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From the GAZETTE, by Brad Bournival, Staff Writer
Ten might be too much and six definitely isn't right, but eight is enough.
That's how Buckeye athletic director Ken Woodruff views athletic conferences. It's also why he and the rest of the ADs in the Patriot Athletic Conference came up with one of the best ideas when it comes to high school football and determining division champions.
Many conferences that are split into two five-team or six-team divisions like the 10-team PAC is either count the cross-divisional games in the final standings or ignore them altogether.
When league action gets under way tonight, every game matters as cross-divisional tilts count as one point and divisional games count as two points. That increases the chances of an outright conference champion in the Stars and Stripes divisions.
"It's the perfect setup," Woodruff said. "The eight-team conference is ideal, but with teams moving all around, 10 gives you the flexibility in case a team leaves. In the past we got stuck in those six-team conferences. Now if teams decide to leave, we just realign the conference.
"We put the point system in there for a reason. We want teams to play at that next level. To my knowledge I don't know of anyone else in the state who does it."
To a man, coaches in the conference embraced the proposal, but no one more than the Bucks, who sit atop the Stars Division heading into tonight's game with Stripes Division favorite Lutheran West.
Instead of the possibility of maybe sharing titles with the likes of Brookside, Wellington and Black River, teams know Weeks 4 and 5 mean almost as much as Weeks 6 through 10.
"In the league you have to win all your games," Buckeye coach Chris Medaglia said. "You can't afford to stub your toe or it'll wind up costing you in the end."
Zoned in to win
BLACK RIVER (0-3): Medina County's winningest coach doesn't take too kindly to losing, but when the Pirates got inside Akron Manchester's 20-yard line five times and didn't score, he felt encouraged. "I think there's a lot to improve on and we've got huge games coming up," coach Al Young said. "We played hard. We have to continue (along those lines) and not panic. It's one of those things where we're trying to get a win. A win is going to cure a lot of things." … Adam Wright loses the knee brace this week and will see time at running back for the Pirates.
Last Week: L, 35-7 at Manchester. This Week: at Clearview (0-3). Next Week: Columbia (2-1).
Brunswick's safeties in motion
BRUNSWICK (3-0): The Blue Devils will use Dave Pace and Jason Reitenbach only if needed against North Royalton. Pace (sprained knee) and Reitenbach (high ankle sprain) won't start in the secondary, leaving Sean Kiss and Dustin Zielaskiewicz as the starters. The injuries hurt offensively as well as Mike Francescangeli (214 yards, 4 TDs) and Devin Trevathan (94, TD) will take on even more of a role at tailback. … Despite having the highest scoring offense in the county, the Blue Devils aren't overlooking their trip to North Royalton. Though Brunswick holds a 28-3 series advantage, the Blue Devils have lost two of the last four times they've traveled to play the Bears.
LW: W, 42-20 at Lorain Southview. TW: at North Royalton (1-2). NW: Elyria (2-1).
Slicing and dicing their way to wins
BUCKEYE (3-0): Lost in the excitement of the Bucks' superior defense is an offense that just won't quit. The Bucks have the No. 1 and 3 top scorers in Medina County (Chris Reisner, 6 TDs, Dustin Supan, 5 TDs), the top passer (Adam Read, 26-of-40, 450 yards, 2 TDs) and are averaging 335.7 yards a game. That has led to an average win of 33-1. "I think we've just played good football," Medaglia said. "I don't know if we're as good as that number indicates. We only care about one stat and that's winning and losing." … The Longhorns have playmakers like DeMario Collier (194 yards rushing, 3 TDs), Derek Voytovich (180) and Brad Berardinis (152 yards receiving, 3 TDs). … In 1976, Read's father, Randy, threw the Bucks' lone touchdown to Ken Bracken in a 6-0 win over Lutheran West.
LW: W, 42-0 North Robinson Colonel Crawford. TW: at Lutheran West (2-1). NW: Oberlin (0-3).
Colts' great eight
CLOVERLEAF (3-0): The Colts have to use two hands to count how many players on their team have scored touchdowns. With seven different players finding the end zone and eight players with six points or more, only Brunswick (9) has spread the points around more. "That's the key," coach Kevin Gault said. "We run a multi-back offense, and that's hard to defend. You can't key on one player." Through three games, Cloverleaf is leading the county in rushing yards with 278.3 per game. That's 49.7 yards better than its closest competitor, Brunswick.
LW: W, 50-7 Norton. TW: at Wadsworth (3-0). NW: Barberton (3-0).
