STORY BY MATT NATALI

Transcription

Football Playoff Round-Up
STORY BY MATT NATALI
MAC Attack
St. Henry beat Warren JFK,
28-7, in the Division V state
championship at Canton
Fawcett Stadium. The title was
the Redskins sixth, tying them
with fellow-MAC member
Versailles for the most state
titles by a public school. Here,
Josh Werling carries the ball
for St. Henry.
18 J J H U D D L E . C O M
Photo by Nick Falzerano
JJ H u ddle ’s O h io Hi gh
Pair of thrillers
highlights OHSAA
state football playoffs
JJ H u d d l e ’ s O h i o H i g h
J J H U D D L E . C O M 19
Helmet images courtesy of Ohio High School Helmet Project
hen the dust settled on the 2006 OHSAA state football
championships in Stark County, there was one repeat
champion and two new champions among the six divisional championship games played.
Two of the six title games were also decided by just one
point as Hilliard Davidson nipped Mentor 36-35 in double overtime in Division I and Steubenville stopped Kettering Alter 34-33
in Division III. Davidson won its first state title, while Steubenville
claimed its second straight title and ran its winning streak to 30
consecutive games.
Piqua was a first time champion in Division II, while Youngstown
Mooney (Division IV), St. Henry (D-V) and Maria Stein Marion Local
(D-VI) all added to their rich traditions as state champions.
Below is a division-by-division look at the 2006 OHSAA state
football championships.
W
Division I State Championship
35
Photo by Gary Housteau
36
Hilliard Davidson edges
Mentor for D-I title in
double-overtime thriller
Hilliard Davidson claimed its first football
state championship in school history with a
thrilling 36-35 double-overtime victory over
Mentor Dec. 3 at Canton’s Fawcett Stadium
in front of 12,629 fans.
In a game that featured two contrasting
styles of offense, Davidson’s option attack
prevailed behind senior running back Bo
Delande, who collected 236 yards on 47
carries and a Division I state championship
game record 5 TDs.
The game was knotted at 21 at the end
of regulation and Davidson started with the
ball in the first overtime. Facing a fourthand-one situation on the drive, Davidson
put the ball in Delande’s hands and he converted.
On the next play, Delande marched into
the end zone and the Colby Catlett point
after put Davidson up 28-21.
Mentor took over and all-state junior QB
Bart Tanski connected with Steve Orkis for
a 16-yard TD strike on the second play of
Davidson
senior Bo
Delande
scored five
TDs as the
Wildcats won
thier first D-I
state title.
the series.
The Kevin Harper point after tied the
game at 28 to send it to double-overtime.
Mentor had the ball first in the second
overtime and scored in three plays, capped
off by a 1-yard Bill Deitman run.
The PAT put Mentor up 35-28.
Davidson took over and faced a thirdand-two on the possession. Delande converted but on the next play he fumbled.
Mentor’s Danny Kelly fell on the ball but it
squirted out from underneath him and
Davidson offensive lineman Mike Saul
recovered the fumble.
On the next play, Delande took it in from
three yards to put the Wildcats within one
point.
Davidson then took a timeout before
sending Catlett on the field for the point
after. The Wildcats called another timeout
and sent the offense on the field to attempt
the 2-point conversion to win the game.
Fittingly, Davidson called on Delande and
he marched into the end zone virtually
untouched to seal the state championship
win.
It was a risky play call that could have
lost the game for Davidson but head coach
Brian White never second guessed his
decision.
“There was never a doubt in my mind,”
he said. “I told the coaches earlier that we
were going for two. I didn’t want to go for it
in the first overtime when we had to be on
offense first because that would give them
a chance if we didn’t make either to just
kick or if we did make it, it would give them
a chance to go for two and tie us.
“I felt like if we would be fortunate enough
to score and have the ball second in the
second overtime, I had already decided we
were going for two. That wasn’t the tough
part, the tough part was deciding what play
we wanted to run.
