RBH23 wrote: ↑Sat Jul 22, 2023 11:31 pm
KCol wrote: ↑Sat Jul 22, 2023 11:12 pm
Anyway, Wheelersburg will have a very formidable unit this year and I expect Ironton to be right in the thick of it despite the graduation losses. D-V, R19 title is up for grabs, there really isn't a clear favorite. To me, biggest difference in who wins the region will be quarterback play and how it maturates throughout the year. Both teams have enough proven talent both ways or talent coming in at the positions that need to be filled to hold serve.
Wheelersburg has the potential to have a roster that is similar to their 2013 team and their 2016 through 2018 teams in terms of their personnel -- a great quarterback with a lot of throwing options (sophomores in Kenyon Evans, Landon McGraw and Logan Adkins plus the addition of Devon Lattimore from Portsmouth) and a running back-by-committee approach. Defensively, Landon Hutchinson is pound for pound one of the best returning defensive players in the entire area. He can play at linebacker or safety and was really a difference-maker throughout last year. Brayden Maxie has a great frame to build off of.
Will the squad be as good as those teams? Hard to say, but the sophomore class is loaded with talent.
Ironton is full of talent -- Shaun Terry is so fun to watch in the open field, Braden Schreck is a great possession receiver, and Zayne Williams is coming off of a tremendous freshman season where I believe he made over 100 tackles. Gavin Hart (Notre Dame) and Landon Lewis (Green) were excellent transfer pickups in the offseason that will help. Plus, Ironton has Pittman eligible out wide with Terry, a lineman who is committed to Eastern Michigan in Noah Patterson, and an outstanding freshman class that could make an impact by playoff time if not before. Brayden Sturgell, to me, has an instinctive nose for the football defensively and will also have a big impact on any outcome.
Whoever wins one (or potentially both) matchups will have to earn it. There's definitely no little sis in the argument. Both teams have the personnel to run it down your throat or sling it around. I do know for a fact that as with any season there are a lot of unknowns and that could be said for both programs. The ongoing banter is tiring to read so I figured I'd summarize it. The kids at both schools have put in a lot of work. Just tired of seeing the stuff on here, from one user in particular, and ready to watch the action on the field.
Who else do you think will make some noise in R19? How will Prep be this year?
Harvest Prep in my eyes will be the biggest threat to them both again. They have an absolutely loaded schedule, possibly the best in school history.
In addition to playing Division II Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (8-4 in 2022, lost to OHSAA Division II State Runner-Up Hoban in regional semis), Division II Licking Heights, Division III Bloom-Carroll and Division III Chillicothe as well as Burg.
Lastly, they will travel to play Center Grove out of Greenwood, Ind., who went 12-2 and won the Indiana High School Athletic Association's Class 6A State Championship. Center Grove played a murderer's row of teams that included Indiana powerhouses such as Indianapolis Warren Central (beat them twice), Indianapolis Ben Davis (whom they beat by a point), Columbus (Ind.) North, and Indianapolis Cathedral as well as Louisville (Ky.) Trinity. They lost to Trinity by one point in double overtime and avenged the other regional season loss they had to Cathedral by defeating them 33-10 in the state semis. Warren Central, Trinity, Ben Davis and Cathedral have been or are regularly teams that are in contention to be nationally ranked. Center Grove has a 6-5 quarterback that is committed to play football at Duke.
However, Ironton made Harvest Prep look absolutely terrible in the regional finals. They absolutely waxed the Warriors in what was their most complete and best performance of the year (and I saw Ironton play five times last year including the state semi against Valley View). I think the lopsided score was a combination of Ironton playing their best game of the year and HP playing their worst game of the year, but Ironton still would've beat them at any rate. At the same time, Harvest Prep's schedule last year was nowhere near the caliber that this schedule will be. They will have to be ready or they will underachieve.
Rogers is gone but Cox will be back and if he makes the usual junior-to-senior year jump that most elite running backs do, he will be a handful.
Sleeper picks would be New Lexington, Columbus Academy, West. Barnesville, Centerburg and Worthington Christian are essentially interchangeable after them I think. Minford and Portsmouth could jump into that top-eight or higher if young guys step up. Minford (and Waverly) will have arguably the most proven running backs in the SOC II, and Minford has a chance to take further steps if Caudill and Kayser take the next step up. Replacing school-leading tackler Hunter Pendleton will be tough though. West and Minford have good linemen too, but I worry if they have enough of them. They were both hovering around 40 players total last year and that is a worry. The teams that advance deepest in the playoffs are the ones that have not only the best line play, but the deepest lines as well in terms of a two-deep.
It may be even tougher for Portsmouth to do so, but if they get the QB situation figured out quick they could surprise people. They do lost a senior captain on the offensive and defensive line in addition to Tyler Duncan who had a great senior year at the signal-calling spot.
For all of the guys commenting about how Wheelersburg's state title in 2017 wasn't really earned, I can assure you that you are wrong. To come from behind in three out of the five playoff games takes serious guts. They were for real -- and the best part about their team in 2017 was their offensive and defensive line play because they legitimately had 12-15 guys who could play on the line that year. That's what it takes to win big in the playoffs.