the start-ing job under center.

Last season, Wall was 5-for-8 passing for 79 yards and aninterception.

Junior running back Chris-tian Johnson returns to lead thebackfield. Last year, he wasthe team’s leading rusher with638 yards and four touchdownson 116 carries and was namedhonorable mention all-league.

The Golden Eagles lost theirtop three wide receivers froma year ago to graduation in SethMyers (24 catches for 273yards), Adam Shaheen (24catches for 222 yards, team-high 5 touchdowns) and GabeKitchen (19 catches for 260yards).

LaVeer is expected to leadthe receiving corps this season,according to Weaver, and Crowwill see time at tight end. Hale,Hernandez and Huffer bringexperience to the offensive line.

Hale was special mentionall-league last season.

On defense, Williams returnson the line, Crow andEisnnicher return to lead the

corps of linebackers and Win-dle is back to lead the second-ary.

Crow and Eisnnicher led thedefense last season, with Crowrecording 102 tackles (35 solo),seven tackles for loss and twosacks and Eisnnicher finishingwith 96 tackles (27 solo), 12tackles for loss and three sacks.

Crow was first-team all-league and Eisnnicher was sec-ond-team all-league.

Big Walnut, which went 4-3 in the OCC-Capital last yearto tie Olentangy Orange for

third, has returned to DivisionIII after being in Division IIthe past four seasons. It wonthe Division III state champi-onship in 2007 and was a statesemifinalist in that division thefollowing season before mov-ing up to Division II in 2009.

“Our goal is to take everygame as it comes,” Weaver said.“So our goal right now is towin game one. Once that’sdone, we’ll move on to gametwo.”

[email protected]

EAGLESFROM >> 42

Christian Johnson led the Golden Eagles with 638 yards rushingand four touchdowns. CHRIS PARKER/THISWEEKSPORTS

tackle to tight end on offenseand anchors the defensive linefrom his end position. Hub-ble, an inside linebacker lastfall, slides up to the other endposition, with Johnson, Cawand senior Jeremy Justice alsoseeing time on the line.

Senior Brady Watters shiftsback to outside linebacker after

being on the line last fall.Senior Sam Lowery also is atoutside linebacker and Cozadand Hupp will line up at insidelinebacker.

Napier and junior ShawnAvery will be among thosemanning the secondary.

Lakewood has moved fromthe MSL-Ohio Division to therevived Licking CountyLeague.

“I have preached to the kidsthat we did not score a touch-down in conference play (lastseason),” Sponhaltz said. “Iwanted them to be aware ofthat. If you go into the Lick-ing County League and playpoor defense and don’t movethe ball on offense, the gameswill get ugly in a hurry.”

Lakewood posted its onlyvictory last season againstNorthridge, which had beenin the MBC but has joined theLancers in the LCL.

“Every week we take thefield, we are facing a monu-mental challenge to competewith these teams, and we needto hit this thing full throttleand begin to compete rightaway,” Sponhaltz said. “Thesekids are serious about gettingthis train back on track. Thereis no doubt in my mind that Ithink (we) can compete.”

[email protected]

LANCERSFROM >> 67


season with a 29-17 win overWorthington Kilbourne. “Wehave kids who have bought intoit. Our offseason is exactlywhere we expected it to be.

“Our kids’work ethic is justso good. If we can stay healthyand develop an offensive anddefensive line, we feel ourchances are very good.”

After sharing the league titlewith Olentangy Liberty andWesterville South in 2011 at5-2, the Warhawks (4-3) slipped

to fourth last season behindchampion Hilliard Darby (7-0), Dublin Scioto (6-1) andWesterville South (5-2).

Canal Winchester hasreplaced Worthington Kil-bourne, which moved to theOCC-Capital.

South should again be a con-tender, Magistro said, as theWarhawks will look for theirfirst win over the Wildcatswhen the teams meet Oct. 17.

South leads the series 6-0,including last season’s 50-28win at Central.

“Westerville South is alwaysgoing to have good talent,speed,” said Magistro, whoseteam’s conference opener isSept. 20 at Dublin Scioto.“They’re a good football teamyear in and year out. Canal hasathletes.Their track program isgood.

“With Darby, when you winthe following year it breedsconfidence. Scioto was goodlast year.The OCC is very com-petitive.”