“We decided to put the ball in our playmaker’s hands and run it on the left side.”
Delande, whose 5 TDs tie the record for
most by a player in a state championship
game in any division, was nearly speechless following the shocking win.
“It feels awesome,” he said. “I can’t even
explain it right now. It is a kind of like a big
dream.”
White acknowledged the Delande fumble
and Saul recovery in the second overtime
that nearly lost the game for Davidson.
“When I saw it come out I didn’t think
there was any way we were going to get it
back,” he said. “And the thought that went
through my mind had nothing to do with not
winning. The thought that went through my
mind was I’d hate to have Bo live with that
with all the great things he’s done over the
last couple years.”
Obviously, Mentor was in just as much
shock after the game as Davidson.
“We knew they were going to go for two.
We thought they were going to go for two
(in the first overtime). When you chew up
three yards at a time, it wasn’t a real hard
decision for them,” said Mentor head coach
Steve Trivisonno.
JJ Hu ddle’ s O h io Hi gh
between Davidson and Mentor set the state
championship game record for most yards
regardless of Division.
Davidson had 354 total rushing yards
between Delande, Clay Trubiano (61),
Connor Dietz (45) and Tyler Young (3).
Mentor’s Brandon James had 172 receiving yards on 11 catches and a TD, Tyler
Schutz reeled in seven catches for 77
yards and a TD, Mike Popelas had 59
yards with four catches and Orkis’ only
reception was the 16-yard TD strike.
The Cardinals tallied 55 yards rushing,
led by Bill Deitman with 31 yards on 10 carries and a TD.
The 71 combined points set the Division I
scoring record in a title game and was one
point shy of the most in any division. It was
also the first time a Division I championship
went into overtime.
It was the first trip to the state championship game for both Davidson (15-0) and
Mentor (13-2).
State semifinals results:
Hilliard Davidson 10, Colerain 6
Mentor 18, Canton McKinley 13
leaning forward and getting two-and-a-half,
three yards on us.
“He is just a tough guy to tackle and that
is why he is Mr. Football.”
Pickerington Central (13-2) faced two
tough backs in the state tournament but
was able to contain Macedonia Nordonia’s
Jordan Mabin in the state semifinals in a 73 win.
Mabin, a Northwestern recruit, is widely
considered the runner-up in this year’s Mr.
Football award.
“Saine is a powerful runner,” said
Pickerington Central senior DB Brian
Peters. “It took more than one person to
“We knew what we were getting into and
we had what we wanted (defensively).
They made a nice pitch and a nice run. We
didn’t need a timeout. We already had two
and discussed it both times and we were
ready.”
Tanksi set a Division I championship
game record for completions going 24-of31 for 327 yards and 4 TDs in the Mentor
spread offense.
“We knew two years ago when Bart was
a freshman that he was special,” Trivisonno
added. “He has that ability to see things
and he has a very good arm. He might not
be a flying runner, but he is very elusive
and he does things well.”
But Tanski would obviously trade his
record setting performance for a state title.
“It is tough because we worked that hard
and we came up one point short. It’s a
tough loss,” he said.
With two contrasting yet potent styles of
offenses going head to head, both coaches
knew the match up had the potential to be
a high scoring affair with how well each
team executes when they have the ball.
“We knew each team was going to come
out and score a lot and whoever had that
ball last was going to win and that’s pretty
much the way we thought it would end up,”
Trivisonno said.
“They run (the option) so well and it’s
something we don’t see. We have probably
never seen this kind of offense. When you
see the ‘I’ and you see the ‘I’ often, you get
used to playing it a little bit more.
“They do it well. They’ll get into fourth
down and go for it and when you have the
ability to get three (yards) at a time, three
times four is 12 and it makes it tough (to
defend). But we did what we needed to do
and we bent at times but we didn’t break.”
“I think their offense is pretty dynamic,”
White said of Mentor.
