Buckeye Bucks Football

From The GAZETTE, By Rick Noland, Staff Writer Got a high school football game to get to, so let's take a quick look around the prep grid scene, Rick-o-chet style: From my seat on the 50-yard line, it looks like a bit of a down year for football in Medina County. Only Brunswick and Buckeye appear to have good shots at reaching the postseason. … Taking that one step further, Wadsworth and Black River might be the only other schools to finish over .500, and even they are not locks. … The Noland Resort & Casino's preseason favorites to be named Gazette MVP: Brunswick quarterback Anthony Lanzara 3-1, Buckeye quarterback/defensive back/punter Adam Read 4-1, Medina running back Ben Stoper 5-1 and Buckeye two-way lineman Nick Tavernelli 6-1. … That said, the players who will reap the most postseason honors statewide will be Tavernelli, Cloverleaf WR/DB Steve Kuzyk, Wadsworth WR/DB/K Nate Reed and Stoper. … Those four are also the best Division I college prospects in the area, though Kuzyk and Stoper may be hurt by their lack of breakaway speed. Reed is being recruited as a kicker. … By the way, am I the only one who thinks Stoper looks like a young version of Bees athletic director Kevin Kelly? … As an aside, I covered Kelly about 20 years ago when he attended Medina. Current students may find this hard to believe, but he was one of the fastest athletes in the county. … Medina hasn't even run its first play from scrimmage, but first-year head coach Greg Reed already has been forced to call a number of audibles. First, the Bees scrapped plans to run the wing-T offense. Then they changed quarterbacks. Then some key players got hurt, necessitating a number of other position changes. … Cloverleaf is getting better under Kevin Gault, but please don't get overly excited if the Colts get off to another fast start. Two of their non-league games are against always horrible North Royalton and former Suburban League cellar-dweller Norton. … Two years ago, the Colts started 4-1. Last year, they were 3-2. Both times, they lost their last five games. … OK, OK, the Colts got a win in the second half of last season when Revere had to forfeit for using an ineligible player. On the field, however, the Minutemen won 42-0. … Actually, Cloverleaf has lost its last five games the last three years, as it finished 2-8 in 2002. … County players who could have breakout seasons in 2005: Wadsworth quarterback Scott Saylor and tailback Dru Jones, Brunswick running back/defensive back Jason Reitenbach, Buckeye tailback/defensive back Dustin Supan, Cloverleaf running back Darin Bohner and Medina's speedy Tom Gulyas, wherever he lines up on the field. … OK, the 30-second clock is winding down. I gotta get outta here. Noland may be reached at rickn@ohio.net or 330-721-4061.