In Kirk Herbstreit’s third installment of the Varsity Football Classic, the most intriguing game arguably comes from Central Ohio. Showcasing two differing styles of offense, the spread oriented Dublin Coffman Shamrocks face off against the Westerville South Wildcats, who will run it down your throat with RB Jayshon Jackson.

Coming off a loss at Groveport, the Wildcats are poised to down Coffman in Ohio Stadium, the same place where Hilliard Davidson squeaked out a one point win vs South just a year ago. The job at hand is a tough one though. South has lost their last two games dating back to last season which was against these same Rocks.

Running out of the spread, Coffman had a very balanced attack last week in a 24-10 victory against rival Olentangy Liberty. Bilal Williamson, the sophomore tailback for the Rocks was superb from the jump. Williamson broke through the Patriot defense early on in the first quarter en route to a 68 yard touchdown score. Williamson would total 163 yards on the day, to help Coffman rack up 390 yards of total offense. Cole Stoudt was effective in the pocket, completing 20 of 31 attempts for 217 yards. A 51 yard strike to Connor Lucas was Stoudt’s only touchdown of the night but was easily enough to defeat Liberty.

South on the otherhand, had trouble all night with the Groveport defense. Aside from the first quarter of play, where South would score ten points, the Wildcats couldn’t muster a point. Although Westerville outgained the Cruisers in total yards (301-282), it was Groveport who made the biggest plays. Even during a night where reigning district player of the year Jayshon Jackson ran for 136 yards, the game was ultimately in Groveport’s hands.

In order to beat Coffman on Sunday, South is going to have to take care of the ball. What cost the Wildcats the game last Saturday were two interceptions thrown by Marcus Ball which allowed the Cruisers to run the ball and control the clock. If Rocky Pentello’s team can get the ball to Jackson at least 25 times on Sunday, they have a chance to beat the top team in Central Ohio, according to Cap City Preps’ Power Rankings. If not, we could very well see South dropping to 0-2 for the second straight season in a row.

For Coffman, they need to keep doing what they do. For the past three seasons, opponents have had a very tough time stopping Stoudt and that seems like it’s very unlikely to stop any time in the near future. With the combination of Williamson thrown into the offense, Westerville is going to have  a very tough task on their hands. A week removed from giving up 231 yards on the ground, I expect Coach Crabtree and Coffman to get the ball to his sophomore star early and often. In order to give first year starter Ball managable situations, Jayshon Jackson is going to have to get 5-6 yards on every carry. If not, we could see Coffman pulling away from the Wildcats en route to a 2-0 start.

PREDICTION- Coffman over Westerville South 24-13

As the Chicago Cubs wrapped up a 5-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates last night at Wrigley Field, talks intensified between Isiah Thomas and the organization who hasn’t won a championship in 102 seasons. Thomas, who flew to Chicago on Tuesday, met with GM Jim Hendry about the job opening. Sources say the two had a 30 minute meeting concluding with Thomas talking to the media about the allegations. Thomas was questioned by many members of the media about his intentions for the club if he is hired. “World Series baby! That’s what we do here in Chicago. Jim and I had a nice discussion and talks have really caught fire lately.” What is more puzzling to the situation is that Thomas has no background with the Cubs, let alone baseball itself. In the early 2000s, Thomas was in charge of the Indiana Pacers, leading them to the playoffs multiple times but was eventually relieved of his duties. Then, the former Piston great was hired by James Dolan and the New York Knicks in an attempt to bring the New York franchise back to the level that it was at when Patrick Ewing sported the blue and orange. After acquiring Zach Randolph,  Fred Jones and Dan Dickau on a draft day trade with the Trailblazers, Thomas proceeded to sign Jared Jeffries and Jermaine Jones to full mid-level exception deals which recked the New York salary cap. Relieved of his duties on April 2, 2008, Thomas fell into relative obscurity until being introduced as the head basketball coach of Florida Internation in 2009. After securing a 7-25 record in his first season on campus, speculation raged whether or not the 12 All-Star would return. When family problems put an end to Lou Piniella’s career, somehow the Cubs came calling. The Cubs? Really?

