Ohio City - While the current players from Saint Ignatius and Euclid were just infants or not even born when the Wildcats and the Panthers last met on the Varsity gridiron, a 28-14, first-round playoff victory by Saint Ignatius in 1999, they have heard the stories that stemmed from two of the most memorable encounters in a series that Saint Ignatius leads, 11-1.
After then sophomore tailback Robert Smith led Euclid to a 30-7 victory over the Wildcats in Week 2 of the 1987 regular season, Saint Ignatius began its 11-0 run over the Panthers with regular season and postseason triumphs in 1988.
Smith, an area high school legend as a perennial All-Scholastic, All-State and All-American performer, a two-time Ohio Mr. Football (1988 and 1989) and the Bobby Dodd National Back of the Year, went on to excel in football and track at The Ohio State University and was an NFL All-Pro tailback for the Minnesota Vikings. Robert is currently an outstanding College Football Analyst for Fox News and The Big 10 Network.
With Smith back for his senior year at Euclid and Saint Ignatius riding the momentum of its first of what are now a record 11 OHSAA Division I State Football Championships, the two most memorable or storied encounters with Euclid both took place in the season of 1989.
First it was the media frenzy that surrounded the 1989 regular season game, a matchup of two of the most celebrated players not only in Ohio, but the entire nation - Smith and Wildcats All-American senior quarterback Joe Pickens.
Played on a warm September night in Lakewood Stadium, the game had the added hype of being the first nationally televised regular season high school football game. SportsChannel America did the honors.
During the week leading up to the game, coaches and players from Saint Ignatius and Euclid had to attend press conferences in order to build up the national hoopla.
Behind an outstanding performance by senior two-way tackle Trent Zenkewicz, who was one of the most dominant defensive players in the history of Ohio high school football, and memorable efforts by senior defensive back/wide receiver Mark Ruddy and senior linebacker Ryan Spicer, the Wildcats went on to dominate the Panthers, 55-26, in front of a packed Lakewood Stadium and a national television audience. Ruddy's play on both sides of the ball earned him Plain Dealer Player of the Week honors.
The second meeting between Saint Ignatius and Euclid in 1989 had much more at stake and was a different game, to say the least, than the ballyhooed regular season matchup.
In what is still one of the most memorable games in the history of the OHSAA playoffs, the Wildcats trailed the Panthers by 11 points with 10 minutes and 1 second remaining in the Division I Regional Final at Baldwin-Wallace College's Finnie Stadium (now Baldwin Wallace University).
Saint Ignatius, behind an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by gifted senior running back/linebacker Tim Kennedy, a remarkable 30-yard reception by tough and talented senior tight end John Jaeckin, a 7-yard touchdown run by standout senior tailback Pete Fitzpatrick and a game-clinching interception by ever-present senior safety/wide receiver Patrick Friend with 42 seconds remaining to be played, pulled off the amazing comeback, 31-30. The Wildcats prevailed despite failing to convert on either of their two-point conversion attempts following the Kennedy and Fitzpatrick touchdowns.
Jaeckin's diving catch, which came off a third-and-long from deep in Wildcats territory, saw John haul in a desperation pass from Pickens that deflected off the hands of one defender and bounced off the helmet and pads of another Panther. Coach Tom Banc's Euclid Panthers, who utilized Robert Smith as both a tailback and a quarterback versus Saint Ignatius, lost only four games over the 1988 and 1989 seasons, all four of them to Saint Ignatius. That, and the fact that the Wildcats lead the all-time series, 11-1, is why Coach Banc, retired now after a brilliant career, would always tell this reporter with a smile that he should be in the Saint Ignatius Hall of Fame.
Ok, that's this old gridiron grinder's drive down the memory lane of what was and will become again on Saturday night, Euclid versus Saint Ignatius in area high school football.
Now it is my privilege to give you comments from the man who orchestrated those memorable 1989 nights at Lakewood Stadium and Finnie Stadium, along with the Wildcats' record 11 Division I state championships (including a remarkable five in a row, 1991-1995), two state runner-up finishes (1996 and 2016), three national titles (1989, 1993 and 1995) and a national runner-up in 2008, Hall of Fame Head Coach Mr. Chuck Kyle '69.
