FritoBandito
Lover of salty snacks
Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. This quote says everything we need to know about Dane 'the back-breaker' Sanzenbacher.
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- Thread starter wadc45
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Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. This quote says everything we need to know about Dane 'the back-breaker' Sanzenbacher.
Cincinnatibuck
Heisman
As you can see from that tape, Dane was all over the field during the Championship game.
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OregonBuckeye
Semper Fi Buckeyes
According to ESPN's recruiting rankings Notre Dame and USC will win the next few NC's while OSU will struggle to go to bowl games.
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Buckeye86
I do not choose to discuss it
I was reading this recruiting update and the section on Dane got me thinking: it seems to me like Dane would be a perfect fit for the Anthony Gonzales role on the team. He seems like he'd be the perfect slot receiver. Smart, tough, deceptive speed, not afraid to go over the middle, and most importantly, a playmaker. Any thoughts?
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Passing along a scrimmage report:
Scrimmaged Central yeasterday and Sanzenbacher was legit 6' and has added 10 to 15 lbs of solid body weight. Very Smooth, ran very good route and cutting/change of direction . Did drop one very catchable ball but overall very good. Still not sure about Big Ten speed but such god kid worth the risk.
On his recruitment was told he ran 1st 40 and evr after at 4.6. But what caught coaches attention was that none of top DBs at camp could stop him. And caught everything thrown his way.
Scrimmaged Central yeasterday and Sanzenbacher was legit 6' and has added 10 to 15 lbs of solid body weight. Very Smooth, ran very good route and cutting/change of direction . Did drop one very catchable ball but overall very good. Still not sure about Big Ten speed but such god kid worth the risk.
On his recruitment was told he ran 1st 40 and evr after at 4.6. But what caught coaches attention was that none of top DBs at camp could stop him. And caught everything thrown his way.
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2006 PREVIEW
Central theme is Magic; Sanzenbacher back for more with Irish
By STEVE JUNGA
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
<center></center>
It was the low point of the 2005 high school football season for Central Catholic, week two of the regular season versus Fremont Ross at Start.
<center></center> The Fighting Irish had just executed a trick hook-and-lateral play down the left sideline in the closing seconds in a late comeback bid against Ross, which had scored a TD to take a 20-14 lead with just 35.5 seconds remaining.<center></center> After two quick completions to junior wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, senior quarterback Kevin Jansen completed another short pass to senior wide receiver Xavier Graciani, who flipped back to Sanzenbacher.<center></center> The speedy Sanzenbacher streaked 41 yards before being bumped out of bounds at the Little Giants' 7. A Central win - improbable seconds earlier - now seemed very possible.<center></center> But Jansen subsequently rolled right, saw no open receiver, gambled on making it around the corner to the end zone, and lost. Time ran out as he was tackled four yards short.<center></center> It was a difficult defeat, but it was the last one Central would experience in a magical season that would produce the school's first City League title in 23 years and, more importantly, a Division II state playoff championship.<center></center> Thirteen Friday nights later, Jansen and Graciani and Sanzenbacher executed another hook-and-lateral play down the left sideline.<center></center> This time, it was just before halftime with the Irish trailing Canfield 16-10 in the closing seconds of the first half of the D-II state final at Massillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.<center></center> This time, Sanzenbacher streaked the last 39 yards for a touchdown as Central took a 17-16 edge to halftime, a lead it would not relinquish in what ended as a thrilling 32-29 victory.<center></center> It was the third state title for a City League team, following a D-I crown won by St. Francis de Sales in 1984, and the D-II title captured by the Knights in 2001.<center></center> GREAT DANE: For his part, Sanzenbacher - the CL's 2005 player of the year - was brilliant throughout the postseason. He would score nine touchdowns and snare six interceptions in the playoffs alone.<center></center> In each of the five playoff wins - over Tiffin Columbian, Mansfield Madison, top-ranked Avon Lake, Dayton Carroll and finally Canfield - he did something dazzling to aid an Irish victory.<center></center> The 6-foot, 180-pound Sanzenbacher, who recently made a verbal commitment to Ohio State University, closed the 2005 season with 71 receptions for 1,424 yards, scoring 16 touchdowns. He also added 11 interceptions while playing at cornerback on defense.