All-time heartbreaking defeat your team suffered

ELKSONE said:
Centerville called not one but two onside kicks to catch up from being down 18 at the half.
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No, they were down 10 at half, 40-30. South's 1st drive of the 2d half, a long pass that should have been intercepted bounced straight up off the shoulderpad of an elk. I think Dee Miller grabbed it in the air and kept going. There was a flag so everyone thought it was coming back but they called the penalty on Centerville. After the 2 pt conversion, it was 48-30 early 3rd qtr. The Centerville crowd was dead silent and completely still on the other side. I still can't believe 54 points wasn't enough.
 
ELKSONE said:
Interesting, I don't remember that play and I was at the game. All I remember was TSF didn't cross the 50. Their defense scored their two touchdowns, a pick 6 and fumble for a score.
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I've still got the VHS tape. Would've put them up 18-14 with roughly 3 minutes to go. St. Francis offense did score in the 1st half. But you're correct about them being shut down in the 2nd.
One other near miss was against 1980 state champ Cincinnati Moeller at Nippert Stadium...Elks had the ball with about a minute to go, down 14-20 and on the pitchout Elks RB was running free for the go ahead score when he was tripped-up on a shoestring tackle by Moeller LB Mike Larkin to save the victory for Moeller.
 
thePITman said:
sad role playing GIF by Hyper RPG
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I'd wager that your biggest heartbreakers came either on the diamond or the hardwood.
 
For Canton CC, the choices I could come up with would be:
- The 2001 team's regional final loss to St. V. in OT (LeBron played football that year). The Crusaders won the DIII state title the previous year and had dropped to DIV with plenty of talent returning from the previous season.

- Any number of close losses to McKinley. 1986, 1994, and 1995 come to mind. '94 and '95 were both OT losses.

- 2007 vs. Steubenville in week 9. This one gets my vote. Both teams entered the game unbeaten. It was the only time I ever felt it necessary to buy a presale ticket for a game at Canton CC, and I even sprung for reserved seats to be sure my buddies and I would have seats. It may very well have been the biggest crowd Canton CC ever had after renovating the stadium in 1998. As undefeated state champions in '05 and '06, Steubenville possessed a 38-game overall winning streak and a 48-game regular season winning streak. The Crusaders took a 34-21 lead with about 6:00 remaining but missed the PAT on that 5th TD. Steubenville scored a TD, forced a punt, and began driving down the field. Long story short, Big Red scored a TD on the final play of the game and made the PAT to win 35-34. With time winding down, Steubenville completed a pass inside the Crusader 15. The receiver got out of bounds with :01 left. Some would argue the clock operator should've ran the final second off the clock, but the officials informed him after the game that they would have reset the clock to :01 in accordance with the official time they'd kept on the field. The teams met again in the regional semifinals with Steubenville recording a more comfortable win. Steubenville's overall winning streak was snapped the following week by Cardinal Mooney. Their regular season winning streak lasted for 68 games before future U. of Michigan QB Devin Gardner carried Inkster HS (MI) to a 36-29 victory in week 9 of 2009. The worst part about the loss was dealing with the legions of arrogant and obnoxious Steubenville fans who used to frequent this site at the time. There were even more of them on the other site, but I never posted on that site's football forum.
 
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The biggest heartbreaking loss I can remember is the 25-20 loss Milton had to Versailles in 1991. Milton led that game and ended up losing late.
 
nooks said:
I've still got the VHS tape. Would've put them up 18-14 with roughly 3 minutes to go. St. Francis offense did score in the 1st half. But you're correct about them being shut down in the 2nd.
One other near miss was against 1980 state champ Cincinnati Moeller at Nippert Stadium...Elks had the ball with about a minute to go, down 14-20 and on the pitchout Elks RB was running free for the go ahead score when he was tripped-up on a shoestring tackle by Moeller LB Mike Larkin to save the victory for Moeller.
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I was at the 1980 game too!
 
Mr. Slippery said:
For Canton CC, the choices I could come up with would be:
- The 2001 team's regional final loss to St. V. in OT (LeBron played football that year). The Crusaders won the DIII state title the previous year and had dropped to DIV with plenty of talent returning from the previous season.

- Any number of close losses to McKinley. 1986, 1994, and 1995 come to mind. '94 and '95 were both OT losses.

