Some talent, but I would agree not a lot of DI players.
I would disagree with well coached.
Division I State Semifinal: Mentor (13-0) vs. Pickerington Central (12-1)
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I would disagree with well coached.
Pickeringtonsports
Well-known member
Yes, I understand what you are saying because that is exactly what I saw on video and why I said I was confident PC would be ok in this game. I can’t measure the heart and other intangibles but I think PC is motivated. Maybe Mentor’s coaches are better so the better athletes won’t win. Typically the team with the best athletes win and in this case, PC has much better athletes. That’s why we play the game. Anything can happen and I wouldn’t be shocked if Mentor did win. The last time we played, people were very confident Mentor would win. As far as my comments about Mentor players never seeing the field at Central, it is on the defensive side of the ball. Again, not mentioning names or numbers.
Pickeringtonsports
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PC can’t find out of conference in state teams to play. That is why they play out of state teams every year.
If the team with the better athletes typically won, Mentor would not consistently beat Glenville. Glenville has put some of the best athletes in Ohio high school football history on the field and Mentor has beat them just about every time, sometimes in blow outs. You’d probably say that every team Mentor has faced in the playoffs was “more athletic”. Maybe they were, but I don’t remember a team ever beating a great Mentor team just running by them.
Great Mentor teams seem to lose one way...you dominate them running the ball, usually grinding away at the clock. Trying to “out athlete” a team is a recipe for disaster and I hope Pickerington’s coaches are dumb enough to put that in their player’s heads.
I call baloney. If they would go outside Columbus, they would find plenty of willing opponents. Many teams are starving for games, so that is just a rationalization of why they won;t play good Ohio teams.
This guy has to be a troll
I can’t speak for all of Ohio, but Euclid agreed to play Pick Central week 2 last winter and then backed out. McKinley and Central we’re both open in week 3 as late as March or April but McKinley wouldn’t return our calls, and In fact referred Naperville Illinois to us when Naperville called McKinley. Moeller said no thanks (which in retro-spect was a good decision).
Central had week 2 and week 3 open into the spring and I didn’t hear about any in-state teams who were willing or contacted us asking to play. I don’t think we would have said “no”.
NEOFBallFan
Member
From the 2017 matchup, one glaring thing that stuck out to me was strength. That Pickerington team was dominate strength wise. Now if that’s because of how they lift, that could be an issue again. That PC Oline was dominate. Let’s hope it’s not on the same level if your from Mentor.
NEOFBallFan
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The team Mentor played this year from Canada, Football North. Had 11 D1 recruits. It was only a half of play but Mentor beat them by two scores. I’m willing to bet PC’s coaches are far better than Canada’s.
cardzfan1234
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All season long, Mentor's talented and experienced offensive trio of QB Kipp, RB Trobel, and WR Floriea (all to likely to be 1st or 2nd All-Ohio) have had an advantage against the opposing team at those key skill positions. St Eds was pretty close to matching them. Pickerington Central might be better. QB Crenshaw, MVP of the 2017 final win over Mentor, is back and as good as ever. He is one of the top dual threat QB recruits in the Midwest. WR Lorenzo Styles certainly has a much brighter future at the next level than Mentor's Floriea. Styles, just a junior, chose Notre Dame over a handful of big time offers. Junior RB Nick Mosley has an offer from Akron and is a top 50 player in Ohio according to 24/7 Sports. He is bigger and probably faster than Trobel. As mentioned, one glaring difference between 2017 and 2019 is PC's line. I'm not saying the current bunch are a bunch of scrubs, but they aren't the line they were two years ago.
Defensively, it seems like PC is every bit as good (or better) as they were in 2017. Ty Hamilton is an OSU commit at DE/LB. Styles (mentioned above) plays in the secondary as well as on offense. Abraham Alabi (6'4, 315) is a defensive tackle with multiple offers. Sophomore CJ Doggette (6'2, 260) has an offer from Toledo. Mentor has one starter on defense that has an FBS offer - and the kid is a freshman. The others are mostly guys that will be playing DIII, if at all. There are a couple that have an FCS offer or two.
Defensively, it seems like PC is every bit as good (or better) as they were in 2017. Ty Hamilton is an OSU commit at DE/LB. Styles (mentioned above) plays in the secondary as well as on offense. Abraham Alabi (6'4, 315) is a defensive tackle with multiple offers. Sophomore CJ Doggette (6'2, 260) has an offer from Toledo. Mentor has one starter on defense that has an FBS offer - and the kid is a freshman. The others are mostly guys that will be playing DIII, if at all. There are a couple that have an FCS offer or two.
mustang fan
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I suggested Brunswick...I also suggested Akron U. and Kent State...I guess those universities are just not interested in having any great football being played at their stadiums.
NEOFBallFan
Member
Appreciate the insight. Sounds like world beaters. Surprising they haven’t been winning every game by 60 or even 30. Lost to a Groveport team that was 0-10 two years ago.
NEOFBallFan
Member
They would be embarrassed that there would be way more fans for the HS games than theirs.
Games are often schedule a couple years down the road. Just give a call to:
216-221-3777 ( St. Edward)
216-651-0222 ( St. Ignatius)
440-974-5300 ( Mentor)
513-761-7600 ( St. Xavier)
They have much trouble filling out the schedule. They would be happy to schedule a team as good as Pick Central. I'm sure they will even be happy to travel to Columbus.
The Dock
Persona Non Grata
This comment is so absent of thought that even brian1227 is appalled.