“I don’t know if I would say I envisioned
anything because I could have never visualized a game as good as that was. I was
hoping we would be able to move the ball
on offense and I was hoping that our style
was going to win out over their style.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little bit surprised at the way we were able to move the
ball,” he added.
“They had given up some yards running
this year but most of the time it was against
a balanced offense. I was expecting it to be
a little more difficult for us. I’m not saying
that it wasn’t difficult but obviously that is
where the offensive line shows though.”
The 746 combined yards of offense
Division II State Championship
26
7
Saine powers Piqua to D-II
championship with 26-7 win
over Pickerington Central
Piqua quarterback Justin Hemm
came up big during the Indians
push to their first state title
Behind 2006 Mr. Football award winner
and Ohio High magazine Player of the Year
Brandon Saine, Piqua claimed its first state
championship with a 26-7 win over
Pickerington Central at Massillon’s Paul
Brown Stadium on Dec. 2.
Saine, who will play his college ball at
Ohio State, tallied 241 yards rushing on 30
carries and scored 3 TDs.
His three scores came on runs of 80, 52
and 29 yards all in the first half.
“One of the things we wanted to do is try
and get as many shoulder pads on (Saine)
as possible,” said Pickerington Central
head coach Jay Sharrett. “But he carries
about 30-35 pounds of extra muscle mass.
Even when I thought we stuck him pretty
good at the line of scrimmage he was still
bring him down. He is a player. You have to
tip your hat to him. He is a hell of a player.
Mabin is a little more shifty, but he’s Mr.
Football and that says it all.”
Pickerington Central, which was making
its first appearance in a championship
game, started the game with the ball and
marched 61 yards on seven plays to open
up the scoring with a 7-yard TD run by J.D.
Cecil.
That would be the only scoring
Pickerington Central would do on the night.
In the waning moments of the first quarter, Saine had his first score on the first play
of the possession sprinting 80 yards to pay
dirt.
The Wes Reed point after knotted the
score at 7-7.
On fourth-and-five midway through the
second quarter, Saine struck again taking a fake punt 52 yards to the end
zone. With the failed extra point, Piqua
was up 13-7.
With 1:32 left in the half, Saine polished off a 6-play, 49-yard scoring drive
with a 29-yard march into the end zone.
The two-point conversion failed and
Piqua went into the half up 19-7.
In the first half alone, Saine rushed for
195 yards on 14 carries.
“After the first series, I thought our
defense adjusted pretty well and did a
nice job of being able to get out and
make some open field tackles,” said
head coach Bill Nees.
“Offensively, we moved the ball
enough to keep them off the field. I wish
we could have moved the ball a little bit
more, but I thought we did a nice job of
being able to get some key first downs
when we needed it.”
Piqua added a score with 5:15 left in
the game when a pass from
Pickerington Central QB Chazz
Anderson intended for Jordan Jerrell
was tipped and DL Jafe Pitcock picked it
off and took it 8 yards for the score.
The point after gave Piqua the 26-7
lead and the Division II state title.
“It’s everything I could ask for and
dream for,” said Saine.
“It is everything I have ever wanted
since I was a little kid and I am just
amazed right now.
“I didn’t feel any pressure. I just wanted to come out and play my final game
at Piqua High School and play my heart
out.”
Piqua outgained Pickerington Central
246-112 in total offensive yards.
Jarrell had 94 yards on the ground on
20 carries, and Anderson was 5-of-17
passing for 55 yards while adding 35
yards on the ground.
Piqua finished state runners-up in
2000 (lost 21-0 to Olmstead Falls).
Saine was one TD shy of tying the
Division II state championship game
record (Javon Ringer, ChaminadeJulienne). Saine’s 226 yards was 25 shy
of Ringer’s record (251) as well.
His 80-yard TD run tied the Division II
championship game record for the
longest TD run from scrimmage (Johnny
Mundy, Akron Buchtel).
