OHSAA Playoff Preview
OHIO CITY, OH - The season moves on to the OHSAA Regional Quarterfinal for the Saint Ignatius Wildcats (6-5), who defeated the Berea-Midpark Titans (6-5) 49-14. It would be the Wildcats' first postseason victory since the 2023 season.
With the win, the #8 Wildcats advance to face the #1 St. Edward (9-1) Eagles on Friday, November 6. It will be the sixth time these two programs have met in the OHSAA Postseason. The Wildcats own a 3-2 record over the Eagles in playoff matches.
For Saint Ignatius, they are coming off a big win over Berea-Midpark. "I thought our defense played lights out against an explosive offense," says Head Football Coach
Tom Kaufman. "I did not realize until after the game, but we scored on every possession on offense, until the very end when we put our young guys in on offense. I was proud of our guys, and we executed."
The Eagles are coming into the Regional Quarterfinal well rested. They finished in Region I as the number one seed, earning a first-round bye. Their last game came in Week Ten against Loudoun Academy (VA), where the Eagles won 23-0, and the game was called early due to player safety concerns.
St. Edward is riding a ten-game series win streak against the Wildcats, dating back to 2018, and including a 31-14 win against Saint Ignatius in Week Seven.
Friday will mark the 68th overall meeting between the Wildcats and Eagles on the gridiron, and the Eagles own a 34-32-1 record over the Cats. The winner will advance to the OHSAA Regional Semifinal to face the winner of the #5 Hudson Explorers (8-3) or the #4 Jackson Polar Bears (8-2).
SAINT IGNATIUS OFFENSE VS. ST. EDWARD DEFENSE
The most significant difference between Week Seven and the upcoming Quarterfinal game is that the Wildcat offense is at full strength. In the first meeting, senior center
Bobby Leskovec was sidelined due to an injury.
"Having Bobby back has been massive; he is our Joey Granzier of our offense. You don't realize how good they are until you don't have them. He has solidified the offensive line," explains Kaufman. "We watched the first 50 plays of the St. Edward game, and we could not have played worse. There was a lack of rhythm with the offense because of bad snaps and playing behind the chains."
In the last two weeks, the Wildcat offense has rushed for 250+ yards, including a 293-yard performance last week against Berea-Midpark. Sophomore
Tyler McMillon eclipsed the century mark, rushing for 100 yards on nine carries and two touchdowns. All six of the Wildcat offensive touchdowns a week ago came via the ground game.
Senior
Dane Donovan would rush for 84 yards and two touchdowns, and junior
Teague Deinhart rushed for 84 yards and two touchdowns as well.
Junior
Jacob Mikin has been sidelined the last two weeks after getting banged up in the St. Xavier game, but is expected to make his return on Friday night, rotating with Donovan at quarterback.
On the St. Edward defense, they are led by Miami of Ohio commit Landon Lehmer. Lehmer recorded an interception against the Wildcats in the first meeting. He leads the Eagles with 77 tackles, seven going for a loss, and three interceptions.
BP Paulozzi, a Syracuse commit, is the Eagles' sack leader with four on the season. He has 74 tackles and 12 tackles for a loss. Noble James headlines the secondary with 91 tackles, three sacks, and two picks.
SAINT IGNATIUS DEFENSE VS. ST. EDWARD OFFENSE
The Wildcat defense will look for a complete 180 from their performance in the first meeting against the Eagles. From the first offensive drive, the Eagles dominated. St. Edward quarterback Langston Lucas found Caleb Hall streaking up the sideline for a 77-yard touchdown reception. Senior
CJ McLean was glued to Hall, but a spectacular catch led to the Eagles scoring.
Connecticut commit Joe Moore is normally a tight end for St. Edward, but in the first meeting against the Wildcats, the Eagles utilized Moore as a tailback. Moore would score two rushing touchdowns in the 31-14 win over the Wildcats.
In the second half, the Wildcats made adjustments and slowed down the Eagles, giving their offense a chance to rally. In the final 24 minutes of the game, the Cats would hold St. Edward to one score.
Anthony Anghilante was the positive of the night for the Cats, intercepting Lucas twice. This season, Anghilante is the Wildcat leader in tackles (69) and interceptions (5).
Ohio State commit
James Conrad had a big night for the Wildcat defense with a team-high nine tackles, 0.5 sacks, and 1.5 TFLs.
"We are finally getting healthy on defense with our guys up front. It allows us to utilize more guys up front, which we do anyway," says Kaufman. "There are multiple areas that we are working on this week in practice to be much improved from the first game."
It was the Eagles' ground attack that got the job done in their first meeting this season, rushing for 296 yards as a team. Senior Colin Tedesco rushed for 143 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.
The Wildcat defense would limit Lucas as he threw for 88 yards on 3-of-12 passing, including the 77-yard touchdown to Hall. As evident in the first meeting, Lucas can do damage with his legs. This season he is the Eagles' leading rusher wth 780 yards on 132 attempts and nine touchdowns. Junior Ronnie Neal Jr. has been the primary back for the Eagles, rushing for 596 yards on 101 carries and six touchdowns this season. Rotating in is Todesco, who has rushed for 357 yards and five touchdowns.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Lehmer is the explosive return man for the Eagles; on kick returns, he has 233 yards on 12 returns. He has 70 yards on eight punt returns.
Senior
Trey Haddad recorded his second kick return for a touchdown against Berea-Midpark. Scoring on a 75-yard return as time expired in the first half. Haddad has 322 yards on 12 kick returns this season, averaging 26.8 per return.
Dallas Dixon handles the kicking duties for the Eagles and is 5-for-5 on field goals, with a 45-yarder as the longest.
Griffin Roberts tied a season-long field goal, hitting a 41-yard field goal in the win against Berea-Midpark.
The Regional Quarterfinal of the OHSAA Tournament kicks off from First Federal Lakewood Stadium at 7:07 p.m. The winner will head to a site to be determined to play the Hudson/Jackson winner next Friday night in the Regional Semifinal.
GAME INFORMATION:
Tickets
Game Notes
SIBN Broadcast (Due to OHSAA Regulations this is an audio-only broadcast)
Spectrum News 1 (Free for Spectrum Subscribers)
OHSAA TV ($9.99)
OHSAA Playoff Bracket
