High School D1 State Finals: St. Xavier vs Mentor

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ESPN - No. 2 St. Xavier guns for undefeated season - High School Sports

By Jamar Hudson
ESPN.com

Updated: November 30, 2007

CANTON, Ohio -- All the signs and billboards adjacent to Interstate 77 in Canton let you know you're on football holy ground.

The overpass as you enter the Stark County limits is not just any other bridge, the images and logo remind travelers that this town of 80,000 is not just another Ohio city.

For 363 days of the year, those outside of the state know Canton as home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but for the next two days, high school fans from across the Buckeye State will converge on Canton and nearby Massillon for the Ohio state football championships.


[+] EnlargeAP Photo/Ron Schwane

St. Xavier running back Darius Ashley has run for 1,311 yards and 15 touchdowns this season.
For the fifth time in school history, St. Xavier, the No. 2-ranked team in the ESPN HIGH Elite 25, will be making an appearance in the Ohio Division I state title game.

And, for the second time in three years, the Bombers will look to bring a championship home to Cincinnati. St. Xavier defeated Massillon Washington 24-17 to win their first state championship in 2005.

St. Xavier (14-0) will face Mentor on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET at historic Fawcett Stadium in Canton for the Ohio Division I title. Mentor finished the regular season ranked No. 12 in the Ohio Associated Press Division I state poll.

Continued...

The Enquirer - State championship games at a glance

MENTOR (11-2)

WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m. Saturday at Fawcett Stadium, Canton

WHAT TO WATCH: The Bombers escaped with a 10-7 win over Dublin Coffman in Dayton last week after a game-saving tackle by senior Fred Craig (Stanford).

St. X is making its first state final appearance since winning the Division I state title in 2005. St. X was ranked No. 1 and Mentor was No. 10 in the final Associated Press Division I state poll of the regular season.

Mentor senior running back Tom Worden has 1,435 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns, including 242 yards and three touchdowns in the past two games, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Senior quarterback Bart Tanski has thrown for 3,001 yards and 25 touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Cory Zikesch has caught 56 passes for 839 yards and nine touchdowns. Senior kicker Kevin Harper (Pittsburgh) is 58 of 61 on extra points and has made three field goals from 50 or more yards.

BOTTOM LINE: With a close call behind it, St. X is the favorite in this game.

No added pressure for Mentor...

cleveland.com: Everything Cleveland

State championships becoming area of concern
Friday, November 30, 2007
Tim Rogers
Plain Dealer Reporter

More than a state football championship will be at stake Saturday when Mentor plays nationally ranked Cincinnati St. Xavier in the Division I title game. Greater Cleveland's reputation as a high school football mecca might be in jeopardy as well.

If Mentor is unable to upset St. Xavier, ranked fifth in the country by USA Today, on Saturday night at Canton's Fawcett Stadium, it will mark three years since a Cleveland/Akron area school won it all.

The area has never gone three seasons without a championship.

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cleveland.com: Everything Cleveland

Mentor coaches love to talk about what great technique their offensive lineman have. What goes unsaid is they aren't very big and not nearly as strong as many of the defensive lines they face.

Recently, however, a nasty streak has emerged. The Cardinals ran for more than 200 yards against Glenville and Brunswick, both of whom had highly regarded defenses. Center Adam Watson (6-1, 215), tackles Ian Zimmerman (6-2, 215) and Brad Bednar (6-5, 240), and guards Max Wagner (6-2, 230), Alex Dudas (6-0, 225) and Ben Anderson (6-1, 210) all were graded by coaches at 85 to 95 percent against Brunswick. Wagner was credited with five pancake blocks.

"We have stepped up our physical game. The better the competition has been, the more physical we have been," said Wagner, a senior two-year starter.

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[Magua]

This games coming on in an hour. The buzz here around Mentor is pretty intense for this game tonight. Everywhere i've gone all week i've been seeing signs saying "Different Team, Same Dream!" or something of that sort. lol

But the point is, theres alot more excitement this year than last...I think last year everyone was satisfied with getting to State. Now with Mr. Ohio Bart Tanski and company back in the game, they're looking to win it all...however...having to play St. X doesn't help any.