NEOFBallFan
Member
How so? It was also sarcastic in a way. People on here are making PC out to be world beaters. I don’t doubt they are a great football team, I just don’t think they are the juggernaut some believe. D1 recruits are great and I’m happy for them, but they are recruited mainly because of size, then athleticism, then talent. Like Mentors freshman DE. You don’t have to be 6’4 290 to be a good olineman in HS. You don’t need a ton of D1 recruits to win in HS. The better “Team” wins games. We ll find out who that is Friday.
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The Dock
Persona Non Grata
Groveport made the elite eight in D1 this season. GM beat Davidson in a fantastic comeback and avenged an earlier season loss to Liberty (who recently made three straight state semi-final appearances) en route to their second matchup vs PC, which the Tigers won.
No one makes the final four in D1 by accident. At the same time, anyone who knows a donut from a danish understands that Mentor and PC are two of the best to do it in D1 and have been for some time. It’ll be a blast.
cardzfan1234
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Comparing the talent of Eds to Pickerington Central. On defense, St Eds had two DI linemen, at least one DI at linebacker, and at least two in the secondary. Plus at least two defensive starters have FCS offers. I might've missed one. Playing a talented defense will not be foreign to Mentor. Is their defense better than PC? Offensively, the Eagles have a bigger/better offensive line. At least two that will play big boy football. A Michigan State commit at receiver along with another receiver with multiple DI offers. The RB is solid, but doesn't have the speed of PC's back. Their QB O'Malley was solid, but a far cry from what Crenshaw can offer.
PC's offense hasn't usually lit the box scores on fire this season against playoff teams, even though their talent on the field suggests they could. Are they playing it close to the vest for 13 weeks just to catch teams like Mentor and Elder by surprise? I guess we will see.
I think that offensively, Mentor will be able to score in the 30's...and they might have to. They got pretty close against St Eds twice. PC hasn't played an offense like Mentor's all year. An All-Ohio caliber player at QB, WR, and RB. An offense that is usually pretty creative and dangerous. I think this game will be faster paced and higher scoring than these teams experienced in the regional final.
PC's offense hasn't usually lit the box scores on fire this season against playoff teams, even though their talent on the field suggests they could. Are they playing it close to the vest for 13 weeks just to catch teams like Mentor and Elder by surprise? I guess we will see.
I think that offensively, Mentor will be able to score in the 30's...and they might have to. They got pretty close against St Eds twice. PC hasn't played an offense like Mentor's all year. An All-Ohio caliber player at QB, WR, and RB. An offense that is usually pretty creative and dangerous. I think this game will be faster paced and higher scoring than these teams experienced in the regional final.
EaglePride01
Well-known member
If I'm PC, I'm having Styles follow Floriea wherever he lines up.
bomberinmonroe
Well-known member
Eh, X, Elder, Moeller, Lasalle, and Iggy all had a team from Canada on the schedule because they could not find opponents in state. I think they all played at least one out of state team as well. None of them will shy away from home and homes with just about anyone within about 250 miles.
Did you mean the Groveport Madison team that was 5-5 last year and 10-3 regional finalist this year? Or is there another Groveport team I'm missing?
thedudeabides
Active member
Been reading this jawing back and forth without much football insight or any information that someone might find useful. Keep waiting for a clever, "Oh yeah?" or a "My daddy can beat up your daddy." Guess I'll just say, "see you all Friday night". Go Tigers!
NEOFBallFan
Member
So discussing on previous post that 2 years ago, PC was physically dominant and it appeared to be from their weight training program isn’t insight? Isn’t worthy of talking about? They appeared to be on another level in the weight room in 2017. It will be interesting to see if it’s the same this year. I posted it, and it was ignored.
Bottom line is both school's have their D1 prospects, they will be the play makers for the most part. There will always be some great plays by the non D1 guys, but it will really be about the "fill in" players. The ones who's careers may end this weekend if they lose, it's all about how they play and if enough of them step up and make plays when they need to make plays.
thedudeabides
Active member
I obviously wasn't referring to every post.
Pickerington dominated with their offensive line. It’s not a matter of weight training. Mentor’s strength and conditioning training cannot be questioned. Sometimes you just go up against a bigger, cohesive offensive line with a battering ram carrying it behind them. That’s what happened in 2017. That’s what happened last game against Ed’s too, but Mentor found a way.
Can Pickerington do that this year? I don’t know. All I’ve seen is their playoff game against Groveport. Groveport seems like they have a good defense, but from what I saw, it didn’t look too different from Mentor’s defense. Certainly Mentor will present an infinitely tougher challenge on offense. Groveport runs a Wing-T offense, which I didn’t know even existed anymore.
sapientia et veritas
Well-known member
I think if you're talking about intangibles that will make a difference in the game, then the dapper white shirt/black tie/buzz cut combo, the styrofoam cups in the fence and the endless wave of motivational signs on 256 have to be taken into account. Along with the screaming parents outside the Meijer station, though they'll probably have to go up to the BP station at 310 this week. Pickerington always seems like a team that doesn't start playing seriously until the playoffs. And they're always inconsistent and unpredictable. 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011. Fans excited about the prospects on signing day had been conditioned for disappointment in playoffs for years. After losing to Trotwood and barely beating Indy Cathedral in 2017, I predicted a loss in every playoff game that season after week 11. A neutral observer would have to note that they again seem to be playing way below their talent level. I do think that if they can gel and get it together, they'll be tough to beat. But there's no way to know which team will show up. Go Tigers!
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