[email protected]

WARHAWKSFROM >> 37

missed the postseason the pasttwo seasons.

The Bulldogs have movedfrom the MSL-Ohio Divisionto revived Licking CountyLeague this season and are inthe Small School Division with

Johnstown, Newark Catholic,Northridge and Utica.

“This team will be good,”Collier said. “I don’t knowwhen. I don’t know if we’ll begood by opening day, I don’tknow if we’ll be good by weeksix. Maybe we won’t be gooduntil next year. There is going

to come a point in time wherethis group of kids are good.Theyare good kids, they like to comeand work, they are willing tolearn and, for the most part, theyare coachable. It is a matter oftime.”

[email protected]

BULLDOGSFROM >> 66

Edmister, Selmon, Sparksand juniors Marcus Lopez andJake Smith will play in the sec-ondary.

“We want to be able to cutthe scores in half from last year,”said coach Smith, whose teamallowed 36.2 points per contestlast season. “If we can just cutthat in half, and make it man-ageable, then we’ll be in games.We just have to stay away fromnegative plays on offense andbig plays against our defense.”

Robberts and Sherer arevying for place-kicking duties,with Lopez and Marston com-peting to punt.

The Redskins have left theMBC and joined the LickingCounty League, where they willplay in the Small School Divi-sion with Heath, Johnstown,Newark Catholic and North-ridge.

The Big School Division iscomprised of Granville, Lake-wood, Licking Heights, Lick-ingValley and Watkins Memo-rial. Crossover games played in

weeks four through 10 willcount toward a team’s leaguerecord, allowing all teams tohave seven league contests.

“The MBC was a toughleague, but we’ve upped (thecompetition) quite a bit goingto the LCL,” said coach Smith,whose team has remained inDivision IV in the new seven-division postseason format. “It’sgoing to be a challenge, but I’ma competitor and I welcome thechallenge.”

[email protected]

REDSKINSFROM >> 65

injuries arise.“We have that small-school

mentality,” Riley said. “We haveto stay healthy. We have a cou-ple good young classes of fresh-men and sophomores. Thesekids won in junior high, so thatshould help us.”

Northridge opens Friday,Aug. 30, at home against Miller-sport, which it defeated 34-0last season.

The Vikings have left the

MBC to join the Licking CountyLeague.

They will play in the SmallSchool Division with Heath,Johnstown, Newark Catholicand Utica.

The Big School Division iscomprised of Granville, Lake-wood, Licking Heights, Lick-ingValley and Watkins Memo-rial. Crossover games played inweeks four through 10 willcount toward a team’s leaguerecord, allowing all teams tohave seven league contests.

“We’re more determined thanever,” said Burke, whose teamhas moved from Division IV,Region 15 to DivisionV, Region17 in the new seven-divisionpostseason format. “We allknow as seniors that this is ourlast go-round. Now we’re in anew league and that adds moreto everything. We have put inthe work and we know whatneeds to be done. Now we justhave to go out and do it.”

[email protected]

VIKINGSFROM >> 65

“Our goal this year is tomake the playoffs and win theleague,” said Kuhner, whoseteam will remain in DivisionIII and compete in Region 9

after the OHSAA added a sev-enth division for the footballplayoffs last spring. “It wouldbe a great time to win theleague being the first time wehave this league.

“Our kids are really focused

on being a team this year andgetting that winning attitudeback to Whitehall. We’ve talkedto them about it and they’reonboard.”

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RAMSFROM >> 72

front,” Crum said. “It’s goingto help us in our run game.”

Another experienced playerback on offense is senior Loren-zio Bridges, who will start attailback and also will be thekicker.

“The keys to the offense thisseason will be moving the ballup and down the field and get-ting the ball in our key players’hands,” said Bridges, who ranfor 525 yards and six touch-downs and had 12 receptionsfor 146 yards and two morescores a year ago.

On defense, the line willinclude West (53 tackles, 6 forloss) and juniorTyaunTaylor atend and Jones at nose tackle.

Juniors Brandon Fort (insidelinebacker) and Houston Palmer(outside linebacker) will joinCrum (29 tackles, 4 sacks) andWellman at linebacker.

