Pressure? What pressure?

The Saint Ignatius Wildcats, winners of an unprecedented 11th Division I state football championship last season, have garnered the top ranking in The Plain Dealer's 2012 Top 25 preseason poll. By the end of the 2011 regular season, the Wildcats were also ranked No. 1 by The PD.

Being ranked in the area's top spot is always flattering, but it comes as nothing new to Coach Chuck Kyle's program. From 1988 through most of the 1990s, Saint Ignatius was a frequent flyer to The Plain Dealer's No. 1 land.

Congratulations to senior tailback/safety Tim McVey, senior defensive end/tight end Kevin Kavalec and senior nose tackle Dave Katusha, who were honored by The PD as the Preseason Offensive MVP (McVey), Preseason Defensive MVP (Katusha) and Most Valuable Lineman (Kavalec) among independent schools.

In its Top 50 Preseason Players list, The PD listed McVey fifth, Kavalec 14th and Katusha 41st.

Three of The Plain Dealer's top four high school reporters - Tim Rogers, 'Joltin Joe Maxse '69 and Bob Fortuna - picked the Wildcats to walk out of Fawcett Stadium on Dec. 1 with another gold trophy, but Tim Warsinskey sees Archbishop Moeller as the 2012 big-school champion.

Now it's on to the real business at hand - Saturday's 7 p.m. showdown with talent-laden Cardinal Mooney in Cleveland Browns Stadium (see the corner's game preview below).

Believe me my friends, Cardinal Mooney won't be intimidated by preseason rankings. My pick: The Wildcats over the Cardinals in a physical, pad-rattling game.

Rounding the corner, looking forward to today's varsity practice and getting a look at the Wildcats' promising freshmen, who take on Cardinal Mooney's freshmen at 6 on Wasmer Field. And last, but certainly not least, congratulations to my former partners at The PD (the few that are left) for another outstanding preseason outlook.