Piqua 22, Cincinnati Turpin 9
Pick. Central 7, Macedonia Nordonia 3
Division III State Championship
34
33
Steubenville defends D-III title
with wild 34-33 win over
Kettering Alter
Steubenville’s defense rose to
the occasion when it mattered
most, blocking two PATs.
Steubenville defended its Division III
state title Dec. 3 with a wild 34-33 win over
Kettering Alter at Massillon’s Paul Brown
Stadium capping off a perfect 15-0 season
and extending its winning streak to 30
games.
The Big Red was led by two-year starter
Zach Collaros at QB with 254 yards passing, completing 10-of-16 attempts, tossing
3 TD strikes and running for two more.
The senior signal caller has started every
game of the two-year winning streak.
“My two years have been great but it is
not just me, it is the whole team as far as
going 30-0. I couldn’t have done it without
them and they couldn’t have done it without me,” Collaros said after the game.
The title is Steubenville’s third in school
history (2006, 2005 and 1984).
“These kids played with a target on their
chest the entire year since Dec. 3 of last
year,” said Steubenville head coach Reno
Saccoccia. “They took on all-comers that
took their best shot and we gave them our
best shot and we were fortunate enough to
come out on the high scoring end 15
times.”
The game was a tale of two halves as
Steubenville jumped out to an early 14-0
lead in the first quarter.
Maurice Bougard caught an 8-yard TD
pass from Collaros early in the quarter to
open up the scoring. The drive lasted six
plays and spanned 70 yards.
Two minutes later, Collaros connected
with Anthony Gossett on a 20-yard TD
strike after only two plays.
Following a Steubenville turnover, Alter
settled in and narrowed the Steubenville
lead to 14-7 following a 3-play, 13-yard
drive capped off by a 1-yard TD run by QB
Steve O’Donnell.
Steubenville went up again two minutes
later on a 3-yard Collaros TD run following
a 5-play, 69-yard drive to put the Big Red
up 21-7.
Early in the second quarter, Collaros
connected with Steve Davis for a 69-yard
TD putting Steubenville up 27-7 with the
failed point after.
Alter answered after another take away
as O’Donnell hit Michael Shaw for a 50yard TD on his only catch of the game.
The Paul Sobecki point after failed with a
bad snap and Alter trailed 27-13.
Steubenville wasn’t done scoring in the
first half adding another TD after a 9-play,
74-yard drive ending with a Collaros 1-yard
TD run. It appeared as though he fumbled
the ball on the carry but the officials ruled
that the ball had crossed the plane before
he lost the handle.
The point after failed and Steubenville
went up 34-13.
Late in the second quarter, Alter’s Alex
Place picked off Collaros on their own 44yard-line and returned it 52 yards to the
Steubenville 4. Two plays later, Alter again
narrowed the lead on a 3-yard Chris Roark
TD and the point after put the Knights within 2 TDs going into the half.
“I don’t think we played real well in the
first half,” said Alter head coach Ed
Domsitz. “We came back in the first half,
though. We were in it at the end of the first
half because the defense made some big
plays and the offense really took advantage of that.”
All things considered, Domsitz felt confident going into the half only down 14 and
starting the second half with the ball.
“We tried to sell the kids on that and the
fact that this is not the way we want to go
out,” he said. “The way Steubenville was
moving the ball in the first half, they could
have scored 60 points. That is not indicative of the type of defense we have played
all year. The kids came out in the second
half and they were much more like the
defense we’ve seen the last 14 weeks.”
Alter scored on the first drive of the second half on a 42-yard TD run by Shaw. The
drive lasted four plays and spanned 76
yards.
Steubenville was forced to punt on the
next possession and the momentum shifted
as Alter’s defense came out swinging not
allowing Steubenville past midfield at all in
the second half.
“We came back out in the second half
and it was an entirely different story. I think
we played some great defense once again.