The secondary will featuresenior Dylan Napier (62 tack-les, 37 solo, 1 interception) andjunior Xavier Harris at safetyandWilliams (33 tackles, 3 inter-ceptions) has locked up a spotas well. Also expected to seeaction are senior Michael Stan-ley and junior Josh Gregory.

The Rangers opened 4-0 lastseason but lost three of theirfinal six games to finish 11thin Division II, Region 7 with15.1 points.This year they willbe in Division II, Region 5 afterthe OHSAA added a seventhdivision to the football playoffs

last spring.In the MSL-Buckeye, the

Rangers, Teays Valley, LoganElm and Circleville all finished4-3 to trail champion CanalWinchester (7-0), which hasjoined the OCC-Cardinal Divi-sion and been replaced by Lib-erty Union.

“The biggest thing is com-ing together as a team andfocusing on the little things,”Hillerich said. “We had threelosses last year, and we turnedthe ball over four or more timesin each of those games. If wetake care of the ball and withour discipline, do the littlethings right, we’re going to havea great year.”

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RANGERSFROM >> 70

base defense include seniorlinebacker Craig Prince (6-1,215), junior tackle Bo Red-man and Griffith and Hupp inthe secondary.

Prince was the Panthers’leading tackler last season.

Licking Valley, which opensFriday, Aug. 30, at DresdenTri-Valley, is looking to startthe season stronger than it dida year ago when it lost its firsttwo contests.

“It has been a focus for usso that we are better preparedso that we do get off to a bet-ter start,” Baughman said. “Wedidn’t lose to a couple ofslouches, but we are doingeverything this year to get offto a better start.”

Licking Valley went 6-1 inthe MSL-Ohio Division lastyear to share the league titlewith Granville (6-1) andNewark Catholic (6-1). Allthree teams are part of the

revived Licking CountyLeague this season.

The Panthers are in theLCL’s Big School Divisionwith Granville, Lakewood,Licking Heights and WatkinsMemorial.

Baughman, 60, is in his32nd season at Licking Val-ley and owns a 263-85-1record. He said it is still easyfor him to get excited aboutthe game.

“They are fun kids to bearound and they have workedas hard as any group we’vehad,” he said. “A lot of timeswhen you are working hardyou are miserable, but thisgroup just knows how toembrace it, that they are work-ing hard for a purpose.

“We’re looking for perfec-tion. That is our mindset, torun the table. That is how weare going to approach it andwe’ll see what happens.”

[email protected]

PANTHERSFROM >> 67

96-H Integrity Dr.



HEBRON

Megan Miller, D.O.(740) 348-7930

ley and Newark Catholic havemoved to the Licking ValleyConference.

Worthington Christian willcompete at the junior varsitylevel in football for the 2013season before fielding a var-sity squad in 2014.

“I think from top to bottomit’s going to be a positive expe-rience,” Smith said. “At times(in the old league) we just

weren’t able to get over thehump, but we were starting todo the right things. That sched-ule just didn’t allow it. We’llstill have Academy and White-hall, and those are goodteams.”

Smith — whose team willbe in Division IV, Region 13after the OHSAA added a sev-enth division to the footballplayoffs last spring — also saidhe has been pleased with theeffort he has gotten from his

players as they prepare for theseason.

“Overall, and this is noknock on the kids I’ve had inthe past, I’ve never had a groupof kids work as hard as thisteam in the 17 years I’vecoached. We’ve pushed thisteam, we’ve gotten after thisteam, we’ve run this team andthey’ve responded to every-thing we’ve thrown at them.”

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LIONSFROM >> 70

OTHER AREA TEAMS

Grandview Heights

Small senior class outto make big impact

Phil Readey and four class-mates have made the journeyto become the only seniors inthe Grandview Heights HighSchool football program.

Readey, Sam Callison, Noah

King, Tim Murphy and NickSchopis will try to help the Bob-cats improve on a season inwhich they finished 5-5 over-all and fifth (3-4) in the MSL-Cardinal Division behind cham-pion Licking Heights (7-0).

“It’s weird to be a seniorbecause when we were fresh-men, those (senior) guys seemedso much older than we were,”said Readey, who returns on thedefensive line and at runningback. “Now that seems like yes-terday and this is the final sea-son of football for most of us.We want to make the most ofit.”

Schopis is back at quarter-back, one of four returningstarters on offense along withMurphy at tight end, Readeyand junior running back JoePinney.

