Behind The Box Score

Jimmy Ros, the 6’1″ 285 lb defensive tackle from Franklin Heights decided on Wednesday to return to Columbus West, the school he had a stellar junior season with after the failure of the South-Western City School operating levy. After racking up 73 tackles, 30 for a loss and four sacks in 2009, it had been rumored to return to Franklin Heights all summer long, the school where he played his first two seasons with. Garnering Honorable Mention All-District in ’09 with West, the decision was made to return to the Cowboys when it became known that Franklin Heights coach Rodney Hopkins wouldn’t let him back on the team. Hopkins decision made Ros’ even easier to make. Read the rest of this entry »

On the first weekend of high school football in Central Ohio, two dark horses from Columbus found themselves 1-0 after the opening week of play. The most shocking came from the likes of the Groveport Cruisers who upset highly ranked Westerville South 19-10 in front of a packet crowd at Cruiser Stadium. Read the rest of this entry »

To some like me, sports are everything. You learn a lot from organized sports. For example:

-how to play the game the right way

-how to play fair, with rules

-how to interact with others and be a helping hand towards a greater cause

-how to grow as a person

-how to deal with the situation your forced with

-how to make your teammates that much better

-and lastly, MOST importantly, Read the rest of this entry »

Fresh off a Rose Bowl victory and arguably his best performance thus far in his career at Ohio State, Terrelle Pryor has fans around the Buckeye State confident in his performance. Initially coming out of Jeanette High School in Pennsylvania, Pryor looked as if he was the best QB commit the Buckeyes had received in recent memory. With the signing of Braxton Miller, who according to ESPN is the no.2 signal caller in the nation, it’s clear to see that Jim Tressel found his replacement to TP, or did he upgrade? For Pryor, his running ability is what set him apart from the rest of the quarterbacks in his class. But for Miller, his legs are only an add on to an already superb passing game. And what makes Miller a more intriguing prospect is the fact that he has been clocked various times in the 40 running 4.4′s. Scary. It has been expected since he came onto campus that Pryor would be gone after his junior season, and if this does happen, it will clearly open the window for Miller to come in and take the job, with Kenny Guiton being the only reasonable competition for the spot. The thing Miller has over Pryor in this situation, is that Miller is well advanced for his age when it comes to the passing game. This is what ESPN Scouts had to say about Miller.

“ He has a big arm and can make every single throw. This offense provides him opportunities to stretch the field both outside of the numbers and between the hashes. Shows good velocity on his deeper throws. Can fit the ball into a lot of tight spots. He does a very nice job surveying the field and goes through his progressions.”

“Shows ability to change velocities and throw catchable balls underneath. He also shows good accuracy and touch in the short-to-intermediate passing game. Release mechanics are compact, but can be about 3/4. He is in the shotgun most of the time and needs more reps from under center to develop as a drop-back passer reading on the move. Possesses good lateral movement and shows the ability to slip pressure and create second-chance opportunities. He has very good speed for the position. He is elusive and quick for his size and displays some start and stop ability.”

For all of Buckeye nation, this scouting report is very promising. Not since the days of Troy Smith have the Buckeye had a consistent passing game. But with Miller, it seems that the Ohio State offense will be able to expand the spread offense, as this is what he has ran in all three years at Huber Heights Wayne. Dangerous once he is in open field, it’s very clear that the Buckeyes won’t lose anything in the ground game from their quarterbacks once Pryor is gone.

What will hurt Miller once he is on campus is the expectations that will be waiting for him. In two very solid seasons under center, Pryor has been criticized heavily, despite winning 18 of 21 games as a starter, including wins over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, at Penn State and home against Iowa, the defending Orange Bowl champions. Compiling 3405 yards and 30 TD’s through the air, the job Pryor has done thus far in his career is quite astounding. Considering the pressure that was thrust upon him upon arrival, there isn’t much to knock on Pryor. Going into the last three games of ’09, the inability to win “the big one” is what hurt Pryor the most. But after defeating the aforementioned Penn State and Iowa, and winning on the road against Michigan, the Rose Bowl victory only put those notions to rest. When Miller comes into the starting role, I expect his expectations to be much higher, as only two days after he committed to Ohio State, most analysts and fans are concluding that he will be better than Pryor. For now, I see him as a mere replacement to Pryor, but not yet an upgrade. For that to happen, Miller must improve the passing offense his freshman year, along with equaling the things Pryor has done on the ground. Either way, the quarterback position for the Buckeyes has been solidified for the next five years.

As the Central District sent their one representative to the state final in upset fashion (Gahanna-Lincoln), the 2010 tournament has wrapped up for the 42 teams that competed for the one spot. Many players and teams gave it their all this year, and Behind The Box Score is proud to announce their 1st annual all-tournament teams: Read the rest of this entry »

For some teams, making it to the round of eight in the OHSAA Basketball tournament can be an entire dream in itself in any division. The Gahanna-Lincoln Lions had achieved that dream for the first time in school history. Not only was it the Read the rest of this entry »

The slipper fits.  #2 Gahanna (25-0) has upset USA Today’s #1 Northland (24-1)  at the Fairground Coliseum tonight 71-45. An in-depth analysis will be available tomorrow.

