The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Hoban is a Goliath, but Avon isn’t David
Eagles preparing for D-II state semifinal against three-time reigning champions
With nine-straight playoff appearances, Avon is no “David,” but it’s ready for another shot to take down the giant.
With three straight state titles, Akron Hoban is seen as a Goliath in Ohio high school football.
With nine-straight playoff appearances and four final four berths under its belt, Avon is no “David,” but it’s ready for another shot to take down the giant.
The Eagles fell short last year as Hoban pulled away in the second half, making for an ugly 30-6 final score at Brunswick’s Auto Mart Stadium.
Those two numbers were burned into the memories of the returning players as they were posted on the Avon home scoreboard throughout practices in the 2018 preseason. Fast forward a year later, and here we are again. Same venue,
same teams, same stakes: a trip to the state championship game in Canton.
Once again, the Knights (130) are the only thing standing in Avon’s way from a state title game appearance. A similar roadblock — and a daunting one at that — with 10 players headed to Division I college programs, including junior running back DeaMonte Trayanum (undecided) and left tackle Nolam Rumler (Michigan).
But don’t think for one second these Eagles (12-1) are going to back down.
“We recognize how good our opponent is, and we have tremendous respect for them,” Avon coach Mike Elder said. “All we can control is putting together the best game plan and giving the greatest effort we can against them and the results will take care of themselves. I can tell you this, our kids are excited for the opportunity ... We are going to have fun with this Friday night.”
Through Avon’s run this season, Elder has honed in on two factors that have propelled the Eagles to this point: Their ability to make in-game adjustments in high pressure situations, as well as their endless desire to be more athletically fit than their opponent.
“I’ve got one of the best coaching staffs, I think, in the state of Ohio,” Elder said. “There is a reason we have been in the playoffs for nine straight years and have had the success that we did. We have great kids who believe in us and great coaches who study the game and work hard.”
As for the weight room, 6 a.m. workouts have become the norm around Avon.
“We recognize for us to get to our ultimate goal, which is a state championship, it’s a long journey,” Elder said. “Our goal from the get-go with coach (Jared) Cecchetti was to get
our kids to maintain that level of strength, and for some kids to actually gain strength throughout the season.”
Tasked with taking down another powerhouse, the Eagles rose to the occasion in the Division II, Region 6 championship game, overwhelming a much larger Toledo Central Catholic team with a 23-0 barrage in the opening twelve and half minutes of play. Avon quarterback Ryan Maloy led the charge with four touchdowns (two pass, two rush) as they went on to defeat the Fighting Irish, 37-22.
Maloy hopes the Eagles can duplicate that start against Hoban.
“It will be huge,” he said. “We have to definitely be fired up and ready to go compete every play. They have a ton of talent, and if you look at their roster, it’s probably the best team in the state in whatever division you want to talk about.”
And, 364 days after Hoban ended his junior season, Maloy gets another shot to take down the Knights.
“Yeah, it’s a great opportunity for our team to kind of get that loss back from last year and advance to the state championship,” Maloy said. “They were the ones that ended our season last year, so if we get the win in this game and can perform how our coaches are expecting us to perform, then it will feel a lot better than it did last year.”
While Maloy’s leadership was on full display in
the fourth quarter with a 10-minute drive down field, including a pair of fourth down conversions, it was senior Mark Steinmetz who punched it in for the short score late and secured the Avon victory over Toledo Central Catholic.
In addition to his defensive prowess that caused a blocked punt and two turnovers on defense, the senior was called upon to bore the brunt of the load on the ground with the absence of Nick Perusek (ankle injury). Steinmetz tallied 31 carries for 94 yards and a touchdown.
Elder thought Steinmetz filled in admirably in the biggest game of the year.
“Mark is a kid that, it’s crazy, but the more he is on the field, the better he gets,” Elder said. “He obviously leads our team in tackles for the past two years. When we gave him the ball
(against Toledo Central Catholic), those were hard earned yards. It was his effort and his focus that allowed us to maintain a drive for 10 minutes.”
Perusek’s availability will be determined on game day.
Despite the Knights’ high stature in the public eye, Hoban coach Tim Tyrrell believes the battle against Avon will be a tough one.
“I was studying in my office for about 12 hours yesterday ... Just got to keep studying and figure out a way to stop Avon,” Tyrrell said. “The Maloy kid, he is just something special. (Steinmetz) and the OLine, they are too. Avon is a complete team. There is not a lot of weaknesses, so you just try to find the little things. They are very well coached and they just don’t make a lot of mistakes.”
No matter what the result on Nov. 23, Elder is
just glad to once again share the special moment of practicing with his kids on Thanksgiving.
“It’s a blast,” Elder said. “This is a special week for any coach who is ever able to do this. For me, this is my third time being able to practice on Thanksgiving. It’s the coolest thing ever. We will have practice from 8-10 and then we will have a big breakfast set up for our kids, our families and our alumni.”