Mentor Football 2024

cardzfan1234 said:
I have no specific data on the number of snaps, just a general observation as someone who went to the majority of the games.

2008-2010 Mentor was way more likely to have two back sets than an empty set. This was a rare era where Mentor relied on the ground game a ton behind Tom Worden, Mike Korecz, and Ricky Hanzlik. In 2008, Worden was 2nd Team All-Ohio. 2009: 1st Team All-District for Korecz. 2010: 2nd Team All-Ohio for Korecz. The QB play and receiver depth wasn’t as strong, so Triv adapted and used a ton of two back sets over these three years.

2011 was the lone “5 wide” season. That happened. I think you’re putting your original comment based on one season. Trubisky as a junior was making the offense work, until a tough St Ignatius defense and very windy conditions got in his way.

From 2012-2019, Mentor stayed with their traditional four WR, one RB set. All-District backs like Nick DeLisa (2012), Eddie Daugherty (2013), Alex Mathews (2014-2015), Isaiah Gullick (2016), Chris Edmond (2017), and Brian Trobel (2018-2019) wouldn’t have gotten the carries, production, or recognition they got if Triv utilized five wide. Ask anyone who watched the 2017 playoff run and they will point to the use of Eli McDougal as the difference maker for the team as he put back to back 100+ yard efforts in upset wins over Eds/Ignatius. There’s my data.
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Good enough for me!! If you’ve been to all those games and seen the seasons, I trust you. I know you’re a big backer so I humbly state “I stand corrected”.
 
cardzfan1234 said:
I have no specific data on the number of snaps, just a general observation as someone who went to the majority of the games.

2008-2010 Mentor was way more likely to have two back sets than an empty set. This was a rare era where Mentor relied on the ground game a ton behind Tom Worden, Mike Korecz, and Ricky Hanzlik. In 2008, Worden was 2nd Team All-Ohio. 2009: 1st Team All-District for Korecz. 2010: 2nd Team All-Ohio for Korecz. The QB play and receiver depth wasn’t as strong, so Triv adapted and used a ton of two back sets over these three years.

2011 was the lone “5 wide” season. That happened. I think you’re putting your original comment based on one season. Trubisky as a junior was making the offense work, until a tough St Ignatius defense and very windy conditions got in his way.

From 2012-2019, Mentor stayed with their traditional four WR, one RB set. All-District backs like Nick DeLisa (2012), Eddie Daugherty (2013), Alex Mathews (2014-2015), Isaiah Gullick (2016), Chris Edmond (2017), and Brian Trobel (2018-2019) wouldn’t have gotten the carries, production, or recognition they got if Triv utilized five wide. Ask anyone who watched the 2017 playoff run and they will point to the use of Eli McDougal as the difference maker for the team as he put back to back 100+ yard efforts in upset wins over Eds/Ignatius. There’s my data.
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I agree here. 2011 our base was 10 Empty .. since then we run 10 personal. Man I would love to see 11 personal and shift to a TE look just to give teams a new concept to scheme for.

If we did something like that who would you see at TE this season (again mental exercise fun in the off season so no need for the “Gray would never , they won’t , they haven’t etc.. I get it )

Could you see a converted tackle like Pritchard who is 6’4” 210 someone posted .. it could be done.

On a side note , hearing Coughlin is looking big and strong .. excited about having a bruiser in the backfield with the instincts he has. Anyone who saw him in youth through freshmen ball knows he is very tough to bring down and has good vision.
 
As for a tight end, I’m looking at current sophomore basketball player Tony Katava. He’s 6’5 and a good athlete. I have no idea if he ever played football or even wants to play - but I don’t think it would take long to learn the position. Kobe is also a good sized basketball player that could easily learn to be successful as a HS football tight end.
 
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With the addition of Erie McDowell as a home game in Week 3, the 2024 schedule is now complete. That opponent certainly caught me off guard considering the amount of teams that seemingly made more sense. But Mentor gets a home game early in the season with no atmosphere, no away crowd, and no interesting history (besides the fact these teams did play in 2012/2013).