- 2007 vs. Steubenville in week 9. This one gets my vote. Both teams entered the game unbeaten. It was the only time I ever felt it necessary to buy a presale ticket for a game at Canton CC, and I even sprung for reserved seats to be sure my buddies and I would have seats. It may very well have been the biggest crowd Canton CC ever had after renovating the stadium in 1998. As undefeated state champions in '05 and '06, Steubenville possessed a 38-game overall winning streak and a 48-game regular season winning streak. The Crusaders took a 34-21 lead with about 6:00 remaining but missed the PAT on that 5th TD. Steubenville scored a TD, forced a punt, and began driving down the field. Long story short, Big Red scored a TD on the final play of the game and made the PAT to win 35-34. With time winding down, Steubenville completed a pass inside the Crusader 15. The receiver got out of bounds with :01 left. Some would argue the clock operator should've ran the final second off the clock, but the officials informed him after the game that they would have reset the clock to :01 in accordance with the official time they'd kept on the field. The teams met again in the regional semifinals with Steubenville recording a more comfortable win. Steubenville's overall winning streak was snapped the following week by Cardinal Mooney. Their regular season winning streak lasted for 68 games before future U. of Michigan QB Devin Gardner carried Inkster HS (MI) to a 36-29 victory in week 9 of 2009. The worst part about the loss was dealing with the legions of arrogant and obnoxious Steubenville fans who used to frequent this site at the time. There were even more of them on the other site, but I never posted on that site's football forum.
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Completely agree with this.
 
It occurs that the reason some fans and players have heart breaking losses is because they got oh so close to a championship.

Count your lucky and hard worked for stars. My heart is healthy. Well, we did have one in basketball, down two, girl at the foul line with no time on the clock. McKinley I imagine calls that game a great win.

sigh.
 
krs1 said:
Mine would have to be in 1989 North Canton Hoover up 31-7 late in the 3rd in the Division 2 Regional Final at Fawcett Stadium only to lose to Steubenville 37 31 in 2OT. As a 10 year old absolutely devastating
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That is a special memory on our end. Still have a vhs tape of that game around here somewhere. My brother was in the USMC at the time, when he was home, I had him watch and wouldn’t tell him how it ended.
 
Mr. Slippery said:
For Canton CC, the choices I could come up with would be:
- The 2001 team's regional final loss to St. V. in OT (LeBron played football that year). The Crusaders won the DIII state title the previous year and had dropped to DIV with plenty of talent returning from the previous season.

- Any number of close losses to McKinley. 1986, 1994, and 1995 come to mind. '94 and '95 were both OT losses.

- 2007 vs. Steubenville in week 9. This one gets my vote. Both teams entered the game unbeaten. It was the only time I ever felt it necessary to buy a presale ticket for a game at Canton CC, and I even sprung for reserved seats to be sure my buddies and I would have seats. It may very well have been the biggest crowd Canton CC ever had after renovating the stadium in 1998. As undefeated state champions in '05 and '06, Steubenville possessed a 38-game overall winning streak and a 48-game regular season winning streak. The Crusaders took a 34-21 lead with about 6:00 remaining but missed the PAT on that 5th TD. Steubenville scored a TD, forced a punt, and began driving down the field. Long story short, Big Red scored a TD on the final play of the game and made the PAT to win 35-34. With time winding down, Steubenville completed a pass inside the Crusader 15. The receiver got out of bounds with :01 left. Some would argue the clock operator should've ran the final second off the clock, but the officials informed him after the game that they would have reset the clock to :01 in accordance with the official time they'd kept on the field. The teams met again in the regional semifinals with Steubenville recording a more comfortable win. Steubenville's overall winning streak was snapped the following week by Cardinal Mooney. Their regular season winning streak lasted for 68 games before future U. of Michigan QB Devin Gardner carried Inkster HS (MI) to a 36-29 victory in week 9 of 2009. The worst part about the loss was dealing with the legions of arrogant and obnoxious Steubenville fans who used to frequent this site at the time. There were even more of them on the other site, but I never posted on that site's football forum.
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Yes, QB Dwight Macon hung in there as a sophomore to pull that one out. Believe me, the folks who vacated before the final were roundly abused, lol
 