<center></center> "A great thing about Dane that helps us out is something a lot of people never get to see," Central coach Greg Dempsey said. "He may be the guy going to Ohio State, but he's also the one winning every sprint, who's religious in the weight room, and who obviously takes care of his grades.<center></center> "He's really set the bar for our guys in ways where people can't imagine how it impacts our team."<center></center> In addition to the football exploits, Sanzenbacher carries a 3.3 grade-point average, recently scored a qualifying 27 (36 is perfect) on his ACT college entrance exam, and in June placed fifth in the Division I state track meet in the 400-meter dash.<center></center> "Dane is easily the best I've played with or against," said senior teammate Chris Dominiak, who will also be a third-year starter for the Irish this season (tight end/defensive end).<center></center> "It's amazing to see what he can do on the field, and it's also good to know that you might have made a block that opened things up for him or ran off a safety so he could break a big play.<center></center> "With what he can do it takes a lot of pressure off of our offense. Not only can he make a big play, but he opens up a lot of other options when he draws so much attention. Big plays can happen in other ways."<center></center> BELIEVERS: When asked recently if winning the 2005 state title was a big surprise or maybe even a surreal experience, Dominiak had an astute reply:<center></center> "Yes and no," he answered. "Yes, mainly because it was something that hadn't been done for a long time around here.<center></center> "But, no, because all of the players on that team thought it was possible, and none of them ever counted us out."<center></center> Central's only previous state championship was a title by proclamation only when the 1962 team won the Ohio Associated Press poll championship as the state's top-ranked team at the end of the regular season. Postseason playoffs to determine a champion did not begin until 10 years later.<center></center> Where his good friend Sanzenbacher will attend Ohio State on a football scholarship, Dominiak sees college football only as a slight possibility. His aspirations are more aimed at academics.<center></center> Ranked fifth in his class with a 4.57 GPA, Dominiak scored an impressive 33 on his ACT. He plans on a pre-med major with the long-term goal of becoming a surgeon.<center></center> BACK TO BUSINESS: For a team that had not even won a league title since 1982, Central was long overdue for a celebration, and Irish followers did just that.<center></center> But, it didn't take long for the players, at least those who were underclassmen, to come back down to earth and focus on the upcoming season.<center></center> "It was very satisfying winning the state championship," Dominiak said. "But, at the same time, I was a junior and we still have a lot of expectations and goals set for this year.<center></center> "It took about two weeks to settle in. We celebrated, and I took some time off to let my body heal. Then I got right back in the weight room and started working out for this year."<center></center> Sanzenbacher was right alongside in the weight room.<center></center> "A lot of the young guys coming in this year might be thinking that it's just going to be easy because they've seen it done, winning a state championship," Sanzenbacher said. "But, obviously, it wasn't easy. We need to get it into the younger guys' heads what it takes to get there.<center></center> "When I was coming up, it almost seemed like an unreachable feat to get all the way to states. It was unbelievable to get there. Now, seeing that it can be done, it gives the guys something to reach for."<center></center> THE BUS: How was it that Sanzenbacher wound up getting a scholarship offer from Ohio State University after drawing relatively little recruiting attention before late June?<center></center> Simple - he took the bus.<center></center> For the past few years Cleveland Glenville football coach Ted Ginn Sr. - the father of lightning-fast Ohio State receiver/return man Ted Ginn Jr. - has loaded up a chartered bus with a few dozen of his own players and other promising Ohio standouts. He's taken them on a tour of camps or special workouts hosted by Division I college programs in the Midwest.<center></center> It is called the Ginn "Road to Opportunity" Division-I Combine Tour, and this year one of the 49 bus seats went to Sanzenbacher. He was a late entry and was invited, according to Dempsey, only after a suggestion to Ginn from St. John's Jesuit assistant coach Pete Pharis.<center></center> The tour took the prep players to 12 schools in 12 days, covering Ball State, Bowling Green, Miami (Ohio), Cincinnati, Marshall, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin, Notre Dame and Ohio State.