The offense did a nice job and we were
able to establish some power inside,”
Domsitz said. “I was gratifying to see our
kids come back and play the kind of football
we felt we could play in this ball game. I
would have been disappointed had the
game gone the way the entire first half
went.”
Alter cut the lead early in the fourth quarter on a 4-yard Chris Roark TD run.
Trailing by one point, the Sobecki point
after was blocked and Alter trailed 34-33
with nine minutes left in the game.
“The little things are the greatest things
and everyone thought it was automatic and
kicks aren’t automatic in high school,” said
Saccoccia.
Alter threatened late in the game but with
two minutes left the Knights ran an endaround pass play that was picked off by
Steubenville’s Steve Davis sealing the title
and it was the first trip to the title game for
the Knights.
In Alter’s playoff run, The Knights had
allowed only seven points in four games
before the state championship.
Steubenville 48, Aurora 13
Kettering Alter 31, New Albany 7
Division IV State Championship
26
12
Mooney claims D-IV title
with 26-12 win over
Jonathan Alder
Mooney junior Dan
McCarthy rushed
for 165 yards and a
TD in the Cardinals
D-III victory.
Photo by Gary Housteau
win for the Big Red.
“Our hats off to them,” Saccoccia said.
“We won that game without scoring any
points in the second half. Once momentum
finds your sideline, he is a good friend and
once he finds the other sideline, he is hard
to get back over to your sideline.
“I don’t think anything great comes without adversity and hard work. So, we had
some adverse conditions we really had to
work through and I think that will make us
appreciate this state championship in the
long run a lot more.”
Both teams combined for 617 yards of
total offense (Steubenville 351, Alter 266)
and the 10 TDs scored broke the previous
record of nine in the Division III title game.
Both teams were also perfect in the red
zone going a combined 7-7 (Steubenville 44, Alter 3-3).
Davis had 147 yard receiving on four
catches for Steubenville while Bougard
matched that catch total for 81 yards.
Gossett had 20 yards receiving on his only
catch for the TD in the first quarter.
Collaros was perfect in the first quarter
completing all six of his attempts for 163
yards.
Alter had four players combine for 211
yards rushing between Roark (90), Shaw
(57), O’Donnell (45) and Corey Roark (19).
“I already felt these kids had tremendous
heart, tremendous work ethic and they
played so well together as a team all year.
They love to play football and that is the
way it appeared in the second half,” said
Domsitz. “I wasn’t surprised the way we
came out in the second half. I thought we
could move the ball on Steubenville and I
thought we could play some pretty good
defense on them. Big plays hurt us early.
There is no question.”
Prior to the game, Saccoccia was presented with the Ohio High magazine football Coach of the Year award.
“When you get a state championship it
doesn’t necessarily mean you have the
best athletes in the state but you have the
best team in the state,” he said. “Alter had
a very good team and we have a very good
team. And teams are not going to quit.
“Every kid that plays for us plays hard,
gives all he has to give and the thing that
makes this team stand out to me is they
played with a target on their chest for 15
weeks. We bought practice jerseys with targets on them because I thought it was
going to be that tough.”
Alter (14-1) boasted its first undefeated
regular season in school history this year
Youngstown Cardinal Mooney claimed its
sixth state title in school history and second
in three years as the Cardinals topped
Plain City Jonathan Alder 26-12 at
Massillon’s Paul Brown Stadium Dec. 2.
Mooney (14-0) trailed 12-7 at the half but
tightened up defensively and controlled the
ball offensively in the second half to claim
the championship.
“We just settled in,” said head coach P.J.
Fecko. “Really, in the first half, defensively,
we played solid. We just gave up a lot of
field position by a lack of offense. I think,
defensively, we were playing solidly all the
way around. We missed some tackles here
and there but scheme-wise, we were OK.
“Offensively, we had to make some
adjustments. We had to go to a few different schemes and a few different sets and
formations to take advantage of what they
were doing. Fortunately enough we were
able to do that.”
