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- Thread starter Honor&Glory
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Cincy
Colerain not overlooking Wildcats
13-0 Hilliard Davidson next hurdle to climb
BY MARK SCHMETZER | ENQUIRER CONTRIBUTOR
Considering Hamilton County's recent track record in Ohio Division I high school football - four state championships in the past four years - it's not unusual for Colerain supporters to believe their Cardinals clinched this year's title with last Friday's 24-7 victory over St. Xavier.
But the players are trying not to fall into that trap, senior defensive back Eugene Clifford said. They know Hilliard Davidson, the team they face at 7 p.m. today in a state semifinal at Dayton's Welcome Stadium, is a challenging and motivated opponent.
"They're 13-0, just like we are," Clifford said. "We've still got two games to go. We're putting all that stuff on the back burner. We're not taking any team lightly."
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"People who think that aren't watching the same films we are," Colerain coach Kerry Coombs said. "(Hilliard Davidson) played St. Xavier in a final-four game last year, and they were down 17-10 and they were throwing the ball in the end zone. If it doesn't get intercepted, they could be going to overtime, and they have 14 starters back from that team."
The Colerain-Hilliard Davidson winner will meet the winner of tonight's other semifinal between Canton McKinley (12-1) and Mentor (12-1) for the state championship at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 at Canton's Fawcett Stadium.
The Wildcats finished ranked fifth in the AP Division I state poll behind No. 1 Colerain and seeded second in Region 3 behind Lancaster. The Ohio Capital Conference Buckeye Division champions rolled to playoff wins over Logan (38-6) and Upper Arlington (17-0).
The Wildcats then rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit to beat Dublin Coffman 28-20 in last Friday's regional championship game.
Senior running back Bo Delande, working out of Davidson's option-oriented offense, gained 109 yards and scored two touchdowns on 26 carries against Coffman, one week after picking up 176 yards and two touchdowns against Upper Arlington.
"They have a pretty good offensive line," Clifford said about the Wildcats. "They're quick and fast and get off the ball. They like to take control of the game and drive the ball down the field."
Mason coach Gary Popovich is in the unique position of being the only man to have coached against both teams this season. The Comets lost to Colerain 41-14 in their opener and 13-10 to the Wildcats in their second game.
"They're both great programs," Popovich said. "Right now, Hilliard has a great run going. They played (St. Xavier) last year, and it was a pretty good game. Now, they're in the same spot, playing the best Cincinnati has to offer in Colerain.
"They're similar in a lot of ways. Hilliard throws less than Colerain, if that's possible. They're both really fast on offense and defense. They both want to run the ball down your throat.
"The difference in Colerain from this year to last year is Colerain can throw it down the field and catch it. They're good at getting their kids out into space and making them look good and you look bad."
So, who will win?
"I think Colerain's a little better," Popovich said. "I think they're a better football team all the way around."
Colerain not overlooking Wildcats
13-0 Hilliard Davidson next hurdle to climb
BY MARK SCHMETZER | ENQUIRER CONTRIBUTOR
Considering Hamilton County's recent track record in Ohio Division I high school football - four state championships in the past four years - it's not unusual for Colerain supporters to believe their Cardinals clinched this year's title with last Friday's 24-7 victory over St. Xavier.
But the players are trying not to fall into that trap, senior defensive back Eugene Clifford said. They know Hilliard Davidson, the team they face at 7 p.m. today in a state semifinal at Dayton's Welcome Stadium, is a challenging and motivated opponent.
"They're 13-0, just like we are," Clifford said. "We've still got two games to go. We're putting all that stuff on the back burner. We're not taking any team lightly."
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"People who think that aren't watching the same films we are," Colerain coach Kerry Coombs said. "(Hilliard Davidson) played St. Xavier in a final-four game last year, and they were down 17-10 and they were throwing the ball in the end zone. If it doesn't get intercepted, they could be going to overtime, and they have 14 starters back from that team."
The Colerain-Hilliard Davidson winner will meet the winner of tonight's other semifinal between Canton McKinley (12-1) and Mentor (12-1) for the state championship at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 at Canton's Fawcett Stadium.
The Wildcats finished ranked fifth in the AP Division I state poll behind No. 1 Colerain and seeded second in Region 3 behind Lancaster. The Ohio Capital Conference Buckeye Division champions rolled to playoff wins over Logan (38-6) and Upper Arlington (17-0).
The Wildcats then rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit to beat Dublin Coffman 28-20 in last Friday's regional championship game.
Senior running back Bo Delande, working out of Davidson's option-oriented offense, gained 109 yards and scored two touchdowns on 26 carries against Coffman, one week after picking up 176 yards and two touchdowns against Upper Arlington.
"They have a pretty good offensive line," Clifford said about the Wildcats. "They're quick and fast and get off the ball. They like to take control of the game and drive the ball down the field."