<center></center> After finishing at OSU on June 20, Sanzenbacher was invited back to the Buckeyes' June 22 senior camp. It was later that night that Ohio State coach Jim Tressel made the Central star a scholarship offer. He verbally accepted on July 9.<center></center> Prior to the tour, Sanzenbacher had offers only from Mid-American Conference schools Toledo, Ball State and Ohio University. After the tour he received offers from Iowa, Miami, Bowling Green and OSU.<center></center> "When the Ohio State [offer] came through," Sanzenbacher said, "it was a really hard school to pass up. When you have a coach as great as coach Tressel - who's going to be a legend, or maybe already is - to be able to play for him is a great opportunity.<center></center> "Also, I did want to get it out of the way before this season started so I could just focus on us. It was a little bit out of nowhere. I didn't think it was going to come up this fast. But when it finally did come, I had to jump at the opportunity."<center></center> Sanzenbacher was courted as a wide receiver.<center></center> "A lot of kids, going into their senior year, have the whole college piece [of the puzzle] to worry about, and all of the testing," he said. "I'm really in a great position. I already have my ACT taken care of and [the choice of] college done. Now I just have to keep the grades where they are and play football."<center></center> RELOADING: As they approach the 2006 season, which for Central begins tomorrow night against a strong Detroit Catholic Central team at Start, repeating the state title is a very tall order.<center></center> The Irish graduated six offensive and eight defensive starters.<center></center> Gone from the offense are Jansen, who passed for 2,020 yards and 22 TDs with only three interceptions; running backs Chris Willis (1,454 yards, all-district) and Neil Mitchell (500 yards); and first-team all-district lineman Mike Starkey. Gone from the defense are first-team all-district linebackers Ryan Brown and Lee Marquette, and lineman Anthony Oliver.<center></center> But Sanzenbacher, Dominiak and fellow returning senior starters Alex Scotland, Zach Boling and John Orta (all offensive linemen), and junior linebacker Greg Hammond are ready for the challenge.<center></center> "It's going to be the same focus that we had last year," Sanzenbacher said. "Coming in and working hard and going from the first game on. Trying to win the City first, and then seeing what happens."<center></center> The returnees will try to bring the new players up to a championship level of effort.<center></center> "That's been something Dane and I have worked on a lot," Dominiak said. "We're both third-year players and we saw how practices were conducted and what needed to be done to make that happen.<center></center> "We learned that practice is just important as Friday night, and that the scout team was just as important as anything in preparing us to win that state championship. Guys who didn't even get on the field much had a lot to do with that."<center></center> Is a repeat run possible?<center></center> "I think it's very realistic," Dominiak said, "even with all the talent we lost. The guys who were on the scout teams were going up against some good players last year and learned a lot from that. We're coming around real nice and we're already starting to gel."<center></center> "Last year was something that, for everybody who was involved with it, will always look back and see it as the greatest thing that can happen to a high school football team," Dempsey said. "But the thing we've tried to do is keep it in perspective.<center></center> "This is a new group of seniors. They want to have great memories of their senior year, so let's go out and try to have a great year and do the best we can, get better every week, hopefully compete for that City championship and hopefully make the playoffs."<center></center> TARGETS: Central was able to glide through much of the 2005 regular season without the label of being the team to beat, either in the City League, where the Irish were picked to finish fourth, or the state playoffs, where they were blanked 24-0 in the first round by Tiffin Columbian in 2004.<center></center> This year, there is no escaping respect, for Central or its top playmaker.<center></center> "I was kind of able to fly under the radar a little bit last year," Sanzenbacher said. "I don't think that's going to happen this year, but I'm going to try to step up to play and go to the next level and see how it works out. There's really not much I can do to control what [opposing defenses] are going to do."<center></center> Dempsey is also fully aware he will now be the hunted instead of the hunter.<center></center> "I thought about making our practice jerseys with a target on them this year instead of a number," the coach joked. "Everybody is going to be shooting for us.<center></center> "On paper, we might not be everyone's No. 1 pick, but in a lot of people's minds we're still going to be the ones they want to knock off."<center></center> Contact Steve Junga at:
[email protected]
or 419-724-6461.