Junior QB Dan McCarthy led Mooney
with 165 yards rushing on 22 carries and a
TD. Junior RB Brandon Beachum added
62 yards and a TD. Junior RB/LB Michael
Zordich had 34 yards on 10 carries and 2
TDs.
“It was certainly a thrill to be here. I hope
our players appreciate the tremendous
atmosphere and the tremendous opportunity to get to this point,” said Alder head
coach Steve Coate.
“We would have liked to execute just a
little bit better. (We had) too many mistakes
against a very good team.”
Mooney forced four turnovers in the
game, held the edge in time of possession
28:12-19:48 and outgained Alder 319-200
in total yards of offense.
“They have a great combination of great
skill and an aggressive defense,” said
Coate. “The combination of the great running backs and great quarterback makes
them a little more dangerous than some of
the other teams we have faced.”
Zordich scored the first TD of the game
on an 11-yard run capping off a 3-play drive
following a 34-yard Beachum interception
return deep into Alder territory.
Alder answered in the second quarter
after a 54-yard punt return buy Chris
Pollock gave the Pioneers good field position at the Mooney 23-yard line. RB Luke
Bates finished off the 6-play drive with a 1yard TD run.
The point after attempt was blocked by
Mooney’s Dom Scarnecchia to preserve
the 7-6 lead.
Later in the quarter, Alder took the lead
with a 10-play, 39-yard drive topped off by a
1-yard Bates TD run. The Pioneers elected
to go for two but the conversion failed and
Alder went into the locker room at the half
up 12-7.
Mooney started with the ball in second
half and marched 66-yards in 10 plays to
score the go-ahead TD on a McCarthy 1yard scoring run. McCarthy had 62 yards
rushing on the drive.
Mooney since 1980 and the most wins for
a Mooney team in any single season.
The 2006 Division IV state title game tied
a championship game record for 1-yard TD
runs with four.
Cardinal Mooney 49, Bellaire 7
Jonathan Alder 24. Oak Harbor 7
Division V State Championship
7
28
St. Henry tops Warren JFK
28-7, claims sixth state
championship
Mooney led 13-12 after the failed 2-point
conversion.
On the last play of the third quarter,
Zordich forced a Bates fumble on the Alder
8-yard line and McCarthy recovered.
Zordich took the ball 8 yards to pay dirt
on the first play of the fourth quarter and
the Mark Babyak point after put the
Cardinals up 20-12.
Following a Beachum interception deep
in Alder territory, Mooney orchestrated a 15play, 88-yard scoring drive that ate seven
minutes off the clock in the final quarter.
Fittingly, Beachum had the final score on
a 2-yard run.
The point after failed, but the 26-12 score
was enough for Mooney to claim the 2006
Division IV title.
“Congratulations to Alder for an outstanding season,” Fecko said after the game.
“They played well all year and through the
playoffs. They just kept plugging along and
came up with some great wins playing really great football. Unfortunately for them,
they fell a little bit short.
“But we were in that situation last year
and, let me tell you, it’s a better to situation
to be in what we’re in now. We’re excited to
be here and it is through a lot of hard work
and dedication from these guys around me
and everybody else in that locker room.”
Mooney fell to Coldwater 33-9 last season in the title game.
In the 2004 title game, McCarthy’s older
brother Kyle led Mooney to the state championship at QB as well. Kyle is now playing
at Notre Dame.
“He has been a great mentor to me and
he has taught me a lot,” said Dan of his
older brother. “But I am so proud of our
team right now and it is a perfect ending to
a perfect season.”
Bates finished the game with 73 yards on
19 carries and 2 TDs for Alder. QB Austin
Schlosser was 8-of-25 passing for 91 yards
and 2 INTs.
This was the first trip to the state tournament for Alder and the Pioneers finished
13-2.