Mason coach Gary Popovich is in the unique position of being the only man to have coached against both teams this season. The Comets lost to Colerain 41-14 in their opener and 13-10 to the Wildcats in their second game.
"They're both great programs," Popovich said. "Right now, Hilliard has a great run going. They played (St. Xavier) last year, and it was a pretty good game. Now, they're in the same spot, playing the best Cincinnati has to offer in Colerain.
"They're similar in a lot of ways. Hilliard throws less than Colerain, if that's possible. They're both really fast on offense and defense. They both want to run the ball down your throat.
"The difference in Colerain from this year to last year is Colerain can throw it down the field and catch it. They're good at getting their kids out into space and making them look good and you look bad."
So, who will win?
"I think Colerain's a little better," Popovich said. "I think they're a better football team all the way around."
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Colerain hopes are ended
Davidson knocks off Cards, ending streak of local titles
BY TOM GROESCHEN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
DAYTON - Kerry Coombs, much to his regret, was right.
The Colerain football coach warned outsiders not to prematurely hand the Division I state title to his team, and Hilliard Davidson proved Coombs right by stunning the Cardinals 10-6 in the state semifinals before a crowd of about 10,000 at Welcome Stadium on Saturday night.
Colerain (13-1) was ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press Division I state media poll and is No. 12 in the USA Today national ratings. Many believed Colerain would cruise to the state final after drilling the defending state champion, St. Xavier, 24-7 in last week's regional final.
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"People underrate teams from central Ohio, but they play fast and physical and play great defense," Coombs said. "We knew this would be tough. We didn't fall short because of a lack of effort on our part."
Davidson (14-0), No. 5 in the final AP state poll, will play Mentor (13-1) for the state title at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 in Canton. Davidson becomes the first Columbus area team to reach the D-I state final since Upper Arlington in 2000.
"All week long, all I heard was how bad Colerain was going to beat us," Davidson senior linebacker Brad McKinley said. "But those people don't know how much heart and pride we have."
Davidson parlayed a couple of big plays and a clock-eating, run-oriented offense to keep Colerain at bay. The Wildcats grabbed a 10-3 lead on a 4-yard TD run by running back Bo Delande with 8:08 left in the third period, and Davidson made it stand up.
The touchdown was set up by a Colerain fumble.
Cincinnati's run of four straight D-I state titles is over. Elder (2002 and '03), Colerain (2004) and St. Xavier (2005) were the last four champions.
Cincinnati schools have dominated Columbus area teams in the state semifinals and finals. Since the Ohio playoff system began in 1972, Cincinnati teams were 13-2 against Columbus schools in the Division I state semifinals and/or finals. The tally is now 13-3.
Eugene Clifford, Colerain's standout senior safety, will head to Ohio State next season with one state title. Clifford was a sophomore starter on the Cards' '04 team.
"It's a tragedy," Clifford said quietly, amid a somber postgame gathering of Colerain players, coaches and fans on the field. "We just didn't play our game."
Colerain held a 236-122 edge in total yards, but the six points was the Cardinals' low output for the year. Their previous low was a 19-8 win over Sycamore in the regular season.
"They were good, but I don't think they were as good as us," Clifford said. "We just didn't get it done."
The Cardinals took a 3-0 lead on a 22-yard field goal by Mark Tabar with 2:55 left in the first quarter.
The Davidson offense generated almost nothing, yet the Wildcats hung in thanks to punter Colby Catlett.
Catlett launched an 82-yard punt to pin Colerain at its 1-yard line about five minutes into the second quarter.
On the next play, Colerain quarterback Doug Reynolds was sacked in the end zone for a safety. That made it 3-2, with 6:41 left in the second quarter.
"That was a big play as far as momentum and field position," Coombs said.
Davidson had only one first down and 30 total yards in the first half. Yet the Wildcats trailed just 3-2 at halftime, giving them a psychological boost.
"We came in knowing we weren't going to be intimidated," Hilliard Davidson junior quarterback Connor Dietz said. "We didn't want to lose the game before it started. We just believed in each other all night."
Dietz carried 13 times for 62 yards. The Wildcats throw even less than Colerain, with Dietz going 1-for-2 for 7 yards.
Davidson coach Brian White said the Wildcats got it done this time after coming close last year, when they lost 17-10 to St. Xavier in the state semifinals.
"We didn't play the perfect game last year, because we made some mistakes and St. X capitalized on them," White said. "Tonight we feel like Colerain's mistakes allowed us to get in the game ..."
Colerain was led by Reynolds with 15 carries for 75 yards. Gary Pride had six carries for 30 yards and Trammell Williams had 10 carries for 28 yards. Reynolds was 5-for-10 passing for 85 yards.