Opinion: It’s the craziest game I have ever seen. Let me give all the credit first to Gahanna. I have never seen Northland like that. Gahanna just dominated. They had the Vikings on their heels the whole night. Also, every time Northland made a push, the Lions just knocked down another three. I’ve watched games at the Coliseum since I was 5 years old. It was the most packed, and the loudest I have ever seen the “Barn”.  As of crazy fan of high school athletics, it goes without saying that was easily the GREATEST high school basketball game I have ever seen. Easily top three in all-time upsets in my mind.

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/pages/Behind-The-Box-Score/138976508492

Twitter-http://twitter.com/behindboxscore

After surviving a massive test from a scrappy Westerville North team Saturday, Gahanna Lincoln faces another test tonight against the Rocks of Dublin Coffman. The Lions (24-0), are looking to continue their dream undefeated season that was nearly ended Read the rest of this entry »

Green’s 30 Leads Rocks over Marion Franklin

Last season, Dublin Coffman had their season end in the district final at the hands of Grove City 81-52. This season, they wrote their names into the history books by dominating Marion Franklin 78-59 this morning. Michael Green of Coffman took the spotlight, knocking down four threes in the first half, and finishing with a game high 30 points.

The first three minutes of the game favored the Red Devils (17-6), as they jumped out to a 6-2 lead behind the help of future West Virginia Mountaineer Elijah Macon. But when he picked up his second foul with 5:03 in the first quarter, the game turned in favor of the smaller Rocks. The first quarter ended with the Red Devils leading by 1.

That lead would be the last lead they had. After they tied the game at 15, Coffman(21-3) went on an 8-0 run that prompted Marion Franklin to call a timeout with 5:11 left. The lead would open up to 31-20 after a Green three with 1:52 left in the second.

After halftime, the gap would be cut to 34-30 before junior Kyle Molock had an amazing scoop shot to open the lead to 6. A three by Carkhuff expanded the Rocks lead to 9, but he would be given a technical foul for taunting with 5 minutes left in the third.

Not much fazed the Rocks from here on out, as they’d lead 52-40 at the end of the third. Elijah Macon proved to he ineffective in this game, as he would only score 5 for the game. The first five minutes of the fourth helped pace Coffman, as they would go on a 22-9 run to open the quarter. Michael Green of Coffman finished the game with 30 points, 10 field goals, four of which were threes, and six free throws.

Jackson leads Gahanna in OT win

The first title is always the hardest, and Gahanna had to go to overtime to win their first district title today against a scappy Westerville North (18-4) team that trailed by as many as 7 with two minutes to go in regulation. The Lions (24-0) were led by senior Anthony Jackson, who had 25 in the victory.

The game opened up with a three pointer by Jackson, but a response by the Warriors Ralph Hill tied the game up on the following possesion. The lead would trade hands before North would take a 28-27 into the locker room. Gahanna would take over in the third, leading 41-34 late, and holding North without a field goal for over four minutes.

The lead would extend up to 9 at a point with 5:37 left in the game. Not much happened until a Ralph Hill steal and thunderous dunk cut the lead to 5 with 3 minutes left. Gahanna would have the ball for a minute, before they would extend their lead to the biggest margin it would get to the rest of the game with 1:57 left. North would convert on the following possesion, and were spared when Rob Brandenburg missed two free throws with a minute to go. Hill was fouled on the next play, and knocked down two FTs to cut the lead to three. Missed free throws for Gahanna was contagious, as Stevie Taylor missed the front end of his 1-and-1, and turnovers on possesions by both teams would give North a chance to knock down a key three with 30 seconds left to tie the game. A Brandenburg missed three sent the game to overtime.

Gahanna controlled the extra frame and extended the lead to 4 with a Jackson layup with 2:05 left. Even when North held possesion only down 2, they turned it over, blowing the last chance to win. This time, the Lions knocked down 2 key free throws to clinch the game by Stevie Taylor.

19-0 run helps Northland pound Westerville Central

Who knew a team could make winning a district title look so easy? Northland flexed their muscles once again today in a 62-43 romping of Westerville Central. While playing with a fractured right index finger, future Ohio State Buckeye Jared Sullinger still had a game high 17 points, outscoring Westerville Central’s Max VanMeter by 1.

The game opened up sloppy, with the first points coming on free throws by Trey Burke after he was fouled on a three point shot. The Warhawks (19-5) first six possessions included four turnovers, and 2 missed shots, over a three minute span. Not much else would happen in the first quarter until Jakyl Cornley picked up a technical with 54 seconds left in the quarter. Westerville Central would try and keep it close, trailing 13-9 with 7:09 left in the second. The amazing play of the half was a back screen alley-oop for Sullinger that he slammed home, giving the Vikings (23-0) an 18-13 lead. Quickly following that was a lazy inbounds by Central that gave Northland another steal and layup to extend the lead to 7.

The lead at halftime would be 26-17, but the Vikings came out in the second half with a mission. They did not allow a point for the first 4:49 of the half, and Central’s only points in the quarter would come at the 2:19 mark with a VanMeter three to end the 19-0 run by the Vikings. The lead would never shrink below 17 again, and Northland cruised on to the victory, and will play the winner of Clayton Northmont and Cincinnati Colerain on Wednesday at 7 in the Fairgrounds again.

Hill leads Warriors over Jackets

After winning a share of the OCC Capital and knocking off perennial power Brookhaven, the sky seemed to be the limit for Mount Vernon (19-4). That sky came crashing down today at the hands of Read the rest of this entry »