The good news is that the schedule is complete and Mentor got a home game. Even better if it’s a one year deal with no return trip to Erie in 2025. I have no clue if that’s an accurate statement or not. The two did have a home and home series last decade.
 
cardzfan1234 said:
With the addition of Erie McDowell as a home game in Week 3, the 2024 schedule is now complete. That opponent certainly caught me off guard considering the amount of teams that seemingly made more sense. But Mentor gets a home game early in the season with no atmosphere, no away crowd, and no interesting history (besides the fact these teams did play in 2012/2013).

The good news is that the schedule is complete and Mentor got a home game. Even better if it’s a one year deal with no return trip to Erie in 2025. I have no clue if that’s an accurate statement or not. The two did have a home and home series last decade.
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Why is there no away crowd? Have you researched McDowell? Should be a good test for Mentor
 
cardzfan1234 said:
With the addition of Erie McDowell as a home game in Week 3, the 2024 schedule is now complete. That opponent certainly caught me off guard considering the amount of teams that seemingly made more sense. But Mentor gets a home game early in the season with no atmosphere, no away crowd, and no interesting history (besides the fact these teams did play in 2012/2013).

The good news is that the schedule is complete and Mentor got a home game. Even better if it’s a one year deal with no return trip to Erie in 2025. I have no clue if that’s an accurate statement or not. The two did have a home and home series last decade.
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Good D1 level game. Mentor wanted to continue the Riverside series but Riverside was content to get one win and get out. Pretty much what we expected as no WRC is going to sustain playing Mentor. It's always going to be duck ins when they perceive themselves as up and Mentor as down

I too would have liked Massillon more than McDowell but we don't know what negotiations were like. Massillon wanted Mentor to only come to Massillon with no return trip the last few times they talked. That isn't happening

McDowell is actually a closer road trip from Mentor compared to the Massillon trip. They were a good match the last time around so this one is fine with me.
 
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deadmanwalking said:
Why is there no away crowd? Have you researched McDowell? Should be a good test for Mentor
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"No away crowd" was an exaggeration. McDowell came to Erie in 2013. They brought a crowd, sure. But it will be nothing compared to the crowd that the top three on my list (Riverside, Lake Catholic, Massillon) would bring. At this point, I know nothing about McDowell. They were a good test in 2012/13 though.
 
MentorGrad2002 said:
Good D1 level game. Mentor wanted to continue the Riverside series but Riverside was content to get one win and get out. Pretty much what we expected as no WRC is going to sustain playing Mentor. It's always going to be duck ins when they perceive themselves as up and Mentor as down

I too would have liked Massillon more than McDowell but we don't know what negotiations were like. Massillon wanted Mentor to only come to Massillon with no return trip the last few times they talked. That isn't happening

McDowell is actually a closer road trip from Mentor compared to the Massillon trip. They were a good match the last time around so this one is fine with me.
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Any rebuttle from the Riverside folks who speak up here? Your team's true colors are now in full display. It was an opportunistic plan and now that the chosen ones are graduating the team/school slither off back under their rock.

Really weak.....zero respect for that.
 
Cardgrad90 said:
Any rebuttle from the Riverside folks who speak up here? Your team's true colors are now in full display. It was an opportunistic plan and now that the chosen ones are graduating the team/school slither off back under their rock.

Really weak.....zero respect for that.
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It's really only one guy and he isn't really a stable individual. Look at the debate board if you want to see how nuts he is.. He also was pumping up Mentor to the WRC when none of those schools sustain playing Mentor in the revenue sports. Very delusional

No WRC school was ever going to sustain playing Mentor in football. Myself and others said that too when that guy brought up this being a big rivalry for the future.

I actually hoped to be wrong but Mentor is just a bigger school so it's always going to be the wrc schools who will schedule when they are up and think we are down. Advantage to them in that regard but a D1 school like Mentor has a harder time scheduling than most of them
 
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MentorGrad2002 said:
It's really only one guy and he isn't really a stable individual. Look at the debate board if you want to see how nuts he is.. He also was pumping up Mentor to the WRC when none of those schools sustain playing Mentor in the revenue sports. Very delusional

No WRC school was ever going to sustain playing Mentor in football. Myself and others said that too when that guy brought up this being a big rivalry for the future.