“We were 5-5 last year andwe feel like we were a lot bet-ter than that,” Schopis said. “Our

confidence is up and we wantto show what we’re capable ofdoing.”

Schopis was 105-for-222passing last season for 1,271yards with nine touchdowns and12 interceptions. He also is thetop returning rusher with 291yards and four touchdowns on66 carries.

“I have a year of experienceunder my belt and it has slowedthings down a lot,” he said. “I’mseeing the field a lot better thanI used to.

“It helps (also playing defen-sive back). On defense, I havean idea of the routes that thereceivers will be running andwhat the quarterback will do. Ialso know what the defensivebacks might be doing when I’mback to pass.”

Pinney and Readey both werepart of the Bobcats’ backfield



GOOD LUCK BOBCATS!

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Columbus Academy

Vikings need to avoidinjuries to skill players

With just 30 players on theroster, Columbus Academyfootball coach Jim Collis real-izes his team will have littleroom for error or injuries, buthe believes the Vikings’ skillplayers will give them a chanceto win every week.

“I wish we had more num-bers,” said Collis, whose teamfinished 5-5 overall and 4-3 inthe MSL-Ohio Division a yearago. “The kids are here, they’reshowing up, they’re workinghard and we’re going to coachwhat we have and make themost of it. We have decent tal-ent at our skilled positions. It’sjust a matter of whether we canstay healthy.”

Academy will open at homeagainst Grove City Christianon Friday, Aug. 30, and theVikings will begin play in therevamped MSL-Ohio at Lon-don on Sept. 20.

Academy, Bexley andWhitehall have remained inthe MSL-Ohio and will bejoined by Grandview, London,Madison Plains and West Jef-ferson.

Worthington Christian alsohas joined the league and willplay at the junior varsity levelthis season before beginningvarsity play next year.

Granville, Licking Valley

and Newark Catholic – whichshared the league title last sea-son at 6-1 – have joined theLicking County League along


2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30......vs. Grove City ChristianSept. 6 ............................at ReadySept. 12.................vs. North Union*Sept. 20 .......................at London*Sept. 27.................vs. Grandview*Oct. 4 ........................at Whitehall*Oct. 11..............at West Jefferson*Oct. 18............vs. Madison PlainsOct. 25.........vs. Cle. Lutheran East*Nov. 1 ...........................at Bexley

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 4-3 MSL-Ohio)Zanesville Maysville .........L, 22-19Hartley ..............................L, 42-7Whetstone ......................W, 55-12*Lakewood .......................W, 42-2

*Newark Catholic ...............L, 14-9*Heath............................W, 42-21*Bexley.............................W, 30-7*Licking Valley .................L, 21-17*Whitehall .......................W, 38-20*Granville.........................L, 34-20*League contest

INSIDE THE VIKINGS•Coach: Jim Collis, third season•Top players: Bryce Bailey (RB/DB),Dan Jones (OL/DL), Isaac Sheumaker(OL/LB), Lee Solomon (RB/LB) andCharlie Watters (QB/DL).•Key losses: Rhys Davis (OL/DL),Jared Harris (RB/DB) and Hart Wise(QB/DB).

VIKINGS >> 77

Quarterback Nick Schopis is one of only five seniors and one of four returning starters for theBobcats. LAURIE STEVENSON/THISWEEKSPORTS

BOBCATS >> 76

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ................vs. CentennialSept. 6.......................at MinfordSept. 13 .....vs. Fairfield Christian*Sept. 20....................vs. Bexley*Sept. 27 ........at Cols. Academy*Oct. 4........................at London*Oct. 11..................vs. Whitehall*Oct. 18 .........vs. West Jefferson*Oct. 25 ..........at Madison PlainsNov. 1 ......................at Swanton

2012 RESULTS(5-5 overall, 3-4 MSL-Cardinal)Centennial ...................W, 42-20East Knox .....................L, 30-13Whitehall .....................W, 33-23*West Jefferson ............L, 35-17*Millersport....................W, 57-0*Licking Heights ............ L, 34-7*Berne Union ...............W, 42-16*Fisher Catholic ...........W, 44-13*Harvest Prep ...............L, 37-16*Liberty Union...............L, 25-13*League contest