For me it was 2 games I missed at Toledo Central Catholic in 1987. I was helping with the scout team after graduating in 1987. We were 9-0 when I left for Army boot camp at the beginning of November. The following Sunday, Central lost to Toledo St. John's in The Shoe Bowl (City Championship Game) and the following week to Toledo Whitmer in the first round of the playoffs. I almost cried when my Mom gave me the bad news over the telephone.
 
krs1 said:
Mine would have to be in 1989 North Canton Hoover up 31-7 late in the 3rd in the Division 2 Regional Final at Fawcett Stadium only to lose to Steubenville 37 31 in 2OT. As a 10 year old absolutely devastating
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I was at that game, fortunately on the other side of the field from you........
 
mailman020 said:
1994 loss to West Branch 31-28. I still remember that game vividly and I was 11 years old. Probably the best team Steubenville Big Red has ever had.
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This ranks as one of my worst reoccurring nightmares. Nate Johnson was phenomenal on both sides of the ball, but a few bad bounces, a muffed punt (that really ended up out of bounds, a game ending field goal that looked good to me or we would have won that game.
 
I have two from my alma mater, both coming in 2012.

Week 1 against Solon, went up 21-10 with 1:46 left. Solon drove down the field and scored on a TD reception by Darian Hicks. Shaker went three and out, and Hicks scored another long touchdown run with less than a minute left, to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Week 7 against Brush, lost 24-23, thanks to our punter's knee hitting the ground before sending the ball away, giving Brush great field position. Also in the fourth quarter, our running back, who had nearly 200 yards on the ground, got stopped on 4th and 1.

Shaker Heights went 8-2 for their best season since 2000, but still barely finished in the top half of the region, not even coming close to sniffing a playoff spot, thanks to a very weak schedule. The combined point differential of those two games was four points. Win both, and the Raiders go undefeated for the first time since 2000.
 
1995 Crestview (Columbiana) vs Lisbon David Anderson. Both teams were 6-0. Lisbon won 24-18 in OT. Crestview finished 9-1 and did not make the playoffs in D5. Lisbon finished 14-0, winning the D5 state title. The playoff format was still the top 4 in each region at the time, moving to 8 teams a few years later.
 
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Not going to lie last nights Canfield v Dover was the most heart breaking loss i’ve seen in a while. Down 21-7 with a minute & change left, score, get a stop and able to push a kid out of bounds, regain ball with 50 seconds left on their own 15, drive down to the 4, throw the ball on last play complete in back right corner, receivers foot out by 3 inches, 21-14 loss.
 
I know some St. Ed's guys posted but I can fill in the stories and I added a couple games

1975: Moeller 14- St. Ed's 12 in the State Final. "Too Aggressive." Mike Currence, who would go on to coach at Massillon for a number of years, led the Big Green Machine to the Akron Rubber Bowl after having steamrolled practically everyone on their schedule. The Eagles score first and to pour it on he goes for 2 and we miss it. Moeller scores two TDs and are up 14-6 before Ed's scores again, now we have to go for 2 and we miss it. We get the ball back late in the game and mount a drive into Moeller territory that looks like it will set up a potential game winning FG but we miss the snap and Bob Crable falls on it for Moe. Ed's loses 14-12. Not to make it sound worse but a beloved teacher, Br. Ambrose, suffered a fatal heart attack in the stands at the Rubber Bowl during the game and was taken out by ambulance in front of the Eagle bench.

1978: Moeller 17-St. Ed's 14. Ed's had a great team that year and this game stands out as our best shot at beating Gerry Faust's dynasty in the late 70s. Played up at BW's Finnie Stadium, it was a classic where we just came up short. An unfortunate teacher's strike cost the '78 team one game and we only played a 9 game schedule, took away our playoff chances that year.

1986: Fairfield 21- St. Ed's 20 in the State Final. "Injured QB." The week before the Eagles soundly beat Austintown Fitch but lost their starter quarterback in the game. That didn't stop them from coming as close as you can to winning their first state championship but could not seal the deal. A missed PAT and inability to pass late in the game spelled doom for those hopes.

1993: St. Ignatius 35- St. Ed's 34. "The Classic." This game has been talked about as the greatest these two schools have ever played against each other. Ed's had a decent team but Ignatius was a juggernaut. Down 21-7 in the 4th quarter, the Eagles scored a TD then rolled the dice with an onside kick with about 4 minutes left. They tied it with less than a minute with a beautiful strike after our qb was flushed out of the pocket and found our tailback at the goal line. A missed PAT in the third OT put the Eagles up 34-28. The Wildcats came back and hit their receiver with a pass I still can't believe he caught over our db, hit the kick after for the win.