I actually hoped to be wrong but Mentor is just a bigger school so it's always going to be the wrc schools who will schedule when they are up and think we are down. Advantage to them in that regard but a D1 school like Mentor has a harder time scheduling than most of them
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I hear you. I'm OK admitting my intent in that post was to express my personal opinion of Riverside and what they did, one last time. The water has now passed under the bridge.
 
I walk out of the past two years with respect for Riverside. They stepped up and requested a two-game series with Mentor. They played toe to toe with "big brother" and both games could've gone either way. At the end of their two years, what obligation is of Riverside to keep scheduling Mentor? I don't think they owed Mentor anything.

Yes, their two consecutive strong classes are now going to be gone. Mentor's 2024 team should be the best of the past few seasons. What is the incentive for Riverside to take a guaranteed loss, and likely one in running clock fashion? Riverside is DII and I don't blame them at all for not wanting to play Mentor. I would have liked to have Riverside on the schedule for the sake of the excitement, a potential growing local rivalry, more fans, etc. But in terms of whether or not the game was going to help Mentor achieve their goals - that is pretty doubtful considering the talent gap that would exist in 2024.
 
cardzfan1234 said:
I walk out of the past two years with respect for Riverside. They stepped up and requested a two-game series with Mentor. They played toe to toe with "big brother" and both games could've gone either way. At the end of their two years, what obligation is of Riverside to keep scheduling Mentor? I don't think they owed Mentor anything.

Yes, their two consecutive strong classes are now going to be gone. Mentor's 2024 team should be the best of the past few seasons. What is the incentive for Riverside to take a guaranteed loss, and likely one in running clock fashion? Riverside is DII and I don't blame them at all for not wanting to play Mentor. I would have liked to have Riverside on the schedule for the sake of the excitement, a potential growing local rivalry, more fans, etc. But in terms of whether or not the game was going to help Mentor achieve their goals - that is pretty doubtful considering the talent gap that would exist in 2024.
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Are we going to ignore the Riverside guy saying it was going to go on long term , how Mentor is Riverside's strongest rival and how Mentor should join the wrc when none of these teams regularly schedule Mentor in football or boys basketball?

As I said above, the wrc teams sneak in to try to win vs Mentor when they perceive Mentor to be down and their classes to be up. Then they retreat. Just how it is. I've said Mentor should still take those as they travel a lot in football. It's advantage wrc teams there with leverage but the short road trips have to be a take

Your point is rational. We all said this was going to happen. I was hoping for Mentor to have a long term local rivalry for once with the expanded playoffs. But I figured this would happen.

McDowell is a good scheduling job for Mentor. If this is really finally done then Riverside is in the past. We can focus on the good opponent from PA among the other 9 on our schedule
 
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cardzfan1234 said:
"No away crowd" was an exaggeration. McDowell came to Erie in 2013. They brought a crowd, sure. But it will be nothing compared to the crowd that the top three on my list (Riverside, Lake Catholic, Massillon) would bring. At this point, I know nothing about McDowell. They were a good test in 2012/13 though.
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You are right. I can guarantee that you are right about the size of the McDowell crowd. Will be relatively small. 2013 is 11 years ago. They might bring 200 people. I would be stunned if they brought more that that. McDowell will have a brand new head coach. He was the DC the last few seasons for McDowell. McDowell does have a really solid QB returning. Great arm, really good athlete. Baseball player with a canon. D1 baseball offers. But he will be coming off a torn ACL in their last playoff game in November. He is expected back. Usually has decent size, but loses their best OL/DL to Penn St. Stud RB's. Solid WR's. Want to spread you out and let the RB's do their thing. And QB can sling it. I see Mentor winning the trenches and I have Mentor winning by at least 3 scores.
 
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cardzfan1234 said:
The 2023 season didn't meet expectations. The regular season wasn't terribly bad, but losing in the way they did to St Ignatius and Riverside left a poor taste in the mouth of everyone involved and the Mentor supporters who were watching. Mentor did play better in Weeks 4-10, but then the offense laid an egg against St Ignatius in the playoff rematch in Week 11. The talent on the 2023 team shouldn't have walked away with zero playoff wins, plain and simple.

