Marvin Bell, Casey Bullock lead St. Edward to another OHSAA football state championship
CANTON — Same teams. Same result. The St. Edward football team defeated Springfield in the Division I state championship game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium for the second consecutive year, winning 28-14 Friday night.
It is the sixth state title in school history for the Eagles and the fourth under head coach Tom Lombardo. St. Edward controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball throughout the game en route to the victory in the final game of Friday's tripleheader of title games.
“It was an outstanding year for us,” Lombardo said. “I’m so proud of all of these kids. We played one of the toughest schedules in the state and possibly the country and they rose to the challenge. Nothing has come easily.”
St. Edward made it look easy on the ground Friday night. Running back Marvin Bell surpassed 100 yards rushing in the first half and finished with 170 on 24 carries. Bell ran for two touchdowns.
“I have to thank my offensive line,” Bell said. “I couldn’t do what I do without those guys going out and sacrificing their bodies for me. We did a good job of playing our brand of football tonight. We knew that if we didn’t put the ball on the ground that we had an excellent chance of winning this game.”
St. Edward committed only one turnover. That came on a Hail Mary pass attempt at the end of the first half that was picked off by Springfield’s Tawfiq Jabbar Jr. It was the only blemish on a night where the Eagles racked up 398 yards of total offense.
Quarterback Casey Bullock was efficient passing and also ran for 101 yards on 17 carries while running the option. Bullock was 8-of-13 passing for 102 yards with a touchdown and one interception.
“Casey did a tremendous job of running the option tonight,” Lombardo said. “We read the defensive end really well. It was beautiful for me to watch. I wasn’t sure who had the ball for us at times and I don’t think they did either.”
The St. Edward defense applied constant pressure to Springfield quarterback Bryce Schondelmyer. The Eagles sacked Schondelmyer nine times. Despite that, Schondelmyer would not go quietly. He engineered an 18-play touchdown drive in the third quarter to pull the Wildcats to within one score before Bell sealed the game with a 1-yard TD run with 8:06 left in the first quarter.
St. Edward was able to stop Springfield on the next drive and then run out the clock to secure the victory and the state title.
Here’s a look at some of the key things to know about the game:
Player of the Game: Marvin Bell, RB, St. Edward
Bell was a force all night running the ball. He ran for 170 yards and two touchdowns despite battling some injuries in the second half that limited him to just eight carries over the final two quarters. Bell had enough left in the tank to punch in the game-clinching TD on a 1-yard run with 8:06 to play.
Play of the Game: Springfield’s Bryce Schondelmyer throws a TD strike to Daylen Bradley
Schondelmyer made an incredible throw in a losing effort to pull the game to within one score (21-14) with just 18 seconds left in the third quarter. Schondelmeyer hit Daylen Bradley for a 17-yard touchdown on third-and-goal while being hit by a St. Edward pass rusher. Schondelmyer threw the ball on a rope over the middle of the field and dropped it in between two St. Edward defenders for a score. An incredible play in an otherwise tough night for the Wildcats.
Three stats to a title
19.5: The number of sacks St. Edward seniors Wyatt Gedeon and Michael Kilbane produced on the season each. Gedeon had 3.5 sacks against Springfield while Kilbane had three. Both are Division I recruits Gedeon is headed to Coastal Carolina while Kilbane has signed with Northwestern.
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1,877: The total number of rushing yards Bell produced for St. Edward this season against a brutal schedule. Bell produced several explosive runs and sealed the game with a late 1-yard TD run while playing through injury. Bell ran for 27 touchdowns this year.
8:07: The amount of time Springfield’s 70-yard, 18-play touchdown drive consumed off the clock in the third quarter. The Wildcats converted six third downs, were sacked four times and ultimately got a 17-yard touchdown pass on third-and-goal from Schondelmyer to Bradley. The St. Edward offense, though, answered after sitting on the sideline for well over half of the third quarter and scored a touchdown on Bell’s 1-yard run on the ensuing drive to ensure victory.
They said it
St. Edward head coach Tom Lombardo on defensive ends Michael Kilbane and Wyatt Gedeon: “I think tonight was proof that we had two of the top defensive ends in the state. I’m really going to lament losing them. They were quiet leaders and two of the hardest workers on the team. They were fun to watch.”
Springfield head coach Maurice Douglass on playing against a parochial school in the state title game for the second consecutive year: “They can go out and select boys from anywhere in the state. We are limited to the kids we have in Clark County. That’s the difference between private and public schools. They got 2,000 boys and we have maybe 800. I wish you could see the difference in the equipment these schools have. We don’t even have a pop-up dummy for our defensive line to work with. I wish you could see our blocking sled. If you saw the equipment these kids were working with, you’d be amazed they were able to make it this far. I think they should split the parochial schools and public schools into separate divisions.”
Douglass on an altercation that occurred in the handshake line after the game: “I heard that one of their players threw a punch at one of our guys in the handshake line. I got his side of the story. He said our guys had been calling him on the phone and antagonizing him during the week. I find it hard to believe. You guys are all the way up in Cleveland. How the hell are we even going to get that number?”
This article originally appeared on The Repository: St. Edward football beats Springfield again in OHSAA state final
