Outlook: defense

As good as the offense potentially can be, the strength of the team looks to be the defense, a unit LaVerde says could be one of the best in recent years. Seven starters return, including seven of the front eight in the 5-3 defense. Don’t overlook 148-pound defensive tackles Antonio Rini and Blake Andonian, a pair of relentless defenders who are quicker than most offensive linemen they face. Owen Loncar moves into the vaunted middle-linebacker role made famous by other Kirtland All-Ohioans Christian Hauber, Matthew Finkler and Evan Madden. He was a big-play safety a year ago. There’s some inexperience in the secondary. But if the front eight get after the quarterback like they historically have done, there’s not much time for a QB to pick apart the secondary, anyway.