The 2024 team has higher expectations. If you ask the coaching staff and players, they will say that the state championship is the goal. That is not an expectation unique to Mentor. And like many other programs that say the same thing, sometimes they say these things without having true faith that it is achievable. But, I think it is very reasonable for Mentor to optimistically build toward trying to compete to win Region 1 this year. After making four straight regional finals and winning three of them from 2017-2020, the Gray-led Mentor Cardinals have seen a significant slip. Two first round exits are sandwiched around a very solid 2022 playoff run. This is now year five under Coach Gray and I am of the belief that it is "put up or shut up" time. If the team loses to anyone other than St Edward in the Region 1 playoffs, this 2024 season will be a failure. And I don't know that Gray will make it to 2025 without showing the program is headed in the right direction. On paper, the offensive talent coming back is better than any in the area.

West Virginia-commit Scotty Fox returns for a 4th season as varsity starting QB. His 2023 stats and play took a step back from 2022, but overall he still played like one of the top QB's in the region. Fox earned 2nd Team All-Ohio recognition, which is a great accomplishment. His top two receivers return: Austin VanHuss (Class of 2025) and junior Justen Hodge (Class of 2026). VanHuss should continue to build on a solid junior season and be one of the top receivers in the GCC. Hodge, a player with a lot of DI college attention, is on his way to bigger offers. Cerny and Sierputowksi are returning receivers with experience and potential that should give Fox plenty of talented weapons to throw to. Hodge could end up being one of the top offensive players in the area. Blocking up front are two a pair of Class of 2026 lineman with DI offers: Landry Brede (a probable B10 lineman with tremendous size and potential) and JoJo LoDuca (6'3, 270). Fox took on a lot of the running game this past season. Mentor's "running back by committee" worked fine in 2023, but they will need something more consistent in 2024. The probable return of Mason Coughlin will help. The projected starter at running back for 2023 was injured the entire season. Jackson Farley, one of the three running backs that shared duties in 2023, did fine as a sophomore. He will bring some depth to the position with Coughlin. Mentor really needs to improve their running game to help take the necessary steps forward on offense.

Defensively, I am not sure what to expect. The first year under a new defensive coordinator Nick DeCesare was a good one. Mentor had to replace a ton of starters and defensive talent from the 2022 team. The 2023 defense stepped up and became the strength of a team you thought would be built on offense. The top returning starters are defense end Julian Solis, linebacker Caden Clair, and linebacker Spencer Barninger. The team's defensive identity was very much wrapped in the excellent play of a pair of safeties that were seniors. Replacing Markowski and Shelley will be incredibly difficult.

Kicker Dylan Tackett was an All-Ohio kind of talent that also returns.

On paper (depending on how the Week 3 game gets scheduled), this is a team that should have no less than 9 regular season wins. The St Ignatius game will be tough. Cleveland Heights has a Mr. Football candidate returning at running back in Davis. Splitting those games and winning the rest is my regular season prediction. Medina is likely taking a step back, but probably still will be a competitive team. The rest of the GCC should be no problem for Mentor. The September 20th game with Cleveland Heights is likely the league deciding game.

Schedule:
08/23 H Massillon Jackson
08/30 A Cleveland St. Ignatius
09/06 H Erie McDowell (PA)
09/13 A Medina
09/20 H Cleveland Heights
09/27 H River Rouge (MI)
10/04 A Shaker Heights
10/11 A Brunswick
10/18 H Strongsville
10/25 A Euclid
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Looks like River Rouge home game is Saturday September 28 at 2 pm to help them with travel
 
MentorGrad2002 said:
Looks like River Rouge home game is Saturday September 28 at 2 pm to help them with travel
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This looks like a 9-1 schedule. GCC games other than Cleveland Hts should be a cake walk. Ignatius game could go either way. Region 1 should be more competitive as Ed’s, Iggy and Mentor and Clev Hts are top 4. Medina is breaking in new QB. McKinley will be solid too.
 
fbrox said:
This looks like a 9-1 schedule. GCC games other than Cleveland Hts should be a cake walk. Ignatius game could go either way. Region 1 should be more competitive as Ed’s, Iggy and Mentor and Clev Hts are top 4. Medina is breaking in new QB. McKinley will be solid too.
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With the transfers they’ve added I think McKinley is in that top group with Heights and St. Edward.
 
