Ohio City - For the most part, Saint Ignatius head football coach Chuck Kyle '69 was pleased with what he saw during Friday's annual scrimmage with the Twinsburg Tigers on Wasmer Field.
Sparked by a dominant first-series performance by the defense, the Wildcats limited the Tigers to very few productive plays throughout the entire scrimmage. And the offense, led by its array of gifted receivers, a first-unit offensive line that controlled the line of scrimmage and some tough, hard-nosed running keyed by senior tailback Mike Vitale, also left its mark.
While Coach Kyle liked what he saw for most of the 2 1/2 hours of work, he did say he thought his team was a little flat near the end of the day. He emphasized to his Wildcats that although they are very good right now and will only get better, the mindset has to be the next play, to play every down with maximum effort.
Here are some of Saint Ignatius' highlights on both sides of the ball.
DEFENSE
Senior middle linebacker John Gibbons set the tone with two pad-rattling tackles, hits that resulted in minus yardage for the Tigers. The Wildcats were flying to the ball with passion as the first, second and third units up front controlled Twinsburg's respective O-Lines and shut down the inside.
Junior defensive end Dre'Mont Jones, senior defensive end Austin Bedinghaus, nose tackles Dan Cartolin (senior) and Aiden Carr (junior), All-Ohio senior outside linebacker Kyle Berger, senior linebacker Jacob Rossi, sophomore linebacker Alex Maruna and a cast of thousands (at least it seemed that way) were pursuing like their lives depended on it.
PICK CITY FEVER: Led by a diving, quick reaction interception by senior outside linebacker Patrick Hopkins, the Wildcats' defense also took a trip to "Pick City" during the 11-on-11 session.
Joining Hopkins down interception lane were standout senior safety/linebacker Dameon Willis Jr. and gritty senior linebacker Michael Ferry.
The Wildcats' secondary did get burned, however, on one deep route.
OFFENSE
Senior wide receivers Mike Siragusa and Nick Fabian not only made some impressive catches, but displayed their ability to pick up big yardage after the catch. Mike also unleashed a text-book stiff arm in freeing himself for even a bigger gain.
Senior receiver Jack Hyland and junior wideout David Shibley moved the chains off crafty routes and sure hands, senior tailback Enzo Cannata, a young man who leaves everything he has on the field, and sophomore tailback James Norris complemented Vitale and brought some wide smiles to the face of veteran running backs coach Terry Fergus '72.
Norris, who as just a freshman this past spring held his own against the premier upperclassmen sprinters in the area and set a school mark with a 10.66 100 meters, had two solid runs in which he not only displayed his track speed, but also exceptional vision.
Last, but certainly not least, senior wide receiver Bennett Kinzel made some tough catches in the middle of the field off throws from junior quarterback Jake Kucia.
GRADES FOR THE DAY: Saint Ignatius' outstanding varsity linebackers coach and head junior varsity coach Ryan Franzinger '02 gave his portion of the defense a 64 on a scale of 100, a 16-point increase from the mark he gave out after Tuesday's scrimmage at Solon.
And Wildcats' veteran offensive coordinator Nick Restifo said his starting senior quarterback John Thomas played well.
IN THE HOUSE: Mentor's outstanding head football coach Steve Trivisonno and members of his staff were at Wasmer Field to watch Friday's scrimmage. The Cardinals play both Saint Ignatius and Twinsburg.
The Wildcats travel to Mentor on Friday night, Sept. 6 for a Week 2 battle that could be the premier game in the entire state that weekend.
Alongside Coach Trvisonno was Hall of Fame Coach Byron Morgan, who made his mark in the area as the head coach of the Mayfield Wildcats and the Solon Comets. Byron, who most recently was the head coach of the Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin Lions before retiring, is assisting in the Mentor program as the Cardinals' defensive secondary coach.
BOSTON COLLEGE NEWS: Former Saint Ignatius All-Ohio and All-American quarterback Scott Mutryn '94 has a part-time job as a sideline radio announcer, interviewer and analyst for Boston College football. Scott played his college ball at BC. And Coach Kyle reports that Wildcats' two-time All-Ohio defensive end Kevin Kavalec, who just graduated this past spring, is No. 2 on the depth chart at Boston College.
Saint Ignatius resumes its practices Saturday at 10AM on Wasmer Field, as Coach Kyle and his staff begin preparing the Wildcats for the final preseason tune-up - Friday night's annual Jamboree against the Canton McKinley Bulldogs at legendary Fawcett Stadium.
The Jamboree will include split-field freshman and junior varsity scrimmages at 5 PM and the varsity teams from Saint Ignatius and McKinley will play under game conditions at 7.
See you at Wasmer Field Saturday morning and throughout the week, and at the 'Cats' home away from home - Fawcett Stadium - on Friday.