Colerain crept within 10-6 on a 24-yard field goal by Tabar with 11:16 left. The Cardinals were unable to get the ball for enough time to amount another substantial drive, with Davidson working the clock. Coombs said the Wildcats caught the Cardinals somewhat off guard with "outside veer" pitch plays, including Dietz making a crucial first down on a 15-yard run in the final minute near midfield.
Colerain got the ball one last time at its 42-yard line with 11.6 seconds left. The final play was a 29-yard pass to Clifford that carried near the Wildcats' 30-yard line, but time expired and Colerain was flagged for an illegal forward pass on the final play.
"We're disappointed, and we should be," Coombs said. "We've got a lot of great seniors who will play in college, and I'm proud of them for getting us here tonight."
Colerain hopes are ended
Davidson knocks off Cards, ending streak of local titles
BY TOM GROESCHEN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
DAYTON - Kerry Coombs, much to his regret, was right.
The Colerain football coach warned outsiders not to prematurely hand the Division I state title to his team, and Hilliard Davidson proved Coombs right by stunning the Cardinals 10-6 in the state semifinals before a crowd of about 10,000 at Welcome Stadium on Saturday night.
Colerain (13-1) was ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press Division I state media poll and is No. 12 in the USA Today national ratings. Many believed Colerain would cruise to the state final after drilling the defending state champion, St. Xavier, 24-7 in last week's regional final.
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"People underrate teams from central Ohio, but they play fast and physical and play great defense," Coombs said. "We knew this would be tough. We didn't fall short because of a lack of effort on our part."
Davidson (14-0), No. 5 in the final AP state poll, will play Mentor (13-1) for the state title at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 in Canton. Davidson becomes the first Columbus area team to reach the D-I state final since Upper Arlington in 2000.
"All week long, all I heard was how bad Colerain was going to beat us," Davidson senior linebacker Brad McKinley said. "But those people don't know how much heart and pride we have."
Davidson parlayed a couple of big plays and a clock-eating, run-oriented offense to keep Colerain at bay. The Wildcats grabbed a 10-3 lead on a 4-yard TD run by running back Bo Delande with 8:08 left in the third period, and Davidson made it stand up.
The touchdown was set up by a Colerain fumble.
Cincinnati's run of four straight D-I state titles is over. Elder (2002 and '03), Colerain (2004) and St. Xavier (2005) were the last four champions.
Cincinnati schools have dominated Columbus area teams in the state semifinals and finals. Since the Ohio playoff system began in 1972, Cincinnati teams were 13-2 against Columbus schools in the Division I state semifinals and/or finals. The tally is now 13-3.
Eugene Clifford, Colerain's standout senior safety, will head to Ohio State next season with one state title. Clifford was a sophomore starter on the Cards' '04 team.
"It's a tragedy," Clifford said quietly, amid a somber postgame gathering of Colerain players, coaches and fans on the field. "We just didn't play our game."
Colerain held a 236-122 edge in total yards, but the six points was the Cardinals' low output for the year. Their previous low was a 19-8 win over Sycamore in the regular season.
"They were good, but I don't think they were as good as us," Clifford said. "We just didn't get it done."
The Cardinals took a 3-0 lead on a 22-yard field goal by Mark Tabar with 2:55 left in the first quarter.
The Davidson offense generated almost nothing, yet the Wildcats hung in thanks to punter Colby Catlett.
Catlett launched an 82-yard punt to pin Colerain at its 1-yard line about five minutes into the second quarter.
On the next play, Colerain quarterback Doug Reynolds was sacked in the end zone for a safety. That made it 3-2, with 6:41 left in the second quarter.
"That was a big play as far as momentum and field position," Coombs said.
Davidson had only one first down and 30 total yards in the first half. Yet the Wildcats trailed just 3-2 at halftime, giving them a psychological boost.
"We came in knowing we weren't going to be intimidated," Hilliard Davidson junior quarterback Connor Dietz said. "We didn't want to lose the game before it started. We just believed in each other all night."
Dietz carried 13 times for 62 yards. The Wildcats throw even less than Colerain, with Dietz going 1-for-2 for 7 yards.
Davidson coach Brian White said the Wildcats got it done this time after coming close last year, when they lost 17-10 to St. Xavier in the state semifinals.
"We didn't play the perfect game last year, because we made some mistakes and St. X capitalized on them," White said. "Tonight we feel like Colerain's mistakes allowed us to get in the game ..."
Colerain was led by Reynolds with 15 carries for 75 yards. Gary Pride had six carries for 30 yards and Trammell Williams had 10 carries for 28 yards. Reynolds was 5-for-10 passing for 85 yards.
Colerain crept within 10-6 on a 24-yard field goal by Tabar with 11:16 left. The Cardinals were unable to get the ball for enough time to amount another substantial drive, with Davidson working the clock. Coombs said the Wildcats caught the Cardinals somewhat off guard with "outside veer" pitch plays, including Dietz making a crucial first down on a 15-yard run in the final minute near midfield.