 

[bucknut11]

St. X is up 27-0 with 32 seconds left in the game. At the 1:24 mark, Mentor got into St X territory for the first time ALL GAME. Total domination.

edit: Game over.

 

[akgoel77]

Link

Ashley, a senior running back, carried 36 times for a Division I title-game record 271 yards and two touchdowns.................

St. Xavier will go down as one of the greatest teams in Cincinnati prep football history, along with the 2005 Bombers team that also was 15-0 and state champion.
The Bombers this year beat former state champions from Ohio (Elder, Colerain, Moeller, St. Ignatius), Kentucky (Trinity) and Indiana (Chatard), plus national power DeMatha (Md.).

Along the way, the Bombers set what is believed to be a state record for Harbin computer points (45.4), based on strength of schedule.

 

[JohnnyCockfight]

St. X wins another crown

St. X wins another crown
BY TOM GROESCHEN | [email protected]

CANTON ? Darius Ashley raced merrily through a winter wonderland here Saturday night, as he led St. Xavier to its second Ohio Division I state football title in three years.


The Bombers throttled Mentor 27-0 on a snowy night as Ashley, a senior running back, carried 36 times for a Division I title-game record 271 yards and two touchdowns.

....

A crowd of 12,442 watched St. X (15-0), ranked atop the Associated Press state poll all year, take an early 14-0 lead. That was too much for No. 10 Mentor (11-3), which never came close to scoring.

St. X also was rated anywhere from No. 1 to No. 5 all season in various national polls.

....

St. Xavier will go down as one of the greatest teams in Cincinnati prep football history, along with the 2005 Bombers team that also was 15-0 and state champion.
The Bombers this year beat former state champions from Ohio (Elder, Colerain, Moeller, St. Ignatius), Kentucky (Trinity) and Indiana (Chatard), plus national power DeMatha (Md.).

Along the way, the Bombers set what is believed to be a state record for Harbin computer points (45.4), based on strength of schedule.

....

St. Xavier and Anderson, which won the Division II state title Friday night, gave Cincinnati multiple state football championships for the first time since 1986, when Fairfield (D-I), Purcell Marian (D-II) and Cincinnati Academy of Physical Education (D-III) all won state.

St. Xavier?s 2007 title win gives Cincinnati its fifth Division I state football championship in the past six years: Elder (2002 and ?03), Colerain (?04), St. Xavier (?05 and ?07).

The Bombers? championship is Cincinnati?s 16th big-school state title in 36 years of Ohio tournament play. The OHSAA began its football playoffs in the 1972 season.

The St. Xavier seniors conclude their career with a 49-2 record. Bombers seniors were 10-0 as freshmen, and the varsity was 39-2 in the three years that seniors including Ashley, WR/kicker Danny Milligan and Craig were starters. Also, the St. Xavier freshman ?B? team was 4-0 when the current seniors were freshmen.

?A lot of people told them they couldn?t do what they did,? Specht said. ?It?s a special group, and I?ll always be proud of them.?


Mentor ? 0-0-0-0--0
St. Xavier ? 7-10-3-7--27

SX ? Milligan 4 pass from Massa (Milligan kick)
SX ? Ashley 27 run (Milligan kick)
SX ? Milligan 23 FG
SX ? Milligan 24 FG
SX ? Ashley 1 run (Milligan kick)
Records: M 11-3, SX 15-0.

 

[scott91575]

Way to go Bombers!!!!!

2 out of 3 years. Add football to the swimming dynasty. Another brick in the wall.

 

[X Buckeyes07 X]

Cracking the champagne while singing the alma mater in Canton's finest Days Inn for the second time in three years was a wonderful experience. Hopefully I'll be back soon.

 

[RB07OSU]

X is like perfect clockwork...they don't really hit any big plays but never get less than 4 yards a play. Can't name how many 6,7, or 8 yard gains occured. They just shut down Mentor and that is no small task with Tanski at QB. X is just ridiculously talented and are so well coached. Honestly it was a really boring game to watch if you weren't X and I wish Mentor could have put up some points but oh well...Congrats to X on another state title.