Mentor appears to have hired Nate Westrich as a new offensive line coach. he spent the prior two season as Cleveland Heights offensive line coach. He was a 2022 graduate of john carroll where he played football. Should be a nice new addition
 
cardzfan12 said:
Mentor appears to have hired Nate Westrich as a new offensive line coach. he spent the prior two season as Cleveland Heights offensive line coach. He was a 2022 graduate of john carroll where he played football. Should be a nice new addition
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What happened with Mooney?
 
This could be Mentor's time to strike in D1, R1

Eds will be down losing all of that talent, Ignatius is still about a year away from being competitive on a regular basis like year's past, McKinley is a question mark
 
cardzfan1234 said:
If it’s as simple as that, Mentor should say yes today. Especially if their first option (Riverside) remains non-committal.
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Unless Riverside is scheduling Perry, Kirtland, or Harvey (returning their duel-threat QB), I don't understand why Riverside would not agree to another two-year deal with Mentor. Both, JV and freshmen teams, have experience with the Mentor players. It would be beneficial for the program and the players.
 
Nick Samac Combine stats:
College: Michigan State
Position: Center
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 307 pounds
Arm Length: 32 3/4’’
Hand Size: 9 3/4’’

Did not run a 40, good size, undersized frame, good athleticism, movement skills, footwork, & lateral quickness, good play strength, good techniques & hand usage, 3 year starter, best in a zone scheme, Day 3 projected draft pick
 
acb1234 said:
This could be Mentor's time to strike in D1, R1

Eds will be down losing all of that talent, Ignatius is still about a year away from being competitive on a regular basis like year's past, McKinley is a question mark
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Sorry to jump into the Mentor thread. Ed’s still returns some significant talent at QB, RB, WR and a couple three year starters on defense.

Yes, they lose three major offensive linemen along with two defensive lineman, all of which went to P5 schools. I wouldn’t say down just yet. Next year, yes.
 
FightingCardinal said:
Nick Samac Combine stats:
College: Michigan State
Position: Center
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 307 pounds
Arm Length: 32 3/4’’
Hand Size: 9 3/4’’

Did not run a 40, good size, undersized frame, good athleticism, movement skills, footwork, & lateral quickness, good play strength, good techniques & hand usage, 3 year starter, best in a zone scheme, Day 3 projected draft pick
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I saw on ESPN draft they list him as predicted to be undrafted free agent.
In other news will Trubisky get a contract from anyone? Or will he be heading to Canada or UFL?
 
FightingCardinal said:
Nick Samac Combine stats:
College: Michigan State
Position: Center
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 307 pounds
Arm Length: 32 3/4’’
Hand Size: 9 3/4’’

Did not run a 40, good size, undersized frame, good athleticism, movement skills, footwork, & lateral quickness, good play strength, good techniques & hand usage, 3 year starter, best in a zone scheme, Day 3 projected draft pick
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Hopefully he can be a day 3 pick or catch on with a team if he goes undrafted. Very tough to make the NFL though .

Great thrill to be part of the NFL combine after being a very good starter at the D1 level in both high school and college.

Most here haven't done that and can only dream of it .
 
MentorGrad2002 said:
Hopefully he can be a day 3 pick or catch on with a team if he goes undrafted. Very tough to make the NFL though .

Great thrill to be part of the NFL combine after being a very good starter at the D1 level in both high school and college.

Most here haven't done that and can only dream of it .
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Centers are one of the most devalued positions in the draft, very few are taken. He is good blocking in the run game, but he needs work on his pass blocking. Somewhat ironic coming from Mentor's prolific pass offense. Samac was the only player from
Michigan State invited to the combine.
 
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