INSIDE THE BOBCATS•Coach: Jason Peters, seventhseason•Top players: Ben Jump (RB/DL),Rhodes Jump (RB/LB),Nick Maupin(RB/DB), Tim Murphy (TE/DL/P),Joe Pinney (RB/LB), Leo Readey(OL/LB/K), Phil Readey (RB/DL),Nick Schopis (QB/DB) and GrantVarner (OL/LB)•Key losses: Chase Douglass(OL/DL), Payton Jones (RB/DB),Matt Kientz (OL/DL), Luke Miller(RB/LB),Tyler Mosier (RB/DB), NickPeck (OL/DL), Myshon Price(WR/DB), Luke Snider (RB/LB) andAndy Treasure (OL/DL)

rotation a year ago. Pinney ranfor 182 yards and one touch-down on 35 carries and Readeyhad 89 yards and one score on21 attempts. Junior NickMaupin also had 74 yards on13 carries.

“We lost our entire offensiveline and we lost a lot of carries,but Joe Pinney and Phil Readeyhad a lot of carries, Nick Maupinhad a lot of carries, so skill-wisewe’re OK,” seventh-year coachJason Peters said. “We have anextremely coachable group andthey have stayed focused on the

things we want them to workon.

“I think these kids came backhungry. We had a lot of poten-tial last year and at times wedidn’t live up to that.All five ofour seniors have done a greatjob of leading us.”

One of those seniors, Mur-phy, had 15 catches for 225yards. He also is a defensivelineman and was second-teamall-district as a punter last sea-son with an average of 36.5yards per attempt.

“I definitely feel like we aremore of a team and I feel likemore of a leader,” Murphy said.

“We have to work hard in theweight room because a lot ofus play both ways. We don’thave the numbers for a lot ofone-way players.”

The Bobcats have 32 play-ers, which is one reason whythe team worked hard in theweight room during the offsea-son.

“I feel like when we went 10-0 (in the 2011 regular season),everyone was in the weightroom working hard in the off-season to get better,” said Cal-lison, who plays on the offen-sive and defensive lines. “Lastyear, I think we got a little lack-

adaisical, and then we also hadsome injuries that hurt us. Wereally were committed in theoffseason to get better andstronger.

“I feel like this winter wewere all in (the weight room),even the freshmen. We workedreally hard and we really feellike a team.”

King (OL/DL) said teamunity would be important to theBobcats’ success.

“I feel we are more of a cohe-sive unit than last year, and that’simportant. We need to keepworking hard and continue towork as a team in practice,” he

said. “As a senior, I’m more ofa leader.We have the same drillsand everything and now we haveto demonstrate what the youngerplayers need to do.”

The Bobcats had two keyplayers not return. Senior LukeMiller, who was honorable men-tion all-district at linebacker andcaught four passes for 59 yardsand two touchdowns, decidedto concentrate on basketball.

Junior wide receiver MyshonPrice moved from the districtafter having 11 catches for 226yards and two touchdowns.

Junior Leo Readey will bethe place-kicker as well as play

on the offensive line and at line-backer.

“We have open competitionin a lot of our positions and thatwill come with reps and seeinghow we do during the scrim-mages,” Peters said. “We needto get reps under fire. Practiceis practice, but when there is adifferent color jersey across fromyou, things are a little moreintense.”

The Bobcats open Friday,Aug. 30, at home against Cen-tennial.They play their inaugu-ral MSL-Ohio game Sept. 20


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BOBCATSFROM >> 75

OTHER AREA TEAMS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 ..vs. Worthington KilbourneSept. 6 ..............at Dublin CoffmanSept. 13 ....................at Marysville*Sept. 20 .....vs. Westerville Central*Sept. 27.........at Westerville North*Oct. 4 ............at Westerville South*Oct. 10.............vs. Dublin Jerome*Oct. 18 ..............vs. Hilliard Darby*Oct. 25 .............at Hilliard Bradley*Nov. 1 ..........vs. Canal Winchester

2012 RESULTS(8-3 overall, 6-1 OCC-Cardinal)Canal Winchester ............W, 48-21Dublin Coffman................L, 34-14Marysville .......................W, 51-27*Westerville Central.........W, 34-14*Westerville North ...........W, 45-14*Westerville South...........W, 42-35*Dublin Jerome...............W, 42-23

