Three Akron-area teams are still practicing in preparation for games as the 2016 high school football season hits Week 15.
Perry, Archbishop Hoban and Canton Central Catholic have earned the opportunity to play in a state championship game this week at Ohio Stadium.
CCC will be making its third appearance in a row in the Division V state final, and Perry and Hoban will make second consecutive appearances in the Division II and Division III state final, respectively. Only the Knights won a title last year.
There will be seven state championship football games this weekend in Columbus, and Perry (12-2) and Cincinnati La Salle (12-2) will take the field first with a 7:30 p.m. Thursday kickoff on the campus at Ohio State University.
“I am excited for the kids,” Perry coach Keith Wakefield said. “It is all about them and their opportunity to go back there and play. A lot of people didn’t give us much of a chance to do that because we lost a lot of players from last year’s team [to graduation].
“We have seven or eight guys that played in the game last year. I thought we were a little bit in awe last year in the game. I think that hurt us some. Hopefully that will not be the case this year and we can just play football.”
Perry, which beat Hudson on Friday in a state semifinal at Lake, features linemen Matt Carrick, Evan Douglass and Zach Blackiston; running back Nick Myers; quarterback Max Baker; defensive backs-running backs Tevion Cleveland and Malachi Strickland; and defensive backs Robby Kirchner and Dominick Bowman.
La Salle is aiming for its third Division II state title in a row after beating Nordonia for the 2014 title and Perry a year ago.
Hoban (13-1) is attempting to win its second Division III state championship in a row, and will meet Trotwood-Madison (12-2) in the Division III final at 3 p.m. Saturday.
“Our kids did a very good job of being ready every week, and then once we hit the playoffs we have battled and taken it one game at a time,” Hoban coach Tim Tyrrell said. “You never know in the playoffs. Obviously, all the teams that make the playoffs are really good programs.”
Hoban is led by running back Todd Sibley; defensive linemen Jabari Taylor, Daeshon Martin and Marc Westover; linebacker Arison Sanders; offensive linemen R.J. Kelly and Nolan Rumler; quarterback Danny Clark; and defensive back-wide receiver Nate Bauer.
The Knights overcame a 14-3 halftime deficit to defeat Columbus St. Francis DeSales 23-14 on Saturday in a state semifinal game at Mansfield.
CCC (10-3) and Coldwater (13-1) will meet for the third year in a row in the Division V state championship game at 8 p.m. Saturday. Coldwater has won the previous two matchups and is trying to win its fifth state title in a row. The Cavaliers have won six state titles since 2005.
“The season is such a grind,” CCC coach Jeff Lindesmith said. “You just keep going each week. I told the kids I was proud of the way they prepared and how they executed [Saturday in a state semifinal game against Milan Edison at Strongsville].
“I always tell the kids throughout the course of a playoff run, we take nothing for granted for being here. We have just happened to have great seniors and great coaches during the last three years to get people ready. … This is an incredible run for us.”
CCC will be making its fifth appearance in a state championship game, and is aiming for its third title. The Crusaders’ top players are linebacker Griffin Baumoel; quarterback Jack Murphy; defensive backs-wide receivers Brady Thompson, Luke Ezzo and Tee Rupp; defensive lineman Harris Stuffel; and linebacker-punter Jaret Cummins.
Michael Beaven can be reached at 330-996-3829 or mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the #ABJVarsity high school blog at www.ohio.com/preps. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MBeavenABJ.