2006 PREVIEW
Central theme is Magic; Sanzenbacher back for more with Irish
By STEVE JUNGA
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
<center></center>
It was the low point of the 2005 high school football season for Central Catholic, week two of the regular season versus Fremont Ross at Start.
<center></center> The Fighting Irish had just executed a trick hook-and-lateral play down the left sideline in the closing seconds in a late comeback bid against Ross, which had scored a TD to take a 20-14 lead with just 35.5 seconds remaining.<center></center> After two quick completions to junior wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, senior quarterback Kevin Jansen completed another short pass to senior wide receiver Xavier Graciani, who flipped back to Sanzenbacher.<center></center> The speedy Sanzenbacher streaked 41 yards before being bumped out of bounds at the Little Giants' 7. A Central win - improbable seconds earlier - now seemed very possible.<center></center> But Jansen subsequently rolled right, saw no open receiver, gambled on making it around the corner to the end zone, and lost. Time ran out as he was tackled four yards short.<center></center> It was a difficult defeat, but it was the last one Central would experience in a magical season that would produce the school's first City League title in 23 years and, more importantly, a Division II state playoff championship.<center></center> Thirteen Friday nights later, Jansen and Graciani and Sanzenbacher executed another hook-and-lateral play down the left sideline.<center></center> This time, it was just before halftime with the Irish trailing Canfield 16-10 in the closing seconds of the first half of the D-II state final at Massillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.<center></center> This time, Sanzenbacher streaked the last 39 yards for a touchdown as Central took a 17-16 edge to halftime, a lead it would not relinquish in what ended as a thrilling 32-29 victory.<center></center> It was the third state title for a City League team, following a D-I crown won by St. Francis de Sales in 1984, and the D-II title captured by the Knights in 2001.<center></center> GREAT DANE: For his part, Sanzenbacher - the CL's 2005 player of the year - was brilliant throughout the postseason. He would score nine touchdowns and snare six interceptions in the playoffs alone.<center></center> In each of the five playoff wins - over Tiffin Columbian, Mansfield Madison, top-ranked Avon Lake, Dayton Carroll and finally Canfield - he did something dazzling to aid an Irish victory.<center></center> The 6-foot, 180-pound Sanzenbacher, who recently made a verbal commitment to Ohio State University, closed the 2005 season with 71 receptions for 1,424 yards, scoring 16 touchdowns. He also added 11 interceptions while playing at cornerback on defense.<center></center> "A great thing about Dane that helps us out is something a lot of people never get to see," Central coach Greg Dempsey said. "He may be the guy going to Ohio State, but he's also the one winning every sprint, who's religious in the weight room, and who obviously takes care of his grades.<center></center> "He's really set the bar for our guys in ways where people can't imagine how it impacts our team."<center></center> In addition to the football exploits, Sanzenbacher carries a 3.3 grade-point average, recently scored a qualifying 27 (36 is perfect) on his ACT college entrance exam, and in June placed fifth in the Division I state track meet in the 400-meter dash.<center></center> "Dane is easily the best I've played with or against," said senior teammate Chris Dominiak, who will also be a third-year starter for the Irish this season (tight end/defensive end).<center></center> "It's amazing to see what he can do on the field, and it's also good to know that you might have made a block that opened things up for him or ran off a safety so he could break a big play.<center></center> "With what he can do it takes a lot of pressure off of our offense. Not only can he make a big play, but he opens up a lot of other options when he draws so much attention. Big plays can happen in other ways."<center></center> BELIEVERS: When asked recently if winning the 2005 state title was a big surprise or maybe even a surreal experience, Dominiak had an astute reply:<center></center> "Yes and no," he answered. "Yes, mainly because it was something that hadn't been done for a long time around here.<center></center> "But, no, because all of the players on that team thought it was possible, and none of them ever counted us out."