*Hilliard Darby .................L, 28-24*Hilliard Bradley ..............W, 28-27*Worthington Kilbourne .....W, 24-7PLAYOFFSOlentangy........................L, 21-17*League contest

INSIDE THE IRISH•Coach: Karl Johnson, 14th season•Top players: Elijah Berry (DL), NickConner (LB), Jack Flood (DB), Dar-ius McDonald (RB), Matt Messick(WR), Kevin Sanabria (DL), BrennenSawicki (DL), Jacob Schafer (OL),Cody Steffy (WR), Spencer Talentino(DB) and Troy Zimmerman (LB)•Key losses: Evan DeMars (QB),William Houston (FB), Joey Monda(OL/DL), Mason Sawicki (OL/DL) andTim Shadoan (WR)

the junior varsity quarterback,”Johnson said. “We haven’tchanged anything offensively.He’s worked hard in the offsea-son and now it’s a matter of get-ting reps and making good deci-sions.”

Scioto will continue to runits no-huddle offense in whichsenior Darius McDonald, a Divi-sion I college prospect, will bethe main focus as a runner anda receiver. Seniors Cody Steffyand Matt Messick return atreceiver and senior JacobMosher will start at tight end.

The defense will be led byseven returning starters in sen-iors Elijah Berry (DL), JackFlood (DB),Troy Zimmerman

(LB) and Spencer Talentino(DB) and juniors Brennen Saw-icki (DL), Kevin Sanabria (DL)and Nick Conner (LB). Zim-merman, who had a team-high131 tackles last season, was spe-cial mention all-district and hon-orable mention all-league. Saw-icki was second-team all-league.

Others expected to contributeinclude seniors Graham Smithand Devin Hawkins at corner-back, junior Ras Lumpkins andsenior Isaiah Robinson on theline and senior DerrickAgbaikeand junior MitchWinters at line-backer.

“I think our defensive line isone of our strengths,” Johnsonsaid.

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IRISHFROM >> 36


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with Heath and Lakewood.“The league will still be

competitive,” Collis said. “Thething that will help us isschools will be in our situa-tion with numbers. They’re oursize, so they’re probably goingto be similar to us in terms ofhow many players they haveand guys that are playing twoways.”

Senior Charlie Watters (6-foot-4, 218 pounds) is expectedto replace 2013 graduate Hart

Wise at quarterback and directAcademy’s wing-T and spreadoffense.

“(Watters) is going to havea good year,” Collis said. “He’s6-4, so he can see over stuff.He has a strong arm. We’regoing to count on him a lot todo some things offensively.”

Last season, Wise completed83 of 144 passes for 1,045yards with 10 touchdowns andrushed for 142 yards and threetouchdowns on 53 carries.

“We haven’t been in theplayoffs in awhile (2006),”

Watters said. “Team is whatmatters here. Playoffs, see howfar we can go there. Keepworking everyday. Come topractice everyday ready to go.”

Also back is senior halfbackBryce Bailey (5-11, 175), whorushed for 468 yards and 10touchdowns on 85 carries lastseason.

Bailey will look to replaceJared Harris, who as a seniorled Academy in rushing with1,085 yards and seven touch-

VIKINGS

OTHER AREA TEAMS

Bryce Bailey rushed for 468 yards and 10 touchdowns last year but will be counted on to carry aheavier workload this season for the Vikings. EAMON QUEENEY/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

FROM >> 75

ACADEMY >> 78

besides that, we look tremen-dous.”

Also back is senior line-backer Louis Torchio (5-10,205), who was second-teamall-league.

“We lost a bunch of seniors,so hopefully some of theyounger guys can step up andjust make something happen,”Torchio said.

Other linemen are seniors

Matthew McCarthy (6-0, 210)and Brian Miller (5-11, 170),and other linebackers are sen-iors James Hanson (6-0, 215)and Drew Izzo (6-1, 190) andjuniorAustin Hall (5-11, 205).

Hanson was second-teamall-league last season.

The secondary should fea-ture seniors Mikey Bano (5-10, 165), Naman Chamoli (5-9, 175), Erik Harlock (5-10,175), Juan Jennings (5-7, 160)and Josh Hundley (6-0, 160),junior Garrett Smith (5-9, 160)and sophomore Colson Poach(6-1, 195). Hundley is thecoach’s son.