FROM COACH KYLE: "Euclid was a really awesome football team, they were great," Coach Kyle said as he was putting his Wildcats through their Tuesday afternoon practice. "You really had to come up with a Robert Smith defense, because we had to try to box him in. Once he got a seam, it was over.
"That was a classic, in all phases of the game," Coach Kyle continued in reference to the 1989 regional final versus Euclid. "Tom (Coach Banc) was a great coach. We always got along real well. To have a coaching camaraderie, you have to have fun."
COACH KYLE ON THE 2017 EUCLID PANTHERS OF HEAD COACH JEFF ROTSKY: "Euclid is playing good football," said Coach Kyle of Saturday's Home Opener at Byers Field, a renewal that will match the area's top-ranked Wildcats (2-0) and eleventh-ranked Panthers (2-0). "They're used to making the playoffs and they expect to make the playoffs. They have that whole view happening now. I don't see any concern on their part of what has happened in the past (the Wildcats' 11-0 run versus Euclid).
"Offensively, they have some very skilled players," Coach Kyle said. "Their quarterback, Cee Jay Hale, they will drop him back and he will hit the hitches, the fades and the slants for big plays. But also, when he tucks the ball down, he's a weapon. He makes some nice cuts and picks up some key yardage when there is nothing open in the passing game."
Cee Jay Hale, displaying his arm and his legs, led the Panthers to a 39-21, opening-weekend victory over Glenville at Collinwood Railroaders Stadium. With Hale showing the way, Euclid jumped out to a 26-0 lead in the game's first nine minutes.
Coach Rotsky, who is 19-7 in his third season with the Panthers, described Hale as a "warrior" after the Glenville game.
Last weekend, Euclid defeated Aurora, 27-21, as junior Dre'Von Lindsay hauled in thee touchdown passes from Hale. That was an impressive victory when you consider that Aurora defeated the Panthers, 41-13, in 2016.
Despite graduating a strong senior class from 2016, the Panthers earned the respect of the outstanding high school staff at The News-Herald by being ranked No. 1 in The News Herald's storied poll known as "The Top of the Crop." Helping Euclid earn that honor is one of the premier players in the area, senior wide receiver, cornerback and kick returner Arquon Bush, a University of Cincinnati recruit by Head Coach Luke Fickell.
"Defensively, their line really gets off the ball," said Coach Kyle. "They just really take the gaps hard and their secondary is going to come up and press. So it will be another good test for our offensive line, which so far has done really well with the challenges they have faced (Archbishop Hoban and Mentor)."
Coach Kyle also paid his compliments to the Panthers' Bush, saying that the young man really plays hard never leaves the field, which, added Coach Kyle, is a credit to him for doing everything he can to help his team.
Please note that Saint Ignatius' Junior Varsity Game versus the Panthers has been switched to Monday, Sept. 11 at Euclid. It was originally scheduled for Saturday morning.
A CASE FOR THE DEFENSE: Through Week 2, Wildcats relentless junior linebacker Tommy Eichenberg has been involved in 19 tackles, including 4 for -minus 19 yards. Standout senior cornerback Cam Toppin has 12 tackles and three interceptions; senior linebacker Logan Joyce has been in on 12 tackles, including 4 for -minus 12 yards; strong and savvy senior safety/Captain Justin Sands, a Penn recruit, has eight tackles and an interception; senior nose tackle/fullback Aidan Gill, the pride of Our Lady of Angels, has recorded 2.5 sacks for -minus 17 yards; multi-skilled junior cornerback Jett Elad has seven unassisted tackles and hard nosed junior safety Danny Scelza came up with a momentum-swinging interception return of 26 yards in last week's 41-31 victory at Mentor.
OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION: The powerful leg of senior kicker Matthew Trickett has produced 16 points on 3 field goals and 7 extra-point kicks; senior tailback/Captain Mark Bobinski has rushed for 139 yards and a touchdown on 48 carries; junior tailback Jahadge "Bo" Floyd has rushed for 114 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries; senior quarterback Kyle Hall is 29-of-55 through the air for 504 yards and four touchdowns, and one of the best 1-2 receiving punches in Northeast Ohio shows senior Sammy Snyder with 12 receptions for 227 yards and two touchdowns and senior Michael Drobnick with 7 receptions for 122 yards and a touchdown.
Have a great rest of the week and we will see you at the Freshmen games and of course at Ridge Road and Day Drive on Saturday night.