The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
It’s been a sweet return for McDougal
Limping around on a sprained ankle, Eli McDougal turned in a semicircle and took in the mass hysteria around him at Bedford Bearcat Stadium on Nov. 17.
For two years, McDougal stepped away from the game that he loved because of concussion issues.
He’s glad he came back. If he hadn’t, he would have missed the party.
Thanks in major part to McDougal’s 151-yard, twotouchdown rushing performance, Mentor is heading back to the Division I state final four following its 23-21 win over St. Ignatius in the Region 1 championship game.
“Worth it?” said McDougal with a smile on his face. “Yeah, it was worth it.”
McDougal had every reason to walk away from the gridiron for good after concussions kept him from playing football his sophomore and junior seasons.
When he opened his senior year third on Mentor’s running back depth chart behind Chris Edmond and Nick Saginario, there was another reason to step away.
But McDougal remembered the promise he kept to himself — and to his teammates.
“I have all these friends,” he said, glancing at his celebrating teammates.
“They have my back and I have their back. I promised them I’d play with them my senior year.”
It wasn’t until midway through the season that McDougal got his chance, but he’s taken advantage of it since Coach Steve Trivisonno put the ball in his hands.
He entered the game with 911 yards rushing, but by far his biggest performance was in the final four-clinching win over St. Ignatius on Nov. 17.
His 151 yards on the ground were more than twice what Mentor rushed for in the 41-31 loss to the Wildcats in Week 2, a night where the Cardinals ran for 71 yards.
On this night, with McDougal doing most of the damage, Mentor ran for 251 yards.
“I honestly had no idea they were going to put me in that position,” McDougal said of his workload. “But I stepped up. I had to do it. I did the best I could.”
McDougal’s 36-yard run on fourth-and-1 on the game’s opening drive gave Mentor a 7-0 lead.
“I saw the hole and exploded,” he said, crediting the offensive line not only for that play, but for their work all night.
He had an 18-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to knot the game at 14.
Because of a sprained ankle, McDougal wasn’t able to be part of the game-winning drive, which ended with Conor McIntosh’s 27-yard field goal. But he was OK with that, as long as it meant a Mentor win.
“I know I’ll be feeling it tomorrow, but we’ll get it taken care of for next week,” he said, alluding to Mentor’s state final four game against Olentangy Liberty at a yet-to-be-determined site.
The game was an oddity of sorts in that after being a pass-heavy team the first time the teams met, Mentor relied almost solely on the run this time around. In the first half alone, Mentor attempted only three passes for 5 yards.
“We were able to run the ball,” Trivisonno said. “You’ve got to do what you do well.”
On this night, that meant a heavy dose of a running back who missed two seasons with concussions.
“I’m really, really, really proud of that young man,” Trivisonno said of McDougal.
Ask McDougal about going from a bystander for two years and to a star performer in a regional championship game and he’ll tell you, “I had to trust the process and hope for the best.”
The process was trusted.
He made good on his promise to his teammates, and he’s now joining that group of friends in the state final four.
Before he left the field, he was mobbed by members of the student section. He smiled through it all.
Was the two-year absence to get healthy enough to play again worth it? Yes. A resounding yes.
Kampf can be reached via email at JKampf@NewsHerald.com; on Twitter @NHPreps