When BtBS questioned Hendry about the situation at a press conference today, the GM offered a different story. “There’s no way in hell we would hire Isiah Thomas. He sucked at coaching basketball, what makes you think he could do baseball?” Hendry became more distraught when a reported questioned the job he was doing, as the reporter stated, “Well Jim, what have you done lately? Offer up your best pitcher for a scrub second baseman? Have you seen the standings lately? You’re 21.5 games out of first place and 20 games under .500, maybe you should worry about your job.” Hendry had a sharp response to the young reporter saying, “You should worry about whether or not you’ll be able to pay your car payment in the next month. I’ve seen your stuff, first reporter in history to write in ebonics, oh and tell your mother I’m sorry for the back pain.” The fued escalated as Aramis Ramirez barged into the media room to complain at Hendry. “How the hell you gonna hire Isiah Thomas? You already brought Alfonso Soriano’s bum ass in here and traded away Derrick Lee.” Hendry had no response to his best player, and opted to leave the room. Before walking out the door, a reporter in the back yelled at the emotionally torn general manager, yelling, “Hell, hire Steve Bartman!”

As for now it remains to be seen what’s going to go down in the Cubs organization. For a club who hasn’t won a championship since Teddy Roosevelt’s administration, you would think they would try a little harder to win, but with baseball you never know. If Isiah Thomas couldn’t build a winner with the most money and the biggest market in the NBA, maybe things would be different if he were to be hired by the Cubs. As long as the Wilson Chandler Project isn’t moved to Chicago, the Cubs can’t get any worse. It’s not like Thomas will unload their entire roster for a group of free agents three years from now. This is the latest from Chicago, a city where on game days, there’s more drive by’s than line drives.

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 Northland Vikings walked onto the floor to begin a season where the defending state champs will be challenged more than ever, the opening tip was an indication of what was to come. As usual, Jared Sullinger won the tip and the season was off. Even on a night where top players Sullinger and JD Weatherspoon weren’t as dominant as they have been in the past, the rest of the Northland squad stepped up big time in a 69-43 win over rival Brookhaven.

Penn State bound point guard Trey Burke took care of the scoring department, shooting exceptionally well from the field in part of 21 point performance in front of a packed crowd at Northland High School. Sullinger got the crowd rocking early on a tip slam in the second quarter that virtually changed the momentum of the game. As the Vikings were tied 15-15 at the end of the first, Ohio’s reigning Mr. Basketball decided to take over the game. Drawing fouls all night, Sullinger collected 17 points, with the  majority coming from the free throw line.

Brookhaven’s big man, Peter Kpan did an outstanding job as well. Guarding Sullinger is not the easiest task, and Kpan took care of it exceptionally well. Positioning himself in the post all night, Sullinger had a tough time getting the ball when Kpan was on him. To everyone in the stands, Kpan came as a surprise as nobody in the City League had been a challenge for Jared throughout the first three years of watching him. Kpan also did an above average job on the offensive side of the ball, scoring eight points including an impressive spin in the post on Sullinger, one of the only times Kpan scored on the Ohio State bound star.

Back to Burke, who was arguably the MVP on Tuesday night. Weeks after committing to Penn State, Trey Burke showed the crowd at Northland just what he is going to do this season. Controlling the ball on offense, Burke dominated the game at his own pace. Whether it was slashing to the basket, or hitting deep three’s, which he did three times on Tuesday, the junior  was the best player on the court. But with every win in basketball, it takes more than two players to get it done and the Vikings did just that. Sophomore KeChaun Lewis electrified the crowd in the third quarter when #22 threw down a thunderous jam on a fast break where Lewis caused a turnover, one of many for Brookhaven last night.

The offense for Northland was very good for the most part, as Weatherspoon poured in seven, Burke added in seven as well and Lavonte Justice had six points coming off of two three point field goals. JV superstar Lequan Williams also made a contribution late in the game, driving to the hoop for two of his six points. With the balanced scoring, the Viking defense was virtually suffocating. Giving up a game high 15 points in the first, no such scoring output for Brookhaven would come again. Building an eight point lead at the break, the Vikings would go on to allow six, 11 and 11 points in the last three quarters. A good mix of offense and defense is crucial to winning basketball games and Northland took care of that downing the Brookhaven Bearcats once again.

To see highlights of the game go to:http://www.mefeedia.com/video/26698248. This is compliments of Anthony Murphy over at Cap City Preps.

