Saint Ignatius had just played one of the most complete games in its rich football history.
It was a performance that, understandably so, left most of the players feeling pretty good about themselves.
However, if you’re a member of the Wildcats’ coaching staff, you will love the words senior quarterback Andrew Holland used in summing up the part he and the rest of the offense played during Saturday night’s 37-0 victory over Strongsville in the Region 1 championship game at Byers Field.
''And I hope it continues to get better,’’ Holland said of an offense that had Strongsville on its heels from the get-go.
Now that’s a savvy signal-caller.
The humble and talented Holland realizes you can always get better, especially when you’re two victories away from your ultimate goal – a 10thstate championship.
After the offense frustrated the Mustangs through the air and overpowered them on the ground, after gritty and elusive all-purpose back Frank DeSico totaled more than 100 yards on punt returns and after the defense put together yet another tremendous effort, Saint Ignatius (12-1) will continue its quest this Saturday night against North Canton Hoover (12-1) in a Division I state-semifinal game. The kickoff from Massillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium will be 7 p.m. and the game will be televised live by SportsTime Ohio.
Strongsville, which is now 0-13 against Saint Ignatius since 1993, including a 0-9 mark in the playoffs, closed its season at 11-2. The Mustangs had won 11 consecutive games prior to Saturday night and were making their 12th postseason appearance.
''After Glenville (an 8-7 victory in last week’s regional semifinals), we really needed to prove ourselves,’’ said Wildcats 6-4, 310-pound senior tackle Adam Gordon. ''We struggled offensively, just in general (against Glenville), and the offensive line struggled. So it felt pretty good to get this going.’’
With the teams battling heavy wind gusts and a persistent rain, Saint Ignatius’ defense got it going on a 4-yard fumble return for a touchdown by hard-nosed senior linebacker Kolin Sullivan. Senior Seamus Hennessey kicked the extra point and the Wildcats led, 7-0, with 3 minutes, 27 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.
Designated as the “visiting team’’ by the OHSAA, Saint Ignatius pushed its lead to 10-0 on a 35-yard field goal by Hennessey.
Continuing to take advantage of the excellent field position provided by the defense and DeSico’s nifty returns, the Wildcats turned to the passing of Holland and the receiving of seniors Connor Ryan, Joey Parris and DeSico.
Stepping up in the pocket provided by his offensive line, Holland fired a 29-yard touchdown pass to DeSico with 2:53 left in the first half. After two sure-handed catches by Ryan, Parris came back to a pass that got caught in the wind off a fade route, outmaneuvered the defender, dove for the ball and got both hands underneath it for an 11-yard score with just 52 seconds to go in the half.
If there is a stronger 1-2 wide-receiver punch in Northeast Ohio than Ryan and Parris, this corner hasn’t seen it.
Despite conditions that at times made passing the ball an adventure, Holland completed six consecutive passes in the second quarter and finished with 108 yards through the air.
The dominance continued in the second half as Gordon and his O-line mates – senior guards Jarrod Kedizor and Frank Whitaker, junior tackle Stewart Ross and unsung senior center and tri-captain Bryan Connelly – started to wear down Strongsville’s highly regarded defensive front.
Finding the holes, making sharp cuts on a wet surface and carrying the ball with a purpose, senior tailback Mike Anter put the game away on touchdown runs of 14 and 10 yards. Anter finished with 126 yards rushing on 27 carries.
''It was all about the double teams this week,’’ said Gordon, after the offensive line helped show the way to nearly 300 yards of total offense and almost 200 yards on the ground. ''We were helping out the guards and reading the linebackers. Once we got the double teams down, we got a nice press on them.’’
DeSico, who has accepted a baseball scholarship from the University of Notre Dame, said he put an emphasis on just staying relaxed as he battled the Mustangs and the elements during his punt returns.
''The past couple of games I was a little nervous, you know, big components, big games,’’ said DeSico, after he averaged nearly 17 yards on his returns and helped his team to its 12th consecutive victory. ''I had some huge blocks and had a nice first return that really calmed me down and just relaxed me. The conditions were bad, but I just tried to hit the hole, protect the ball and get what I could get.’’
Saint Ignatius coach Chuck Kyle (’69), who picked up his 260th career victory, said the weather was not conducive to either team’s offense, that it came down to ''who was going to survive.’’
Well, in the survival of the fittest, the Wildcats’ team defense was again simply amazing.
Strongsville, which was averaging more than 32 points a game, didn’t pick up a first down until there was 5:21 remaining to be played. The Mustangs managed just 62 yards of offense on 51 plays. Saint Ignatius has now yielded just seven points (to Glenville) in three playoff games.
Along with Sullivan’s fumble return, the defense came up with key interceptions by senior cornerback Tommy Hunt and all-district senior safety Pat Hinkel, kept constant pressure on Strongsville’s all-district senior quarterback Kellen Pagel and made the Mustangs' running game almost non-existent. And the D did all of that without all-district senior safety and Notre Dame football recruit Dan Fox, who sat out the game after suffering a concussion against Glenville last week. Senior Steve Siemborski did a solid job as Fox's replacement.
Yes, you can forget all about which side of the field you sat or stood on, or which locker rooms the respective teams were assigned to.
The “visiting’’ Wildcats were right at home Saturday night.