On the next ‘48 Hours' …
HIGHLAND (1-2): Facing their first 0-3 start since 1985, the Hornets overcame more than a one-point deficit in the final three minutes against Fairview Park Fairview. They fought through a week where their two best players left the team. When Niko Plevris (66 yards rushing) and John Minen (65) quit for undisclosed reasons, the onus looked like it would fall on a player like Chris Snook, but Snook went down with a bruised collarbone. Up stepped Chance Farnsworth, who threw for the seventh-most yards (191) in a game by a Hornet. … Tonight's matchup with Green might be an uphill battle. The Hornets have lost 25 of their 30 meetings with the Bulldogs. Corey Welch (260 yards, 5 TDs) leads the charge for the Bulldogs this time. "We've had our share of wins over Copley and Wadsworth, but I can only remember beating Green twice," coach Tim Snook said. "They'll always be tough. We have to play four quarters to beat them."
LW: W, 19-14 Fairview. TW: Green (2-1). NW: at Revere (1-2).
Bees' backfield in motion
MEDINA (0-3): The "M" on Medina's football field should stand for Medic, given the way things have gone for coach Greg Reed in his first year at the helm. Running back Jamaul Pearson, who left the Wadsworth game late in the fourth quarter, will be out with a strained neck. Running back Ben Stoper is a game-time decision with bronchitis. "We have no continuity on our team," Reed said. Frank Shotwell and junior varsity back Ronnie Stout will go if Stoper can't. … Strongsville quarterback Nick Mandilakis (concussion) is out. Blaine Hamilton, who guided the Mustangs to a win over Warren Harding last week, will start for the second week in a row. … The Bees will have one eye on Hamilton and the other on Anthony Gallas. Gallas torched Medina for 138 yards and two touchdowns from his wideout spot a year ago. … Strongsville holds an 18-3 series advantage and hasn't lost to the Bees since 1988.
LW: L, 27-26 Wadsworth. TW: Strongsville (1-2). NW: at Valley Forge (2-1).
Well, that certainly worked
WADSWORTH (3-0): Coach Greg Dennison hopes he never has to do it again, but if Dru Jones gets hurt at tailback, the Grizzlies know they have a proven commodity in Nate Reed. Moving over from his wide receiver position, Reed had 168 yards on 30 carries with a touchdown and caught four balls for 67 yards. Jones, who ranks second in yards rushing in the county, is back, as is Phil Piazza, who left last week's game against the Bees. … The Grizzlies have beaten Cloverleaf by an average of 21 points over the last nine meetings.
LW: W, 27-26 at Medina. TW: Cloverleaf (3-0). NW: at Green (2-1).
Least Yards Rushing Allowed (30 or Less)
| (-31) by Wellington | 2017 |
| (-20) by Avon | 1973 |
| (-8) by Lutheran West | 2017 |
| (-3) By Lincoln West | 1997 |
| (-3) By Avon | 1972 |
| 8 by Wellington | 2018 |
|
17 by Wellington
|
2016
|
|
19 by S. Amherst
|
1972
|
| 20 by Clearview | 2016 |
|
22 by Norwayne
|
1972
|
|
24 by Keystone
|
2016
|
| 26 by Brookside | 2016 |
|
27 by Fairview
|
2016
|
|
27 by Clearview
|
2015
|
| 30 by Keystone | 2011 |
Most Yards Rushing Allowed (340 or More)
| 570 by Black River | 1997 |
| 511 by W. Holmes | 1999 |
| 485 by Wellington | 2012 |
| 445 By Highland | 1964 |
| 425 by Clear Fork | 1997 |
| 396 by Highland | 2014 |
| 384 by Cloverleaf | 1998 |
| 383 by W. Holmes | 1997 |
| 383 by Highland | 1974 |
| 371 by Cloverleaf | 2012 |
| 364 by Black River | 1996 |
| 364 by Highland | 1990 |
| 356 by Black River | 1998 |
| 340 Wellington | 2011 |
Least Yards Passing (10 or Less)
| 0 vs. Wellington | 2013 |
| 0 vs. Columbia (0/0) | 2009 |
| 0 vs. Columbia (0/0) | 2008 |
| 0 vs. Brookside (0/0) | 2008 |
| 0 vs. Triway (0/2) | 1998 |
| 5 vs. Clear Fork | 1998 |
| 5 vs. West Holmes | 1998 |
| 6 vs. Triway | 1999 |
| 7 vs. Elyria Catholic | 2011 |
| 7 vs. Black River | 2008 |
| 7 vs. Cloverleaf | 1998 |
| 9 vs. Firelands | 2016 |
| 9 vs. Loudonville | 1999 |
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.