Weather conditions for the game were
poor with periodic heavy rain and strong,
gusty winds. With the added chill in the air,
the traditional Gatorade bath was bittersweet for Fecko.
“It literally took my breath away,” he said.
“I was not expecting that. It took me by surprise and with that wind whipping through it
made those ceremonies out there a little
chilly.”
This is the first undefeated season for
St. Henry senior Andy Puthoff
motored for 209 yards and
three TDs in the D-V title game.
The Midwest Athletic Conference continued its dominance in the small school divisions as St. Henry claimed the Division V
state title with a 28-7 win over previously
undefeated Warren JFK at Canton’s
Fawcett Stadium Dec. 3.
It was the sixth state championship in St.
Henry (14-1) school history and the second
in three seasons. It is also the second state
title for the MAC in this year’s state tourna-
ment following Maria Stein Marion Local’s
Division VI title win Friday, Dec. 2.
St. Henry, which won back-to-back titles
in 1994 and 1995 as well as titles in 1992
and 1990, was led by senior RB/LB Andy
Puthoff with 209 yards rushing on 37 carries and 3 TDs.
Puthoff credited his successful day to the
players that opened the holes for him.
“Our offensive line has been doing a
great job all year,” he said. “They know that
as long as they get hats on people and run
through arm tackles we’ll be successful.
Coach (Jeff Starkey) preached that all
week. In the fourth quarter, we just kept
pounding and pounding and the offensive
line did a good job.”
Warren JFK (14-1) hadn’t allowed more
than 14 points in any game this season,
had posted four shutouts and was allowing
only seven points per game prior to the
championship.
“We wanted to establish a game plan
that was going to be a physical offensive
game plan running the football,” said
Starkey. “In the first half we really created
good field position for our offense. We didn’t necessarily capitalize on enough of
those opportunities, but in the second half,
our seniors stepped up and they were not
going to be denied in the second half.”
Warren JFK QB J.J. Townsend, who was
named Division V offensive player of the
year, was 13-of-31 passing in the game for
108 yards but the St. Henry defense got
good pressure on him and shut down the
running game holding JFK to just 68 yards
on the ground.
Townsend also threw 2 INTs.
“Every sportscaster or T.V. guy will say,
‘What does it take to win football games?’
My answer to that is you have to be able to
control the lines of scrimmage on both
sides and today, unfortunately for us, we
didn’t do that on either side of the ball. They
beat us up pretty good as is evidenced by
the fact we lost 28-7,” said JFK head coach
Tony Napolet.
Puthoff’s scores came in the first, second
and fourth quarters on 2-yard, 1-yard and
7-yard runs, respectively.
St. Henry QB Doug Griesdorn connected
with Zach Thobe on a 31-yard TD strike
halfway through the third quarter.
JFK’s only score came in the closing
moments of the third quarter on a 12-yard
Jared Province run.
JFK last won a state title in 1991 and this
is the third runner-up finish for the Eagles.
“It is not an easy pill (to swallow) when
you go this long and do this well but the
greatest part of this game is there is always
another game,” Napolet said.
St. Henry 28, Findlay Liberty-Benton 21
Warren JFK 34, Amanda-Clearcreek 6
Division VI State Championship
0
After both teams traded possessions,
Marion Local took over on its own 42-yard
line and ran a play action pass that resulted in a 58-yard scoring strike to Dan
Moeller on the first play of the possession.
The point after put Marion Local up 14-0
17
Maria Stein Marion Local
blanks Shadyside 17-0
for D-VI title
Maria Stein Marion Local took advantage
of a strong third quarter to shut out
Shadyside 17-0 and claim the 2006
Division VI state championship at Canton’s
Fawcett Stadium Dec. 2.
This season’s title marks the third in
Marion Local school history and the first
since 2001. The Flyers finished state runners-up in 2003.
“It was a hard-fought game,” said Marion
Local head coach Tim Goodwin. “I thought
the first quarter we had a couple chances
there to take advantage of field position but
we didn’t. That was a little bit disappointing.