<center></center> Central's only previous state championship was a title by proclamation only when the 1962 team won the Ohio Associated Press poll championship as the state's top-ranked team at the end of the regular season. Postseason playoffs to determine a champion did not begin until 10 years later.<center></center> Where his good friend Sanzenbacher will attend Ohio State on a football scholarship, Dominiak sees college football only as a slight possibility. His aspirations are more aimed at academics.<center></center> Ranked fifth in his class with a 4.57 GPA, Dominiak scored an impressive 33 on his ACT. He plans on a pre-med major with the long-term goal of becoming a surgeon.<center></center> BACK TO BUSINESS: For a team that had not even won a league title since 1982, Central was long overdue for a celebration, and Irish followers did just that.<center></center> But, it didn't take long for the players, at least those who were underclassmen, to come back down to earth and focus on the upcoming season.<center></center> "It was very satisfying winning the state championship," Dominiak said. "But, at the same time, I was a junior and we still have a lot of expectations and goals set for this year.<center></center> "It took about two weeks to settle in. We celebrated, and I took some time off to let my body heal. Then I got right back in the weight room and started working out for this year."<center></center> Sanzenbacher was right alongside in the weight room.<center></center> "A lot of the young guys coming in this year might be thinking that it's just going to be easy because they've seen it done, winning a state championship," Sanzenbacher said. "But, obviously, it wasn't easy. We need to get it into the younger guys' heads what it takes to get there.<center></center> "When I was coming up, it almost seemed like an unreachable feat to get all the way to states. It was unbelievable to get there. Now, seeing that it can be done, it gives the guys something to reach for."<center></center> THE BUS: How was it that Sanzenbacher wound up getting a scholarship offer from Ohio State University after drawing relatively little recruiting attention before late June?<center></center> Simple - he took the bus.<center></center> For the past few years Cleveland Glenville football coach Ted Ginn Sr. - the father of lightning-fast Ohio State receiver/return man Ted Ginn Jr. - has loaded up a chartered bus with a few dozen of his own players and other promising Ohio standouts. He's taken them on a tour of camps or special workouts hosted by Division I college programs in the Midwest.<center></center> It is called the Ginn "Road to Opportunity" Division-I Combine Tour, and this year one of the 49 bus seats went to Sanzenbacher. He was a late entry and was invited, according to Dempsey, only after a suggestion to Ginn from St. John's Jesuit assistant coach Pete Pharis.<center></center> The tour took the prep players to 12 schools in 12 days, covering Ball State, Bowling Green, Miami (Ohio), Cincinnati, Marshall, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin, Notre Dame and Ohio State.<center></center> After finishing at OSU on June 20, Sanzenbacher was invited back to the Buckeyes' June 22 senior camp. It was later that night that Ohio State coach Jim Tressel made the Central star a scholarship offer. He verbally accepted on July 9.<center></center> Prior to the tour, Sanzenbacher had offers only from Mid-American Conference schools Toledo, Ball State and Ohio University. After the tour he received offers from Iowa, Miami, Bowling Green and OSU.<center></center> "When the Ohio State [offer] came through," Sanzenbacher said, "it was a really hard school to pass up. When you have a coach as great as coach Tressel - who's going to be a legend, or maybe already is - to be able to play for him is a great opportunity.<center></center> "Also, I did want to get it out of the way before this season started so I could just focus on us. It was a little bit out of nowhere. I didn't think it was going to come up this fast. But when it finally did come, I had to jump at the opportunity."<center></center> Sanzenbacher was courted as a wide receiver.<center></center> "A lot of kids, going into their senior year, have the whole college piece [of the puzzle] to worry about, and all of the testing," he said. "I'm really in a great position. I already have my ACT taken care of and [the choice of] college done. Now I just have to keep the grades where they are and play football."<center></center> RELOADING: As they approach the 2006 season, which for Central begins tomorrow night against a strong Detroit Catholic Central team at Start, repeating the state title is a very tall order.<center></center> The Irish graduated six offensive and eight defensive starters.