November 1, 2007
OHSAA Playoffs: Preview and picks
posted by @ 10:54 am | comment
A glance at the Northeast Ohio state playoff qualifiers as they begin the race to the state championship games in Canton and Massillon on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1...
Division I, Region 1
First-Round Matchups: Painesville Riverside at Mentor, North Royalton at Solon, Boardman at Euclid, Glenville at St. Ignatius
The Favorite: Mentor. The Cardinals came two yards from winning last year's title, and they return talented quarterback Bart Tanski and an outstanding supporting cast for another run. They already own one win over St. Ignatius, but they know the second one won't come easy. Assuming Ignatius survives, of course...
The Darkhorse: Glenville. Since losing two of their first three games against a killer schedule, the Tarblooders have flown under the radar and barely even qualified for the playoffs. But they're huge, fast and more than qualified to string a few wins together -- maybe even four or five.
The Skinny: Mentor already owns a 27-0 win over its likely Round Two opponent, Solon...St. Ignatius' only losses came at Mentor and in 3 OT against Cincinnati St. Xavier, the state's top ranked team. Especially if Andrew Holland returns from injury, the Wildcats are good enough to win it all...Euclid handed Mentor its only loss...Second-round games will be played at sites determined by the OHSAA, not in a Cleveland Browns Stadium doubleheader.
Division I, Region 2
First-Round Matchups: Canton GlenOak at Brunswick, Wadsworth at Toledo Whitmer, Perrysburg at Nordonia, Toledo St. John's at North Canton Hoover
The Favorite: Brunswick. Though folks in Mentor may disagree, Sean Bedevelsky is Northeast Ohio's best quarterback. And though the Blue Devils aren't huge along the lines, they are fast, well-coached, and good enough to make the state finals.
The Darkhorse: Hoover. The Vikings won the Federal League outright, own impressive wins over smaller-division powers Louisville (D2) and Licking Valley (D3) and have a talented, senior-laden roster. They have enough defense to get to the regional finals. If they have enough defense to beat Brunswick remains to be seen.
The Skinny: This region has a different look this season with three Toledo-area schools in and both Massillon and Canton McKinley absent...Wadsworth running back Dru Jones has 2,096 yards and 27 touchdowns on the season and more than 5,000 yards in his career...GlenOak is in the playoffs for the first time in a long time under new coach Scott Garcia. Brunswick is a heavy favorite, but the Eagles own upset wins over Hoover and Massillon Perry...Nordonia is in as a first-year D1 school under first-year coach Jason Hall.
Division II, Region 5
First-Round Matchups: Madison at Warren Howland, Mayfield at Padua, Cleveland South at Normandy, Akron Firestone at Tallmadge
The Favorite: Normandy. The Invaders are huge up front, have a pair of talented running backs in Jake Squirek and Russ Galeti and two more game-changers in 6-foot-6 twins Josh and Jordan Ebinger. This is the year coach Rich Turner has been waiting for.
The Darkhorse: Mayfield. The 'Cats have a nasty defense, the region's best player in Illinois recruit Ashante Williams and are a few bounces away from being the region's top seed. Though they're officially the 5th seed, Mayfield would be considered the favorite in each of its first two games.
The Skinny: Tallmadge suffered its only loss last week at Wadsworth. The Blue Devils beat Firestone, 35-20, early in the season...Firestone and Cleveland South are each making their first-ever playoff appearances...Padua rallied to beat Holy Name last week to secure a berth and a first-round home game...Warren Howland is the only 10-0 team in the region. Tallmadge, Normandy and Mayfield are all coming off surprising Week 10 losses.
Division II -- Regions 6 and 7
Avon Lake is the top seed in Region 6, which covers schools from the Columbus and Toledo areas as well. Columbus St. Francis DeSales is the top seed in Region 7 and probably the favorite to win the Division II state championship. But if any team in Region 7 can beat DeSales, it's Louisville out of Stark County. And standing in Louisville's way right out of the gate is a talented and tested Uniontown Lake team, also from Stark County. Anything can -- and probably will -- happen in this division.
Division III, Region 9
First-Round Matchups: Mogadore Field at Walsh Jesuit, Cortland Lakeview at Aurora, Ravenna at Lake Catholic, Hubbard at Rocky River
The Favorite: Walsh Jesuit. The Warriors mostly rolled through an impressive schedule with a swarming defense, losing only to St. Vincent-St. Mary. They've scored more than 100 points in two games since, though, serving notice that they're ready for a long postseason run.
The Darkhorse: Lake Catholic. The Cougars' 6-4 record is deceiving since it includes losses to 10-0 Dublin Coffman and 10-0 Youngstown Mooney. They beat their likely Round Two opponent, Rocky River, in last year's playoffs and have proven they can play with anybody.
The Skinny: Aurora won this region a year ago...Rocky River is an impressive 10-0 but is largely untested. That will certainly change over the next few weeks...Ravenna beat Field two weeks ago to wrap up a playoff berth and the Portage Trail Conference title...Ravenna's only losses came at the hands of playoff teams Louisville and Canton South.
Division III, Region 11
Canal Fulton Northwest out of Stark County is the favorite in this region, though Newark Licking Valley has plenty of playoff experience and should pose a formidable threat.
Division IV, Region 13
First-Round Matchups: Coshocton at Youngstown Mooney, Lake County Perry at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, CVCA at Steubenville, Tusky Valley at Canton Central Catholic
The Favorite: Mooney. Regarded by some as the best team in the state in any division, the Cardinals own wins over D1 Mentor, D3 Lake Catholic, St. Vincent-St. Mary and D5 favorite Ursuline and have one of the state's most talented rosters, led by quarterback/safety Danny McCarthy and running back/linebacker Michael Zordich.
The Darkhorse: Only in a region this stacked could a team that's won more than 40 straight games and is the defending Division III state champion be an underdog. But that's the situation facing the Steubenville Big Red as they enter the postseason and try to win their third straight state title.
The Skinny: This region's top four teams make this as competitive a region in any division not just this year, but in recent memory...Mooney had to rally to beat St. V-M in Akron, 24-21, three weeks ago...Steubenville rallied from 13 down and scored as time expired to beat Central Catholic, 35-34, a week later...The winner of this region is expected to play Kettering Alter in the state final. Alter lost to Steubenville in last year's Division III championship game.
Divisions V and VI
**Can the Youngstown area make it a trifecta? Mooney is the big favorite in Division IV, while Ursuline in Div. V and Warren JFK in Div VI could win it as well.
**In Div. V, Region 17, Waynedale-Northwestern is a Wayne County rematch of an early-season game won by Waynedale. The winner gets the Ursuline-Chanel winner in Round 2.
**In Div. VI, Region 21, Bascom Hopewell-Loudon is 10-0 and the top seed. But 9-1 Mogadore, the fourth seed, has legitimate state title hopes and a workhorse back in Cody Destro the Wildcats hope to ride through the postseason. Look for a regional final featuring Warren JFK against the Mogadore/Hopewell-Loudon winner.
Most Intriguing First-Round Games
D1: Glenville at St. Ignatius; Cincinnati Elder at Cincinnati St. Xavier
D2: Lake at Louisville
D3: Ravenna at Lake Catholic
D4: Elyria Catholic at Pemberville Eastwood
D5: Chanel at Ursuline
D6: Columbiana at Mogadore
Championship Picks
D1: Cincinnati Colerain over Mentor
D2: Columbus DeSales over Avon Lake
D3: Walsh Jesuit over Sunbury Big Walnut
D4: Mooney over Kettering Alter
D5: Ursuline over Marion Local
D6: Warren JFK over Newark Catholic |