“Shadyside played great defense. I was
a little bit surprised that we couldn’t establish a better running game to be honest.
That is a credit to their kids and their
coaching staff. They did a pretty good job
at guessing out there.”
Marion Local played near mistake-free
football with only three penalties for 15
yards and no turnovers for the third consecutive week.
“With the type of defense we are capable of playing, if we don’t turn the ball over,
the other team is going to have a hard time
sustaining much against us,” Goodwin
said.
The Flyers scored 14 points in the third
quarter after a scoreless first half which
netted a total of 93 offensive yards
between both teams.
Junior RB Luke Homan scored at the
5:43 mark in the third on a 2-yard run capping off a 13-play, 65-yard drive that
chewed up 6:17 off the clock.
Junior Ben Schaefer filled in for
the ailing Marc Otte and rushed
for a 100 yards in the D-VI final.
late in the third.
“That really took the wind out of their
sails there,” said Goodwin.
A 23-yard Dan Fortkamp field goal midway through the fourth quarter to put
Marion Local up 17-0 was the final dagger.
“We dug ourselves a hole in the first half
there,” said Shadyside head coach Ty
Fleming. “But the kids were able to persevere and keep them out of the end zone.
We felt coming out in the third quarter that
we wanted to go into the wind so that we
could have the wind in the fourth quarter at
our backs but it didn’t make much of a difference.
“Marion Local came out and controlled
the line of scrimmage there in the third
quarter. They took the ball right down the
field and their (defense) stepped up and
took us out. Tim (Goodwin) called a good
play-action pass and they went up 14. We
just couldn’t move the ball to keep our
defense off the field.”
Marion Local RB Ben Schaefer led all
stat-getters with 100 yards rushing on 22
carries. Schaefer stepped into the role as a
back up this week after starter Marc Otte
injured his knee in the state semifinals
against Norwalk St. Paul.
Otte had three carries for six yards early
in the game.
“That was a good job by Ben stepping in
with only a week’s notice,” said Otte. “He
did a great job.”
Schaefer had not practiced on offense in
four weeks according to Goodwin.
Homan finished the game with 34 yards
on nine carries and the score.
QB Chris Stucks was only 2-of-6 passing
but had 61 yards that included the long TD
pass to Moeller.
Shadyside fielded nine players that
played both ways and it was apparent both
physical and mental fatigue was taking its
toll in the third quarter.
Marion Local held Shadyside’s leading
rusher Taylor Jovicic to only 36 yards on
14 carries.
QB Billy Merryman was 7-of-20 passing
for 38 yards.
In the previous four playoff games,
Shadyside outscored its opponents 189-25
before getting shutout by Marion Local.
The Flyers outgained Shadyside 225-52
in total offense.
Shadyside has been a state semifinalist
three times (1989, 2001, 2006) but has yet
to win a title.
Marion Local started the season 1-2
falling to Midwest Athletic Conference foes
Coldwater and St. Henry before winning 12
consecutive games.
“In the MAC, you can’t take a week off,
just like the playoffs, because every team
is capable of beating you,” said Homan.
This game marked the third shutout in
the OHSAA Division VI state championship
history (2000: Marion Local 54, Mogadore
0; 2005: Delphos St. John’s 28,
Steubenville Central Catholic 0) and the
24th in all six divisions.
Since its inception in 1994, the Division
VI state title has been claimed by a MAC
team 9-of-13 years.
This year’s state tournament marks the
second consecutive year two MAC teams
have won state championships in the
same year.
Last year, Coldwater claimed the title in
Division IV and Delphos St. John’s won the
Division VI crown.
In the 18 year history of the conference,
there have been 17 football state championships won.
Marion Local 47, Norwalk St. Paul 6
Shadyside 45, Mogadore 7
Photos by Nick Falzerano and Gary Housteau

STORY BY MATT NATALI

Transcription

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