College football: Medina's Drew Allar, Wadsworth's Mitchell Evans will face off in CFP semifinal

The last time former Wadsworth and current Notre Dame tight end Mitchell Evans saw a Medina quarterback on the opposing sideline, Evans felt the sting of defeat as Wadsworth fell 31-28 to Medina over a two-day span in September 2019, his junior year of high school. It was a lightning-filled loss he still remembers. "I always viewed Medina as our rival growing up," Evans said during Notre Dame's press availability as the Fighting Irish prepare to play Penn State in the Orange Bowl on Thursday in the College Football Playoff national semifinals. "In youth football growing up, they always beat us, so I never really got a chance to beat Medina. So when that was the last opportunity to play them and they got us, I was kind of frustrated." On the opposite sideline that day — but not starting for the Bees — was current Penn State starting quarterback Drew Allar, who took over as the starting quarterback for Medina later that season. Allar saw part-time time action against Wadsworth in 2019, completing 3-of-6 passes for 36 yards in relief of Ryan Gillespie as Medina set the then-Medina County record with 478 passing yards. As the Bees' starting quarterback, Allar was named Ohio's Mr. Football as a senior in 2021 after throwing for a then-county-record 4,444 yards and 48 touchdowns in helping lead the Bees to the Division I, Region 1 final. Like Penn State, Notre Dame offered the five-star recruit a scholarship. Evans, a redshirt senior ranked as the seventh-best tight end in the 2025 NFL Draft by Mel Kiper Jr., has seen Allar throughout the years and has been impressed with the way the former high school rival has been able to help lead his Penn State team to the semifinals. "He has a lot of heart and he loves the game of football," the 6-foot-5, 260-pound Evans said. "You can see that just in how he has grown as a player. I admire that. He is a really hard worker, and you can see it translate on the field." This season, the 6-5, 235-pound Allar, who previously announced he would return for his senior season but is allowed to change that decision, has thrown for 3,192 yards and 24 touchdowns against seven interceptions while completing 67.4% of his passes. He has six scores on the ground. That comes after throwing for 2,631 yards and 25 touchdowns with two picks on 59.9% last season. Part of Allar's confidence this season comes with the installation of new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki, who Allar credits with giving him a voice on play selection. Kotelnicki's offense also calls for many different formations, which Allar says keeps defenses off-balance. "We want to cause stress in many different ways, and causing stress starts with the players and the type of talent we have on the offensive side of the ball," said Allar, who is projected as a second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft but could zip up the board with good performances in the next game or next two games. "But it's also making the defense communicate on unique formations that maybe they have never seen before or we have never put on tape. It causes a lot of stress on defenses, and they have to prepare for a lot of different, exotic things. I personally like it a lot." After defeating SMU and Boise State in the first two rounds, Allar and the Nittany Lions will face a Notre Dame defense that has allowed 17 or more points just three times this season while giving up just 167.4 yards per game through the air. The Fighting Irish are coming off a 23-10 win over Georgia in the previous round. "I think their D-line is really good, but also their secondary is a really good secondary," Allar said. "I think it's just about executing the game plan that the coaches are going to have for us. But a lot of respect to these guys. They've accomplished a lot this year and have done a lot this year. Statistically, their defense is really good, so it's going to be a really fun matchup." As for Evans, he is back on the field this season after tearing his ACL in October of last season. The tight end is second on the team this season with 34 catches and has 311 yards and three touchdowns. He learned throughout the rehab process that it is important to take care of his body in different ways. "I haven't played ball this late in the year ever, so it has been a critical aspect to stay on top of my game, stay on top of my recovery, wellness, nutrition," Evans said. "I think I have tried to put the right things in my body and get the best night's sleep possible." When Evans has been awake, he has been trying to find any advantage he possibly can to help defeat a Penn State defense that has allowed just 15.8 points per game. One thing that has helped Evans and his teammates is that Notre Dame's classes are over for the semester, giving the players extra time to focus on football. "All we have now is extra time," he said. "There is no school, there are no finals. It's just football now. I find myself getting with the young guys and getting with the other guys in the room and watching more film, trying to find out any little tricks, how they play certain personnel, how they attack pass pro, how they attack in man coverage." Whether it is Allar who is able to figure out the Notre Dame defense or Evans being able to find an opening against the Penn State defense, the one thing we know for sure is the county will be represented on both sides and either Allar or Evans will be playing for a national championship on Jan. 20. Contact Ryan Isley at sports@medina-gazette.com.