Last year was the third year out of 4 that the AFC South sent two teams to the playoffs, but each had troubling results once the month of January rolled on through. The Colts (12-4) lost an overtime thriller to the Chargers 23-17, and my beloved Titans (13-3), the top seed in the AFC, got upset by the born-again Baltimore Ravens 13-10. But the 2009 season looks to write a better ending to a great season than 2008, or 2007.

The division champion was Tennessee, who started last season off unbelievably hot, rolling to 10-0 record, outscoring opponents 322-121 in those games. They hammered runner-up Indianapolis in Week 8 on Monday Night, 31-21. The Colts got their stride mid-season, after starting 3-4, they won 9 straight, even with one of the victories coming over the resting Tennessee Titans in Week 17. One of the best games during the season including Indy and the Houston Texans, who broke to the .500 mark last year at 8-8. They played it close last year, going 5-4 in games decided by 7 points or less. Rounding out the division was the Jacksonville Jaguars, having a rough 4-12 season, all started by a tough loss at Tennessee in Week 1.

1. Tennessee Titans

I know that everyone is thinking one of two things when seeing this: a)I’m crazy, this is never going to happen, or b)I’m only doing this because the Titans are my favorite team. Well, they are my favorite team, but I’m not going crazy. This team has really gelled and I think is poised to prove that 2008 wasn’t just a mirage. Led by a strong duo of running backs in Chris Johnson (1228 yards, 9 touchdowns in ’08) and LenDale White (773 yards, 15 TD) they can, if I may use a UFC term, ground and pound their opponents this year.

Even with losses on the other side of the ball, the Titans look to stop opponents. The loss of Haynesworth is going to be tough to overcome, but with Vanden Bosch being in a contract year, he should step it up, hoping to be a top ten defense once again. Tied in with the defense for Tennessee is the special teams, led by kicker Rob Bironas, who just signed a 4 year deal, worth 12 million dollars. Having him back will give the Titans added weapons in a late, close type game.

The schedule is very difficult. The opening weeks of the season include going to Pittsburgh on the first Thursday night of the season, and playing Houston the next week. Before the bye week (Week 7), the Titans play the likes of New England at NE, Houston, and Indy. However, towards the end, the only major bump in the schedule is a Week 13 matchup with non other than the Indianapolis Colts. The schedule lightens up with St. Louis, and the final season of the year going out to Seattle.

2. Houston Texans

To some this would be a major surprise pick, but not to many. Sports Illustrated has them as winning the South, with Tennessee third, Indy second. The game that will be the true determining factor is a Week 2 match-up at Tennessee, with the winner trying to fight for the top of the division, along with Indianapolis. Offensively, the Texans were third in total offense last year, vastly improving from only being the 14th best offense in the NFL in 2007. One of the other major keys for Houston is at quarterback, and keeping the leader Matt Schaub healthy for an entire season, which has been hindered already by a sprained left ankle.

Defensively, the problems were one of the major reasons the Texans sunk early on last year. They gave up a troubling 24.6 points/game last year, 6th worst in the NFL. In the beginning of 2008, they dropped the first four games, giving up an average of 32.5 ppg in those games, while allowing 334.2 yards in the losses. The new defensive scheme for the Texans may take a few weeks to adjust to, being a very young defense in a new style, a more aggressive style.

(For more on the Texans, check out my other post, Texans On The Rise, Looking To Playoffs In 2009)

3. Indianapolis Colts

Looking to rebound from a crushing last year in the Divisional playoffs, the Colts look to rebound, and keep their eyes on the playoffs for 7th straight season. This year could be very difficult to keep that streak alive with the quality of teams in the South. The 2008 season included another January disappointment, losing in overtime to San Diego 23-17, after finishing the regular season 12-4, good enough for second place in the South, behind Tennessee. The 31-21 loss to the Titans on Monday night of Week 8 turned their season around, winning the last 9 of the regular season. They also scored 23 or more points 7 of the last 9 games.

However, one of the gaping holes for the Colts is the run game. Indy had a difficult time running the ball with consistency last year. “Our ability to rush the football was completely unacceptable last year. It was more of a miracle that we were able to disguise the problem so much and go so far and do so much with it being such a problem.” owner Jim Irsay said of the situation. Neither running back (Addai and Rhodes) eclipsed the 600 yard mark for the season. Compare that to Tennessee, which Johnson and White both ran for 750 yards, with Johnson going over 1,000.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars

After suffering a tough 4-12 season last year, the Jaguars look to be improved and compete for the division. However, with the quality of teams in the South, the Jags are going to have to wait another year at least. Even with getting key improvements, such as Torry Holt and Tra Thomas, this is going to be a rough year. 2008 was supposed to be a great year for Jacksonville, but went downhill, starting with a tough loss at Tennessee in Week 1.

