High school football: Rematch looms for Medina, Wadsworth

All eyes will be on Art Wright Memorial Stadium on what should be a picture-perfect, crisp fall evening. That's a beautiful thing for Medina County football fans, especially if they're wearing green or red. The area's unquestioned premier gridiron rivalry, Medina vs. Wadsworth, will write what could be another epic chapter tonight in a Division I, Region 1 quarterfinal. The third-seeded Grizzlies (9-2) have been physically manhandling opponents with a true dual-threat offense, while the sixth-seeded, high-octane Bees (8-3) have a legitimate argument that they boast the best offense in all of Ohio with averages of 48.9 points and 512.5 yards. The winner gets No. 2 Cleveland Heights (10-1) or No. 7 Berea-Midpark (7-4) at a neutral site next week, along with a lifetime of bragging rights over their backyard rival because, in the grand scheme of things, a 40-23 Medina victory in Week 3 means nothing compared to this one. "Wadsworth's got a lot of athletes, but so do we," said Bees hybrid safety Brayden Smigel, who is among the county leaders with 84 tackles. "I think if we just play our game, nothing can slow us down, and everything we can do is just to hurt them." There will be few secrets in the 77th documented meeting between the schools. Medina's Danny Stoddard, Jack Wojciak, Austin Knowles and Co. are going to throw the ball all over the yard against a banged-up Grizzlies secondary that has been without Liam Russell, Carson Bux and Calix Lemp, while the Grizzlies will attempt to use their run-pass option game featuring silly-quick quarterback Will Stack and bruising running back Kyle Figuray in an effort to control pace. Recent history says that's easier said than done. In 2019, Medina's Ryan Gillespie and Drew Allar were a combined 38-for-68 for 478 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. In 2021, Allar had a 32-43-391-4-0 line, while Stoddard is 75-for-111 (.676) for 1,167 yards, 11 touchdowns and no interceptions in three games. The combined line of 145-for-222 (.653), 2,036 yards, 18 TDs and two INTs translates to a 118.0 rating that is nearly 10 points better than current NFL leader Tua Tagovailoa (108.8). Wadsworth has tried various game plans — even using only two linemen last season — without any consistent success. While Wadsworth allows a solid 17.5 points and 256.5 yards and features lineman Luke Ryder (64 tackles, 13 for loss, 6½ sacks), linebackers Jacob Earnest (96, 10½, 4) and Parker Ross (47, 13½, 4) and safeties Gavin Madigan (80 tackles) and Simon Kilker (83, team-high 4 pass breakups), traditional game plans go out the window when facing the Bees. Reigning Ohio D-I Offensive Player of the Year Stoddard (135 carries, 798 yards, 13 TDs; 263-for-385, 3,768, 45 TDs, 16 INTs) chucking the ball to Knowles (79 catches, 1,418 yards, 20 TDs), Wojciak (70, 908, 10; 63 carries, 295 yards, 5 TDs), Dylan Whitehill (36, 469, 4) and Nathan Angus (33, 400, 8) behind a well-coached line led by likely D-I college player Pete Jarvis at right tackle makes stopping Medina almost impossible. "Our defensive line has gotten a lot better, and we'll have to get some pressure on Stoddard," said Grizzlies right tackle Eli Kaufman, who holds an offer from Toledo, has serious interest from Iowa State and will visit Michigan State this weekend. "That's what made us successful last year when we played them in the playoffs." The Medina defense also justifiably has question marks despite leading the county in forced turnovers (31) by a wide margin. The Bees have two sure-fire All-Ohioans in linebacker Cooper Josefczyk (108 tackles, 17 for loss) and safety Tallen Hulvey (11 interceptions) but were torched for averages of 52.3 points and 444.0 yards in losses to Olentangy Liberty, Mentor and Cleveland Heights. While the Grizzlies only had 286 yards in the regular-season meeting — well below their 391.0 average — the offense has reached another level with physical safety Madigan at slot receiver. Stack has rushed for 1,120 yards, thrown for 1,469 and accounted for 36 touchdowns, Figuray boasts 1,344 yards from scrimmage (1,120 rushing, 224 receiving) and 17 touchdowns and state high jump qualifier Drew Jones (27 catches, 481 yards, 3 TDs) has a knack for making big catches in big moments. Wadsworth knows it can't fall behind 13-0 again, like it did in the regular season, because the No. 1 priority will be linemen Evan Crowley, Gabe Ludtke, Jon Byers, Brady O'Connor and Kaufman — along with H-back Colton Leavitt — controling the line of scrimmage and, in turn, the clock. "To be honest, we just have to keep running the ball," Kaufman said. "I know other teams have been able to run the ball on them, like Cleveland Heights. Other teams have been successful, so as long as we can start running the ball, confuse their defense and make their defense do things they don't like to do, we're going to be able to rack up some points." "We definitely want to keep No. 3 (Stack), their quarterback, contained," Smigel said. "We need to make sure he's doing what we want him to do so we can control the game." While the Grizzlies have a clear edge in the kicking game with three-year starter Jack Dinwiddie (4-of-5 field goals, 46-of-49 extra points, 12 touchbacks) and a stout coverage unit whose average starting field position of the 24-yard line leads the area, field goals may not be enough to cut it tonight. Points — and points and more points — will be the name of the game. Medina knows it, Wadsworth knows it and Northeast Ohio knows it. Toss in the fact the Bees are going for their first six-game winning streak over the Grizzlies and the motivation is endless. "I feel really confident, and I think I can say the same for the rest of the team," Kaufman said. Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.