Perry headlines Academic All-Ohio selections

The Perry football team was one of the best in Ohio this past fall.

It turns out the Pirates also had one of the top academic football teams.

Coach Matt Rosati’s team was recently honored by the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association as being one of the top six academic all-Ohio football teams in the state.

Additionally, four Perry players were tapped as academic all-Ohioans as individuals.

Perry finished this past football season with a 12-1 record, losing to eventual state champion Steubenville in a Division IV regional final. The Pirates’ ledger in the classroom is even more impressive as the one it wrote on the field in the fall.

“We made it last year, too, but this year’s (honor) is even higher than last year’s,” Rosati said. “We are very proud of our guys. They work hard and do a good job in the classroom. Obviously they’re good at the football part, but they also understand the big picture and the importance of academics.”

“We’re proud of all our guys.”

Teams around Ohio submitted their top 22 letterwinners’ unweighted grade-point averages from the first nine weeks of the school year to be considered for academic all-Ohio honors as a team.

Individuals had to be a first-team all-league selection, a senior and have a GPA of 3.5 or better.

Perry’s high marks as a team made the Pirates among the top six academic all-Ohio teams in the state, a list that also includes Upper Arlington, Huron, Archbold, Seneca East and Newark Catholic. That group of six will receive an honorary plaque, have their photo in the state’s program and also be treated to a pizza party.

Members of the Perry team who were individual academic all-Ohioans are Kolston Brewster, Jacob Peteritis, Hayden Makad and Cody Baranauskas.

“We have 22 players with a 4.0 or better,” Rosati proudly said of his program. “I could go further down the list. We have guys with 3.8, 3.7 . ... Our guys take pride in that.”

Other area teams that earned academic all-Ohio status and received certificates of accomplishment were North, University, Mayfield, Gilmour, Kirtland, Kenston, Riverside and Chagrin Falls.

That means nearly onethird of News-Herald area football teams (nine of 30) received academic all-Ohio honors.

In addition to the Perry quartet, individual academic all-Ohioans were Chagrin’s Max DiLalla, Nick DiFiore and Connor Lewis; University’s Mike Cassese; Lake Catholic’s Cade Acitelli; Hawken’s Zach Elenin; and Richmond Heights’ Ronell Flowers.

“It’s great for the kids,” Chagrin Falls coach Mark Iammarino said of his trio of all-Ohioans. “These guys practice ’til 6 or 6:30, have dinner, do homework . ... It’s a lot. These guys have their priorities in place.”

The Tigers are no stranger to the academic the all-Ohio listing. Iammarino said, “I can’t remember a year we haven’t been recognized with a certificate. Some of the years we’ve been top five.”

North’s inclusion on the academic all-Ohio list was the capper on a banner season that saw the Rangers qualify for the playoffs for the first time in program history.

Dodd said 64 of his players — grades nine through 12 — have a 3.25 GPA or higher and were honored as being academic all-Western Reserve Conference.

“These guys are rocking,” Dodd said excitedly. “Football is fun, but when you also see they’re putting time in the classroom and achieve something like this, that’s just awesome to see.”