Offensively, the Jags came back to earth from a great 2007 season last year. They placed in the bottom half of the NFL in the key offensive stats overall. Jones-Drew is going to get all of the carries this year with lifelong, now ex-Jag Fred Taylor going to New England. To have success this year, Jacksonville is going to have to establish the run with Jones-Drew, and then get David Garrard to have consistency through the air. Garrard had a tough time through the air last year, throwing 15 TDs, with 13 INTs mixed in there.

ALL GAMES RECIEVED ARE FINALS:

Toledo Central Catholic 30, Dublin Scioto 16

Hilliard Davidson 22, Brookhaven 13

Lakota West 24, Lancaster 12

Wooster 16, Mount Vernon 15

London 41, Hamilton Township 16

Groveport 55, Marysville 34

Olentangy Orange 35, Mifflin 6

Licking Heights 30, Watkins Memorial 17

Dublin Coffman 55, Holy Trinity 13

Big Walnut 33, Chillicothe 10

Logan 24, Pickerington North 21

Hilliard Darby 28, Dublin Jerome 25

Westerville Central 34, New Albany 28

Watterson 16, Westerville South 10

Northland 19, Briggs 2

Olentangy Liberty 34, Thomas Worthington 13

Marion Franklin 38, Westerville North 28

Delaware Hayes 17, Olentangy 10

Hilliard Bradley 28, Teays Valley 22

Canal Winchester 49, Jonathan Alder 14

St. Charles 26, Eastmoor Academy 7

Pickerington Central 28, Springfield 19

Marion Harding 33, Newark 22

Being the first Columbus City League school to advance to the state championship since Brookhaven in 2002, head coach Jim Miranda’s team wants to improve on the runner up finish to Aurora a season ago and bring more pride to the city league, a league which seven of it’s 16 teams have never made the playoffs. After nearly missing the playoffs in 2007, going 9-1, the Warriors surged back in ’08, advancing all the way to the state championship game before being defeated 21-10.

Graduating 22 seniors, and losing the bulk of the offense, Miranda still feels confident for his team, a club that returns key players in QB/FS Ronald Tanner, a junior who recently received a scholarship offer from West Virginia, a system where he should fit just fine especially after QB Jarrette Brown graduates this season. Aside from Tanner, Eastmoor returns star running back Carl Washington, a senior who before being sidelined with a broken leg, rushed for 600 yards and 8 TD’s. With Touche Hopkins getting the carries after Washington’s injury a season ago, this Eastmoor rushing attack looks as good as ever as the schedule shapes out just fine for the Warriors.

Eastmoor opens up with a home game against Columbus East, a senior laden team that looks to make a playoff run after missing out on the postseason action the past several seasons. From East on, the Warriors play St. Charles, a talented team led by WR Vinny Spahr. The City League’s South Division is much improved from a season ago, as Marion-Franklin is the toughest opponent but teams such as Briggs, West and Independence are on the rise.

With a talented core set of position players, Eastmoor will likely be the class of the City League, as an undefeated regular season is on the horizon. Look for receivers Steven Mitchell and Kevin Tucker to make an impact and the running game will be balanced one again as backup Shawn Jackson is a blazer at 5’9″ 172 lbs. Returning for the 2009 season, the Warriors’ motto “Unfinished Business,” remains but the task at hand will be much more difficult.

Riding into the ’08 playoffs, many teams around the state didn’t know of Miranda’s team but this year will be much different. “Everybody knows who we are now so a lot of teams are looking forward to playing us,” said Miranda. “It is good to be put up there with some of those other teams but I think it is a lot for our guys to work for. But I think they are excited and motivated to do so.”* With a relatively easy schedule, the Warriors are set for an undefeated run in the regular season with the only possible blemish coming from Marion-Franklin. With Tanner and Washington running the offense, the sky is the limit for Eastmoor, a team with quality experience and a prolific offensive attack.