<center></center> Gone from the offense are Jansen, who passed for 2,020 yards and 22 TDs with only three interceptions; running backs Chris Willis (1,454 yards, all-district) and Neil Mitchell (500 yards); and first-team all-district lineman Mike Starkey. Gone from the defense are first-team all-district linebackers Ryan Brown and Lee Marquette, and lineman Anthony Oliver.<center></center> But Sanzenbacher, Dominiak and fellow returning senior starters Alex Scotland, Zach Boling and John Orta (all offensive linemen), and junior linebacker Greg Hammond are ready for the challenge.<center></center> "It's going to be the same focus that we had last year," Sanzenbacher said. "Coming in and working hard and going from the first game on. Trying to win the City first, and then seeing what happens."<center></center> The returnees will try to bring the new players up to a championship level of effort.<center></center> "That's been something Dane and I have worked on a lot," Dominiak said. "We're both third-year players and we saw how practices were conducted and what needed to be done to make that happen.<center></center> "We learned that practice is just important as Friday night, and that the scout team was just as important as anything in preparing us to win that state championship. Guys who didn't even get on the field much had a lot to do with that."<center></center> Is a repeat run possible?<center></center> "I think it's very realistic," Dominiak said, "even with all the talent we lost. The guys who were on the scout teams were going up against some good players last year and learned a lot from that. We're coming around real nice and we're already starting to gel."<center></center> "Last year was something that, for everybody who was involved with it, will always look back and see it as the greatest thing that can happen to a high school football team," Dempsey said. "But the thing we've tried to do is keep it in perspective.<center></center> "This is a new group of seniors. They want to have great memories of their senior year, so let's go out and try to have a great year and do the best we can, get better every week, hopefully compete for that City championship and hopefully make the playoffs."<center></center> TARGETS: Central was able to glide through much of the 2005 regular season without the label of being the team to beat, either in the City League, where the Irish were picked to finish fourth, or the state playoffs, where they were blanked 24-0 in the first round by Tiffin Columbian in 2004.<center></center> This year, there is no escaping respect, for Central or its top playmaker.<center></center> "I was kind of able to fly under the radar a little bit last year," Sanzenbacher said. "I don't think that's going to happen this year, but I'm going to try to step up to play and go to the next level and see how it works out. There's really not much I can do to control what [opposing defenses] are going to do."<center></center> Dempsey is also fully aware he will now be the hunted instead of the hunter.<center></center> "I thought about making our practice jerseys with a target on them this year instead of a number," the coach joked. "Everybody is going to be shooting for us.<center></center> "On paper, we might not be everyone's No. 1 pick, but in a lot of people's minds we're still going to be the ones they want to knock off."<center></center> Contact Steve Junga at:
[email protected]
or 419-724-6461.
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AMISH-SLAYER
Cobra Kai Sensei
For those interested it looks like Dane will be in the Columbus area on 9/1. Toledo central catholic plays at Hilliard Darby.
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UpNorthBuckeye
Hall of Fame
Sanzenbacher's buddy
Dominiak should come to OSU and play as well. A smart tight end who wants to be a doctor?? Anyone remember Dr. John Frank?? Heck, he even played five years for the 49ers and then quit to get his career going.
Of course, I don't know if Dominiak is any good but a 4.57 GPA?? Wow! That would raise the entire football program's average by a few points!
Dominiak should come to OSU and play as well. A smart tight end who wants to be a doctor?? Anyone remember Dr. John Frank?? Heck, he even played five years for the 49ers and then quit to get his career going.
Of course, I don't know if Dominiak is any good but a 4.57 GPA?? Wow! That would raise the entire football program's average by a few points!
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txbuckeye1983
We are the innovators, they are the imitators
Dane and Toledo CC played at Hilliard Darby tonight. I went to the game, and if I were to estimate, 12 catches for over 250 yards and a 70 yard quick hitter for the game winning TD.
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