Colerain got the ball one last time at its 42-yard line with 11.6 seconds left. The final play was a 29-yard pass to Clifford that carried near the Wildcats' 30-yard line, but time expired and Colerain was flagged for an illegal forward pass on the final play.
"We're disappointed, and we should be," Coombs said. "We've got a lot of great seniors who will play in college, and I'm proud of them for getting us here tonight."
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After taking a 3-0 lead on a 22-yard field goal by Mark Tabar, Colerain?s defense forced Davidson into four straight three-and-out series. But an error in judgment by Ohio State-bound Eugene Clifford resulted in an 82-yard punt by Colby Catlett. Clifford failed to field the punt near the 30-yard line and it bounced on the artificial surface to the 1.
Dispatch
Dispatch
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Honor&Glory
Paper,Rock, Scissors, Lizard, Spock!
osugrad21;670541; said:
I was at the game and it was not an error on Gene's part...HD's punter crushed the ball with the wind at his back...Gene ran as fast as he could to catch up to the punt, but he couldn't and the only chance he had to field the ball would have been to catch it over his shoulder...when the ball hit the concrete turf at Welcome Stadium it took off like a line drive...Gene had NO CHANCE to field the punt....terrible writing in the Dispatch if you ask me.
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TGfan06
Senior Hurler
Honor&Glory;670549; said:
Your right, catlett just destroyed the kick. A few Colerain fans around me seemed upset with him about that play.
BTW, congrats on a great season to Colerain. Even though we won, I still think you would beat us 7 out of 10 times if we played again.
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Honor&Glory
Paper,Rock, Scissors, Lizard, Spock!
TGfan06;670561; said:
hey, it only takes one to advance. Congrats to HD. They play football the way we Colerain fans like it...in your face defense and nothing fancy on offense...'we run the ball...you know its coming...try to stop it!' I'll be pulling for HD against Mentor.
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Honor&Glory
Paper,Rock, Scissors, Lizard, Spock!
brief cincy write-up on Gene with a quote from Coombs regarding Gene and OSU..
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061128/SPT030101/611280323/1062/SPT
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061128/SPT030101/611280323/1062/SPT
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Cincy
'Gifted athlete' gave foes fits
Colerain's Clifford lived up to hype to earn Player of the Year honors
BY TOM GROESCHEN | [email protected]
Kerry Coombs has had plenty of great football players at Colerain, but none better than Eugene Clifford.
Clifford, the Cardinals' standout senior safety, heads the 2006 area all-star team as Enquirer/Channel 9 Player of the Year. Clifford led Colerain to a 13-1 record and Division I state semifinal berth this season, and he backed up the hype that listed him and La Salle linebacker Ben Martin as the preseason top two players in Ohio.
Continued...
'Gifted athlete' gave foes fits
Colerain's Clifford lived up to hype to earn Player of the Year honors
BY TOM GROESCHEN | [email protected]
Kerry Coombs has had plenty of great football players at Colerain, but none better than Eugene Clifford.
Clifford, the Cardinals' standout senior safety, heads the 2006 area all-star team as Enquirer/Channel 9 Player of the Year. Clifford led Colerain to a 13-1 record and Division I state semifinal berth this season, and he backed up the hype that listed him and La Salle linebacker Ben Martin as the preseason top two players in Ohio.
Continued...
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Honor&Glory
Paper,Rock, Scissors, Lizard, Spock!
as of today, 17 December 2006, the defensive cooridinator position at the University of Cincinnati has been offered to Colerain head coach Kerry Coombs.
Coombs has not taken the job...yet. If he does, I fully expect Clifford to de-commit and follow his h.s. coach to UC. I also would lay even money that Ben Martin heads to UC...
I told osugrad21 when Dantonio left that it could have negative implications for OSU, but I didn't want to say anything about it until I knew for sure if KC would get the offer...
I have not been able to confirm, but UC is said to have the local media on stand by for a news conference as early as tonight.
again, the only thing that I can confirm is that Coombs has the offer...
Coombs has not taken the job...yet. If he does, I fully expect Clifford to de-commit and follow his h.s. coach to UC. I also would lay even money that Ben Martin heads to UC...
I told osugrad21 when Dantonio left that it could have negative implications for OSU, but I didn't want to say anything about it until I knew for sure if KC would get the offer...
I have not been able to confirm, but UC is said to have the local media on stand by for a news conference as early as tonight.
again, the only thing that I can confirm is that Coombs has the offer...
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RhodeIslandBuck
This guy's a real jerk
Perhaps this is why we offered Pentello, well this sucks i'll just be hoping coombs doesn't take the job.
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