*-From JJ Huddle

Fresh off a state championship, head coach Chuck Kyle returns a squad as strong as ever after a 28-20 victory of Cincinnati Elder in the Division I State Championship Game. Kyle has won 10 state championships in 21 years under the helm for the Wildcats and 2008′s title was the first in ten years, the longest drought in Kyle’s tenure at St. Ignatius.

Even with a stacked team, the season may not go as planned as the defending champs take on Cleveland Glenville in the first game of the season. Glenville is the second best team in the entire state and the matchup on the 28th will be one for the ages. Returning for the Wildcats are eight starters, and the rest of the fillers have adequate experience. As mentioned before, the road to a state championship is not all fun and games. Recently, Coach Kyle has been quoted by JJ Huddle as saying, “Now the kids know what the reality is about winning a state championship. What you hope is that you get to practice an extra five weeks because last year, that really did help our young kids get more experience during our playoff run.” If the team has really improved from last season, the results will show as Glenville returns a team full of D-I talent.

Arguably, the top player for St. Ignatius is LB Scott McVey, an Ohio State committment who wrapped up a stellar 2008 campaign with four sacks against Elder. McVey has been a dominant force all four years on campus, and his best season was last year, where he made 94 tackles, including an astounding 34.5 for a loss. Coach Kyle has seen many great players come through his school the past two decades and McVey is one of the best. “Scott’s the type of kid, he’s a very focused athlete,” Kyle said. “He loves playing the game. It’s almost like, ‘That’s (his recruitment to Ohio State) done, now let’s get ready to play the season.’ He’s glad it’s out of the way so he can play the game for his team. He had an amazing season last year.” McVey leads a defense that was one of the best in all of Ohio last season and looks to be even better in 2009.

On offense, the production remains to be seen. The top returnee is Kevin Johnson, a speedy running back who rushed for 352 yards last season and five touchdowns. Johnson was a state qualifier in the 100 meter dash last track season and should me a much needed breath to a team looking to fill the quarterback void. Mark Myers replaces Andrew Holland at quarterback and tight end Brendan Corrozoni has been heavily recruited by top schools in the area.

The gritiness and tenacity of this team will be proven as St. Ignatius features the toughest schedule in all of Ohio including games against the aforementioned Glenville, Clayton Northmont, Mentor, Massilon Washington, Cincinnati St. Xavier, the 2006 and 2007 state champions and Lakewood St. Edward at the end of the season.

Always being known for one of the funniest, most outgoing and athletic guys around, Team Cape Cod and the rest of the cape will miss AJ Passalugo, a great kid whose life ended suddenly on August 20th. Competing in the 2008 Babe Ruth World Series, Passalugo split time with Kenny Destremps behind the plate and when he got his chance to play, Passalugo took full advantage of it. Going 2-4 and being named Team Cape Cod’s MVP for his final game with the team, it was the perfect way to go out. Many will miss this young man who brought happiness and joy to everyone around him. Always having a smile on his face, it will be depressing to not see #2 on the field, a place where he was at his best.

The details on the incident remain to be known but for now, the best thing is to remember A.J. for being an overall great person and let alone baseball, he excelled at everything he did. More details are to come, but for everyone that knew Passalugo, his loss is heartbreaking as he had the rest of a life to live and it was evident he would live it to the fullest. As a key member to Team Cape Cod, A.J. was a very important member of society, so to end the post, Rest in Peace AJ Passalugo, we will all remember you and you will never be forgotten.

 AJ PASSALUGO

1990-2009

“Gone but never forgotten”

For a team led by a quarterback not recruited out of high school by Ohio State in Ricky Stanzi, the focus on this Iowa team is unlike any other in recent years. Being the only team in the Big Ten to beat Penn State last season, the Hawkeyes pose as a major threat to any team on their schedule. Even with the loss of RB Shonn Greene, this team should still be improved as they hope to trump Ohio State the week before Michigan.

The Hawkeyes have always been in the shadow of the Buckeyes, note the 2002 season where Iowa shared the Big Ten championship, played in the Orange Bowl but that season, Ohio State defeated Miami in the National Championship Game. With a sophomore quarterback in Terrelle Pryor, and a very inexperienced defense, Iowa has a solid chance of upsetting Ohio State in Columbus. Look for a high finish in the Big Ten from this team, as Ferentz has these group of guys playing harder than ever and each player on the team has November 10th circled on their calendars in big red ink.