2003: Warren Harding 18- St. Ed's 16 in Regional Semifinal. "Rotten Luck." Harding and Ed's played some of the most memorable games of the early 2000s. It was a really great mini rivalry. The Eagles looked to avenge getting run over by Maurice Clarett the year before and played the Raiders at Byers Field. It was a tooth and nail sort of a game but Ed's was winning 16-15 late in the 4th. Harding had the ball with little time remaining and the Eagles' best db went down with a knee injury and had to come out. The next play haunts Ed's alums as Harding hit Mario Manningham for a 56 yard pass play which set up the game winning field goal.

2005: Massillon 24- St. Ed's 17 in State Semifinal. "3rd and 30." St. Ed's had beaten Massillon the previous two years pretty handily. They rode an undefeated regularly season into the playoffs and had a huge win over a stacked Glenville squad the week before. Ed's went up 17-7 with like 8 minutes left in the game. The Tigers scored and got the ball back again. On a 3rd and 30 they converted for a TD, winning the game 21-17.

2011: St. Ignatius 20- St. Ed's 17 in Regional quarterfinal. "Dropping the ball." Up 17-3 in the 4th quarter, the Eagles blew this one. Ignatius scored two touchdowns to tie the game. It looked like Ed's would survive after an INT but we immediately fumbled the snap. The Cats drove down the field and kicked the game winning FG on the way to their last state championship.

2016: St. Ignatius 38- St. Ed's 31 in Regional Final. "Injured qb part 2." The Eagles were blown out by St. Ignatius 34-7 in the last game of the year. Playing at Bedford Stadium, they played their best game of the year in a back and forth affair. Late in the game our starting qb ripped off a 50-60 yard run but broke his leg in two places on the tackle. Having to use our sophomore back up, instead of winning the game with a late TD, we tied it on a FG and took our chance in overtime. Ignatius scored a TD and we could not answer.
 
I'm a fan of Tri Valley Scotties. The most hurtful loss I've saw (and I've been going to the games for around 18 years) was in 2011. We had a state championship caliber squad for sure that year. In the D2 regional finals in region 7 it came down to #1 Marion Franklin vs #2 Tri Valley. MF jumped out early but we fought back to a 20-21 halftime deficit. TV took control in the second half basically and we had a 14 pt lead with 4 min to play. Needless to say MF came back and tied it up at 42 with like 50 seconds left in regulation. Strock connected on a 40 pass to Williams the following possession to get us a long fg attempt, but we had no timeouts so we had to hurry to the line. We got the snap off right before time expired and Amicone booted a 47 yard attempt straight through the uprights and TV was going to the final 4........... but no, there's laundry on the field. Refs called a penalty on us and moved us back 5 yards. The ensuing 52 yard attempt had the accuracy, but the ball comes down and hits the crossbar and bounces back into the endzone. I know there was still OT to play, but when that ball bounced off the crossbar, you saw our team deflate. To go from the elation of celebrating a huge win, to the feeling of missed opportunity took the life out of our boys. MF scores a td to win in ot. Worst loss I've ever experienced to this day and Ive watched us lose the Trotwood in the state championship game in 2017 by 8 pts after we threw an int in the endzone with under a minute to play.
 
ThaXFactor said:
1995 Crestview (Columbiana) vs Lisbon David Anderson. Both teams were 6-0. Lisbon won 24-18 in OT. Crestview finished 9-1 and did not make the playoffs in D5. Lisbon finished 14-0, winning the D5 state title. The playoff format was still the top 4 in each region at the time, moving to 8 teams a few years later.
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I remember Wellsville also finished 9-1 that year, losing only to Lisbon David Anderson as well. It's kind of sad when you miss the playoffs and your ONLY loss is to the state champ. How do you know you weren't the second best team in the division?
 
GBIGG- you are correct-We completely dominated them the whole game. Have had several people from around the state that i have spoke with over the years that have said that was one of the strangest games they've ever seen. EVER!! One of the worst things about it was that Big Walnut was in our league for several years and had never beat us. Till a State Championship game:mad:
 
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