Jerome plays in a leagueloaded with playoff contenders.Last year in Division I, Region3, Darby, Scioto and Wester-ville South were among theeight teams that made the play-offs, while Westerville Centralwas one spot from a postsea-son berth.

“Our No. 1 goal is try to dothe best we can and win theleague,” coach Hundley said.“Somebody has to knock West-erville South out of there.Darby is by far a tough, toughfootball team.”

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CELTICS

At a glance2013 SCHEDULEAug. 30 .............at Dublin CoffmanSept. 6 ....................vs. BeechcroftSept. 13 .....................at Delaware*Sept. 20............at Hilliard Bradley*Sept. 27.............vs. Hilliard Darby*Oct. 4 ...........vs. Westerville North*Oct. 11 ................at Dublin Scioto*Oct. 18.........vs. Canal Winchester*Oct. 25 ..........at Westerville South*Nov. 1 ........vs. Westerville Central

2012 RESULTS(4-6 overall, 3-4 OCC-Cardinal)Dublin Coffman..................L, 48-6Beechcroft.......................L, 18-10Delaware........................W, 49-14

*Hilliard Bradley ..............W, 28-26*Hilliard Darby ...................L, 20-7*Westerville North ...........W, 62-14*Dublin Scioto..................L, 42-23*Worthington Kilbourne .....W, 20-7*Westerville South.....L, 21-20 (OT)*Westerville Central.L, 24-21 (3OT)*League contest

INSIDE THE CELTICS•Coach: Mark Hundley, 10th sea-son•Top players: Ian Beith (RB), NateFairand (DL), Steve Kidwell (RB), JakeKing (QB) and Louis Torchio (LB)•Key losses: Eric Brooks (OL), MitchKeller (WR) and Donovan Wilson (RB)

FROM >> 34


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downs on 167 carries.“I can’t wait for this sea-

son,” Bailey said. “Each dayduring the summer I was work-ing out. I went to multiplecamps to get better and helpmy team win this fall.”

Junior Ben Dahl (5-8, 165)is the fullback and senior LeeSolomon (5-9, 185) will playwingback.

Collis likes the developmentof his offensive line, but saidit lacks depth.

Senior center Garrett Levine(5-11, 180) will be flanked bysenior Isaac Sheumaker (6-1,210) and sophomore DaltonPorter (5-11, 195) at guard andjuniors Reed Clark (6-2, 185)and Dan Jones (6-1, 205) attackle. Senior Tyler Krumlauf(6-0, 185) will play tight end.

Senior Tyler Kohman (6-3,185) will handle the kickingduties, and Bailey will punt.

With the small roster, sev-eral offensive players also willstart in the Vikings’ base 4-3defense.

“When you have low num-bers you have to be physical.You have to do it all,” said Wat-ters, who also will play defen-sive end. “We’re all going both

ways. It’s not just one personworking. It’s everybody goingboth ways, and we have a coregroup of guys we can reallydo something with.”

Junior Luke Albers (5-9,195) will play tackle, sopho-more Matt Schmidt (6-0, 180)is an end and Jones is a guard.

Linebackers will includejunior JaVahn Iverson (5-10,180), freshman Roman Bel-lisari (5-10, 170), Sheumakerand Solomon.

The defensive backfield fea-tures Bailey and Dahl at cor-nerback and senior ConnerNelson (5-9, 165) and sopho-more Jack Mills (6-0, 170) atsafety.

Sheumaker and Solomonwere second-team all-leagueand Bailey, Watters and Dahl(RB/DB) were honorable men-tion all-league a year ago, andSheumaker and Solomon alsowere honorable mention all-district.

“It’s going to be an interest-ing year,” Collis said. “Ourskilled guys are talented.Injuries are going to occur inthis game. It’s a matter of whenthey occur and who it happensto and at what time.”

[email protected]

ACADEMYFROM >> 77

at home against Bexley, andtheir new league also includesColumbus Academy, London,Madison Plains, West Jeffersonand Whitehall.

“We’re going up against bet-ter competition (in the MSL-Ohio) and that will make us bet-

ter,” Phil Readey said. “Weknow we will be pushed everygame.”

In the new seven-divisionOHSAA playoff format, theBobcats have dropped fromDivision V, Region 19 to Divi-sion VI, Region 21.

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FROM >> 76


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