Region 4 loaded with talented teams hungry for hardware: 2009 Division I football preview

Zac Jackson, OhioHSsports.com, August 24, 2009 9:18 a.m.

WHAT'S NEW: In terms of Cleveland St. Ignatius returning as champion and a host of Cincinnati teams looking like the biggest threats to take the title back, well, we've seen that before. But it's not often Ohio has a returning Mr. Football like North Canton Hoover does in Erick Howard; though his Hoover team is the defending Region 2 champion, they have dangerous company in traditional Stark powers Massillon and McKinley. Speaking of dangerous, Glenville appears to be as loaded as it's ever been for its Week One Cleveland showdown with Ignatius. And speaking of showdowns, in the other corner of the state Colerain opens with St. Xavier and Elder. We'll know a lot by the first weekend of September, but we'll enjoy the ride all the way through November.

THE BIG BOYS: Elder was outmanned in last year's state final against Ignatius, but the Panthers bring back plenty of playmakers and most of Ignatius' big guns graduated. Any team with Chuck Kyle and Scott McVey, however, cannot be ruled out.  Glenville might be the best team in terms of speed and raw talent, while Colerain brings back a tough, more experienced unit that has plenty of speed of its own. Other teams who'd like to be included in the state-title discussion include St. Xavier, Warren Harding, defending Div. II champion Sylvania Southview, Solon, Upper Arlington, Hilliard Davidson and McKinley.

REGION BY REGION: A glance at some of the top players and top teams…

1: St. Ignatius reloads more than it rebuilds, and gifted QB Mark Myers has big-game experience. He'll need his supporting cast to grow up quickly, though. Nothing will come easy against Glenville, and teams will also find Solon stud and Ohio State recruit Darryl Baldwin to be a two-way force. Mentor's spread offense returns QB Sam Mayse, and the Cardinals prepare themselves for a stretch run by scheduling anybody who will have them. Strongsville and St. Edward have some key personnel to replace, and Mayfield will be out to prove it belongs with the big boys after moving up from Div. II. Boardman is also a playoff threat if it can survive a schedule that includes its Federal League rivals and an opener against Youngstown Mooney.

2: Hoover, Twinsburg, Glenoak, McKinley and Massillon each bring back plenty. Brunswick is almost always in the mix, too. Southview moves up after winning the Div. II state title. Massillon-Glenoak in Week Two is a huge computer point game, and word out of Stark County is that Glenoak has found a star in sophomore transfer RB Brionte Dunn. McKinley found a groove at midseason last year with a very young team and will challenge Hoover and Glenoak for the Federal League crown.

3: Pickerington Central loses 16 seniors from a team that's been undefeated in two straight regular seasons and had Elder down early in a state semifinal game. Dublin Coffman brings back plenty from a team that narrowly missed the playoffs a year ago and will have a chance to prove itself in head-to-head meetings with Olentangy Liberty, Hilliard Davidson and Upper Arlington. Davidson lost a 7-3 slugfest to Pickerington in the regional final last season.

4: Elder brings back QB Mark Miller, his top two targets and five starters on defense. It was a young Colerain team that lost a double OT decision to Elder in last year's regional final, and this year's Cards are hungry to atone for that. St. Xavier has stars in Luke Massa and Matt James but plays a downright brutal schedule. Huber Heights Wayne has its usual cast of Div. I recruits and has chances on its schedule to make a splash. Cincinnati Princeton QB Spencer Ware has committed to LSU. Anderson lands here after moving up from Div. II, where it won the title in '07 and was runner-up last fall. There's talent, too, in places like Lakota West, Middletown, Centerville and Clayton Northmont, making this the state's deepest and most competitive region.

FAB FIVE: These are by no means the top five players in Div. I, but they are five whose play will go a long way towards determining who's still standing the first weekend of December.

Latwan Anderson, DB/RB, Glenville - Dynamic playmaker left St. Edward for his final season. He's a game-changer in the secondary and a big reason this Tarblooder team is so well regarded.

Andrew Hendrix, QB, Moeller - Chose Notre Dame to play his college football over Ohio State, Tennessee and dozens of others. He'd like to finish his high school career by pushing the Crusaders back into the discussion of Cincinnati's elite.

Erick Howard, RB/LB, Hoover - He's the real deal, and he's anxious to try to carry Hoover back to the Final Four. He'll be fun to watch as he racks up the yards and asks for more chances on defense.

Scott McVey, LB, Ignatius - He's a sack machine, a sideline-to-sideline playmaker and just might be the best defensive player the  Wildcats have ever had. And that's saying plenty.

Steve Miller, DE, McKinley - The lone junior on this list has scholarship offers from Ohio State, USC and Florida because of his size and speed. Can he continue to develop  as an all-around player, and can he impact games and help McKinley make a title run?

STEPPING OUT: Five intersectional matchups to watch that should provide a good gauge of where perceived contenders actually stand

Week 1: St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) vs. Upper Arlington: STA finished last season as USA Today's No. 1 team in the country, and nobody really expects Upper Arlington to win this game. But UA has a nice returning core and figures to learn from this one, if nothing else.

Week 2: Huber Heights Wayne at McKinley: Lots of talent, lots of speed, lots of computer points at stake. Wayne likes to rise to the level of its competition, and McKinley will be eager to show the state its roster is worth the preseason hype.

Week 3: Glenville at Huber Heights Wayne: Ditto above, but even more speed. Even more talent. And a huge, huge game for Glenville before it enters the Senate League portion of its schedule.

Week 5: Mentor at Moeller: Expect plenty of points on the scoreboard and plenty of computer points to the winner. Always interesting to see a Cleveland vs. Cincinnati and public vs. parochial matchup rolled into one.

Week 9: Elder at Ignatius: State-title rematch brings Elder a chance to make a statement and build momentum heading into November. Also brings McVey another shot to take plenty of shots at Mark Miller.

LAST WORDS: The Sept. 6 Colerain-Elder game will be broadcast by ESPN…Lakota West LB Jordan Hicks is one of the most sought after recruits in the country…Warren Harding has its most talent since Maurice Clarett was carrying the Raiders back in 2001 but will need to navigate a schedule that includes Ignatius, Massillon and Youngstown Mooney to get in the Region 1 playoffs…Massillon will thrive on the deep ball with big-armed and improving quarterback Robert Partridge throwing to a couple of burners in senior Bo Grunder and junior transfer Devin Smith…USA Today's initial Midwest rankings look this: Elder No. 1, Colerain 3, Ignatius 6, Glenville 8…As usual, the Div. I playoffs will be played on Saturday nights and the title game will cap the season.